Reassessing the Routine

I'm definitely bigger than I was a few months ago, and if I were a guy, I'd probably be happy about it. But I'm a really short woman who already has trouble finding nice clothes that fit properly, so this added size isn't welcome news. I confirmed it by stepping on my home scale this morning. I need to drop 5 lbs of serious fat and water. I say fat and water because I'm certain that at least a pound or two is water from overly salty weekend fare.

We ate Japanese last night to celebrate my husband's birthday. Miso soup ramen is high on the sodium scale. We also ate at Golden Corral on Saturday after we picked our son up from Scout Camp. The buffet-style food has some winners, but most of it is unsurprisingly high in salt and fat. Except for their coffee, which was probably the worst coffee I've drunk in a very long time. No wonder coffee is free there--it's like dishwater.

Most of you will scoff at 5 lbs, but if you are my size, it will be nearly 5 percent of your body weight. I could say it's because I've cut my workouts down from four or five days a week to just three, or that I've reduced my cardio since bringing my son to work out with me. But the reality is that reducing my exercise has increased my appetite so I'm eating more.

It's been understood for years that exercise leads to a decrease in appetite and several theories have been proposed to explain why ghrelin (a hormone linked to increased appetite and growth hormones) and leptin (another weight management hormone) decrease. There's also evidence that raising body temperature with vigorous exercise works to decrease appetite. It's not known if sitting in a sauna for 30 minutes will also have the same effect. Of course, I'd rather do HIIT cardio than sit in a hot wooden box.

I had a follow-up appointment at my dermatologist this morning to check on the suspicious line running the length of my right big toe. Not only is it still there, but the skin below the nail bed appears raised and reddened. Wearing wool socks makes the itching worse after a while, which is a bummer because I love my alpaca wool socks. The doctor doesn't think it's melanoma but can't say for certain what exactly is happening. I've had this dark stripe since March so that's six months. Too long for a standard splinter hemorrhage. He recommends a plastic surgeon in my health insurance network to perform a nail bed biopsy. Of course, my first question is "Will I still be able to exercise?" because he tells me that there will be a few stitches in my toe after the procedure. I'm suspicious that this might be psoriasis but the doc doesn't think it is. Psoriasis, an autoimmune disorder, has popped up in my family sporadically.

I don't get to the gym until nearly 1 pm so there's a lunchtime crowd, but it's not really crowded. I'm actually leery of putting a lot of pressure on my toes after my doctor's appointment. When I do HIIT cardio, I press hard on the front of my feet the faster I pedal so I wonder if this is causing my toe issues. Today I do program 1 on the elliptical instead. Then my standard cage stretch and pullups, followed by core exercises. But instead of pushing weights, I step on the Step Mill for 20 minutes and then another set of pullups. I finish with 2:1 Seated Leg Curls (with increased weight) and finally, Walking Lunges. I haven't done the latter in some weeks, but these don't feel too bad. I just hope I can walk tomorrow.

Solo Abbrev Monday

30 min elliptical + 5cd
Program 1
Miles 2.91
Calories 326
HR 144-205 (95)

Cage Stretch
HGPU 20

Crunches 50/50
Leg horizontal scissors 50
Bicycles 50
Side Planks 2 x 60s
Bird Dogs 2 x 60s

20 Step Mill
Level 3
Calories 113
Total steps 709
Floors 44
HR 136

HGPU 20

2:1 Seated Leg Curls
15lbs x 12
30 x 12
37.5 x 12
45 x 8

Walking Lunges
29+29=58

Mat Stretch

Rethinking the Routine

My son and I both went to bed way too late. He discovered a page of HW that needed attention, and I never go to bed until he's already done so. Meanwhile, I've flipped through the Hulu offerings and wander back into My 600-lb Life, first season, first episode. Yes, there's a morbid fascination with people more unfortunate than we are. As in the Hoarders program, we are voyeurs peering into a secret world. Except, in this case, both my son and I are horrified at the subject's spouse who, we both agree, is a total dick. There is no other word for the nasty comments, lack of support and continued attempts to sabotage the subject's efforts to drop hundreds of pounds and regain some semblance of health and independence. My son asks incredulously, "He knows the film crew is videotaping him, right?" Apparently he doesn't care.

This morning, the alarm went off right in the middle of a dream that had Nathan Fillion in it. I'm not quite sure if I was reliving an episode of his new show The Rookie, or a Castle rerun. Dreams have a habit of fading once you wake up. He could've been Caleb, the murderous priest in the final season of Buffy, for all I know. I've been limiting my viewing of Angel since I know Season 5 is the last season, and even though shows live forever in the digital world, I'm allowing myself to savor each episode. The head-butting between Angel and Spike is just too amusing!

Winter is back as temps hover in the 30s all day. Even the gym seems cold, and there's a portable generator in the vestibule. I ask the staff about it and am told that the power company accidentally cut their electric this morning. What?! Now it's fixed, but they needed the generator to open. Oh jeeze! I catch whiffs of gasoline every now and then all throughout the gym. Yeah, I'm that sensitive.

Again, I do a program on the elliptical plus the cool down, then a quick stretch, and some basic core. I'm a little stiff from past workouts. The Smith is available but I have to drag the Inclined Bench out of the DB area. The guys are huddled in the free weight area, chatting. Occasionally one of them actually gets on a bench for a move and the others offer assistance and encouragement. I try to analyze my breathing during heavy inclined presses. I can't actually inhale properly on the descent, as my chest feels compressed as my arms come down. This is completely counter to what everyone tells you to do. It is so much easier to let your breath go as the bar descends, and then inhale while pressing up, as the chest expands. Regardless, the important thing is to breathe, and absolutely not hold your breath. Not only does that deprive your body of oxygen, it can cause your bodily pressures to build up, including IOPs in glaucoma patients.

The rest of my routine is well, routine. The gym is sporadically crowded, then not. I see a lot of regulars. Some are okay, and the creepy ones I avoid. I see a woman I've never seen before. Her outfit reminds me of the Ren Faires because it's basically black tights with a gray side seam pattern that says (to me) chain mail and dragons. She's also wearing a cropped tank/bra and maybe a belt? Not a weight belt. Maybe it's just the design of the top? In any event, her midriff is showing, which I personally think is brave, because I wouldn't be caught dead showing my fat belly. Seriously. She engages in a lot of different weight movements including standing cable rows, and barbell curls. I wonder if she's going to be a regular. She's not obviously muscular, but she's not skinny-fat or overweight either (like a lot of the women here). No, more like a post-college athlete.

The gym scale hasn't budged since yesterday's 112.4 lbs. I make the excuse that last night's bratwursts and mac'n cheese had too much sodium in it. But really, I know what I have to do. Tomorrow, instead of another Pull Day, I need to up my cardio. I'll keep the HIIT cardio at least twice a week, but tomorrow I'll add another 30 minutes of other cardio, and fill the in-between with core and body weight exercises. Then, whack the machine on Thursday, more cardio and legs on Friday. It's a plan.

I'm disappointed that the redness under my eyes hasn't faded yet. At least I have some cover up to make myself look less like I'm suffering from ebola...

Tuesday

30 min elliptical + 5 min cool down
Program 3
Calories 302
Miles 2.76
HR 143, maximum HR 186 (low 79)

Push Ups 50
Crunches 30/40
Bicycles 50

Smith Inclined Press
Bar x 15
50 x 12
70 x 15
90 x 12 x 3 reverse breathing
60 x 25

DB Laterals s/s Rev Incl Flyes
20lbs x 12/15 reps x 3 sets

Rip Skulls
35lbs x 12 reps x 3 sets

Stretch