Cardio Friday

I wasn't sure how I felt about doing cardio three days in a row but there's no way to know until it's done. So I did it. I got on my favorite Precor and punched in the standard 30 minutes, program Interval 7. Except for my right front outer ankle (peroneus brevis?), things felt pretty good. I'm guessing my bout on the LifeFitness elliptical on Thursday put too much stress on that joint. It doesn't hurt so I go for round two on the Precor and punch in Interval 8. I'm dragging a little but still manage to make my quotas and I'm very happy.

After a brief Cage Stretch, I wrap my hands and set my gear down under the Nexersys Station. Twelve rounds later and I'm thoroughly drenched. I get a bit vexed with the machine when it tells me that I'm punching or kicking too hard and then doesn't register the blow, lowering my accuracy score. When I look at the review screen, my accuracy runs the gamut between 62 and 100% depending on the combinations called for by the program avatar.

Looking softer is
not what I want

I feel the need for a quick stretch though and do an abbreviated Mat Stretch, skipping the Dive Bomber Push Ups and plank because my shoulders are tired and I don't want to land on my face. The gym scale reads 111.4 lbs post workout, and 109.6 lb when I get home. What's weirder is that my home scale reads 108.4 this morning when I get up. Still, what really worries me is the trend I've noticed in my body composition: more body fat, less muscle. I've really got to make that appointment for an annual and get my blood work done. And then I need a plan to deal with this.

Friday Cardio Workout
35 min Interval 7 = 4.41 miles + 35 min Interval 8 = 4.22 miles 
Grand Total = 8.63 miles  Yay!
Cage Stretch
Nexersys Boxing Station: 12 rounds Follow Me Avatar, beginner female
  Accuracy 81%  /  Strikes 105%  /  Avg Power 125% 

photos posted for actual stats:

Learning to Adapt

Face still puffy!

My elbows woke me repeatedly last night, as did the spider bite on my foot. The sun poked me in the eye way too early, and I got to the gym grumpy and disheveled. I suspect that my exuberant pull ups and chin ups have finally caught up to the frailties of my tiny joints. I'll have to modify my workouts to accommodate my injuries because I certainly don't want to stop working out! Chin ups are off the list! And I'll have to cut back on Pull Ups.

The gym is crowded today but once I'm plugged in, I'm oblivious to the chattering din. Headphones and iPod Nanos are truly a godsend. I'm tired so no matter how hard I push, I can't maintain a 200 SPM pace on the Precor. I don't make my quota and it's a bit of a bummer, but I console myself with the fact that tomorrow's Leg Day, and hopefully I'll make that quota.

Today's 1st Pull Day Workout (modified due to elbow tendinitis)
35 min cardio = 3.93 miles (Bleah!)
Seated Cable Rows: 12 @ 90 lbs / 10 @ 105 / 8 @ 120 / 3 x 6 @ 135 lbs
My left elbow complains at first but I modify the angle of my grip to lessen pressure on the brachioradialis (top forearm near elbow). The flexor muscles beneath my elbow are horribly tender and I need to protect them from further injury.
Smith Rack Pull Ups (I only do 2 sets today and note how bad my forearms hurt from this movement): 12+2 / 12
Cage Stretch & Kicks
Reverse Grip BB Rows: 6 x 15 @ 95 lbs
These feel awfully heavy in my palms and my hands throb afterwards. 
Seated Alternating DB Curls: 3 x 12 @ 25 lbs
My left arm twinges horribly at the first rep so I modify the twisting up motion and there's no pain. It's not pretty, but at least I'm working both arms reasonably.
Lower Back Extensions: 2 x 25 @ 97.5 lbs (too chicken to attempt 105 lbs today)
Ab Crunch Station: 100
Flat Bench Twisting Sit Ups: 125
BB Curls: 3 x 15 @ 45 lbs (I find myself leaning forward slightly which seems to alleviate pressure on my forearm as I curl)
Reverse Grip BB Curls (for forearms): 3 x 20 @ 40 lbs
Mat Stretch

There appears to be a shift change near noon and the gym becomes a ghost town. The Mayor, M, B, Fish Guy, 5'oclock, Tall Pace, Short Pace and Hannibal Baggy Knees have all come and gone. Other regulars pop in. As I run through my Mat Stretch routine, I see R, Ranger Rick and the only two HS boys (out of an entire gaggle during the holidays) who have managed to come on a regular basis. They don't really know what they're doing yet. Still.

Biceps looks good!

I'm relieved that the scale reads 110.6 lbs because a loss of 2 lbs in a day is definitely water weight. My face is still puffy, but less than before. Before I shower, I manage to snap a few photos with my cell as I try to catch a glimpse of what my right side really looks like. For some reason, it's harder to snap that side and it's not because the phone is for right-handed people the way my Canon Rebel is set up. It's damn near impossible to snap a photo with that camera with my left hand!

On my way home, I buy a jar of DMSO at Mrs. Green's Natural Market. I could buy it online but then I'd have to wait for it, and pay shipping and handling. The pleasantly scented Penetrex cream I purchased a few months earlier works okay, but I'm not used to having injuries wake me at night. I need something stronger. I apply a small amount inside and around both elbows and immediately taste and smell the familiar "garlic, oyster-sauce" characteristics that can't be replicated by anything else. The chemical is absorbed almost instantly into the body and can always be identified by that tell-tale smell/taste effect on the human tongue. I'm hopeful. Besides, tomorrow's Leg Day, and I love love love Leg Day!

Relevance

Sadly, no flying stallions at
Medieval Times but great jousting!

Smith Dead Lift
and no step platform!

I've forgotten to mention what a great time we had at Medieval Times in NJ over the weekend. Dinner and a show! Granted there was no choice in the menu (half a chicken, bread, potato, soup, two barbecued ribs, water or Pepsi, a lovely cinnamon-dusted apple turnover) but the operatic background music added a lot to the festive atmosphere, and the action was well-choreographed. Best were the Spanish stallions. I knew immediately that they were famed Lippizaners and really enjoyed watching them perform. It'll be Renaissance Faire season soon, although I've already gotten emails from the Connecticut Ren Faire regarding their Robin Hood Springtime festival.

Today's Leg Day and having just discovered a drawer of old, irrelevant gym clothes (who wears leg warmers anymore?), I decided to see if the navy blue unitard would work under my Under Armour shorts. I don't wear long pants on leg day because it helps me focus and position myself properly if I can see my knees when I'm squatting or doing pistol squats. Other than being ridiculously contortionistic to get out of if you have to pee, the get-up was remarkably comfortable and I wasn't self-conscious in the least. I even made my quota today! Wahoo!

Today's Leg Day Workout:
35 min hill = 4.07 miles + 35 min intervals = 4.51 miles  Grant Total = 8.58 miles Yippeee!
Smith Squats: 12 @ bar / 6 x 12 @ 95 lbs
ZZ hovers nearby. I don't trust him although I have no concrete reasons. I'm alert as to where he is relative to me and I avoid eye-contact and any interactions. He's probably harmless but I'd rather be safe than sorry.
Smith Dead Lifts: 6 x 12 @ 95 lbs
I couldn't find the step platform so the bar was sitting halfway up my shin today.
Cage Stretch & Kicks (my kicks are getting sloppy and I'm not sure why)
12 Pistol Squats each leg
Seated Leg Extensions: 6 x 12 @ 60 lbs
Seated Leg Curls: 4 x 12 @ 90 lbs
Torso Twist: 2 x 25 @ 50 lbs
Mat Stretch: wearing a unitard under my shorts makes the splits much easier to do.

NexerSys Station: I try 3 rounds with the Sparring Avatar, punching in Beginner Female. It beeps several times because again, I'm either punching or kicking too hard. I'm concerned that if I hold back, the punch or kick won't actually register either. I'm better at it now, but I still miss a punch and feel the inside of my glove graze my pinkie knuckle. Later, when I take my gloves off, there's a lovely bruise that doesn't actually hurt unless it's touched. Mo tells me to ice it, but I shrug it off because it doesn't hurt, it's not swollen, it's just a scrape. My husband texts me that I should keep my punching straight in front of me, but that's hard to do when there are Center, Left and Right targets in the Upper, Middle and Lower sections. I land a series of combinations (jab/cross), registering a lot of punches, and a lot of power. Yay for the tiny Asian woman wailing on the boxing station! But I'm not really tiny. Not really.

When I was younger, I remember being disappointed that Xena, Warrior Princess didn't have more muscle. Her sidekick Gabrielle had great abs though. But television and cinema has had a dearth of well-muscled women who weren't portrayed as monstrous or hitting for the other team. My favorite character has been space marine Vasquez in Aliens.

I like the unitard so
it's going back into my
workout gear drawer!

The scale reads 107.8 lbs. I haven't finished my water either. At home, my scale reads 106.4 lbs so I'm definitely heavier. Just to certain, I take some measurements and try to snap a few photos of my back, because that's where I think I'm gaining. Well, that, and my arms. My back looks different, thicker although not as defined as I'd like, but a lot of that is lighting, which I don't have any control over. But I can really see how the delts are developing so that's encouraging. I'll post photos on Friday because that's a Pull Day.

I'm sure smacking the boxing station is only going to do good things for me, like tax my stamina, build endurance and give me a practical arm workout. Hell, what's more practical than being able to go 3 rounds smacking the crap out of something? Well, the NexerSys offers 3 rounds minimum, and goes up in 2 round increments. I was sweating and breathing hard when I got done, so I think 3 rounds is good for now.

I See Changes

Well, it certainly beats seeing dead people (yes, a reference to the Bruce Willis flick, The Sixth Sense). And I've been trying so hard to keep visual changes to a minimum! What? Well, I've been trying to increase my strength and endurance, but not necessarily my size, except for my back because everyone loves that athletic V-shape on men and women. And I like seeing my biceps and triceps and delts nicely defined but I don't want to get bodybuilder big. That's a bit scary. I don't begrudge anyone for making a living, but finding out that our local bodybuilder has just made a film for an online fetish company, well.... It gives me cause for pause.

I've been increasing my weights where possible and cutting some of my reps, but not a lot. I figure high reps would work two ways for me: increase muscular endurance, and retard muscular growth. I'm not sure it's working. I've always thought that doing 3-4 reps of your maximum would make you puffy big, power lifter big, and that's so not what I'm trying to achieve. But today I seem big and other than not getting enough sleep (and under the right gym lights, you can see the bags under my eyes) and feeling a bit "too much beer this weekend" puffy, I don't think I should see anything different.

Today's Workout:
35 min cardio = 4.0 miles Finally!
Seated Cable Rows: 12 @ 90 lbs / 10 @ 105 / 8 @ 120 lbs / 5, 6, 6 @ 135 lbs
Pull Ups: 12+3 legs curled to chest / 11+2 legs straight out
Cage Stretch & Kicks
I see P the gym owner boxing the Nexersys as I smack the cage with the side of my foot. I'm probably going to kickboxing tonight with my husband so I'll play with the Nexersys tomorrow. I'm going to restrict myself to just 3 times a week otherwise I'll just get too damn tired. I grab a pair of 2.5 lb magnetic discs from the front desk as I head back towards the barbell area. 
Pull Ups: 12+2 legs curled to chest / 10+2 legs straight out
Reverse Grip Bent-Over BB Rows: 3 x 15 @ 90 lbs / 4 x 12 @ 95 lbs
Seated Alternating DB Rows: 3 x 12 @ 25 lbs
Pull Ups legs curled: 10+2  Oddly I feel my body swaying to the right even in the tuck position
Chin Ups legs straight out (these stress my forearms so I don't do them very often): 10+2
Ab Curl Station: 100
Lower Back Extensions: 2 x 25 @ 97.5 lbs
Standing BB Curl: 15 @ 40 lbs / 4 x 12 @ 45 lbs
Reverse Grip BB Curls: 3 x 15 @ 40 lbs (these really hurt today)
Mat Stretch: M and Skinny Runner Chick are stretching and chatting on the mat but there's enough room for me to do my routine off to the side. I'm happy with my splits and stretches. 

In the locker room Skinny Runner asks me if I work out every day.
"When my son's in school, I come to the gym. I don't come on weekends."
"You seem very... determined."
My immediate reaction is "So what's your point?" but that would've been rude. On the other hand, that's one of the dummest things anyone's ever said to me. Maybe she's just not that bright.

I looked at her and replied, "That's why I come to the gym. To work out." End of conversation. I must be fascinating and intimidating to some, breaking every stereotype out there, but there's no magic, just consistency. I come 5 days a week and every day that I come, I work out like I mean it. Because I do mean it.

My arms seem bigger and my back is thicker. My whole body seems thicker. Perhaps it's because I'm in dire need of a haircut. I hate my hair the length it is now. It's not doing anything flattering, just long enough to get in the way of my earphones, lay flat on top of my head and make my face look rounder and puffier than it already naturally is. Of course, my husband says that he likes it longer. Even though I think the length emphasizes drooping jowls and faint wrinkles, all the signs of middle-aging that I'm trying to avoid. No, it's definitely time to get a haircut!

New Balance

Jockey Brand

I go to Marshall's to buy some summer shoes for my son. I've learned the hard way that if you shop during the actual season, you won't find the size or style you're looking for so here it is April and I'm shopping for camp stuff. Marshall's has a pretty nice selection of discounted "active wear" and to my delight, I see that several brands are now selling padded sports bras. I'm very excited and try a bunch of them on. They fit soooo much better than the Old Navy disasters and regret ever buying those sports bras. At least they were on sale. These are on sale too, but not as cheap as the ON ones. Still, they're comfortable and fit well. Sold! I also purchase a pair of Danskin "bermudas" which fall just above the knees, are loosely clingy and not at all revealing. Perfect for leg day!