Progress is Sweet

A light I don't recognize comes on the dashboard of the car I've barely had for two months. It doesn't seem critical so I wait until I'm parked at the gym before consulting the manual. I've had to reference this tome more than with any other vehicle I've ever owned. Ah, it's a "tired pressure" indicator. I wish it would tell me which tire because when I step out of the car, they all look the same. I've packed a strappy summer dress to wear out of the gym, and that means I'm not going to be checking my own tire pressure. Instead, I'll take it to the local Valvoline because they've got machines to gauge tire pressure. And being guys, they're also willing to help someone like me, not that I play damsel in distress much. But automotive stuff is something I don't mind letting guys do for me.

It's different once I'm inside the gym. I do my 30 minute "warm up" on the cross-trainer, the good one that allows me to set the level to zero. My ponytail is getting too long, swinging wet and annoying. When I get to the Smith machine, I use barrettes to pin my hair up. Much better now. I know my legs and glutes are getting thicker, but my clothes still fit okay. Which means I can up the weight again for Split Leg Squats. I do 3 sets, because I can. Although my right knee starts to complain a little toward the end. I also add a few sets to the Smith SLDLs, but they're light. I'm less interested in pulling heavy here than in engaging the glutes and lower back in a different manner than split squats. The GHRs feel the same. I do all three sets and don't land on my face so I consider this a Win! Then back for cardio: 30 min of Intervals. I'm feeling pretty good even though I'm drenched. What makes me happy is that I've broken 7 miles today. Yaaaay!

Thick!

I do a few Pistol Squats at the beginning of my Mat Stretch. My towel is damp and smells vaguely like cheese. Eewe yuck! I always bring a fresh towel, so this is just me and common bacterial activity. Maroon is sporting huge arms today. He's a beefy guy but he seems to have gotten bigger. Ponytail isn't tossing his loaded bars around too much, probably because he's here with a girlfriend or sister, a very plump, kidney-bean-shaped woman who is pedaling on the elliptical next to me. The Mayor shows up late with a young skinny boy, maybe 15 yrs old, tall and blonde. His son? They go straight to DB OHPs. I don't understand why people don't warm up properly. At least he's not loud when he's "coaching" (t)his kid. I'm outta here until next week.Yaaaay!

Friday Cardio and Leg Day
(7.5 miles total Wahoo! 14,290 lbs moved)

Cross Trainer

Steady State

Calorie :   142 CAL
Distance: 4.23 mile
Speed :    8.44 mph
Duration : 00:30:04

Smith Machine Single Leg Split Squat

168

Set 1 : 30x12
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 100x12
Set 4 : 110x12
Set 5 : 120x12 PR! Yaay!
Set 6 : 120x12
Set 7 : 120x12

Smith Machine Stiff Legged Deadlift

168

Set 1 : 30x15
Set 2 : 80x12
Set 3 : 120x12
Set 4 : 100x12
Set 5 : 80x15

GHRs

Set 1 : 12 Lap/Rep
Set 2 : 12 Lap/Rep
Set 3 : 12 Lap/Rep

Elliptical Training

Intervals

Calorie :   284 CAL
Distance: 3.27 mile
Duration : 00:30:00

One Leg Bodyweight Squat

139.33

Set 1 : 110x8

Are They Really That Stupid?

Today was whack the machine day and I got myself prepped by affixing little squares of moleskin to my knuckles before I drove to the gym. I only have enough time for a 10 minute warm up and then 14 rounds, a quick stretch and then shower and change. As an extra precaution, I take my wedding band off and put that in my purse along with my diamond engagement ring. Both are fairly small as far as rings are concerned (I wear a tiny size 3.25), but both are made of platinum, which means they're heavy and dense. I've been having trouble with the last two knuckles of my left hand lately. I tape my hands and then entwine them in cotton wraps before stuffing them into my old pink Everlast kickboxing gloves.

Lighting is everything

My left hand still hurts intermittently, especially the index proximal phalanx and the ring and pinky knuckles. The tighter I clench my fist, the better my hand feels though. Unfortunately, I find myself grimacing from a sharp pain on the the front of the index distal phalanx. I've managed to slice the skin open with my thumbnail, and I can't figure out why my thumb is so far out of position when I clench. Between rounds, I grab the roll of white tape I keep with my gloves and tear off a piece to wrap around my finger tip. Problem solved. Now I can punch again. Except an old man has decided to ride the mountain bike simulator closest to the kickboxing machines. He has to walk around me to get there. There are three bikes and he could easily use a bike further away. Instead, he gets on the one closest to the machines. He pedals so slowly I'm not really sure why he isn't on one of the recumbent bikes on the cardio platform.

After 10 minutes he's done. And dismounts on the side closest to my machine. Some people live on auto-pilot. I'm in the middle of a round and go to jab. The pad just barely misses his face because he's pretty much walked right into the side of the machine, and I pull my punch at the last minute, as soon as I saw that I might actually hit something not machine. I also let out a rather nasty expletive, because Goddamnit, are you really a f*cking moron?!

The rounds go much better after he's left the vicinity. I'm not a mean person, but if you're at a gym and clearly someone is punching and kicking a target, you need to walk around them. I'm always aware of people walking behind me or around me because I don't want to step back and land on someone. Today I'm not wearing my hoodie so sweat just pours off my ponytail like I've been caught in a rainstorm. I feel pretty good, except for the cut finger and those knuckles. The pinky proximal phalanx is feeling a bit bruised as well. That part of the hand shouldn't even be making impact but force gets dissipated through the bones. Taking the wedding band off didn't help. I'll keep it on next time. I'm going to try binding the left hand tighter and see if that helps. And maybe trim my already short nails a little shorter.

Whack the Machine Workout

Elliptical Training

Warm Up

Calorie :   95 CAL
Distance: 0.84 mile
Duration : 00:10:00

Nexersys Kickboxing

Lap/Rep :  14 Lap/Rep
Duration : 00:56:00

photos posted for actual stats:

5 rounds Beginner Follow Me

9 rounds Intermediate Follow Me
round 3 is where I have to tape my finger
round 6 is where I almost knock an old man out

Day 2 Cardio!

Today's Selfie

I'm not a natural athlete and have never considered myself a runner, etc but dang if I don't get all happy on Cardio Day. This is a relatively recent development if you consider 4 years out of the 55 I've been in existence. And I'd have to say that I really didn't like cardio until the past two years. Now I'm addicted to it's mood enhancing abilities. I did cardio yesterday, but not the way I'm used to, and I admit that when I got home, I didn't really feel satisfied.

Today I feel much better. 30 minutes on the LifeFitness Cross-trainer, some stretching, some abs and then 30 minutes on the Precor Elliptical Performance Program #2. I didn't push too hard and got a respectably total mileage of 6.68. I've been watching my caloric intake and the MyFitnessPal is good for that and keeping track of macros. But because it has a limited database, it doesn't always find foods we eat over the weekend. The app's bar code scanner is wonderful for packaged foods, but even then, some foods aren't in their database.

Right Side Selfie

I see B and Venus chatting at the far cable station when I'm on the cross-trainer. B has been looking for a new training buddy for some time now. I'm curious to see if she and Venus are a good match. I'm pretty sure B is upset with me for not talking to her, but when I'm in my zone, I don't talk to anyone. I just "do". It sounds very Asian: less talk, more do. It's what my dad used to say. And probably Yoda as well. Actually, he said, "Do or do not. There is no try."

I also have that Don't Mess with Me look, but that's just because I grew up in NYC, and my mindset is different from most of the women who work out at my gym. Smiling does not come naturally to me. There are a few ladies who also seem very serious. They look like 30 yr old ex-college jocks. And they move a lot of weight when they're here. But it's nice to see so many women actually working with real weights. I've seen two women (Venus was one) doing trap bar dead lifts. If I didn't have issues with my grip and fingers, I'd be tempted to try those too.

Tuesday Cardio and Abs Workout
(6.68 miles)

Cross-Training

Calorie :   149 CAL
Distance: 3.81 mile
Speed :    7.62 mph
Duration : 00:30:01

Weight Plate Twist

91.67

Set 1 : 50x25
Set 2 : 50x25

Seated Flat Bench Leg Pull In

100

Set 1 : 100 Lap/Rep

Crunches

50

Set 1 : 50 Lap/Rep
Set 2 : 50 Lap/Rep
Set 3 : 50 Lap/Rep

Elliptical Training

Calorie :   256 CAL
Distance: 2.87 mile
Duration : 00:30:00

Gym Rat Gone Wild

I was too slow to get a pix of the
20 min elliptical warm up; this is
the 20 min LISS on the Step Mill.

I've never quite seen weather like this... right now it's pouring and thundering but all I can see is the heavy fog blanketing vast fields of snow. I'm used to summer thunder, not winter. I knew I'd be late to the gym because I'd called the hardware store to ask if they had road salt. "Yes, we have some. Better get here quick though. Not sure how long it'll last." Ten minutes later I was in their parking lot, purchasing the maximum (3 bag limit per customer) amount of rock salt. The rock salt comes in 50 lb bags and it's cheaper than the potassium or calcium chloride which is pet-friendlier, and less damaging to cement work. My driveway is as old as the house and I've lived here 20 years. The dog regularly encounters rock salt on the road when we go for walks. Then he runs through the lawn and he's fine. Not sure how the walkway will fare though, but I'd rather lay down rock salt than risk a tumble on the pavers. Because I don't want to transport 150 lbs of rock salt clear across town and into the next, I stop off at home and unload it all before heading to the gym.

By the time I've stashed my stuff in a locker and put my trainers on, I'm hungry. And I'm surprised since I'd had my usual coffee and eggy oatmeal for breakfast. Surely I couldn't've run through it already? It's only 10 am. Ignoring my stomach and sipping water, I mount the Precor for a 20 minute warm up. I figure I'd do all the Chest and Back exercises I didn't get to do on Monday, and maybe an arm exercise or two. Oh yeah, and abs too.

I'd like to do Incline Benches but those two stations are in use. However, the flat bench is free so I do a few sets with just 95 lbs, figuring it's low enough for me to be able to concentrate on my form. I'm trying to feel my lats but all I feel is the wide bench against my back. I think it's wider than I am. Still, it helps me keep my elbows tucked. I'm not sure how many sets I should do, but I knock out 20 reps for the first two sets after the warm up set. The third set gives me some trouble because my right palm starts to go numb and I have to put the bar down at 18. Take a couple of breaths and then go for the last two reps. Actually those felt easy, so I go for two more and stop at 4. I probably should've just seen how many I could get. Next time.

I haven't done Seated Cable Rows since last August when my lower back started to bother me. I'm still leery of the movement so I opt to do Lat Pull Downs with a Close Grip (Neutral) handle. My left elbow doesn't like this movement too much. I only do 4 sets but at least they were full sets. I still can't get on the Inclined Bench so I wander over to the DB Area and do some DB Presses. As a glutton for punishment, I tend to gravitate towards things I suck at just so I can get better, as long as it doesn't cause an inordinate amount of joint pain. 12 reps is easy at 15 lbs, as I knew it would be since I'd been doing 20 reps for the Shred Program. I up the weights to 20 to see how hard they are. They're hard. I can just barely knock out 12 reps and my shoulders aren't very happy about it either. If I keep this movement, I'm not going to move up much in weight, and I might alternate with the BB Overhead Press just because it's a tad easier.

Okay, the Incline Bench is finally free. There are two and they're probably both free, but someone has left their plates on the bar and wandered away. I start off with just the bar while I figure out my body position. This press is much harder than the Flat or Decline. I add just a pair of 10 lb plates. That's fine. But the next pair of 10s is much harder. I work on a few sets at 85 lbs, failing at rep 11, racking the bar and then knocking out another 4 reps to make up for the last two sets. Again, I should've done as many as I could but I'm not mentally prepared to do that yet.

Today's selfies

The next three exercises I'm just testing the waters to see how much weight I should use: DB Reverse Flyes, DB Alternate Bicep Curls and DB Inclined Flyes. I head towards the Sit Up board but PJ Pants is on the adjacent machine, and this makes me veer abruptly towards the cardio area. Once you creep me out, I'll avoid you like the proverbial plague. Forever. Both Step Mills are vacant. I find that for the 20 minute LISS, I prefer climbing the steps because it's easy and yet really challenging. As slowly as I'm climbing, I'm still breathing hard and working up a sweat. I get to read all my email, and the online forums without much trouble, although I'm moving too much to be able to type any responses. When I'm done, I head back toward the Sit Up board and knock out a few sets. I don't even bother to stretch today because I'm a little freaked out by the clock. Dang, it's been over two hours and I still need to shower!


The gym scale reads 112.6 lbs and I'm happy to see the water weight gone. But I know that I've put on body fat. My hips and waist are bigger, and not in a good way. No one wants a bigger waist. The waistband of several pants are too tight. It's not my imagination as the tape confirms my suspicions. I'm thinking of taking my son to the gym with me on weekends because he can work out with me, although I'd have to carefully structure a program that he could actually do.


Friday's Hodge Podge Workout
20 min Precor elliptical = 1.75 miles
Flat BB Bench Press: 12 @ bar (45 lbs) / 20, 20, 18, 4 @ 95 lbs
Close Grip (Neutral) Pull Downs: 12 @ 75 lbs / 12 @ 90 lbs / 12 @ 105 lbs / 12 @ 120 lbs
Seated DB Press: 12 @ 15 lbs / 3 x 12 @ 20 lbs
Inclined BB Bench Press: 12 @ bar (45 lbs) / 12 @ 65 lbs / 12, 11, 11, 4 @ 85 lbs
DB Reverse Flyes: 12 @ 20 lbs / 14 @ 25 lbs (lost count and got carried away) / 12 @ 30 lbs
DB Alternate Bicep Curls: 14 @ 20 lbs / 2 x 12 @ 25 lbs (arms starting to tire)
DB Inclined Flyes: 12 @ 15 lbs / 12 @ 20 lbs / 12 @ 25 lbs (took this really light since wasn't sure how much I could actually do at this point; will probably do sets at 25 lbs next time)
20 min Matrix Step Mill =  873 steps
Flat Bench Twisting Sit Up: 125
Flat Bench Knee In-Kick Out: 100

Week Two Day Three Hump

Distance / Calories / Time Elapsed

I know my eating habits are counter-productive to my goals so today I'm going to take my diet much more seriously. Never mind that Chinese New Year starts this Friday, because no one up here celebrates, not even the local Asian restaurants. It'll be the Year of the Horse. I weighed myself this morning because the unexpected 2-hour school delay gave me enough time. 111.6 lbs and my BF creeping back up to 21.1%. Not good at all.

I get to the gym at 11 am instead of 9 because of the school delay. There's barely a 1/4 inch of fine slippery powder on the ground so I'm not quite sure what weather the school district was expecting. I feel tired even though I slept in so I'm really dreading the 20 minutes of HIIT. But I still do it as best as I can, logging a bit over a mile and a half. Today I remember to search for the yoga blocks before starting my routine and that eats into my time. I have to ask the front desk to find them for me as they are hidden away inside a closet inside the fully-attended yoga class.

I feel a little awkward using the yoga blocks because they're not very wide but at least I can keep my feet flat. 95 lbs isn't enough weight for me to bridge my back so this'll do. 95 lbs also feels a bit heavier than I remember but I can get 20 reps, so not a big deal. I keep my One-Arm DB Rows at 35 lbs because I have to slow down after rep 15. Today I stick to the 15 lb DBs for the Military Press because they are so much harder than the solid 30 lb BB I used on Monday. Then I run over to the rack and grab the 40 lb BB for curls. DB Kickbacks are last and I debate whether using a 20 is going to ruin my ability to knock out 20 reps on the Bench. Oh, WTH...

After two rounds I run back to the cardio area and get on an elliptical for 5 minutes of LISS and then 5 minutes of all-out exertion. I grab the two yoga blocks I've stashed and head to a free bench, plop on a pair of 25s and get my 20 reps. By the last go-round, I'm having trouble with the last rep and have to rack my bar, take three breaths and then, because I'm annoyed with myself, knock out three more reps instead of one. When I'm done, I grab my hoodie and trudge back to the elliptical for another 10 minutes of LISS. The last thing I do is a partial Mat Stretch.

It's late enough that the locker room is mostly empty and I'm glad. The gym scale reads 113.4 lbs and since I've finished 3/4 of my water, I'm not surprised. My face is puffy and sweaty but I take a few selfies anyway. I don't like how full and bloated my belly feels, reminiscent of PMS. Heck, it just might be the "menopause version" of PMS.

Week Two Day Three Hump Day (A) Upper

20 min cardio 1 min Walk / 1 min Run = 1.66 miles
This circuit done twice with no rest between sets
20 reps @ 95 lbs Bench Press
20 reps @ 35 lbs One-Arm DB Rows
20 reps @ 15 lbs (each) DB Military Press
20 reps @ 40 lbs BB Curl
20 reps @ 20 lbs DB Tricep Kickbacks

10 min cardio 5 min Walk / 5 min Run = 0.78 miles
This circuit done twice with no rest between sets
20 reps @ 95 lbs Bench Press (last set only got to 19, took 3 breaths then pressed 3 more reps)
20 reps @ 35 lbs One-Arm DB Rows
20 reps @ 15 lbs (each) DB Military Press
20 reps @ 40 lbs BB Curl
20 reps @ 20 lbs DB Tricep Kickbacks

10 min cardio LISS = 0.61 miles
Mat Stretch with 2 x 12 Dive Bomber Push Ups