Week Five Day One: Abbreviated Push

Wineberries AKA Wine Raspberries

I was sore the entire weekend, and learning how to split firewood with a 9-lb maul didn't help when the split wood flew off the stand and hit me in the shin. Luckily I had long pants and gloves on. We were at a day-long seminar on the art of Ash and Coal Fire Cooking at Practical Primitive in Hackettstown NJ. It was there that I learned that the wild raspberries we've been gathering (and eating) these last few weeks are also known as Wineberry or Wine Raspberries, an invasive Japanese variety that's taken hold in the northeast US. Well, it's the first invasive species I actually approve of, because, damn those berries are tasty! The bushes themselves seem extremely prolific, and we're surprised the birds haven't eaten them all. Sshhh!

My son and I got to the gym an hour later than normal because we both needed the sleep after a hectic weekend. He's not old enough to be onsite at the seminar so first we headed east to Connecticut to drop him at a friend's house for an extensive play date which included a trip to the Bronx Zoo and an impromptu water gun fight. Then we drove back through NY to NJ. It makes for a very long day, especially since we didn't get to retrieve our son until 10 pm.

This morning, all the Precor's were available so I got on my favorite machine and punched in Hill #5. Again, I don't actually feel warm until the 20 minute mark, and barely bust a sweat on Mondays. It's as if I need a few days of cardio before my body can rev up to proper speed. I don't make my quota either and the Smith machine is occupied by a pair of college boys who look as if they're going to be there all day. I don't want to lose momentum so I do reps on a standard flat bench. By my 3rd set, the Smith is free and I hurry over to claim it. I know I'm going to regret doing so many reps but I have to at least try to hit the heavy weights. What starts to fail on my heavy lift isn't my pecs or triceps, but my hands. Specifically, my right thumb and palm. My right front delt strains a bit and I know that there's nothing I can really do to improve my hand strength. I cut my sets short and do a few drop sets so I don't feel as if it's been a total waste of time.

Later, at home, my 8 year old son playfully tries on my wedding band and engagement ring, discovering to his horror that even though his hands are smaller than mine, his fingers are bigger. The rings get stuck on his knuckles! I have very small fingers and hands, and that is a big obstacle in my strength training. My right pinky and ring finger periodically lose their grip strength but then recover. I haven't been able to determine any causality for it. I'll have to look harder because I'm sure there is something that I'm missing. I can hang onto the dumbbells as I do Bent Over DB Rear Flyes, perhaps because I'm more focused on the back of my shoulders than my hands. The free weight area is really crowded today. By the time I start my sets of Lateral DB Raises, most of the guys have moved on to other stations. Finally, some breathing room!

B said Hi on her way out as I was signing my son in. She was actually smiling today, perhaps because she recognized that my spacey distractedness isn't personal. I see Mo from across the room but she's in and out so quickly that I don't have any opportunity to greet her. I don't recognize too many regulars, except for R. I think his wife is using the cables because he's spending an inordinate amount of time explaining forms to a tall, thin young woman with skinny long arms and long dark hair pulled back into a ponytail. R looks distressed. I sense discord and keep my distance.

Today is an abbreviated workout because the Child Care room closes at 1 pm. I can only squeeze in cardio, benching, stretching, two delt exercises and some abs before showering. I claim my son at 12:58 pm and he is the only child left in the room.

Week Five Day One: Abbreviated Push
35 min cardio hill #5 = 3.91 miles Bleah!
Olympic Flat Bench: 25 reps @ bar / 25 @ 65 lbs / 15 @85 lbs
Smith Machine Bench Press: 12 @ bar / 25 @ 95 lbs / 10 @ 115 / 8 @ 135 / 2 x 6 @ 155 / 10 @ 135 / 12 @ 115 / 25 @ 95 lbs
Cage Stretch with BW Heel Dips and Side Kicks
Bent Over DB Raises (chest in lap): 6 x 15 @ 25 lbs
Standing Lateral DB Raises: 6 x 12 @ 25 lbs I can do 8 reps for each set without any problems then have to slow down to muscle up the last 4 reps for each set.
Flat Bench Twisting Sit Ups: 150
Ab Crunch Station: 100
Mat Stretch: even though my legs and back are stiff and a tad sore, my splits are good today and I'm surprised enough to attempt another horizontal roll forward. It's better on days when I do limited cardio because the double cardio days see too much tightness in the hamstrings.

The gym scale reads 111.4 lbs which is good considering the feasting I partook in yesterday. It started with cinnamon rolls (Pop'n Fresh) stuck to a clay vessel and placed on a bed of coals while a chicken roasted overhead, followed by coal-grilled corn, sweet and white potatoes, clams on the half shell, whole catfish laid directly on the coal bed, tomatoes drenched in olive oil grilled on a granite slab, peppers (directly on the coals), salmon (cooked on a section of ash bark), pork chops cooked directly on an ash bed, vegetable soup (placed in a clay vessel and heated with stones from the fire until the soup came to a furious boil), baked garlic, baked eggs, and for dessert, ash cake (patted thin like a tortilla and placed on hot white ash) made from wheat flour, acorn flour, eggs and water, topped with wineberries, butter and rosehip jelly. Yum!

Again, I didn't have time to incorporate Upright Rows into my workout. I'll have my son tomorrow so that's another abbreviated workout, but perhaps I'll try to do a Back session. Friday is the wild card day because I have an eye doc appointment in the morning with my old eye doc just to renew my eye drop prescription. I have a consultation with a glaucoma specialist in Philadelphia at the end of next month but I don't have enough eye drops to see me through till then. I could just blow off the gym, or I could come to the gym AFTER my appointment and perhaps do a bit of cardio...

Week Four Day Three is Back

When I wake, the house is warmer than it is outside so I set the fan in front of the screen door to blow some coolness inside. When I return from the gym, the insulated house is at least 5° cooler than the blistering sun outside and I shut the front door against the heat. My son is at camp today so I'm not rushed at my workout. Still, the heat and humidity sap my energy before I even set foot on the elliptical. I punch in the leisurely hill #6 and proceed to peddle up a furious sweat. Because I find myself longing to hear only the new songs on my iPod, I select the playlist feature that lets me only listen to the latest additions. That's so cool! I make my quota in spite of singing along with most of the songs and I'm happy. The gym seems crowded but there are seniors enjoying gossipy coffee and a Boot Camp or Body Pump class. By mid-morning the gym will seem abandoned but for a few hard core masochists.

I decide I'm going to up my weight on the Seated Cable Row even though 3 sets of 6 reps is still hard at 127.5 lbs (120 lbs plus a 7.5 lb brick). I want to get stronger but I'm not sure what really works for me here so I'm playing with the next higher weight on the stack, which is 135 lbs (increments of 15 lbs). I don't bother to look for the smaller metal handles which proves to be a mistake as my hands tire from the larger padded ones. Small hands and fingers absolutely make a big difference when it comes to hoisting weights. Yesterday my left pinky went numb while I was on the elliptical, followed by my ring finger. I'm always periodically flexing my hands and changing my grip -- I suspect it's the collapsible veins (probably related to a collagen and connective tissue issue), so easily compressed, that are causing the problems. My hands go numb on playground swings as well as monkey bars, so no wonder I was never much of a schoolyard athlete.

Week Four Day Three is Back
35 min hill #6 = 4.04 miles Yay!
Seated Cable Rows: 12 @ 60 lbs / 12 @ 90 / 10 @ 105 / 8 @ 120 / 6 @ 127.5 / 3 x 5 @ 135 / 8+2+2 @ 120 / 12 @ 105 lbs My right hand seems to be having a grip problem today, especially the last two fingers and it's affecting my workout because I can't hang on to the handles properly.
Cage Stretch with BW Heel Dips and Side Kicks
Reverse Grip BB Rows: 6 x 12 @ 105 lbs
I easily knock out 15 reps on my first set, but I start to lose strength in the last two fingers of my right hand again, and by the 6th set, I've had to pause twice so I can adjust my grip just to finish 12 reps.
Pendlay BB Rows: 6 x 12 @ 65 lbs
This is still a really hard movement but at least I can keep my hands on the bar!
Lower Back Extension Machine: 2 x 25 @ 97.5 lbs
Torso Twist Station: 2 x 25 @ 50 lbs
Ab Crunch Station: 200 and then I got bored...
I didn't plan to do 200. I was doing crunches until the three old guys chatting while resting on the Sit Up Bench got done chatting, but that lasted well into the Mat Stretch because some people spend their entire gym session exercising their mouths and nothing else.
Mat Stretch with splits: again I don't roll forward to push my horizontal split past 170° but the verticals seem good and I enjoy the opportunity to stretch my upper and lower back.

The gym scale reads 109.4 lbs which seem reasonable considering I've just about finished my water bottle. While undressing in the locker room I see Am, the woman who teaches Body Pump, Boot Camp and a Spin Class here, as well as at major corporate location. She's my age and looks good, but she lacks muscle density, especially in her arms. Mo arrives and I chat with her as well. I'm sociable once I'm done with my workout. Just don't interrupt me while I"m exercising!

Wild raspberry canes

Once I'm showered and dressed, I walk back out into the free weight area to finish my conversation with Mo. I show her my cell photos of our wild raspberry bushes and I congratulate her on getting the part-time job at Home Depot that took her four applications to finally get an interview for. Mo tells me that I look thinner and I tell her I've put on weight. "No, your waist looks smaller," she declares. I think it's the street clothes. And probably the lightly padded bra, because an 1/8" is 1/8" more than nothing! While we're chatting, I see Nixon, Ranger Rick, and R. R is benching an Olympic bar with 45 lb plates, and his legs straight out at a 45° angle. I suppose it's another balance/core exercise because a standard bench press utilizes legs to stabilize the torso while pressing. When I finally go to leave, I make a point of waving Hi and Bye at R. I make it quick because I don't want it to get weird.

I'm always curious as to what kind of vehicles people drive. Ranger Rick, I finally discover, drives a silver Subaru WRX, my dream car. Too expensive to be practical (I do love my battered old Forester) but still... R's silver Audi is parked next to my car, it's roof vent tilted open, and the windows cracked. I've been leaving my windows cracked a bit because it's been so hot that opening the car door actually fogs my sunglasses with a heat blast. The cinema must be packing in the crowds now that school's out and the heat is unbearable. Normally R parks really close to the gym so I'm surprised to see his car next to mine. The parking spaces are tighter the closer you get to the stores (for econo or compact models) so I prefer spots further out. I reason that I'm less likely to get my doors dinged or dented that way, although that doesn't prevent the errant shopping cart from smashing itself into unsuspecting vehicles. That's probably why Ranger Rick parks in the far lot across the access lane. No one parks there. And there are no shopping carts there either.

Tomorrow is suppose to near 100°F and there's a heat advisory. Just as well that I believe in benign neglect of the green areas around my house. I'll snip zucchini blossoms in the early morning, letting the bees have their fill before harvesting the blooms to stuff later. I note that several small zucchinis appear to be well along, and I snip a half dozen snow peas. Finally! Peas don't like the heat and I've been hoping that the broad zucchini leaves will provide shelter and shade. Tomorrow is also Leg Day! I'm excited. How can I not be?

Week Four Day One Abbreviated

15July2013 Hill 5

My son has decided that his camp has the best activities at the end of the week so he's with me this Monday and Tuesday. Which means I have to shorten my first two workouts by a half an hour. Mondays are always Bench Press days and there's no getting around that. After a reasonable spin on the elliptical (I made my quota!), I wander over to the Smith.

The Manchurian is using it for Military (Overhead) Presses. He motions that he has two more sets and I tell him I'll come back. He smiles and I wander off to the Cage Rack on the other side of the cardio area. When I return, the bar is stripped and space empty. Because there are so many guys using the free weights and the benches, I don't swap out the inclined bench The Manchurian was using but instead position it flat. This bench is slightly lower than the standard flat bench and my hips and legs are better positioned on it.

The Smith feels a little sticky, as if the counterweight cables are gunked up. I know the fellow who fixes all the equipment is around today, but I'm in too much of a rush to find him and report on the equipment. I'm able to knock out all my sets which pleases me, and I ignore The Mayor and other guys who seem to linger perilously close to the Smith Rack. When I'm done, I debate (with myself) whether I have time to do delts. I had wanted to add a light Upright BB Row to the shoulder routine but I won't have time today. Instead, I pull up the incline bench to it's lowest inclined position and do Rear DB Raises. I haven't done them in a very long time (mostly because there's only two inclined benches) and the weights feel heavy. I'm wearing thigh-length baggy shorts because insect bites on my calves and ankles are driving me crazy. As I position myself on the bench, I realize that my calves are fully flexed and that must look pretty intimidating. For a small person I've got some big-ass chiseled calves.

Afterwards, I wipe down the bench and move the DBs over to a clear spot in front of the mirrored wall. If I keep moving, I can maintain momentum and get my sets of Lateral DB Raises done without too much grimacing. The 25s are still godawful heavy but I like the way my arms and shoulders look when I raise the DBs. In between sets, I pace and stretch my forearms. There's a young woman the next bench over, and she's got a pair of 30 pounders. Although she is taller and younger than me, I still wonder what she's going to do with those. She struggles to press them over her head, and at one point, R steps in to help her finish her set. That's probably the first time I've ever seen R assist anyone he wasn't actually training, and I smile to myself as I walk by. I'm done but I still need to stretch out before I can shower and change. Sweat is dripping off the tip of his nose as he looks up when I wave Bye. I do it quickly and without any conversation. I have nothing to say.

Week Four Day One Abbreviated Workout:
35 min cardio hill #5 = 4.02 miles Yippee!
I feel stiff and a tad sore when I start but by the halfway point, my muscles are warm and my joints feel loose and fluid. Surprisingly, as much as I have to wipe the spit drooling from my lips, I don't actually have to blow my nose. It's odd.
Cage Stretch with BW heel dips and side kicks (just to stretch out the hips)
Smith Bench Press: 12 @ bar / 12 @ 95 lbs / 10 @ 115 / 8 @ 135 / 3 x 6 @ 155 lbs / 12 @ 135 / 25 @ 115 lbs Those teenage guys are hovering near the Smith again, until they start adding up the weight on the bar, then they're on other side of the gym. I use a 25 lb plate on each side to start and then add pairs of 10s as my sets progress. It makes it easier to do drop sets as well. 
Inclined Rear DB Raises: 6 x 15 @ 25 lbs
Standing Lateral DB Raises: 6 x 12 @ 25 lbs
I want to add Upright Barbell Rows but I'm out of time.
Mat Stretch: my left hamstring is noticeably tighter than the right so I ease into all my moves. I know my legs will be better tomorrow.

This one's ripe!

The gym scale reads 111.6 lbs and I'm just happy it's not 112 lbs. We had a great weekend smoking a picnic pork butt (to make pulled pork), eating lots of grilled chicken, london broil, sweet sausages and hot dogs. Drank wine and beer and then some. Yes, it was a regular pigfest that included pumpkin pie, an apple crumb cake, chocolate ice cream and dried strawberries & blueberries. The zucchinis continue to produce lovely orange blossoms but I'm a tad disappointed with the goat cheese so I'm looking at other fillings.

Wild raspberries are in season now, each hairy cluster of berries offering only one or two ripe morsels of sweet tart juiciness. These are tiny berries with tiny seeds, but they are quite tasty. When ripe, the berries will literally fall into your open hand with a little tickle from your fingers. My husband comes home with a handful of ripe berries every time he takes the dog for a walk because these rambling vines seem to grow everywhere.

Tomorrow, after my workout, I plan to take my son to see Despicable Me: 2 in 3-D at the local theatre just two doors down. Tuesdays offer discounted tickets, and air-conditioning, a double bonus. But since there are limited showings, I need to keep my gym workout short. Which means I have no choice but to do double cardio tomorrow instead of Wednesday. Of course, there's nothing stating that I can't also do a double cardio session on Wednesday as well... It depends on how I feel. So far, other than hating the 90°+ temps, high humidity and voracious mosquitoes, I feel pretty good.