A Little Light Cardio. Saturday December 19.

Busy days. Only two to go until I head for Canada. Shopping not quite finished. Presents not all delivered. Packing not even started. And yet, yes, I managed to make it to the gym. Even if it was only for a little while.

Today’s Cardio: Treadmill

35 minutes @ 4 mph, incline 3 – 7.

2.35 miles.

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Walking Activity.

Wednesday December 16 Workout. Wherein Jae proves her stuff.

Jae is a dependable training partner, and she always meets me to work out when Mike is away so that we don’t lose any ground. Tonight was one of those occasions, and ordinarily, it would be my heavy leg day -  but I was prepared to do an upper-body-focused workout with maybe one or two leg routines thrown in on the side.  Because Jae hates leg day. So much so, in fact, that Mike often accommodates her by blending her leg training into  her other workouts.

But awesome partner came through for me tonight. We trained legs – her suggestion – and we threw in a couple of shoulder and tri exercises on the side. It was a good workout and I really enjoyed the time.

In the gym with Jae:

Legs/Shoulders/Tris

Jump rope warm-up.

Smith squats: 65 lbs. x 15; 95 lbs. x 12; 115 lbs. x 10; 135 lbs. x 9

Nautilus O/H Press: 20 lbs. x 15; 25 lbs. x 12; 35 lbs. x 6, 30 lbs. x 4

Leg Press: sled + 45 x 15; +90 x 12; +135 x 10

Romanian Deadlifts: 65 lbs. x 12; 85 lbs. x 10; 105 lbs. x 8

Tri Pressdowns (heavy cable): 20 lbs. x 15; 30 lbs. x 12; 30 lbs. x 10

Good Mornings (barbell): 25 x 15; 35 x 12; 45 x 10

Stepmill:

Fatburner Level 10, 15 minutes, 1.5 miles.

December 15 Heart-Rate Run. And a Christmas Challenge.

As I have mentioned previously, I am deep into the pre-Christmas activity of baking and candy-making. Santa’s little elf, ho ho ho, and all that assorted merriment. Good for the spirit, but for the waistline… not so much.

A couple of rounds with the scale and a tape measure yesterday, though, have brought back the fighter in me. Cookie-drunk and staggering from a sugar overdose, I am nonetheless back up on my feet and ready to face my opponent. Which, in this case, is myself. So late last night, I gave myself a little pep talk and reminded myself that just because I am baking with sugar and butter doesn’t mean I have to consume sugar and butter. Because, frankly, as much as I like lard in my pastry, I am vehemently opposed to it on my butt.

A little detachment is called for, I think. It is entirely possible to bake for others without having to sample EVERY batch. I know there are probably a lot of people who think I am setting myself up for defeat – it is Christmas, after all, and for the next few weeks, I will be constantly surrounded by every treat imaginable. But I have learned something about myself over the past few decades, and it is this – when I really want something, my discipline is phenomenal. And I really want this. I am uncomfortable in my own skin, not to mention my jeans…  and there isn’t a cookie on the planet that is going to fix that. Only one thing will, and that is to quit treating my body as a dumping ground and start giving it the respect it deserves. And that starts with a healthy diet.

Exercise, of course, is important, too. But that is one area where I never fail, so I am not planning any major changes to my workouts. And as much as I really hate all this heart-rate training cr… I mean, stuff… I am determined to at least give it a chance. Which, once again, I did this afternoon. The results aren’t pretty, but I stuck it out.

Now I just have to apply that philosophy to my diet.  Because, when January 1st rolls around, I intend to be 5 pounds lighter. Stay tuned.

Heart Rate Training Run:

Time: 46:32 minutes

Distance: 3.6 miles

Pace: 12:55

Average Speed: 4.64 mph ( walked at times @4 mph, ran @ 4.6 – 5 mph)

Heart Rate: Average 138, High 153

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Running Activity.

Mike-less Monday. December 14 Workout.

Our fearless leader is off to camp with his son this week after a stint of playing Santa on Saturday night. The annual Fort Worth Christmas lights bus tour passes by his house and each year, his family dresses up and gathers on his front lawn to wave at the passersby. They incorporate the festivities into a party for family, friends, neighbours – and Mike’s clients – and for the past few years, we have attended. It would be worth it just to see Mike dressed up as Santa, but we also enjoy the hospitality of his wife and seeing the kids dressed up as elves and reindeer. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera…

But we had a lovely time, and of course, ate too much, so tonight’s workout was especially important. Jae and I met at our regular time – hey, Barry, where were you? – and we got in a good workout even without our trainer.  Afterward, I did core, flexibility and cardio, too.

In the gym, just Jae & I:

Incline dumbbell press: 15 lbs. x 15 reps; 20 lbs. x 12; 22.5 x 10; 25 lbs. x 10

Lat pulldowns: 50 lbs. x 15; 60 lbs. x 12; 75 x 10

setted with

Standing cable flyes: 20 lbs.; 20 lbs.; 20 lbs.

Assisted pullups: 80 lbs. x 12; 70 lbs. x 10; 60 lbs. x 4, 70 lbs. x 3

Barbell Curls: 25 lbs. x 12; 25 lbs. x 12; 35 lbs. x 7; 35 lbs. x 4

Core/Flex, straight through, no breaks:

Hanging tucks: 15; 12; 12

setted with

a) bosu/stability ball plank 1 minute   b) regular plank 1 minute  c) regular plank 1 minute

Side knee drop, stretch and hold: 90 seconds per side

Upward Dog, 90 seconds

Child’s Pose/Back Stretch

Butterfly Stretch

Seated Twists

Standing Calf, Hip & Glute Stretches

Stepmill:

15 minutes @ Fatburner Level 10, 1.5 miles

Treadmill:

10 minutes @ 4 mph, incline 3, .65 miles

Total Time in the Gym: 1 hour 50 minutes.

I Hate Heart Rate Training. Sunday December 13 Run.

Doug ran a half-marathon this morning (White Rock in Dallas) as an easy little training run … Meanwhile, back at the ranch (AKA my gym), I hopped on a treadmill for a bout of heart-rate training. Doug finished his 13 miles with an average pace of 8.44, and an average heart rate of 153. I finished my 2.75 miles with an average pace of 13.28 and an average heart rate of 140. Can you say “discouraging”?

I really have to learn to suck it up. My impatience to improve is my biggest enemy when it comes to almost everything in my life. I expect to be perfect, and when I have to work hard just to be average, I DO NOT like it. But, I really am trying – both with the running, and with the acceptance/attitude thing, too. I have to keep reminding myself that, unlike Doug, I do not have a natural affinity for endurance sports. Doug is long and lean. I am short and muscular. He moves through life at a slow, easy pace – things will get done when he gets around to them. I move much more quickly and often approach life as a task to be accomplished NOW.  He is a loper. I am a sprinter.

So for me to develop even half his ability to run long distances, I have a bit of a handicap… And I need to accept that it is going to take me some time. Even Doug was impatient when he started the same sort of training last year, and I need to remember that.

Sigh.

Today’s Run Totals:

Time: 37:03

Distance: 2.75 miles

Average Pace: 13:28

Average Speed: 4.45 mph

Average Heart Rate: 140

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Running Activity.

Friday Morning Freeze-out. December 10 Workout.

Okay, enough is enough. I know it’s December, but we live in the south, and I do not like the cold. To quote my four-year-old nice: I NOT happy!!!

Just to prove how cold it’s been, here’s a photo of my garden…

No more tomatoes…

So obviously, I’m not running outside in this weather. And because I really don’t have the time right now to run to the gym twice a day, I am getting on a treadmill after my weight training sessions. So far, this has worked out well as I am engaged in heart-rate training anyway. But it does make for a long session in the gym.

In the gym with Mike:

Time: 9:30 a.m.

Partner: Todd

Shoulder press, seated on a stability ball (dumbbell): 5 lbs x 12; 8 lbs x 10, 10 lbs x 10, 12 lbs x 10

Rear delt raises, facedown on an incline bench: 5 lbs x 12; 7.5 lbs x 10; 7.5 lbs x 10

Smith machine seated shoulder press: bar x 15; bar x 15; bar x 15

supersetted with

Tricep kickbacks off a bench: 5 lbs x 15; 10 lbs x 12; 12 lbs x 10

Alternating hammer curls/bicep curls: 5 lbs x 10 (of each); 8 lbs x 10; 8 lbs x 10 hammer, 8 curls

French press (overhead dumbbell press); 15 lbs x 15; 15 lbs x 15; 20 lbs x 15

Reverse grip cable pressdown: 40 lbs x 15; 50 lbs x 15; 60 lbs x 10, 50 lbs x 5

Heart Rate Training Run:

On the treadmill:

I’m still not very good at this, but today for the first time, I made it through the first mile with my heart rate in zone. I didn’t have to slow down until the second mile, and I only had to break twice to lower my heart rate. My goal is to keep my heart rate lower than 150, averaging in the 135 to 140 range, and today’s average heart rate was 140.

Slow as molasses, but building endurance. Progress.

I ran the first mile at 5 mph, the second mile at 4.8 mph, and the third mile between 4.6 and 5 mph. Totals were:

Distance: 3.05 miles

Time: 38:14

Pace: 12:32

Average Speed: 4.79 mph

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Running Activity.

A Tale of Two Lockers. And Payback for my Brattishness. December 9 Workout

I am not exactly the world’s shyest person, and as a result, most people who spend time around me are well-acquainted with all my likes and dislikes. This can lead to some interesting little squabbles at times… like in the recent case of the locker wars…

I have had an ongoing feud with one of my regular training partners, Barry, over the lockers we use in the gym. For whatever reason, it seems we both prefer locker number 11. Since Barry arrives in the gym before I do, he always manages to commandeer it, and I have to resort to using other, less appealing, lockers… Naturally, I tease him mercilessly about stealing “my” locker, and he in turn,  just grins at me and continues to nab it before I arrive. That is just our usual routine – or at least, it has been…. up until two weeks ago.

One evening, I arrived in the gym to see Barry in his usual place, on a stepmill, getting in his cardio before training with Mike. But wonder of wonders, when I hit the locker area,  my locker, the cherished number 11, was free. No lock hung from its closure, and no one else’s belongings were inside. Astonished, I quickly grabbed it, and while stowing my gym bag and jacket, I surveyed the surrounding area and spied Barry’s lock adorning a different locker. I chuckled, thinking that he had been waylaid by some other gym member, and that I had finally beaten him.

But I was wrong. What I hadn’t factored into the equation was this:  This is Texas, and Barry is a Texan. For those of you who haven’t had the good fortune to experience the soft manners of southern men first hand, (and even for those of you who have), let me explain something – Texan men adorn the top of the manners’ list. Not to mention the chivalry list. And at some point in our locker wars, that intrinsic sweetness had overridden all the teasing, and Barry had ceded the locker to me. Really.

So did I accept this gift in the same gracious manner in which it was given?

Nah. I’m a brat.

I kept the locker,  teased him about how nice he was, and expected that when I arrived in the gym the next time, he would be back in locker number 11. But he wasn’t. Locker 11 was still mine. I decided I had taken the teasing far enough,  and in an unusual display of sweetness (for me), I offered the locker back to Barry.

Fast forward to the next gym night. I arrived in the gym to discover that, yet again, my locker was free. But I hadn’t seen Barry when I walked through the gym… So I wasn’t sure – was Barry away, or was he just late? Undecided about whether to use the locker or not, I opened the door only to discover – the belongings of someone else entirely! Someone else who had had the temerity to steal OUR locker – someone who didn’t seem to understand who he was dealing with…

But I sucked it up, used another locker and went to train. As it turned out, Barry was unable to make our session, and Paul, one of my cardio companions, was training with Jae and me. As you will see from the workout posted below, Mike took it into his head to put us through our paces, and by the end of the first fifteen minutes, we were all sweating and taking our time getting up off the floor.  And so, I related my tale of the jerk who had had the nerve to steal my locker… diversionary tactics, you know, to extend the amount of recovery time Mike gave us before moving on to the next exercise.  But I wasn’t so tired that I missed the smirk on Paul’s face…. And, as it turns out, he had, indeed, stolen my locker. On purpose. Seems that I had made my passion for locker 11 a little too well known, and yet another person was intent on giving me a hard time…

Oh, it’s partly my own fault, I know. I really need to learn to shut up once in a while.  And maybe someday that will happen.

In the meantime, though, I have decided that Texan men can be added to the top of yet another list – the list of people who are even more brattish than I!

In the gym with Mike:

Circuit:  Four rounds, no rest between reps or sets

Standing:  Military Press, 20 reps/ Bent Over Row, 20 reps/ Barbell Curl, 20 reps (weights 10 lbs, 15 lbs, 20 lbs, 20 lbs)

setted with

Mat Work: Facing Partner, Pushup-Handslap, 10 reps/ Medicine Ball Situp-Pass to Partner & Back Again, 20 reps

T-Bar Squat/Push:  Bar x 10 reps per hand; Bar + 10 x 15 reps; Bar + 10 x 15 reps

setted with

Cable Chop (Core), 10 lbs x 12 reps. per side; 10 lbs x 12; 10 lbs x 12

Leg Press: Sled + 45 (90 lbs) x 12; 135 lbs x 10; 180 lbs x 10; 225 lbs x 8

setted with

Glute Machine Kickbacks: 15 lbs x 15 per leg; 20 lbs x 15 per leg; 25 lbs x 15 per leg, 30 lbs x 15 per leg

And the punishment continues…Cardio Tuesday December 8

…did my penance late this afternoon. So I could leave the evening free to bake. Seems rather counter-productive, doesn’t it? Ah well, at least my heart and lungs will be up to the task of hauling around all the extra calories my butt is storing…

Stepmill Aerobic Level 10, 15 minutes, 1.5 miles.

Treadmill: Run @ 5 – 5.5 mph, 11:16 pace, 1 mile (11:16 minutes…) followed by a short cool down @ 3.5 mph and another lap @ 7 mph. Total: 1.25 miles, 15 minutes.

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Other Activity.

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Running Activity.

Miss Energy. Monday December 7 Workout.

I had a lot of energy today so I decided to tack my core workout and my run onto the end of my weight training session instead of going to the gym twice. It was an interesting experience because I discovered that my new slow-running workout routine is possible after a workout. In the past, running had to be a stand-alone activity as it always took so much out of me. I just might like this new routine after all.

And of course, having partners and a trainer you like really helps, too!

In the gym with Mike:

Time: 5:30 p.m.

Partners: Barry and Jae

Upper Body:

Incline Dumbbell Press: 15 lbs. x 12; 20 lbs. x 12; 25 lbs. x 10; 27 1/2 lbs. x 10

Lat Pulldowns: 50 lbs. x 12; 60 lbs. x 10; 75 lbs. x 10; 90 lbs. x 10

Flat Dumbbell Flyes: 15 lbs. x 12; 20 lbs. x 10; 25 lbs. x 9

Hammer Row: 40 lbs. x 12; 50 lbs. x 10; 60 lbs. x 10

Seated Dips (Nautilus): 55 lbs. x 12; 65 lbs. x 12; 70 lbs. x 12

Core by myself: (straight through, no breaks between sets or reps)

Hanging Tucks: 15; 15; 12

Leg Lifts with Ball (hold in low position): 10 reps, hold count of 10

Stability Ball Ham Curls: 15

Upward Dog: 2 reps with hold of 30 seconds each

Hip/Glute Stretch: 30 seconds per side

Run Totals:

Time: 36:25

Distance: 3 miles

Pace: 12:08

Speed: 4.94 mph

Heartrate Average: 146

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Running Activity.

Baby, it’s cold outside…

… so I opted to run indoors today. As of noon, it is still only 42 degrees F (that’s 5 degrees C), pretty chilly for this neck of the woods.

With the Turkey Trot out of the way, I have relaxed a little and decided to take a new approach to this running business. A softer, gentler approach… I am, after all, not the young sprinter I once was, and my left knee is making sure I remember that fact. It has not appreciated my efforts to increase my speed, and between its complaints and the low rumblings of my sciatica, I have finally had to pay attention. I am already frustrated by how slow my “speedy” pace is these days, so you can imagine how incredibly frustrating it is for me to have to slow down even more. But that is exactly what I did today, and to ensure I kept to a slow pace, I wore my heart rate monitor. And man, was I slow…

“Old Age is Not for Sissies” states a poster in our gym. I have always smiled as I passed this, thinking it an observation on how aging affects our physical performance. But I am beginning to realize that there is an even deeper message here – not only are certain physical activities more difficult as you age, but mentally and emotionally adjusting to those difficulties is a challenge, too. When day to day, you feel well, it can be easy to assume that changes in performance are just temporary. Accepting that they’re permanent requires a degree of mental toughness sissies don’t possess.

Today, I learned I’m not a sissy. I have finally accepted that my speedy sprinting style is just too hard on my joints. So my new goal is to learn how to run longer distances at a slower speed and keep my heart rate at a much lower rate than I have been. In other words, HEART RATE TRAINING. Yeah, the same training that I attempted earlier this fall, then dumped because I am so, oh let’s be polite and call it impatient.

So, the results of my new, improved, kinder, gentler, easier, slower-than-bloody-molasses-in-January  run today:

Time: 31:19 minutes

Distance: 2.5 miles

Average Pace: 12:31

Average Speed: 4.8 miles per hour (I started at 5 mph – 5 mph, people!!!! – and I had to slow down to keep my heart rate in zone…. ouch.)

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Running Activity.

And to add insult to injury, I did a mini-core/stretch workout, too. At least that wasn’t frustrating…

Core/Flex Circuit: (no rest)

Crunches on a stability ball:  15; 15; 12

Leg lifts with hold 6 inches off floor: 12

Leg drop (side) and extended leg hold: 1 minute per side

Upward dog: 30 seconds, 30 seconds

Standing quad stretch: 45 seconds per side

Standing calf stretch: 45 seconds per side

Standing hip/glute stretch: 1 minute per side

Child’s pose: 1 minute