Talk about your exercise experience today [Archive] - Page 3

Kelt

07-18-2013, 09:34 PM

Today was similar to yesterday.

Tiny walk on the beach around 1 mile, all good, being careful.

Went to the pool by myself and did reasonably well. Considering it was only my second time in a pool. The lanes here run side to side instead of the long way so I took the shallow lane next to the shallow open area for rec swim. It was 4'6" all the way across so my head and top of shoulders would be out when I was standing. I got a kickboard and started to practice. Push off wall, arms stretched out, kick like mad. Coast as far as the push off sent me and then, still kicking furiously, go no where. Stall. Again. Again. Again. Watching the lane divider to check myself. Yep, total stall every time. Checked having a lifeguard watch me. Kept going past the stall point, kicking hard.

Backwards. Yes folks, it's possible.

Have next lesson scheduled for Saturday morning. May need to check style. The good news is that I didn't let it discourage me. I decided to just feel good about showing up and getting in. I was clearly exercising, huffing and puffing, woop-ass workout. I concentrated on what I could during my little glide-kicks and focused on keeping my chin in the water. (Perilously close to my not-clipped nose.) I was feeling pretty brave about that. The coach had told me to hum if I though I would inhale through my nose and it works.

So, I kicked and hummed, kicked and hummed, the width of the pool (20yds) about 25 times. I kind of lost count, but that is close. They say 36 times is a mile. It took me an hour and twenty minutes and that included two times stopping to practice back 'float' for a couple of minutes.

I are, in the vernacular of Daktari, "knackered". I did remember to take a banana and afterwards grabbed a chaise near the deep lanes and sat in the sun to watch the good swimmers do their thing. I can learn a lot from watching these folks. I can't wait to get some skills and get to do some of those things.

The areas around my shoulders and the middle top of my back are really sore from yesterday as well as my triceps and forearms. I'm thinking it might be from the death grip I had on everything yesterday. I worked on loosening up a bit today and I think it went alright. I'll know more in the morning.

:theisland:

Soon

07-19-2013, 10:31 AM

Chancie

07-19-2013, 11:19 AM

I went to stretch and to group power and

I had a manicure and a pedicure.

Daktari

07-19-2013, 12:41 PM

Stripped a bathroom (w/ door shut) of it's wallpaper with a steamer. It was a sauna. :blink:

Walked a couple of miles.

Cycled a couple of miles.

No biggie today!

thedivahrrrself

07-19-2013, 02:17 PM

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/1043851_541517085915794_1682677646_n.jpg

diamondrose

07-19-2013, 03:01 PM

this morning I managed to get a 3 mile walk around the lake in before the heat and humidity kicked up for the day. Felt soo great!

DapperButch

07-19-2013, 05:20 PM

I wrote this fantastically long post this morning, but needed to wait to finish after work. It is now gone. Short version:

1) Gemme - I french the weights. There was something else I said to you, but I don't remember

2) Since I have been doing the "you don't have to do cardio on weight days", I have been doing cardio on weight days

3) Kelt-awesome with the swimming! Thank you for the thought of plantar fasciitis. I see how you think that may be it, but it is not (had that over the winter). This has been an issue for me since I was about 23 years old and have avoided treadmills and speed walking on hard surfaces.

4) I love that everyone checks in most days. :-)

ETA: Oh, and I have been doing what I am supposed to be doing exercise wise! Staying on schedule!

thedivahrrrself

07-19-2013, 06:54 PM

Gemme

07-19-2013, 07:26 PM

I thought I'd get up early, order a healthy smoothie and fruit platter and THEN work out. And so I did! I usually don't work out in the morning, but it felt really good, and I must remember to consider this AM option when I return home from vacation.

30 mins elliptical

15 mins recumbent bike w/small hand weight exercises as I pedalled

...now off to snorkel...does that count as exercise? :)

It totally counts.

I prefer early morning workouts. Basically, when I can, I roll out of bed and tidy up, get ready, eat my banana (and peanut butter if I'm weight training) and I go. That way, I have the rest of the day.

Usually, if I wait until later, I either obsess about it or talk myself out of it....too hot/tired/long of a drive/etc.

Welcome to the morning gloriers!

I wrote this fantastically long post this morning, but needed to wait to finish after work. It is now gone. Short version:

1) Gemme - I french the weights. There was something else I said to you, but I don't remember

2) Since I have been doing the "you don't have to do cardio on weight days", I have been doing cardio on weight days

3) Kelt-awesome with the swimming! Thank you for the thought of plantar fasciitis. I see how you think that may be it, but it is not (had that over the winter). This has been an issue for me since I was about 23 years old and have avoided treadmills and speed walking on hard surfaces.

4) I love that everyone checks in most days. :-)

ETA: Oh, and I have been doing what I am supposed to be doing exercise wise! Staying on schedule!

You talk a lot sometimes. I don't remember what you said either.

:blink:

I think it's reverse psychology. If you don't 'have' to do something, you're more likely to willingly do it.

In other news, I took an off day since I mopped the Hell out of my climate controlled building this morning and ate a good lunch. No cheating!

Tomorrow morning, it'll be up 'n at 'em. I'm going to go back to my old shoes for the workout and try the treadmill to see if my legs are better or still effed up. If they are better, then I have to determine if it's because of a day off or the shoes.

Either way, it's likely that the new pair will be going back to exchange for the only other pair they had in stock that fit my super wide ducky over-pronating feet.

With my recent luck, that will generate a whole new slew of problems.

:seeingstars:

DapperButch

07-19-2013, 07:29 PM

I do cardio everyday even when I do the weights. usually I do the rowing machine and the elliptical, I do weights every other day, and then a reward myself with a nice long leisurely swim. today at the end of my workout, I found the pool closes early on Fridays. dammit! I feel like I worked out for nothing. I really look forward to that swim.

:(

Yes, I know that weights/cardio is normal on same day. I found that there were days that I was skipping the gym because I wasn't looking forward to two hour gym trips. So, I told myself on weight days I didn't have to do cardio, in order to get my ass to go. My point was that even though I was no longer "requiring" myself to do it, I was still doing it (which pleases me).

I spoke about the above a couple of times earlier in the thread. I was providing an update to that.

ETA: Just read Gemme's post. Exactly, reverse psychology!

Chelsius

07-19-2013, 07:43 PM

Weights...I lifted that stuff today ;)

Teddybear

07-19-2013, 07:51 PM

Well today after walking all over the aquarium trying to keep up with or find out where ms cinn had run off too and after a huge less then impressive dinner she made us go out to purgatory chasm to climb up this steep ass rock formation.

Then had to go walking all over Wally world looking for a fan. I got a lot excersise running back to find her so we could leave there. They want $65 for a $20 fan

cinnamongrrl

07-19-2013, 07:57 PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purgatory_Chasm_State_Reservation

LOL I totally forgot to mention the Chasm...purty place. I was thinking it would be a good spot for an informal get together for the New Englanders from here :)

alexri

07-19-2013, 08:19 PM

Slacker morning at the gym today. About 40 minutes of triceps and biceps work.

Right now I am looking at all the events I wish I could afford to go to.
One of the ones on the top of my list: the Sedona Half Marathon.
http://www.sedonamarathon.com/

It looks absolutely beautiful.

So a friend of mine wants to do 60 half marathons in 2014 for her 60th birthday. I know it's doable. It's totally doable. I am soo tempted. Financially it's a lot but it is very doable.

brownboi

07-19-2013, 08:47 PM

Shot hoops for an hour then swam for 20 minutes. AWESOME workout!:cool:

Mopsie

07-19-2013, 09:23 PM

So a friend of mine wants to do 60 half marathons in 2014 for her 60th birthday. I know it's doable. It's totally doable. I am soo tempted. Financially it's a lot but it is very doable.

Am I doing the math correctly?

Does that mean you will be doing 5 half marathons each month for all of 2014?!?

WOW. :|

(I mean wow in the that's amazing & I can't believe you're going to do it way.)

Kelt

07-19-2013, 09:34 PM

Today was really light day. It sounds weird to even say that, I guess this business of slowing down and changing things around is taking hold.
I think that rotating activities and having to think about what I'm doing instead of just being on autopilot.

There was no swimming today due to Friday's having a little different schedule at the pool, and me having some other appointments to attend to this afternoon. I took a little bit longer walk this morning and it went pretty well. I did some little short pieces back-and-forth staying close to the exit. I made it 2.5 miles before the first tweak in the ankle. I was good and got off it right away.

Tomorrow will be upside down. I have my second swimming class in the morning, and then perhaps some walking on the beach in the afternoon depending upon how cooperative the tides are with me.

Just now a Zappos box turned up on my porch, it should have my new mid-high shoe/boots in it. I will test drive them tomorrow afternoon.

Dapper: Very glad you don't have PF. Now, what do you have? Great work on faking yourself out! :cheesy:

Gemme: I'm signing up for the morning gloriers (which also sounds vaguely nasty) Maybe it's just you. :blink:

:theisland:

alexri

07-19-2013, 09:47 PM

Am I doing the math correctly?

Does that mean you will be doing 5 half marathons each month for all of 2014?!?

WOW. :|

(I mean wow in the that's amazing & I can't believe you're going to do it way.)

Depends on the month. Some will have 8-10 because of scheduling. Others 1-4 because it's freggin cold and it's the northeast.

Now to just win the Powerball...

Daktari

07-20-2013, 02:28 PM

Eff all apart from walk to town and back (mile and half possibly)

Recent adventures in plumbing, decorating and bicycle fettlin' is taking it's toll on my poor achey, lung-power lacking bod.

I think there maybe a chest infection starting. :sigh: It's been awesome having a 3 month break since the last one...which is twice as long as it takes in winter. :|

Gemme

07-20-2013, 02:51 PM

Gemme: I'm signing up for the morning gloriers (which also sounds vaguely nasty) Maybe it's just you. :blink:

:theisland:

I have that effect on people.

:blink:

Today was a frigging GREAT workout!!!

I was at the gym for maybe two hours total. 60 minutes on the treadmill walking at a decent clip (1.9 at warm up to 3.2 mph) with running intervals. My runs were awesome. 2 and 3 minute intervals, switching it up between each one for a pattern of 3 then 2 then 3 then 2, etc. I got 5 or 6 of those in before I switched to the incline work.

I initially planned to only be on the treadmill for an hour but things were going so well in my old shoes....no twinges or soreness whatsoever....I decided to up my time. The machines allow for 90 minutes of continuous work so I opted for 85 minutes of working out and it tacked on the usual 5 minute cooldown.

This is where things got a little hairy. I was working my way up the incline pretty well but got stuck around 3.0. As I progressed with each incline level (starting with .5, then 1.0, then 1.5, etc), I reduced my speed. I didn't want to aggravate my legs and stopped when I started to feel a bit of a tug in them, so I plateaued at 3.0 incline which was still okay. I monitored how I felt and it never became uncomfortable. I just felt a little pressure at my shin. I did that for the remaining 25 minutes and the cooldown.

T5, my new favorite treadmill, said that I burned 541 calories and went 5.06 miles in 90 minutes. I then proceeded to do some light ab work and stretching, so that combats Kelt's findings on discrepancies in machine stats (meaning that whatever I burned there matched the treadmill's discrepancy so I'm keeping my 541 no matter what!).

Alex is a horrible influence. He just MADE me go with him to the ice cream shop. I thought I'd be okay cuz they have an 'only 8' option (8 calories per serving) so I was going to get that. Except they are switching brands and don't have everything up for the new brand yet. Darnitall! Well, I took 2 instead of my usual 3 scoops and I took frozen yogurt instead of the heavy stuff. So, I'm celebrating my lowest weight check and my best workout day. With yogurt. It could be worse, I guess. Funny thing is, I'm not sure I'm going to finish it. I'm looking at the last third and really don't feel super hungry. Now's the time to toss it before I cave later.

:byebye:

Mopsie

07-20-2013, 05:59 PM

Glad you had a great workout Gemme!

For me the workout didn't happen at all. :(

Between asthma troubles and my second job I decided to let myself off the hook today.

But I'm planning to go to the gym tomorrow because I signed up for a new virtual 5k race that starts tomorrow. :)

Asthma may have won this battle but I shall win the war! :fastdraq:

Gemme

07-20-2013, 08:34 PM

Excellent, Mopsie!!!

nycfem

07-20-2013, 08:41 PM

I did two hours and fifteen minutes on the Arc Trainer, Interval, Level 7. I watched "Catfish" and the second half of the Real Housewives trip to Canada.

While I was on the Arc Trainer, I saw a woman running on a treadmill (fast pace, very fit woman). Then the unthinkable happened. She slipped and fell on the treadmill! It was quite horrifying to watch. She was on her knees and the treadmill was still going full speed, kind of like watching a factory accident. The people by her stopped their machines right away and helped her. She kept assuring people she was fine and just needed to go (what we all do in an accident when we're shocked and embarrassed and probably are not fine physically or mentally!). I thought about how important it is to use that "stop" clip when running on a treadmill.

Then I did 45 minutes of weight lifting, stretching, yoga, and abs. It's great to feel all the tension leave my body during these exercises that involve a lot of prolonged flexing and bending.

Soon

07-20-2013, 09:06 PM

30 mins elliptical

30 mins bike

15 mins upper body strength on weight machine thingie (at almost the LOWEST weight for every single exercise--i have ZERO upper body strength)

Mopsie

07-21-2013, 07:36 AM

Good morning Planeteers!

I just got done at the gym! This is a record for me - I never go in the morning. :)

I don't have any interesting stories for you ... it was a pretty calm morning at the gym.

I did check all the people running near me to see if they had that safety thingy on after reading Jennifer's story. None of them did. :|

Asthma was better today so I was able to walk a little faster.

It took me 42 minutes and 20 seconds to walk 1.1 miles. Faster than last time but not as fast as during my first 5k. Onward and upward!

Have a great Sunday everyone! :)

Kelt

07-21-2013, 08:16 AM

Good morning exercisers,

Yesterday was great! I had my second swimming lesson in the morning and definitely learned some new things. For now I have switched away from the kickboard to this weird thing it looks like an exaggerated circus dumbbell. I just hook my arms over it and it changes where my center of gravity falls. It's more fun when you get to arrive at the other side. This also has my face a lot closer to the water. :scared:

We also started learning a bit about coordinating breathing in the water. This brought up in minor problem. For the last decade or so I have used a fairly specific breathing technique before going to bed and first thing when I wake up. It involves breathing in rapidly through the nose and then slowly exhaling through the mouth. Great, exactly the opposite of what I need to do in the pool, and it is an ingrained habit. Lots of humming.

The thing that seems most distracting to me right now is getting the water in my eyes. A couple of days ago I ordered some cool goggles. They showed up yesterday afternoon and so I will get to try them either today or tomorrow. I am thinking, (hoping), that this will make a huge difference.

The pool has fairly short hours today, and so far it is cloudy and cool, but I will see how the afternoon shapes up.

On the beach walking front yesterday went well also. I took my new mid-high shoes for a test drive and completed one "lap" on the beach which equals 3 miles.

So far, this business of shaking out my schedule is working well, and doing as intended. Working different aspects of my body, and incorporating variety. I am finding that the swimming part is making me crazy hungry though, I am adding some more food and for now my weight is holding stable.

If I tried to get on a treadmill, I would've been that woman that came off the backend. This is why I avoid them like the plague. I'm just not coordinated enough. Hope she is alright.

Mopsie - You are winning the fight! Keep up the good work. :)

Gemme - You seem to be missing the point, ice cream is why we workout! :eating:
Super glad your legs are improving. :)

Soon

07-21-2013, 08:47 AM

30 bike

15 elliptical

maybe some horseback riding later...and definitely some swimming :)

Thanks for this thread, Jen. I like writing down what I accomplished exercise-wise! :)

nycfem

07-21-2013, 02:02 PM

85 minutes arc trainer, Interval program, level 7, watched "Sister Wives" and "Snapped"
Confession: I sat around reading a magazine waiting for my favorite machine to be open because I saw the guy only had 10 minutes left

65 minutes weight lifting, core, stretching, and yoga

It was a quiet summer sunday at the gym, very relaxing and invigorating.

Mopsie

07-21-2013, 02:54 PM

30 bike

15 elliptical

maybe some horseback riding later...and definitely some swimming :)

Thanks for this thread, Jen. I like writing down what I accomplished exercise-wise! :)

I want to go horseback riding!!

Is it your horse or is there somewhere that you go to go horseback riding??

Gemme

07-21-2013, 05:22 PM

Oh, Jennifer! That poor woman.

I don't use that clip either, but I always make sure to know where the STOP button is.

Even so, that could happen to anyone.

30 mins elliptical

30 mins bike

15 mins upper body strength on weight machine thingie (at almost the LOWEST weight for every single exercise--i have ZERO upper body strength)

Hey, it's more than you did before and more than you would have done without the machines, no?

Keep it up!

Gemme - You seem to be missing the point, ice cream is why we workout! :eating:
Super glad your legs are improving. :)

Not for me. I mean, I love ice cream but it's candy that siren calls my name at night.

Not eating the whole thing means this whole exercise, taking better care of myself thing is working. And that's the sweetest treat of all.

I want to go horseback riding!!

Is it your horse or is there somewhere that you go to go horseback riding??

Miss Soon is a lucky duck at a resort. Of course, if she buys the resort maybe we'll all get to go horseback riding.

:eyebat:

Gemme

07-21-2013, 05:30 PM

Okie dokie! Hello, howdy and how do you all do?

Alex and I got up a little late for us but we still made it to the gym this morning. I spent half an hour on the treadmill in the new shoes again, trying to see if time off and switching to my old shoes did anything. Everything seems okay but then, I wasn't truly pushing myself. A couple of light, quick runs but still at the end, my calves were hurting.

So, I moved on to weight training. Abs, back and the lower body plus some stretching ecked out the next hour and change.

Then, Alex and I took a short jog in the back of the parking lot of the gym. Turns out, the shoes are better on rough roading/outside than on the treadmill but most of the time I'll be on the treadmill so they had to go back.

I switched them with a pair of Brooks. We'll see how these go. Rhode Runner is great. As long as I still have the receipt and it's less than 30 days from date of purchase, they'll take it back no matter the condition. Best return policy EVER!

I also nabbed some fancy sport socks and Alex jumped on the back of my credit (new new shoes were less than older new shoes) and got some kind of band for his leg. So, I got out of the store with brand new shoes, new socks and Alex's band for a hair over $20. Not bad!

By the end of the day, I'd added two more pairs of shoes to my repertoire after stopping into Bob's. One way or another, I'm going to get my run on!

:byebye:

o222Good

07-21-2013, 08:08 PM

Back on vacation and back to the gym for a couple of days now.
I have tried switching up my cardio routine, because I read that
if you always do the same thing, you can sort of get carpal
tunnel of the body! So I did 25 minutes on the elliptical and 15
on the bike. I notice my heart rate is staying low and I am able
to work harder to stay in the zone. I am taking this as a very
good sign!

batennisboy

07-21-2013, 10:49 PM

Read this thread from the beginning. Thanks to all who've posted.

Didn't do anything today but did finally complete my workouts this week after many weeks of partial success. Was physically and mentally drained from work and came up with all sorts of excuses, some legit and some not so much. Took 4 weeks off to regroup, as well as some time off work and it worked! The gym is no longer my worse enemy.

My workout consists of stretching, strengthening, weights and cardio. Takes about 2-2.5 hours. I also play tennis.

Daktari

07-22-2013, 02:57 AM

Was lovely to have the whole weekend to switch off mind and body, watch movies, read and eat marshmallows.

Back to it today although I don't hold out much hope of any proper exercise other than being busy fettlin' bikes at the workshop for the day.

Chancie

07-22-2013, 09:55 AM

I went to stretch and to Group Power (http://bodytrainingsystems.com/pages/bts_programs/GroupPower.htm).

A few hours later, I did a very little bit of weeding and I spread one bag of mulch.

I have one more bag of mulch to spread, and I promised Pete I'd water the window boxes.

Pete is going to edge one of the flower beds for me tonight, and I'll weed that bed tomorrow and I'll probably need two more bags of mulch.

I am so thrilled about how much more comfortable I am working in the garden because I've been treating my body so kindly.

PS I added more weight today, and after some feedback from a trainer, I adjusted my stance for one muscle group and whoa, am I sore and tired.

Gemme

07-22-2013, 04:14 PM

Off day!

My legs need it.

nycfem

07-22-2013, 06:39 PM

40 minutes Arc Trainer, Interval Level 5, television sucked because of that damn "Royal Baby"

20 minutes weights and yoga

SometimesSweet

07-22-2013, 07:55 PM

The past few days (since Thursday) I have had company so my exercise routine has been thrown right off.. I hate it when that happens. I am so happy to have my family/friends come to visit but I spend so much time taking care of them I tend to put my things aside.
I barely had time to write in my journal each morning and enjoy my morning coffee. Can anyone else relate?

Back to the gym tomorrow, yeah!!! :)

SS

Kelt

07-22-2013, 08:24 PM

The last couple of days of been alright.

Yesterday when I got up my ankle protested in a new place. I walked around the house a little bit and it seemed pretty good so I went down to the beach. I took it easy, but it didn't feel quite right so I took the exit at 2 miles. Still a nice walk.

In the afternoon I went to the pool to practice by myself. I brought my new goggles to try out. I'm up to doing kind of an assisted dog paddle type thing with the barbell looking device as quasi water-wings.

Goggles are great! Especially after you get around to figuring out that you can actually open your eyes when you're wearing them. So I did my paddling around with my face in the water, and after a while, with my eyes open. I did really well with the breathing and humming, even turning my head to the side instead of straight up to breath in.

At about the 90 minute mark I was good and tuckered, and decided it was time to get out. On that last little stretch, I guess I was tired, I did the breathing backwards. * choke sputter cough sputter cough* :blink:

On that note, I decided it was time to get out. Then I changed my mind. Something in the back of my head told me that if I quit right then I might not go back. I decided to play psychologist with myself, and not leave on a bad note. So I jumped back in for two more paddle-laps and then left under my own control. I'm glad I did, the books tell me that a key to learning to swim and not be afraid is to learn how to feel like I am in control. Sounds good to me.

Today was less ambitious.

I got up to a very twitchy ankle but still wanted to get outside. I taped everything up and went down to the beach just for a little bit. I didn't go far, maybe a mile. But I did run in to a couple of the regulars, made plans for lunch with one for later in the week, and just enjoyed the fresh air.

Intentional day off from swimming today, planning on going for another practice day on my own tomorrow.

*******

The Group Power workout looks really hard! I am impressed.

I also loves me some good shoe deals too :cheesy:

DapperButch

07-22-2013, 09:03 PM

40 minutes Arc Trainer, Interval Level 5, television sucked because of that damn "Royal Baby"

20 minutes weights and yoga

LOL That made me laugh the hell out loud! Dakarti is gonna coming in here and kick your butt!

I have been a slacker. I was really kicking ass last week and then this weekend got all messed up b/c of trying to fit in going to the beach, plus watching the last two stages of the Tour de France.

I got up Saturday morning in time to watch the 4 hours of the Tour. Headed to the beach and got there about 3:00pm. TF and I went to eat and I had a couple of beers. I certainly going to work out after I got home that evening.

I guess I could have worked out when we woke up on Sunday, but I was too focused on us finding a spot (bar/restaurant) to watch the last stage of theTour (which started at noon). So, we go to a bar/restaurant. I can 't tolerate the lack of sound, so we head home, thus losing 1.5 hours of Tour time. Anyway, I saw the last half and then of course had to watch the repeat so that I saw what I missed. Late by then. So, that wiped out Sunday. Guess I should have just stayed home! But, I really wanted to get away, even if for only half a Saturday and half a Sunday.

So today I DID NOTHING AND HAVE NO EXCUSE. Ever feel like you simply don't give a shit and can't really remember why you set out on this stupid exercise venture to begin with? Yep. That was me today.

Tomorrow I have a thing after work I have to go to and won't be able to work out. I should be able to the rest of the week, even though it won't be right after work the way I like it to be.

<--- always feels better after confessing his sins.

Chancie

07-23-2013, 11:42 AM

I weeded for an hour or two last night, and for about 45 minutes this morning.

I really need a day off after Group Power. I am amazed that I can do almost everything but my muscles are sore after class.

I want to participate in a squats challenge. I do enough in class and I'll have to do 100 squats every day that I'm not in class.

Mopsie

07-23-2013, 04:41 PM

Today is a recovery day for me. And maybe tomorrow also...

Yesterday at work, I was walking down a flight of stairs when my foot caught on a loose board. I put the "flight" into flight of stairs. :|

I managed to land on my arms and knees before face planting, but today I look like a victim of domestic violence. :( And I'm sore all over! *sigh*

I have never been graceful but yesterday I took klutziness to a new high ... or should I say low. Sheesh.

You think those safety cord things work off the treadmill??

sierragirrl

07-23-2013, 06:45 PM

off to walk the track at the high school to get myself geared up for the long ass walk that kicked my butt last week..
I tackle Bidwell Park again tomorrow night :| <help>
told my doc what I did she said you are supposed to start out slow and build yourself up.. She clearly does not know me well, I always jump in with both feet and learn my lesson after words.

29 lbs to go until I meet my first goooaaaallll :byebye:

Kelt

07-23-2013, 07:11 PM

I think we should wrap Mopsie in bubble wrap. Yikes!
I sure hope you feel better soon.

*********

Today was another good one.

The beach walk was pretty pathetic, 1-mile might be exaggerating. But I did bump into three of my regulars and enjoyed my social hour.

The pool was great! Going an hour and a half earlier than usual makes quite a difference, I pretty much have the joint to myself.

It was practice day, so I did pretty much the same thing as last time. My assisted paddle about with face in the water. Today it was easier, I came up with sort of a new count for breathing and it made things easier. I didn't feel like my breathing was too shallow and rushed. I was able to relax quite a bit and take things a little more slowly. Much less thrashing. About halfway through, I realized I had stopped humming. I guess that's progress!?!

Something I have kept meaning to do, but have forgotten each time, is to use the really nice big hot tub there also outdoors. For some reason after I've been in for 90 minutes I'm pretty chilled by the time I am done even though I have been active. That's why I usually go sit in the sun for a while afterwards. Today, it was a little cloudy and 75°, very nice but not a particularly warm sun. Today I went and sat in the hot tub for little while afterwards and it really helps a lot. I think it also helped my ankle a little bit.

One more thing. When I was there today I ran into the woman who turned me onto this place and her own coach (now mine too). She is 54, a couple of years older than me. Until two years ago she was also afraid of the water and did not know how to swim. I met her down on my beach, she now does open water swimming in San Francisco Bay. That was enough of an endorsement for me, and I credit her largely for getting me to take action on this. It was great to see her there.

My next lesson is tomorrow afternoon.

:theisland:

nycfem

07-23-2013, 07:20 PM

Warning: In the mood to ramble.

I did 45 minutes, Interval program, level 5, on the Arc Trainer. Unfortunately Jill had a day where she really overdid it on the perfume, so she was on an elliptical behind me, and I kept getting wafts of perfume. What could be worse. Then the woman on the treadmill in front of me was on a long, loud cell phone conversation with her boyfriend. I spent the 45 minutes fantasizing about confronting both of them. Then I'd think about why it wasn't a good idea. For Jill, I thought, would I want our only real interaction to be me criticizing her when I think she's amazing? And if I confronted the woman on the cell phone, then what if -even though it's never happened before and I don't have the desire- I suddenly had a day where I wanted to have an extremely loud cell phone conversation myself, to throw back my head in annoying laughter and be oblivious to everyone around me while I pounded along on the treadmill, increasing my danger of falling by holding a phone? Well, say I did want to do that, and then, say, she happened to be there that day. She could march over to me, and say, "Well, now, isn't this the pot calling the kettle black. You yelled at me, and now you're doing it!" Did I want to take away this future option at the gym of getting to have my own uninterrupted, never ending phone conversation? Better to keep one's options open, I decided. And then I thought about Jill again, and how I do annoying things too, like carry my "terrorist" bag onto the gym floor (remember a woman confronted me about that). I thought to myself, "Keep quiet. Go with the flow. People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones." All of this ongoing annoyance and philosophizing passed the time. Then I did 15 minutes of yoga where I blissfully thought about nothing.

Chancie

07-24-2013, 08:39 AM

I slept through the morning classes, so I am trying the same classes scheduled during the day. I'm a little nervous.

I'm also a little freaked out that I've been buying workout wear. I'm afraid someone's going to stop me and say, Who the hell do you think you are, wearing a sports bra and a tank top with a racer back, and what's with those droopy shorts?

nycfem

07-24-2013, 03:44 PM

30 min. Arc Trainer, Interval, Level 5 (watched "I'm Having Their Baby"); 30 min. weight lifting, abs, stretching, and the like.

Warning: another curmudgeonly rant below.

The Whistler was at the gym during my whole time not on the cardio machine. She is one of my least favorite characters because she wears headphones and listens to music and snaps, all of which would be no problem, except that she whistles so loud and incessantly. I love pure quiet when I'm counting out reps in my head, and her whistling drives me nuts. I think next time I might kindly ask if she would mind going a little easier on the whistling. Who knew someone could whistle on and on so intensely? People do things when they have headphones on that I don't think they are fully aware of...

MsTinkerbelly

07-24-2013, 05:19 PM

Howdy all...

Looking for new exercise ideas, as I know it helps with my health issues. I have been given the great idea of water exercises, and will look into those when I'm cleared to begin exercising.

Thank you to several of you that invited me to join you all here for motivation.(f)

Gemme

07-24-2013, 08:08 PM

It was a nice, easy day after a couple off. T5 and I got along well, as always. I was on it for 45 minutes total. I went a little over 2 miles at a good clip but didn't break a sweat as I am going to try to do a really hard workout tomorrow and didn't want to syphon any of my go go juice from that.

Welcome, newbies.

Whoa, mopsie! That's not what we mean when we say 'break a leg!'.

:blink:

Jennifer, I'd be inclined to do or say something but I'm more obnoxious than you. Sometimes, a really long, pissed off and/or disgusted look does wonders.

SometimesSweet

07-24-2013, 10:24 PM

Hi All,

Well I am proud of myself, I made it to the pool again today. Although I felt winded again after only 2 laps, that's okay because I am going to keep at it until I am back up to my 80 laps per day. I continued swimming though for another 30mins and just enjoyed being in the water and moving my body.

I also wanted to write that I love this thread because I don't feel alone in my weight loss journey. I don't know about anyone else but I am the type that wants to see results yesterday with only putting in minimum efforts. This thread reminds me that in order to get the results I have to put in the effort and then even more effort. So... thanks everyone for being here, for sharing your stories good or bad because they inspire me on my journey.

SS

Gemme

07-25-2013, 03:19 PM

Good afternoon, exercisers!

I had a FANTASTIC workout today!!! I wore my brand new, never broke in, Brooks shoes and with the exception that I had to stop my workout to retie them reeeeeally tight to keep them on right, all was well. The deal with that is I have a size 7 shoe but I'm not a size 7. I'm almost always having to go up a size or two because the 'wide' version of my correct size....6-6.5....isn't wide enough.

So, anyway this is how my workout broke down:

First 13 minutes I'm warming up and coming to the realization that I'm going to have to make some shoe adjustments if I'm going to have a good, long workout. So, in that time frame I ecked out 50 cal and went .55 mph before I stopped and reassessed the shoe situation.

Not to be confused with "THE" Situation, who is a giant jerk imo.

By then, I was nice and warmed up, so I went for it from the 'beginning' of the second part of the workout. 104 minutes later, this is what I accomplished:

686 calories burned like toast, baby! (736 total!)
6.57 miles in the dust (7.12 total!)
117 minutes of my life, total, well spent

I decided to do a running interval for each section of mileage, breaking it down to easily managed increments. So, in theory, I would have 10 running intervals. 0-9, 10-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80-89, 90-99 <--end of program length. This would be followed by the 5 minutes of cooldown.

For the first 7 intervals, it was amazing. I went between 2-3 minutes and speeds of 5.5-6.0 mph for each interval in my blocks of time and played around with incline a little bit in between, going up as high as 1.5.

After that, I did feel that I was tiring a bit, so I opted to only run 1 minute intervals from that point on and adding more if I felt up to it. I wound up still doing about 2 minutes of running intervals, but I broke it up into 2 separate 1 minute runs at 6.0 and 6.1 mph. That felt more manageable at the time. I did play less with the incline though and when I did do it, really only did .5 incline.

That worked out well until the 90-99 interval. I was pooped, y'all! So, I only ran one 1 minute interval but I did it at 6.1 mph as a balancing point.

Some stretching and I headed home.

Tomorrow will be a tiny bit of cardio to get things warmed up, followed by upper body and abs.

The shoes held up great and though my tootsies are tired, there's no pain. Just the slightly achy satisfaction from kicking a lot of ass.

:eyebrow:

DapperButch

07-25-2013, 05:40 PM

Holy Crap! Great job, Gemme!

Good afternoon, exercisers!

I had a FANTASTIC workout today!!! I wore my brand new, never broke in, Brooks shoes and with the exception that I had to stop my workout to retie them reeeeeally tight to keep them on right, all was well. The deal with that is I have a size 7 shoe but I'm not a size 7. I'm almost always having to go up a size or two because the 'wide' version of my correct size....6-6.5....isn't wide enough.

So, anyway this is how my workout broke down:

First 13 minutes I'm warming up and coming to the realization that I'm going to have to make some shoe adjustments if I'm going to have a good, long workout. So, in that time frame I ecked out 50 cal and went .55 mph before I stopped and reassessed the shoe situation.

Not to be confused with "THE" Situation, who is a giant jerk imo.

By then, I was nice and warmed up, so I went for it from the 'beginning' of the second part of the workout. 104 minutes later, this is what I accomplished:

686 calories burned like toast, baby! (736 total!)
6.57 miles in the dust (7.12 total!)
117 minutes of my life, total, well spent

I decided to do a running interval for each section of mileage, breaking it down to easily managed increments. So, in theory, I would have 10 running intervals. 0-9, 10-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80-89, 90-99 <--end of program length. This would be followed by the 5 minutes of cooldown.

For the first 7 intervals, it was amazing. I went between 2-3 minutes and speeds of 5.5-6.0 mph for each interval in my blocks of time and played around with incline a little bit in between, going up as high as 1.5.

After that, I did feel that I was tiring a bit, so I opted to only run 1 minute intervals from that point on and adding more if I felt up to it. I wound up still doing about 2 minutes of running intervals, but I broke it up into 2 separate 1 minute runs at 6.0 and 6.1 mph. That felt more manageable at the time. I did play less with the incline though and when I did do it, really only did .5 incline.

That worked out well until the 90-99 interval. I was pooped, y'all! So, I only ran one 1 minute interval but I did it at 6.1 mph as a balancing point.

Some stretching and I headed home.

Tomorrow will be a tiny bit of cardio to get things warmed up, followed by upper body and abs.

The shoes held up great and though my tootsies are tired, there's no pain. Just the slightly achy satisfaction from kicking a lot of ass.

:eyebrow:

Kelt

07-25-2013, 06:51 PM

I decided to do a running interval for each section of mileage, breaking it down to easily managed increments. So, in theory, I would have 10 running intervals. 0-9, 10-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80-89, 90-99 <--end of program length. This would be followed by the 5 minutes of cooldown.

For the first 7 intervals, it was amazing. I went between 2-3 minutes and speeds of 5.5-6.0 mph for each interval in my blocks of time and played around with incline a little bit in between, going up as high as 1.5.

:eyebrow:

Dayum girl!!

Intervals are the best, it sounds like you won this round.

I was over on Greatist.com (http://greatist.com/interval-training) and under "fitness" they have a whole section about various and sundry ways to apply intervals.

You go... :cheesy:

Kelt

07-26-2013, 05:44 PM

Hey fellow exercisers,

It has been a couple of days. I had another swimming lesson on Wednesday. I tried kickboard again, this time upside down and backwards, sort of. It seems that if I am on my back and holding the thing on my chest I actually go somewhere. Still can't do it the right way but I'll take this.

I took a practice day on Thursday. I took a few runs at facing the water paddling around without a flotation device and did alright as long as I was heading from shallow to shallower. I also decided that I wanted to get more comfortable in general in the water. Since I went earlier in the day and had the whole place to myself, I decided to play. I have been concerned about the potential for dizziness due to extenuating circumstances. So far I am fine on horizontal and vertical. But I wanted to find out what would happen in other situations.

I donned nose clips, and with my goggles made quite a sight. (Made sure there were 4 lifeguards with not much but me to look at), then I went ahead and played like I have seen the kids do. I tried handstands, somersaults, and log rolls in both directions. I got pretty disoriented the first couple of times because I didn't know what to expect. But then I found out that it would not make me dizzy and I had a lot of fun. I know, I wasn't doing very much proper "homework", but I enjoyed the heck out of myself. :)

I took it very easy on the beach walks for a couple of days, tapping out at about 1 mile, so that I would still have something left in my ankle for the pool. Today was an intentional day off from the pool, so I went a little longer on the sand walk to test things out. It seems to be coming along pretty well, I went a little over 3 miles without mishap. I have been using the big hot tub adjacent to the pool the last couple of days and I think it is really helping the ankle. I think I will probably give it a good hot water soak this evening at home also.

That's all I've got for now. :cheesy:

Gemme

07-26-2013, 07:09 PM

I got a lot of physical stuff done at work, so I opted to tag this an 'off' day.

Back on the horse tomorrow!

nycfem

07-27-2013, 07:15 PM

Today I did 1.5 hrs on the Arc Trainer, Level 5, Interval program, while still finishing the Amy Sedaris sit-com series "Strangers with Candy." I will miss it when it's over. I'm enjoying the heck out of it, laughing out loud while I sweat.

Then I did 1 hr of weight lifting, stretching, yoga, abs, back, and leg exercises. The gym was pretty empty and peaceful.

Gemme

07-27-2013, 08:00 PM

I forgot that the gym closes early on the weekend, otherwise I would have made myself go last night. Eh. Live and learn.

Tomorrow for sure! No work, no excuses.

Rockinonahigh

07-28-2013, 06:56 PM

Today I played several rounds of basket ball till I was pouring sweat and breathing hard so I really got my heart rate up everytimd.Then palying with my dogs for a long time,we played pitch and fetch with balls and a frizby plus did some aglity traioning to keep them thinking...more tomorrow.

Gemme

07-28-2013, 07:02 PM

It was definitely a big day for me.

I started with half an hour of cardio (185 cal, 1.73 mi, 30:00 min) that included 3 interval runs @ 6.0 mph.

Then I did weight training for both upper and lower body for about an hour and 15-20 min and then some ab work. All in all, a little over 2 hours at the gym.

I think I'm going to be sore tomorrow.

nycfem

07-30-2013, 07:26 PM

Today I did an hour on the Arc Trainer, Interval Program, Level 7. Then I did 30 minutes of floor exercises and weight lifting.

Jill was on the stairmaster in her usual black tight running shorts, six-pack abs, Underarmour brand bra, and baseball cap. Her female trainer friend was standing beside her talking to her. Jill is generally alone so it's always exciting to listen to her with a friend. It was hard to hear them, but here's what I caught from Jill of any substance: "He's an Italian stallion lover....never has time for me...." Poor Jill and her rotating lovers.

Chancie

07-30-2013, 07:59 PM

We are walking and climbing a lot, but it doesn't feel the same as when I weight train.

I know it would be ridiculous to skip vacation to work out, but I am seriously thinking about planning a few gym visits the next time we go away.

I'm sure some people feel, Phew, I'm skipping the gym when I'm on vacation, but I am so happy that I am learning to be good to myself.

I also gave myself permission to budget 'maintenance' calories while away, which is substantially more food than I am used to eating, and my body doesn't feel great.

It is true that I feel so much more fit than I have in years, and we are having a lot more fun because I am so much more comfortable.

DapperButch

07-30-2013, 08:12 PM

Life has been stressful lately. Not even necessarily bad stress, just stress. Unfortunately, instead of going to the gym to work off the tension, I come home and remain in a somewhat grumpy mood.

So lately....mainly just walking the dog has been the exercise of the Dapper.

I think that I need to figure out how to change to being a morning worker outer. It is just hard to do it after work unless I have made a commitment to a work out friend. My two friends have also struggled to keep focused and either skip working out or when they do work out, want to go to those stupid cardio classes (I'm not into the class thing). Too, we have all been taking vacations (or just time off from work), so that has messed up the routine, as well.

Grrr..excuses, excuses...

nycfem

07-31-2013, 07:33 PM

Today I did 1 hr 15 min on the Arc Trainer, Level 7, Interval program. I watched "I'm having their baby." It sounds cheesy but I'm finding the show pretty gripping. I mean, think about it! Someone else is potentially having someone else's baby and they can decide to back out at the last minute. It's worth enduring extra cardio agony to make it through that crucial "Will you sign the papers?" hospital scene.

Then I did 45 minutes of weights, core, and yoga.

Gym interaction during the non-TV part of my work-out:

Older fit white man, not a regular, lays beside the "balance pad," a blue foam square used for certain exercises.

I walk up to him and say, "Are you using that?"

He says, "Yes."

I say, "Can I have it when you're done? I'll be right over here." I point to a mat nearby.

He says, "How much are you going to pay me?"

I force a laugh and walk away.

Out of the corner of my eye I watch to see if he is really using that foam blue square. Hmmm... not that I can see.

About ten minutes later, he shouts to me, "I'm done!" and zings it at me like a Frisbee. I catch it.

There are, perhaps, undercurrents of passive aggressive feelings on both sides in this interaction, but there's nothing like having an awkward, adrenaline inducing gym interaction to process while doing some end-of-work-out stretching.

Soon

07-31-2013, 08:31 PM

I took some days off but got back on track a few days ago.

So...

I have five workout DVD's -- some which have never been unwrapped :blink:

I decided to, for the next five days, exercise to a different one each day.

OMG!

SO much harder than my usual treadmill/elliptical/bike routines. Panting! Sweating! Hurting! Blast that Jillian and Jackie! And...AND...they are only 30 minutes long! Wow--what a workout crammed into those minutes!

Anyway, onward to DVD #3 tomorrow...Jillian's gonna bust my abs somewhere I think. :|

DapperButch

08-01-2013, 05:37 AM

Rockinonahigh

08-01-2013, 08:00 AM

I have been sweating hard,working out like a maniack,eating enough salads to choke a horse then finaly got down to 5258,damn I got on thes cale and have gained 2 pounds.I also have eaten a bit more than useal being I have been comeing home pretty late from the pool hall starveing then ate something late at night,now I also know me getting up twice in the early a.m. to let the pups out and drinking hot chockolate while waiting caould have done it but I couldnt have been that bad...I will stop the early am eating.The only prob I have with dieting is I have to be in some state of hungry all the time for it to work,it just won't work other wise.I'm back on tow waggons to go back to square one.

DapperButch

08-01-2013, 05:13 PM

So, one of my two work-out coworkers was going to the gym. It was planned again of time, but I really wasn't into it by the end of the day. But, her encouragement got me going. So, here we are, on the elipticals next to each other for all of 5 minutes and she says...."Ummmm, I am going to head over to the yoga class". I was like whaaaaa???? She said, "well, I thought maybe you wouldn't come if I told you I was going to the class and you needed to get in here! " ha! Smart friend! I must admit I was only on the machine for a few minutes before being glad that I was there.

Kelt

08-01-2013, 07:04 PM

I thought I would come back and give a quick update on what I have found to be the "locker room situation" now that I have had time to try it out.

As it turns out, when I decided to go to a place that was exclusively a pool instead of a gym + pool combo, it made a huge difference. I don't know for sure, but I think it is because in this locker room everybody who is in there either currently is, just was, or soon will be, nekkid. Nobody is there just to drop off their gear or make a quick shirt change. The only reason to be there is to swim.

I have had no negative looks or reactions, no comments, and am generally just not even noticed.

Another piece of this maybe the fact that it is a college, a women's college. It is summer and therefore mostly alumni and their families using the place, and a few other folks that have discovered the public can get in.

The upshot is, the only person who is bothered by me being there, or even gives it a second thought, is me. I just have to get over myself. Frankly, even that part is not as bad as I thought it would be. I just take care of business, get in and out quick.

When school is back in session it will be mostly college students. Normally this would give me pause, but again it is a women's college. I suspect that most of the people in there will be young, nubile… :blink:

Wait a minute… :thinking:

:thinking:

Hey! There might be an upside to this after all… :cheesy:

*I'm kidding!!!*

Eyes front at all times.

easygoingfemme

08-01-2013, 07:11 PM

My exercise for the past 24 hours has been giving multiple baths to my 100 lb lab after he went and got sprayed by a skunk.
Not cool.

Chelsius

08-01-2013, 07:32 PM

Walked 2 miles with a bit of weight training for the upper body.

Kelt

08-01-2013, 08:01 PM

Today was a really great day.

This morning I did a light 3 miles on the beach and pulled off in order to save some for the pool.

Something I have been seeing at the pool and looking into on my own is something called the pool swimmers snorkel. It goes right at the center between your eyes and allows you to lap swim without having to turn your head for air. After reading tons of reviews and opinions, that there seems to be three reasons for this. One, as a sort of "training wheels" device for beginners :cheesy:. Two, a training aid for exercise swimmers and people who want to concentrate on stroke form. Three, a rehab device for people rehabbing from neck or spinal surgery, or those with problems in those areas, (me). My coach mentioned to this to me in the past as something that she had used with other students, and I have seen my friend from the beach using it periodically during her lap swims.

Today I showed up at the pool and was just starting to get a little bit warm when I saw my friend show up. I flagged her down to ask her opinion and see how she liked hers and what brand it was. She said she loved it and couldn't say enough good about it, then she said that she had a brand-new extra one in her car and ran off to get it for me so that I could try it. It was exactly the brand and model that I was thinking about getting, how fun that I could try it out right then and there! Of course wearing this thing with goggles and all makes you look like an alien. :|

I tried it and I am hooked. Right off the bat, I swam all the way across the pool freestyle with no flotation device assisting me, completely comfortably and without panic. I had also been watching some swimming stroke videos on YouTube that my coach recommended, and was able to start working on technique by feel. About 45 minutes later, my coach showed up to instruct somebody else and saw me. She was very encouraging and spent the 10 minutes she was waiting for the other student watching what I was doing, critiquing me, and giving me tips. Almost like a free lesson!

I'll tell you what, when you can actually go for it and try hard without flailing around and being panicked half the time this is really a good workout. I thought I was getting worn out before! At an hour and 10 minutes I was completely dog tired. Today was the most outright fun I've had so far, and I can't wait for the next time.

I finished up with a nice soak in the hot tub and the sunshine.

:theisland:

Hollylane

08-01-2013, 09:02 PM

A ton of walking on the dreadmill, mostly at max incline, 3.5 miles per hour, during my lunch & break, then around the call center "track" (my supervisor figured out today that 6 laps around our quad equals .25 miles)....I also did leg stuff (leg press & calf raises).

I love how my legs feel so powerful after working hard on them, but I could do without the tired feet.

batennisboy

08-01-2013, 11:05 PM

Tired. Took a break today. :seeingstars:

sierragirrl

08-01-2013, 11:27 PM

went for an hour and a half walk
not sure how far I went but something is better then nothing..

Rockinonahigh

08-01-2013, 11:37 PM

Yesterday was very buisy so I didnt get to work out,but I did the day before really hard 50% cardio & 50% abbs,I am now up to 166 crunchies as fas as I can do them.I also did a lot of basket ball wich is a good cardio with the joging/running /bending to get the ball then running in for the shot.Funny thing is if I think about runing I fell heavy footed as well as uncordanated but if I just don't think about it and just do it I can get around pretty well...go figure.It has gotten very hot and humid lately so I am working out as late as I can or really early in the morning depending on whats going on.

alexri

08-02-2013, 02:55 PM

45 minutes this AM for triceps & biceps plus warmup and cool down. This afternoon is yardwork, and the weekend days are my rest days.

It's time for me to do some special things for myself, so I'm picking up just a couple of races this year.

I am booked for the Turning Stone Half Marathon (Verona, NY) in August, the Gulf Beach Half (Milford, CT) in Sept, the Hartford Half (CT) and Newport Half (RI) in October on an awesome double race weekend, and the Fall River Half (MA) in October. This year has been a financial whack in the face so I'm keeping myself limited to local, well-run, affordable events.

I had a racing goal for next year but that's been pretty much shot to heck now.

Soon

08-02-2013, 05:23 PM

Did a 30 minute Jillian Michaels' Ab DVD <--wtf. planks? burpies? really?! my core and upper body strength is crap. I had to majorly modify some moves as well as sit and catch my breath at various points as these physical fitness maniacs carried on!

After that torture, went on the treadmill for 25 at a brisk pace but nothing crazy (3.3 was highest I think).

nycfem

08-03-2013, 05:52 PM

I spent two hours on the Arc Trainer, Level 5, Interval Program. TV show choices were not so great. Home improvement shows are very popular these days, and I just can't get into them. Then I did an hour of weight lifting, floor exercises, and yoga. It was a wonderful work-out.

I'm very excited that I am now off work for the month of August, in between summer school and the new school year starting. It makes exercise so much more relaxing, and I will also have time to do arts and crafts and to clean the apartment. I am an introvert, and nothing delights me more than having no work and no plans on the calendar.

Rockinonahigh

08-03-2013, 06:06 PM

After my dinner setles i'm going out to give a workout a good go..more later.

nycfem

08-04-2013, 06:57 PM

I did an hour of sprints up the stairs at the gym. For the first 30 minutes I lifted weights while doing them, and for the second 30 minutes, I relished not lifting weights while doing them :D

Cailin

08-04-2013, 07:03 PM

Cailin

08-04-2013, 07:05 PM

25 on elliptical. 35 on rolling hills mode, tread mill. It was arms day today. then i came home to clean house (moving boxes and sorts). Its been a very productive day

nycfem

08-04-2013, 07:09 PM

It's like an elliptical but maybe more of a gliding motion. What I like about it is that on the elliptical my heels lift up (which isn't ideal for working out), but on the Arc Trainer I am able to keep my feet flat the whole time. But really it's very much like an elliptical, moving the legs and arms simultaneously. I like to do an interval program, where I have periods of intense resistance (which works on strength) interspersed with less resistance where I am able to go super fast and get a good cardio experience.

My sister says that Arc trainer is a beas't! what's it like? Ive not see one.

ahk

08-05-2013, 12:21 PM

I've been out (sick) for a little over 4 weeks now, started off with a sore throat and moved into an upper respiratory infection. So I really haven't been to the gym lately, but have been doing about 20 minutes of cardio on my Wii board. Its about 2000 steps each time and its a decent pace. I usually use weights in my hands and on my ankles.

Hoping that soon, my wife, and I will be free to gym soon-- its hard to always have a break and then start up again.

DapperButch

08-05-2013, 03:54 PM

Things are moving along. Saturday I actually did 70 minutes of cardio. After 40 minutes on the eliptical with the wrong shoes, I had to get off because my feet were hurting so bad. I changed to a recumbent bike and did another 30 minutes. It felt good.

About to hit eliptical now for my usual 45 minutes. I always do random or strength building mode. I do random when I am at the gym and strength building when on home machine.

nycfem

08-05-2013, 04:04 PM

I walked 3 miles (2 laps) around the Central Park reservoir. It was a gorgeous day out. I loved watching the ducks and the sun reflecting on the water. It was so quiet and breezy out.

Soon

08-05-2013, 04:06 PM

I'm just popping in and reading this thread to get some motivation to work off some fish and onion rings I had for lunch. It was an outdoor patio on the lake--I couldn't resist! Sometimes I feel like if I eat badly, I just wanna throw in the towel for the day and veg right out...but I refuse this time!

Off to fire up the DVD player or treadmill. I'll report back. Sigh. :vigil:

Soon

08-05-2013, 05:56 PM

Off to fire up the DVD player or treadmill. I'll report back. Sigh. :vigil:

Ok. I tried the Jillian Michaels' Ripped in 30 DVD, and I think it is my favourite workout video so far. It is structured in four levels of workouts--week 1, level 1 and on to level 2 in the second week and so on. Each of the 4 sections of the main workout has 3 mins of strength/2 mins of cardio/one minute abs. I didn't get bored, and she was good about instructions on positioning. I really feel I'm getting a better workout with a personal trainer on the tube. After finishing that, I watched Seinfeld while I walked on the treadmill for 30.

Thanks for the inspiration, exercise folks!

alexri

08-05-2013, 05:59 PM

No workout today. It was a sleep-in morning because of my late arrival home from the family visit last night, and I had an appt. after work this evening. Tomorrow is back to my regularly scheduled date with the gym.

Gemme

08-05-2013, 06:05 PM

Helllllooooooo!

I have soooo much to tell you all.

It's a good thing I keep a tiny notebook with my progress in it.

:blink:

Okay, so my last post in here was for the 28th.

July 29th-I spent 35 minutes on the treadmill for 1.73 miles and about 171 calories burned. I played with the incline a teeny bit too. I worked up a light sweat but nothing to write home about (just you all :) ).

Oh! I got paid to workout! There was a quarter sitting in the treadmill in the pocket where I put my glasses. Hell, yeah! Who says good health doesn't pay off?

But....here's my gripe for that day. Some beefcake brought his kid to the gym. You're not supposed to be on the equipment unless you are a teenager and an adult is supervising you.

So, I can't get on T5 because there's this TEN YEAR OLD running and huffing and puffing on it. I was a little worried for the kid, with the way he was stopping and starting and playing around with the machine but then he hopped off and disappeared into the mass of people. Man, it was super busy that night!

July 30th-It was a really good day. I worked hard. 65 minutes on the treadmill and a smidge over 4 miles for a total of 443 calories burned. My left calf really hurt, though. I'm still having leg issues but the pain is morphing in pattern, feeling and location. Weird. I did do some inclining around 1.5 and my calf felt better afterwards. Again, weird.

I felt a little out of sorts too. I'm sure that affected my workout but I tried really hard to shake it off and just concentrate on my breathing and my body's response to everything.

July 31st-60 minutes on ye ole treadmill, coming in just under 4 miles and burning around 354 calories. It was a bad calf day again. I try to stretch more on days when the legs feel extra grumpy. Some days it helps and some days it doesn't. Thank goodness for compression sleeves. I'm going to have to buy stock in those.

August 2nd-I scouted a new location. They have newer equipment but I don't think I like it as much as the older stuff at my home gym. My gym's weights feel heavier and I like that. I shouldn't be able to set 70lbs on the ab- and adduction machines and do it like it's nothing. Not when 60lbs at my home gym has me struggling for form after a couple of sets.

So, anyway, this other gym plays their music way louder but has way fancier treadmills. I'll be going there a few times during the month when I want to rev up the running; they have a running interval program on their treadmills that I want to try out.

I played with a lot of machines and phoned in an upper body workout but they have way cool ab machines and I like that their stretching area is alllll the way in the back around the corner and is not visible from the front door. The stretching area also has a barre, which I like.

August 4th-I spent 60 minutes on T5 (I haven't been able to get any time with my favorite machine lately, so it felt good) and burned about 336 calories and went 3.35 miles. I spent 8 of those minutes running @ 6.0 mph and got some mad incline action in at the end, going up to 8.5 before my cooldown kicked in.

Next, I worked my lower body, back, abs and did some stretching. All in all, about 2 hours well spent.

Funny note for those that like fun coincidences: I glanced down at the screen as I was working out and saw this:

323 calories..........3.23 miles..........3:23 time (cooldown counting backwards)

Today's a rest day aka I'm damn tired aka I have to go to work early tomorrow aka I'll have plenty of manual labor to do tomorrow aka yeah.

:blink:

DapperButch

08-05-2013, 06:06 PM

DapperButch

08-05-2013, 06:12 PM

Gemme

08-05-2013, 06:16 PM

Who else thinks Gemme's a weirdo for keeping track of this stuff just to tell random strangers on the internet about it?

<raises hand>

.....I know, I know she says she wrote it down for herself, but....<eyeroll>

I'm not telling random strangers anything.

I have handpicked each and every one of you.

*smug*

DapperButch

08-05-2013, 06:22 PM

I'm not telling random strangers anything.

I have handpicked each and every one of you.

*smug*

I'm disappointed in your retort. You are usually much funnier than this. Try again.

<---- believes in encouraging strangers to meet their full potential

Gemme

08-05-2013, 06:27 PM

I'm disappointed in your retort. You are usually much funnier than this. Try again.

<---- believes in encouraging strangers to meet their full potential

You know, Dapper, when people tell you that you are special, believe it. You really are. Very. Special.

:eyebrow:

DapperButch

08-05-2013, 06:32 PM

You know, Dapper, when people tell you that you are special, believe it. You really are. Very. Special.

:eyebrow:

:thumbsup: That's better!

<--- loves him some Gemme humor

Gemme

08-06-2013, 04:05 AM

:thumbsup: That's better!

<--- loves him some Gemme humor

*shakes head*

:|

Chancie

08-06-2013, 06:18 AM

I got back to the gym yesterday, after more than a week.

Oh man, was it ever hard!

I was so tired after class, and I was very sore all day.

I'm going to a water aerobics class today, and maybe a few more times before I go back to school.

I am really committed to getting to the gym a few times a week during the school year.

I know it will feel good, that I will feel good, and I believe it will help with my work anxiety.

Metro

08-06-2013, 07:48 AM

Need to step up with added cycling since the university gym pool that I use is closed for a couple weeks prior to the new semester. So, in addition to free weights for upper body and the 2 mile speed walks with my dog, I plan to ride my bike on the 4.5 mile route daily until the gym reopens again -- weather permitting, it's showers off and on today and am not interested in a vertical stripe of road dirt on the back of my shirt.

http://i717.photobucket.com/albums/ww173/prestonjjrtr/Smileys%20Summer/1sm463bike.gif (http://media.photobucket.com/user/prestonjjrtr/media/Smileys%20Summer/1sm463bike.gif.html)

Chancie

08-06-2013, 09:26 AM

Daktari

08-06-2013, 09:48 AM

Just living a busy life is enough to keep me 'fit' at the moment.

Does anyone else do that whole totally forgetting to eat thang when life gets busy? I'm becoming aware that I may be getting a li'l bit too thin again.

*note to self...eat especially when you 'can't be bothered' ya numpty!

A pleasing by-product of fettlin' bikes is that it's a bringing back a little definition in my arms. I feel incredibly lucky to have been a gym bunny/bodybuilder in my youth which means it usually takes very little effort to bring back muscle tone and definition. Now I just gotta remember to eat so those micro muscles grow a wee bit. :rolleyes:

nycfem

08-06-2013, 03:05 PM

I took a two hour walk in Riverside Park. It's another beautiful day here, and I'm loving my summer vacation.

Chancie

08-06-2013, 04:04 PM

I took a two hour walk in Riverside Park. It's another beautiful day here, and I'm loving my summer vacation.

Did you see my mother at the monument?

DapperButch

08-06-2013, 04:51 PM

Just living a busy life is enough to keep me 'fit' at the moment.

Does anyone else do that whole totally forgetting to eat thang when life gets busy?

I can confidently say that this is absolutely never happened in my entire life.

I'm becoming aware that I may be getting a li'l bit too thin again.

*note to self...eat especially when you 'can't be bothered' ya numpty!

A pleasing by-product of fettlin' bikes is that it's a bringing back a little definition in my arms. I feel incredibly lucky to have been a gym bunny/bodybuilder in my youth which means it usually takes very little effort to bring back muscle tone and definition. Now I just gotta remember to eat so those micro muscles grow a wee bit. :rolleyes:

I know what you mean about muscle memory, I feel fortunate, as well!

Today I did 45 minutes upper body (arms/shoulders) and some core stuff.

Gemme

08-06-2013, 05:59 PM

Somewhere sweeping the webs off of the buildings and dust mopping the floors, a red spider with tickly black legs traumatized me horribly.

Got my heart rate up right quick like, it did.

:blink:

Metro

08-06-2013, 06:18 PM

Soon

08-06-2013, 07:09 PM

Jillian Michaels' Ripped in 30 (http://www.amazon.com/Jillian-Michaels-Ripped-30/dp/B004CRR9IS) DVD
Thanks for the inspiration, exercise folks!

Repeat.

I really did NOT want to workout today--the only way I got through it was knowing that the core workout is only 20 mins long. And, yet, seems SO much longer! :|

DapperButch

08-07-2013, 05:50 AM

Dakari -

Protein shakes will help you not lose weight, but also help with the building of muscle?

I understand WHEY protein ISOLATE, MICROFILTERED, is the healthiest choice.

Daktari

08-07-2013, 06:49 AM

Dakari -

Protein shakes will help you not lose weight, but also help with the building of muscle?

I understand WHEY protein ISOLATE, MICROFILTERED, is the healthiest choice.

Cheers for the tip dood :thumbsup: I shall investigate further. :weightlifter:

ps. I'm really surprised that other folks don't forget to eat. :|

Chancie

08-07-2013, 07:34 AM

I'm meeting a friend at the gym for stretch and group power.

Wait until he finds out how little I know about what I'm supposed to do in that cockamamie class.

I have identified the names of the exercises I can't do, triceps dip and Warrior III.

:ugh:

DapperButch

08-07-2013, 05:24 PM

:nothingtoadd:

Chancie

08-07-2013, 06:14 PM

My arms are sore and my legs are sore, and my body is tired.

batennisboy

08-07-2013, 06:23 PM

Worked out hard last night and was drenched. Expected to have trouble just getting through it all with little sleep the night before but it was quite the contrary. Go figure. Didn't get much sleep last night but great hitting session today. Maybe I should just stop trying to sleep. Gym again tomorrow. Clinic and hitting session both days this weekend. Woohoo!!!

nycfem

08-07-2013, 06:44 PM

I did 30 minutes of sprints on the gym stairs while lifting weights. It provides a magnificent adrenaline rush.

Gemme

08-07-2013, 07:24 PM

Cheers for the tip dood :thumbsup: I shall investigate further. :weightlifter:

ps. I'm really surprised that other folks don't forget to eat. :|

I'm Italian.

:blink:

To not eat would be a sin.

Food = everything.

Love/hate/joy/pain/sorrow/anger/boredom/etc.

Today, I finally made it back into the gym after a two day hiatus.

I did cardio for an hour and revved myself up for about 367 calories and nearly 3.5 miles. Still having issues with those logs connected to my hips. Bah.

Soon

08-07-2013, 07:30 PM

Jackie Warner's: Extreme Timesaver Training

Definitely worth every sweaty, panting minute! I like that this DVD doesn't repeat moves. Each move is done for 1 minute and then you move on. and on. and on. Total: 30 mins.

Afterwards, I walked at about a 3.5 for 30 mins. on the treadmill. I felt I needed to do a little extra b/c I seriously had to STOP (drink!) or really modify my movements at a few points during the DVD workout.

DapperButch

08-07-2013, 07:51 PM

Jackie Warner's: Extreme Timesaver Training (http://www.amazon.ca/Personal-Training-With-Jackie-Timesaver/dp/B003VQO524)

Definitely worth every sweaty, panting minute! I like that this DVD doesn't repeat moves. Each move is done for 1 minute and then you move on. and on. and on. Total: 30 mins.

Afterwards, I walked at about a 3.5 for 30 mins. on the treadmill. I felt I needed to do a little extra b/c I seriously had to STOP (drink!) or really modify my movements at a few points during the DVD workout.

How many DVDs do you have again? :blink:

Soon

08-07-2013, 07:59 PM

How many DVDs do you have again? :blink:

5! One for each day of the work week! Have i ever DONE 5 in 5? No. But I COULD if I wanted! i like keeping my options open! :pirate-steer:

DapperButch

08-07-2013, 08:09 PM

5! One for each day of the work week! Have i ever DONE 5 in 5? No. But I COULD if I wanted! i like keeping my options open! :pirate-steer:

I remember you mentioning having 5 of them, but thought that was a series. So, after I saw non series types names I started wondering!

Soon

08-07-2013, 08:13 PM

I remember you mentioning having 5 of them, but thought that was a series. So, after I saw non series types names I started wondering!

yeah, they're all different :)

Chancie

08-08-2013, 08:55 AM

I had a massage last night, and I was exhausted and sore afterwards. I wasn't really surprised because she focused on my poor tense back muscles.

I had a little cottage cheese before water aerobics this morning, and I was still shaky from hunger, or the hot tub, after class. I think I have to eat more if I add extra workouts.

ahk

08-08-2013, 02:54 PM

Last night, we hit the gym again -- I did the bike for 30 minutes, RPM average 78-98, skilled level of 7, and went about 5.4 miles. Talk about sweat.

My wife, she did the treadmill and said she was a bit disappointed that it didn't raise her past a 3.5 incline.

Afterwards, we hit a few weights-- arms mostly. Legs tonight, after our cardio workout.

Soon

08-08-2013, 03:01 PM

I'm sitting in the recliner in my workout clothes and runners.

I thought I'd pop in to get some much needed motivation.

Before I just give up and find some :eatinghersheybar:

nycfem

08-08-2013, 04:44 PM

Rinse and repeat.

I did 30 minutes of sprints on the gym stairs while lifting weights.

Done!

Leftwritefemme also came over for lunch today which wasn't exercise but was too fun not to be worthy of mention! :)

Soon

08-08-2013, 05:11 PM

Cardio Burn for Weight Loss
(http://www.amazon.com/Cardio-Burn-Weight-Loss-Walking/dp/B000BY9VRI) basically 30 mins (divided up into three sections of ten minutes) of fitness walking with some aerobic movements--it's a good workout!

...and 25 moderate pace walk on the treadmill

DapperButch

08-08-2013, 07:02 PM

Gemme

08-08-2013, 07:09 PM

45 minute muscle toner on elliptical. That typically results in a bit over 3 miles and a bit over 400 calories ( yes, at this point I am WELL PAST interesting things to share about my workouts) Two days ago a muscle head guy pointed out my poor stance when working triceps with free weights ( nope, still not interesting)

Clearly you go to a boring gym and/or are not particularly observant.

I skipped today but yesterday's workout was interesting in the people watching department. Towards the end of my workout an absolutely adorable geriatric couple got on the treadmills in front of me. The lady was teeny tiny and wore a soft butter yellow knit short sleeved shirt and light khaki capris. I could tell she was wearing some sort of adult undergarment but that's cuz her butt was in my line of vision for 20 minutes. To my knowledge, I haven't started casing the gym for geriatric cruising.

:blink:

Oh, she hung her purse on the right handle of the machine and she was on oxygen. It took her a few minutes for her to get going but she put, put, putted along for a while. The husband stopped before she did.

The husband was tall and dressed well. He had a light blue button up tucked into darker khaki (and maybe a touch of gray too) pants with a brown belt and matching loafers.

I walked behind them and thought about how they came to meet and how they got where they were....basically I rewrote their lives for them. I hope they know their names are Arthur and Barbara.

:blink:

DapperButch

08-08-2013, 07:44 PM

Metro

08-08-2013, 07:58 PM

Today I did my usual morning 35" speed walk with the pup then headed downtown to Navy Pier for the afternoon (played hooky today) where I walked at least 3 round trip lengths of the pier while at the Tall Ships Festival. I think that is about 3+ miles in total. Upon returning home (to a happy pup who missed me because 7 hours might as well have been 7 years from her perspective) went on a 3/4 length speed walk with her thru the nearby University nature preserve. Exhausted and plan to sleep soundly tonight!

batennisboy

08-08-2013, 11:13 PM

Failure today. Went for a quick swim and hot tub instead. Stretch tomorrow. *sigh*

Gemme

08-09-2013, 05:07 AM

I go to a ghetto gym so there are only a small number of people there. Additionally, I tend to keep my eyes adverted because I feel bad. Since it is a ghetto gym it is the rare person that is in shape there. I feel like people would be uncomfortable if they thought people were watching them. Seriously, I don't look at people for this reason.

I also think that no one looks at anyone there. Is that weird? This is my first gym experience and I guess I assumed unless it was one of those gyms where cruising is common, people just do their own thing and don't engage/ don't have eye contact with each other. Or maybe I am at a socially remedial gym?

Someone enlighten me.

A socially remedial gym? For some reason that tickled me for a second.

First, the size of a person is not a determinator (determining factor, but I like the way I said it first better) of their fitness level. I'm pretty sure we all know this but I just wanted to put it out there. Second, some people will care and some won't. You'll get that anywhere you go.

Is it in a high crime area? That might be a reason people don't go looking around. If so, find another gym.

You have a point. People may cruise at that gym but, from my experience, that seems to happen at the larger brands and those that are right on the beach kind of gym, where there are a lot of 'hard bodies'.

I think you should just relax and work out and not think about where you should or should not look. That takes too much effort away from your workout, which is why you are there, right?

DapperButch

08-09-2013, 05:49 AM

Oh, I don't put any effort into it, as I said before the place is pretty empty. You know, people also won't give me eye contact there. Like when you are passing by them and you smile they either avoid contact or don't smile/look through you. Is this normal? Perhaps they are "in their own heads" I think I need to go with TF to Planet Fitness to assess this I called my place a ghetto gym due to the small number of machines. It actually was probably a poor choice of words to begin with. Sorry

It is an employee gym. I work at a hospital/outpatient medical offices. Hospital nurses do tend to be grumpy people. Perhaps it is carry over from their work day?

A socially remedial gym? For some reason that tickled me for a second.

First, the size of a person is not a determinator (determining factor, but I like the way I said it first better) of their fitness level. I'm pretty sure we all know this but I just wanted to put it out there. Second, some people will care and some won't. You'll get that anywhere you go.

Is it in a high crime area? That might be a reason people don't go looking around. If so, find another gym.

You have a point. People may cruise at that gym but, from my experience, that seems to happen at the larger brands and those that are right on the beach kind of gym, where there are a lot of 'hard bodies'.

I think you should just relax and work out and not think about where you should or should not look. That takes too much effort away from your workout, which is why you are there, right?

Chancie

08-09-2013, 07:50 AM

<snip>

It is an employee gym. I work at a hospital/outpatient medical offices. Hospital nurses do tend to be grumpy people. Perhaps it is carry over from their work day?

I wonder whether your colleagues are trying to create some distance and privacy for themselves.

I teach in a local school, and I exercise at a local Y, and I don't always want to have to interact with parents and students on my down time.

It's hard to tell who's more embarrassed to see me changing in the locker room.

nycfem

08-09-2013, 09:01 AM

Dapper, I think gyms are a kind of Introvert Paradise in terms of how people do their thing without having much interaction (not talking or even having eye contact). But yet relationships still develop. That's part of the magic of the gym for me. When I see people over and over and we're not talking to or looking directly at each other, I make note of them and write my own stories about them in my head. What else is there to do? The gym can be boring!

DapperButch

08-09-2013, 02:32 PM

Ok, so my gym is "normal" Thanks.

Greyson

08-09-2013, 02:53 PM

I have been reluctant to admit it but I have been going to a gym of sorts. I do cardio rehab three times a week. I am getting stronger and have worked my self up to a real work out sweat without keeling over.

I am primarily surrounded by elderly straight white men . Next to them I am the youngster in the house. I notice the men seem to be a little competitive. I can see them working hard to keep up with the guy next to them. There are a couple of women but they seem to be focused on their own work out and not competing.

Most of the guys talk with one another, they do not talk with me. I suspect they are trying to figure out my gender. Every day I get referred to as maam and sir.

And finally, the other day I was working my heart out, (so to speak) and the music playing in the background was Old School Motown sound. My kind of music. Anyway, one of the older guys shouted out "Please turn off that noise." Then most of the others in the gym nodded in agreement. Quickly it was switched to country music. Guess what the song was about....Something about how America is going to kick the Taliban's butt. I had to just shake my head, close my eyes and try to make believe I was somewhere else.

nycfem

08-09-2013, 06:50 PM

Same old:

I did 30 minutes of sprints on the gym stairs while lifting weights.

It's weird how I'll suddenly get obsessed with one thing and then it changes! I do the same with food.

The stairs at the gym (4 flights) are open, so you can watch each floor. Of course, I watched Jill a bit. It's hard not to--she's always there! Now I'm on a few week break between working summer school and the regular school year, so it's understandable why I'm at the gym during the day... but why is Jill there? Does she have a trust fund? Because she's there at night too! She kind of doesn't look like someone who'd be drowning in money. She looks and sounds rough around the edges. I still remain baffled by her. The most exciting moment today was when Jill's trainer friend (muscular, African American, butch looking straight woman) took a cell phone photo with Jill on her back. Wow, I wish I was on their Facebook...

nycfem

08-09-2013, 06:57 PM

It's interesting. I find that more men use the gym floor to chat; whereas, women do their chatting in the locker room.

...There are a couple of women but they seem to be focused on their own work out and not competing. ...

Most of the guys talk with one another, ...

DapperButch

08-09-2013, 07:12 PM

It's interesting. I find that more men use the gym floor to chat; whereas, women do their chatting in the locker room.

Maybe that is how it works. I change and use the restroom in my office before I go over. The one time I had to go in there to pee I had a problem (not anything dramatic or new, just mentioning g)

Gemme

08-09-2013, 09:29 PM

Oh, I don't put any effort into it, as I said before the place is pretty empty. You know, people also won't give me eye contact there. Like when you are passing by them and you smile they either avoid contact or don't smile/look through you. Is this normal? Perhaps they are "in their own heads" I think I need to go with TF to Planet Fitness to assess this I called my place a ghetto gym due to the small number of machines. It actually was probably a poor choice of words to begin with. Sorry

It is an employee gym. I work at a hospital/outpatient medical offices. Hospital nurses do tend to be grumpy people. Perhaps it is carry over from their work day?

Maybe. PF is non-judgy and I've never had a problem at any of the locations I've visited.

Perhaps. I know I like seeing new faces once I'm off of work.

Ok, so my gym is "normal" Thanks.

Maybe so.

You're not normal, btw.

Normal is overrated.

I've decided I'm going to start making up stories about the people at other people's gyms. Like Jennifer's Jill. I bet she is a recovering addict with the complementary addictive personality and she's drug herself up by her bootstraps and is now devoting every possible moment to making her body stronger and healthier. From one extreme to the other, she gives it her all.

No gym for me today. I worked late and by the time I got home, all I wanted to do was eat and relax. Alex said the magic word....:sushi:.....and plans were changed. I still made a valiant effort to eat healthy especially since I didn't have an extra caloric buffer tonight.

Hollylane

08-09-2013, 10:21 PM

There was not any organized exercise for me today, but I did a lot of walking downtown with my co-workers today (including several steep flights of stairs), and I drove the same route that we had walked on my way out of the downtown area, and was able to determine that we walked about 3 miles today.

Chancie

08-10-2013, 07:57 AM

I'm at the Y, waiting for Zumba to start.

The teacher in the current class is singing along to Chicago.

"Baby, you're the meaning in my life."

This teacher leads Group Power during the week, and she's very chatty.

I like her, and I find her constant narration both entertaining and irritating.

I took the day off yesterday because my body has been tired and sore.

I'm sort of curious whether I will have more energy this morning.

alexri

08-10-2013, 12:11 PM

Twelve fluffy bunny miles today.

Now it's nap time.

Gráinne

08-10-2013, 05:13 PM

I went to 10 Fitness today, and one of the staff recognized me and encouraged me to work hard :). I like the positive atmosphere and the lack of focus on being a "hard-body". And I did work out-I walked for a mile, 25 minutes, but hey, I can whittle that number down. Then my workout (which I can print out every time I go) was legs; lots of squats and extensions. That helps my knee.

I noticed that the workout program "counts" the times you've gone; since I signed up last November, I've gone a grand total of 11 times :(. I set a goal of reaching 30 workouts (at least) by Reunion. Here I go!

nycfem

08-10-2013, 07:15 PM

Did 30 minutes of sprints on the gym stairs while lifting weights, and then 30 minutes on the elliptical, level 5, interval program.

Then I kept my heart rate up by going to see the horror movie, The Conjuring :|

Gemme

08-10-2013, 07:18 PM

Good workout today!

Cardio for 65 minutes with walking and running intervals and then about an hour of circuit training for arms, abs and back.

I pushed myself hard...maybe too hard....Alex said it was too much but then, he gave himself heat exhaustion today, so what does he know?

:blink:

DapperButch

08-10-2013, 08:35 PM

Two eggs, two pieces of toast, two large pancakes, and one very large bowl of grits. In one sitting. I was sweating by the end. That may have been the hot coffee, though.

Hollylane

08-11-2013, 12:47 AM

Horseback riding for an hour :) :) :) Hiking up and down various hills and stairs at Ski Bowl (Mt Hood)...2nd best day of exercise leading to exhaustion ever!

Chancie

08-11-2013, 10:16 AM

I'm at the Y, waiting for Zumba to start.

<snip>

I'm sort of curious whether I will have more energy this morning.

I had tons of energy. It was good for me to take off a day. Five days a week of stretch, weightlifting and Zumba might be enough. :|

Chancie

08-11-2013, 10:58 AM

I had tons of energy. It was good for me to take off a day. Five days a week of stretch, weightlifting and Zumba might be enough. :|

After class, a young woman said, I wish my mother would try this class. I knew exactly where this was going!

Nice Old Chancie: Do you think she would enjoy it?

Nice Young Women: I think she'd have to have knee surgery first, but, you did great!

Nice Old Chancie: Aw, thanks. I might need new sneakers, but these are good for Group Power, and I hate to think I need two pairs of sneakers.

This conversation continued with more chit chat about buying sneakers.

I am as old as someone's mother! My presence in Zumba inspired a young woman to consider inviting her mother to Zumba. I am flattered and flabbergasted.

Gemme

08-11-2013, 12:31 PM

Great workout today and I owe it to a conversation Alex and I had on the way to the gym. I asked him whether he thought it was better to do cardio first or the weight training first on the days that I do both and he said that studies have shown that if you start with a cardio warm up of 15-20 minutes and then you move on to weight training and then go back to a form of cardio to finish up, that it elevates the caloric burn of the second cardio session due to the weight training. But we surmised that outside of extra caloric burn, it's really up to the person and their body. So I gave it a shot and it seemed to work out pretty well.

First cardio: 15 min + 3 min cooldown. 108 cal, 1.05 mi. Treadmill.
Weight training for roughly an hour including lower body, back and abs.
Second cardio: 45 min + 5 min cooldown. 355 cal, 3.33 mi. Treadmill.

I got in tons of interval runs @ 6.0 mph. Some 1 min, some 2.5 min, most 2 min bursts. No 3 or 3+ min runs today though. Those are much harder to come by. Those last 30-60 seconds are tough sometimes.

I've found that if I've got the right music playing, my required recovery time is shorter. I knew a good jam can keep me running longer during the intervals but this is really good news too. A couple of my recovery breaks were as short as a minute to a minute and a half and that's excellent for me.

Alex and I talked about me going to his sports massage therapist for my legs. He looked at them and said it's obvious that my calves are hard as rocks and it's true. Even if I stretch right before bed, wear the compression sleeves and hand massage my legs, I wake up with really tight calves and that doesn't feel good. So, that's an option I'm going to look into because it's not fun cutting back because of the fear of injury or doing permanent damage.

It also affects my running since I change my gait depending on how my legs feel. Sometimes longer strides feel better and sometimes I need to take much shorter strides to avoid discomfort.

During the actual act of running, they don't hurt though. Before and after are a completely different story.

I know; I have a weird body.

Tomorrow is going to be an around the world cardio session. I'm going to start on my trusted steed, the treadmill, and move (at regular intervals) to every single piece of cardio equipment they have and finish back on the treadmill. No weights at all because I'm still sore from yesterday's arms and I can't do back to back leg days. It's going to be fun.

It's a state holiday here tomorrow so I'm not sure if the gym is going to be nearly empty like it was today or slam packed. We'll try to get there relatively early and see what happens.

Cin

08-11-2013, 02:53 PM

I live on the 9th floor and I always try to walk up the stairs instead of taking the elevator when I’m not carrying too much stuff but I figured out today what a dynamite workout I can get without ever leaving my building.

Counting the 2 garages and the roof we have 12 flights of stairs and 4 separate staircases. 7 laps around each floor is a mile. If you run up 3 flights then do 7 laps by the time you reach the 9th floor you’ve got 3 miles under your belt then if you walk down and do 3 ½ laps on each floor taking a different staircase each time you will have another 5 miles to add to the first 3 by the time you reach the bottom. The variations are almost endless. I could do all stairs with intervals of walking around the building to cool down. Or a mix of stairs, floors, and different staircases. Then I can grab my suit and jump in the pool. We do have a gym in the building but it’s small and you spend more time waiting than anything, but this stairs thing seems like a ton of fun. At least for now until I get sick of it.

And I tend to get sick of stuff quickly nowadays since I can only do cardio stuff and lower body workouts. I used to love to lift weights but a work shoulder injury took that off the table.

Mopsie

08-11-2013, 03:09 PM

Kätzchen

08-11-2013, 03:11 PM

For the past four weeks, since it's been rather warm lately (except for the past few days), I've increased my water intake and on one day of the week, I take a break from food, exercise and doing anything arduous and rest with the intent of getting more sleep (my one day fast).

I find myself tinkering with the way I exercise and with my food and water intake/consumption. And it has helped me somewhat because when I visited friends I used to work with last year, they noticed that I looked different (like I've lost some wieght and appear healthier, somehow).

What I am going to do over the course of this week, since it's a vacation week for me, is to ramp up my exercise time and incorporate stair climbing: there are several places in the metro area with extended sets of stairs in beautiful, sanctuary-like, gardens.

DapperButch

08-11-2013, 04:32 PM

Hey, Gemme, just wanted to say that I am impressed as to how quickly you jumped in and really starting ramping up the workouts to where you are now really kicking ass. Go you!

Gemme

08-11-2013, 06:37 PM

Hey, Gemme, just wanted to say that I am impressed as to how quickly you jumped in and really starting ramping up the workouts to where you are now really kicking ass. Go you!

I appreciate this! I love celebrating everyone's progress too.

I'm a balls to the wall/all or nothing kind of person for this kind of stuff. I'm not going to do something until I'm 100% ready and it was finally my turn to be ready.

:)

Rockinonahigh

08-11-2013, 07:51 PM

For the last fue days I have been playing near non stop pool,but I have also made time for a good workout two or three times a day about a half hour at the time.They are very intense workouts with no more than 2 minits to catch my breath while i'm either siting down or walking.It is very hot hear so I have to becarefull of getting to hot,it dosent get any where cool enough o wo except up to 10 a.m. then after 6:30 p.m. I just make a good judgement call about when to w.o..I am down to 250,I know it's still a lot but the most I ever weighed was 330lbs when I started this program.Before I was working like a dog to lose the weight but not much happend till a coule of months ago when finaly after many months of thyroid pills and hormones cause my new doc found out they were way off and had been for years,so glad it is now where it should be.I urge anyone to have the doc check this out cause if the thyroid and hormoned are off it's hard to lose anything or much any way.Glad to see many posting about how it is going..keep it up and carry on.

Gráinne

08-11-2013, 08:42 PM

Yay for me :). Still at my 25-minute mile, but it seemed "faster" today, somehow. Then, arms and back, and the weight ActiveTrax assigned for most of the exercises was too light! Oh, revealed shoulders at Prom, here I come!

Rockinonahigh

08-11-2013, 08:51 PM

I was rereading my post then realised I have lost 80 pounds down from 330 to 250.It totaly shocked me when ran the numbers..I am doing a happy dance.

Cin

08-12-2013, 10:07 AM

First let me say that I think it's awesome that you are taking advantage of your surroundings to work out. :cheerleader:

But when I was reading this I started having math class word problem flashbacks. :eek:

LOL. Yes, I can see how that could happen. Sorry for the flashback.

And although this has nothing to do with what you said about math or my post, I noticed upon rereading it, I could have gotten away with half as many words, easy.

I imagine a goodly amount of people would have just said they used their stairs on a whim, got a good workout, plan to keep it up for awhile and left it at that. Ah if only I could be one of those people.

I do understand the concept and the usefulness of being succinct, but it’s in the practice that I fall short. I don’t know why I can’t just give the short version and leave out the entire process, but I don’t seem capable. Clarity is a bit of an obsession for me. I want to understand and be understood, but also I want to know why. I want to understand motivation and I forget other people don’t necessarily feel the same. And I also seem to lack the ability to discern what merits an obsessive degree of examination and what is just not worth the time or the words to explain. It’s rather important this. It’s the difference between having an interesting conversation and putting people to sleep.

Well, I should probably stop now cause, I’m doing it again, too many words. And it’s not even on topic. In a world of twitters and ten second sound bites, surrounded by ever shrinking attention spans, chances are I will go the way of the dinosaur. Unfortunately not soon enough.

(Speaking of flashbacks i'm having one now, flashing back to the many times in my life where people were glaring at me, tapping their feet and growling "is there a point somewhere.")

But anyway in a valiant attempt to bring this back around to topic, I did do the stairs again today. Good workout.

nycfem

08-12-2013, 10:14 AM

I love to hear all the details, Miss Tick. I'm a stair enthusiast and love it all.

LOL. Yes, I can see how that could happen. Sorry for the flashback.

And although this has nothing to do with what you said about math or my post, I noticed upon rereading it, I could have gotten away with half as many words, easy.

I imagine a goodly amount of people would have just said they used their stairs on a whim, got a good workout, plan to keep it up for awhile and left it at that. Ah if only I could be one of those people.

I do understand the concept and the usefulness of being succinct, but it’s in the practice that I fall short. I don’t know why I can’t just give the short version and leave out the entire process, but I don’t seem capable. Clarity is a bit of an obsession for me. I want to understand and be understood, but also I want to know why. I want to understand motivation and I forget other people don’t necessarily feel the same. And I also seem to lack the ability to discern what merits an obsessive degree of examination and what is just not worth the time or the words to explain. It’s rather important this. It’s the difference between having an interesting conversation and putting people to sleep.

Well, I should probably stop now cause, I’m doing it again, too many words. And it’s not even on topic. In a world of twitters and ten second sound bites, surrounded by ever shrinking attention spans, chances are I will go the way of the dinosaur. Unfortunately not soon enough.

(Speaking of flashbacks i'm having one now, flashing back to the many times in my life where people were glaring at me, tapping their feet and growling "is there a point somewhere.")

But anyway in a valiant attempt to bring this back around to topic, I did do the stairs again today. Good workout.

EmJay

08-12-2013, 11:48 AM

I have been walking all over Vegas. My feet and legs are feeling it way more than my 2 hr work outs at home. And it has been so much more enjoyable! :) *heres to another few miles going to be walked today*

Cin

08-12-2013, 12:21 PM

I love to hear all the details, Miss Tick. I'm a stair enthusiast and love it all.

You think you do but I'm not sure you fully grasp my potential. I have a talent for causing people's eye's to glaze over. It's not a useful talent like painting awesome pictures or refinishing fabulous furniture but I gotta work with what I got.

Gemme

08-12-2013, 01:14 PM

Today was my around the world of cardio day and it went well. My goal was to introduce and/or re-introduce myself to these pieces of equipment and do a comparison on what I like, what I don't and what I will include in future workouts.

Here's my progress:

Treadmill: 80 cal, .82 miles, 15:00 minutes
Arc aka THE BEAST: 138 cal, .63 mi, 15:00
Recumbent bike: 69 cal, 2.38 mi, 15:00
Elliptical: 117 cal, .86 mi, 15:00
Upright bike: 70 cal, 2.59 mi, 15:00
Treadmill: 99 cal, .86 mi, 15:00 + 3:00 cooldown

I did one 2 minute running interval on my first go round with the treadmill and just tried to maintain a steady pace on all the pieces of equipment without going too crazy.

The Arc is super tough and even the back of my hands and wrists were sweaty after only 15 minutes. I definitely earned those calories on that machine! When I'm in a time crunch and want to maximize my burn, that's where I'll be. My main beef with this piece of machinery is that there is a cup holder but I tend to come with quite a bit of paraphernalia and that's not enough room for my 'stuff' so I would have to adjust somehow to that as well as making sure to bring a water bottle with a nozzle on top that I would not have to take off to drink from.

My calves do not like the bikes AT ALL. The only real trouble I had with them today was when I got off of both bikes and they were tight, tight, tight! It may be an angle thing or just that I'm not a fan of bikes in general for exercise. I prefer a classic style Schwinn for tooling around town and good ones can be difficult to find so no bike riding for me.

Jennifer said something earlier about the Arc being more stable for her feet....less slippage...and I wanted to check that out because my experiences with the elliptical were similar to hers...I had to readjust my footing on a fairly regular basis. I agree that the Arc helps keep the feet in place better but I must have super slippy slidey feet cuz I still had to readjust my tootsies, but not nearly as much as when on the elliptical.

I found myself a bit bored on the upright bike and I zoned out watching music videos. I could probably have had a higher calorie count on that one but at least I didn't fall asleep on it.

My last round on the treadmill included incline work and no running intervals. I steadily increased the incline from 0 to 8.5 by the 15 minute mark and then finished with the cooldown and some stretching.

All in all, 573 calories burned and 8.14 miles covered. Not too shabby!

Alex treated me to some Only 8 frozen yogurt in a partial celebration of my progress (the othe part is cuz he just plain wanted some ice cream). For those that haven't heard of it, you can find more info HERE (http://www.only8frozenyogurt.com/). It's super yummy, smooth, refreshing and good for you. Score!!!

Cin

08-12-2013, 03:02 PM

Here's my progress:

Treadmill: 80 cal, .82 miles, 15:00 minutes
Arc aka THE BEAST: 138 cal, .63 mi, 15:00
Recumbent bike: 69 cal, 2.38 mi, 15:00
Elliptical: 117 cal, .86 mi, 15:00
Upright bike: 70 cal, 2.59 mi, 15:00
Treadmill: 99 cal, .86 mi, 15:00 + 3:00 cooldown

All in all, 573 calories burned and 8.14 miles covered. Not too shabby!

That is really awesome. Very impressive indeed. I never know exactly how many calories I'm burning. I look it up online and try to calculate but...

Gemme

08-12-2013, 03:39 PM

That is really awesome. Very impressive indeed. I never know exactly how many calories I'm burning. I look it up online and try to calculate but...

Well, Kelt kind of popped my bubble some time back with stats that the machine settings are off by as much as 42% (ellipticals, I think it was) but I still post what my machine tells me. Sometimes, I know it's off a little but when it's been a really hard workout and I know I kicked ass, I'll take every one of those digits and claim them proudly.

Online sources are a good way to get a general idea of how a person 'this age' and of 'this' stature and who has 'this' much activity in their day to day will do on 'this' activity, et cetera.

I used to use a site called the daily plate to input my food consumption and exercise and it calculated everything for me, letting me know when I went over on fat or sodium and when I was under in protein or calories, etc. That worked really well for me in TX, when portion control was one of my top three main issues with food.

The truest way to tell how much you're burning is to get one of those monitors that strap to your arm or chest but I don't have a couple of c notes to spend on that right now, so I go by how I feel the workout went and what the machine says, although I do take it with a grain of salt.

Cin

08-12-2013, 07:17 PM

Well, Kelt kind of popped my bubble some time back with stats that the machine settings are off by as much as 42% (ellipticals, I think it was) but I still post what my machine tells me. Sometimes, I know it's off a little but when it's been a really hard workout and I know I kicked ass, I'll take every one of those digits and claim them proudly.

Online sources are a good way to get a general idea of how a person 'this age' and of 'this' stature and who has 'this' much activity in their day to day will do on 'this' activity, et cetera.

I used to use a site called the daily plate to input my food consumption and exercise and it calculated everything for me, letting me know when I went over on fat or sodium and when I was under in protein or calories, etc. That worked really well for me in TX, when portion control was one of my top three main issues with food.

The truest way to tell how much you're burning is to get one of those monitors that strap to your arm or chest but I don't have a couple of c notes to spend on that right now, so I go by how I feel the workout went and what the machine says, although I do take it with a grain of salt.
Ah so the machine settings are off. I was feeling like maybe i should do more of my workouts in the building gym cause they have a treadmill and an elliptical that would give me an idea of how much I'm burning but i imagine I can do as well as 42% with online sources. And right now I am liking the ease of interval training I'm getting with the stairs and the hallways.

I doubt I will ever want to spend that much money on a monitor. Besides I think you are right. I think you can tell when you've had a really good workout. And you should claim each and every digit. I know from now on when I do use the gym and get a reading on a machine I'm going to think that maybe I should add 42% to the burn. I mean who can say what direction the settings are off.:deepthoughts:

cinnamongrrl

08-12-2013, 07:24 PM

Kelt

08-12-2013, 08:28 PM

I am back from my little road trip.

I knew it would be a good idea to get off my ankle for a few days, and that I did. I also went pretty well stir crazy. Being used to being active for 2 to 4 hours a day and going straight to zero just about did me in.

I didn't keep detailed records like Gemme did (because there was nothing to keep track of), but I did get out a little bit.

I spent the first two days driving, and they were long days, but every couple of hours I tried to find someplace nice to get out and stretch my legs for a few minutes. Usually a nice park next to a river or lake, or some nice little 1 or 2 mile quick scenic spot. I took all of my own food so that I would not be subject to "road food" and that helped a lot. I picnicked. :cheesy:

I was visiting with my folks, and after sitting there staring at each other for two days, I put us into "day-trip" mode. We spent one day driving up to and lunching at a very nice lake in the Cascade foothills where I was able to stick them in a pretty spot and take myself on a quick little walk. They love the outdoors as much as I do, but being in their mid-80s they just don't get around too well anymore. The next day I dragged them off to the lower reaches of Mt. Rainier, up at the tree line, where we went and lunched at one of my favorite little alpine lakes. Again, they moved at their pace while I sort of darted around taking pictures and making sure no one fell down. My last day there (the 5th) we went off and followed a river into the foothills again in the Cascades. Repeat of the previous two days. I got in maybe 1 or 2 miles per day. That last day was a pretty good ankle test, I did several river crossings on logs and a fair bit of boulder hopping. The ankle held up well.

After the visit I headed back home again. At the beginning of the second day of driving, I tucked in a little 4 mile hike at Crater Lake. While the trip left me mentally exhausted, I was so fidgety physically I just about went nuts.

This morning, after thankfully sleeping in my own bed again, I got the beach early. Not wanting to undo the good I had done by resting my ankle, I capped it off at 3 miles. Then, around noon time I headed off to the pool and spent 90 minutes exhausting myself. It was great! I had a fabulous time playing around in the shallows, doing handstands and somersaults, then plowing through laps with my fun snorkel. I wrapped it up with a good soak in the hot tub.

It is good to be back in my routines. I am nothing if not a creature of habit.

I had fun reading through all of your posts earlier today, and I'm glad to be back in here. Consider yourselves all 'repped' multiple times. :cheesy:

:theisland:

nycfem

08-12-2013, 11:17 PM

30 minutes of stair sprints while lifting weights.

Saw Jill and her trainer friend running about, very cute.

cinnamongrrl

08-13-2013, 10:36 AM

I'm putting this out there so I have to follow up.......

I have a new later start time for work (830am) and I now have time to go to the gym before work...which is my preferable time....

I'm up at 5 or 6am daily anyway (involuntarily) so I may as well make the most of my time...

SO...

Tomorrow, when I get home from work for the day (around 1045pm) I will be posting here about my morning at the gym. This is my accountability! I need to seriously train if I'm ever going to hike anything bigger than our paltry hills...much loved as they are to me...I need to be challenged or I get bored...

:cigar2:

I went to the gym somewhere around six (it opens at 5!) and did 30 minutes on my favorite treadmill with intervals of elevations. Not as high as I was previously, but I will work on it.
I also did upper body work on the weight machines...some ab work, and basic leg work. AND...I stretched after. I always mean to and don't and then I hurt...so I'm making it a point... :)
It felt good to get it done early and sets the tone for the day ( I took the stairs at work)
I have an early night at work so I COULD Possibly go after work. I don't think that's excessive....? :)

DapperButch

08-13-2013, 03:52 PM

My dog is nothing short of brilliant. He has now learned the difference between my workout shorts (nylonish) and cargo shorts (cotton). You may or may not remember that he has a treadmill. He doesn't like it. There has been a couple of times that I have put him on it for his 15 minutes while I am on the eliptical right next to him.

Anyway, today I am going to use the eliptical at home today so I just changed. I came down the steps. My ever present shadow was not behind me. Nope, he was upstairs hiding...

He waited until he heard me sit down in the recliner, then came swooping down the steps, feeling all safe and shit.

DapperButch

08-13-2013, 05:33 PM

I'm back. Did my 45. The dog did his 15.

He hasn't been on his treadmill for a while for a couple of reasons:

1) I took Kelt's information to heart about how we are not really increasing our exercise intake if we cut back on our normal activity on exercise days. Therefore, I went back to walking the dog even on my exercise days.

2) He hates it, so I feel bad for him.

However, I selfishly want the guy to be healthy and live as long as possible, so on the treadmill he must go from time to time!
:dogwalking::dogwalking::dogwalking:

nycfem

08-13-2013, 05:46 PM

I did my 30 minutes of stair sprints while lifting weights. I like how much it makes me sweat and how much water I need to drink. That's one of the ways I measure how intense a work-out is for me. Since I go on the stairs at the gym, it's a bit like being in a character in a video game trying not to bump into texters. People who happen to be using the stairs (not specifically for exercise but in order to get somewhere) while texting have no sense at all of what is going on around them. You should see the look on their face when they see they have narrowly missed impact by a red faced fat woman wearing a fanny pack and hoisting weights wildly :D

Koffeelvr

08-13-2013, 06:03 PM

I was rereading my post then realised I have lost 80 pounds down from 330 to 250.It totaly shocked me when ran the numbers..I am doing a happy dance.

Congratulations!

Koffeelvr

08-13-2013, 06:07 PM

I worked out on the treadmill and lifted weights.

Great thread. Thanks for the push.

Gemme

08-13-2013, 07:15 PM

I went to the gym somewhere around six (it opens at 5!) and did 30 minutes on my favorite treadmill with intervals of elevations. Not as high as I was previously, but I will work on it.
I also did upper body work on the weight machines...some ab work, and basic leg work. AND...I stretched after. I always mean to and don't and then I hurt...so I'm making it a point... :)
It felt good to get it done early and sets the tone for the day ( I took the stairs at work)
I have an early night at work so I COULD Possibly go after work. I don't think that's excessive....? :)

I know some who do both a morning and evening workout. I think that as long as you're not doing two really intense workouts and if you make sure you're doing different things (no arms twice in one day, for example) and it's not a regular thing (because your body needs recovery time), then I don't see the harm in it once in a while.

Today's an off day but I really think I should have gone anyway. Pretty soon, I'll be doing 6-7 day weeks for a month or so, up until the reunion basically, so I need to enjoy the evenings when I actually have some energy left over at the end of the day.

Kelt

08-13-2013, 08:12 PM

I know some who do both a morning and evening workout. I think that as long as you're not doing two really intense workouts and if you make sure you're doing different things (no arms twice in one day, for example) and it's not a regular thing (because your body needs recovery time), then I don't see the harm in it once in a while.

I am in the beginning stages of switching over to a twice a day regime. I have pretty well converted my walks from epic to normal, and the plan is to stay that way. Now I am adding three times a week swim, and in the next few days it will be joining a gym.

My goal is to head into a 16 week cycle where I will:

3 days a week short beach-walk + swim
3 days a week short beach-walk + gym
1 day a week freestyle; could be a long beach-walk or f* it and go to a movie. Whatever I feel like.

I have some pretty specific goals in mind, and just to be contrarian about it, I won't really know what they are until I get there. What I mean is, I see one of two potential outcomes happening, one is preferred, but I don't know yet which one is physically possible. But what I don't want to do is end up injured in someway. So, progress will have to be judged somewhat on the fly.

Then I take the month of January off from the gym, (to avoid the resolutioners), and assess how well I can maintain those gains in my home setting. At that point I can push plans further out based on outcome.

That's the game plan anyway. For today I did 3 miles on the beach and washed my car a lot, probably about three times. 2500+ miles of baked on bugs took a while to scrape off. Then, just because I had everything out I did a broom scrub-down on my front porch, steps, and sidewalk. All of that should count for a little something. :cheesy:

Bad_boi

08-14-2013, 03:11 AM

Had a nice walk in the woods today and the day before :)

cinnamongrrl

08-14-2013, 10:49 AM

I had an abbreviated workout this morning...because I went back to sleep...

I did 25 minutes on the interval setting (18 max elevation!) then did some weight machines....talked to the trainer that I want to train me :) He's a cool dude and I think we will get along famously...

Daktari

08-14-2013, 11:20 AM

No dedicated exercise again today but an incredibly active day at work. So knackered I don't think I could ride any proper mileage if I tried.

Sorta missing riding properly but being, and more importantly to me, feeling useful is worth the regular meds and tiredness.

nycfem

08-14-2013, 11:57 AM

45 minute walk in Riverside Park with a friend.
she was tired and didn't tell me that ahead (normally she's a fast walker) so the walk was slow.
nice but drove me a little crazy not to walk faster.
planning on the gym later.

Bad_boi

08-14-2013, 09:59 PM

I found a geocache today. Did about a 3 mile walk. Started raining on my way back.

Gemme

08-15-2013, 04:38 AM

Yesterday I did half an hour on the treadmill at a sister gym that has newer equipment. Their treadmills have a speed interval program and I tried it. The program's okay. It lets you put in 2 speeds and you can toggle between the two speeds as you see fit and it gradually increases or decreases the speed until it reaches the target speed. Not too bad.

BUT

Ohmyword, their treadmills feel so HARD on my legs. I had to stop the intervals and switch to incline work because every foot strike was painful. Not sure what the difference is between their model of Life Fitness and my home gym's model but my home gym's got older machines and maybe it's the wear and tear that makes it feel 'softer' somehow. Not sure. Didn't like, though. Man, my legs hurt really bad after only a few one minute interval runs. :(

I think these machines are a little more accurate too. I had to work for my 207 calories and 1.85 miles. 35 minutes total.

I also hauled some boxes around throughout the day. Today will probably be similar.

Chancie

08-15-2013, 06:03 AM

I went to stretch and to Group Power Wednesday morning, and for whatever reason, I was too sore and too tired to enjoy my workout.

I have to find a way to balance my need to workout with my need to be loving to my one and only precious body.

cinnamongrrl

08-15-2013, 08:57 AM

I did a 10 minute warm up on the stationary bike then weight machines (upper and lower body and abs) for about 30 minutes, then 25 minutes (as prescribed by the trainer at my gym) of heavy intervals with higher elevation. I'm looking more at elevation distance now when I'm on this machine. In 25 minutes I did nearly 400 ft of elevation. I want to work up to over 500 even if it means a longer duration. I also want to ask them about possibly getting the weighted vests; unless everyone would be ok if I used my hiking pack for resistance....but people are strange about backpacks now....

cinnamongrrl

08-15-2013, 09:02 AM

ohhhh I forgot...

I found this wonderful weight machine. It's called a pullover. I'm absolutely infatuated! It does numerous things at once; shoulders, triceps and even upper abs! (which I felt this morning when I woke up, after trying it for the first time yesterday)
This is especially wonderful since I have a shoulder that is prone to injury (old skiing accident) and since the arms work co-operatively, I don't have to worry about over tasking the bad side, but am still able to do a heavier weight. :)
I have to say, after doing upper body work, I find myself standing straighter throughout the day...even when I was tired on the treadmill doing the elevations, I managed to keep my shoulders down and back...
Feels sooo good to be back at the gym!

nycfem

08-15-2013, 07:41 PM

Yesterday I wrote a second post but it got lost because the site was being a little wonky. Is it not one of the most annoying thing to have a fairly long post or email disappear? It never comes out as good the second time. Anyway...

Yesterday afternoon I went to the gym and did the Arc Trainer, Interval program, L 5 for an hour, and then L 7 for 30 minutes. Then I did half an hour of weight lifting, stretching, and yoga.

Today I did a two hour walk in the park (thanks to this break between summer school and regular school which lasts for all of August!).

Here is a comprehensive description of Jill (the obsessive at my gym who I am always observing and sort of trying to figure out):

-pale white skin
-hard to determine age... maybe low thirties? Her personality is very 20-something --meaning kind of immature but not bubblegum, more with a harsh edge. Her face looks older, worn down and with heavy-ish make-up
-her hair is shoulder length bleach blonde and always in a ponytail coming out of a baseball cap
-her body is weird but quite young looking, more like as if she is in her twenties, no body fat, six pack abs, the tightest butt imaginable, and lean, muscular legs
-she has this hulking shoulder thing going on that is quite masculine-ish. Her masculine edge is also amplified by her her small chest (She always wears tight black shorts/leggings with a black Underarmour brand bra)
-she doesn't look anorexic but also doesn't look like a bodybuilder
-she wears perfume which I hate

We spend many an hour together not acknowledging each other at all. I imagine that if we spotted each other in a foreign country we might smile and come up to each other and say, "OMG, hi, what are you doing here?" Maybe we'd be in Italy...

Ginger

08-15-2013, 07:58 PM

Yesterday as soon as I got home from work I rode my bike around Prospect Park. it was cool out, in the sixties, and you could smell the trees as soon as you got on the path. If you know that loop, you know that the first couple miles are easy and the last mile is a slow incline that usually has at least one person walking his or her bike at the end. I never give up though. I will probably die on a bike, my heart pounding out of my chest. I want to see green when I go down.

Gemme

08-15-2013, 08:17 PM

No 'technical' workout to mention for today but I was very active at work, cleaning, and I hauled some more boxes around.

I expect to get in a good workout this weekend if my schedule doesn't change.

batennisboy

08-15-2013, 09:19 PM

It has totally sucked since Saturday. Tweaked my knee before I even hit a ball. Figured it was nothing and stayed on the court over 2 hours. All was good till I got home later that day and it hurt. Have been injured enough times to know the difference between being sore and in pain. But did good respecting my knee and have not done anything since except rest, ice and NSAIDs. Was concerned it was serious but thankfully it's slowly been getting better. Maybe I'm just not feeling the pain with the NSAIDs but I'll take it right now. Maybe I'll be able to get on the court over the weekend. If not, then restart next week...hopefully.

DapperButch

08-15-2013, 09:21 PM

batennisboy

08-15-2013, 09:30 PM

So, what's your story? Do you play professionally or what? You have pointed our your love of tennis/the fact that you are very involved in the sport, so I am curious.

Nope, I'm a working stiff who loves the yellow fuzzies...a lot. Wanna play? ;)

WingsOnFire

08-15-2013, 11:28 PM

I started Aerial Yoga tonight! I absolutely loved it and can't wait for next Thursday to come around! I was.amazed at how much stretching a stiff and out of shape body could do with the added benefit of a swing!

Sooo excited.

Mopsie

08-16-2013, 03:34 AM

Gemme

08-16-2013, 04:10 AM

I have never heard of this! And now I'm very curious. Could you describe how it works?

Yowd_l-jY1k

Music optional.

:)

Gemme

08-16-2013, 04:13 AM

And if you like the movement as it happens, there's this:

BfpFlJWeZt0

It's beautiful and probably the only way I'd do yoga.

DapperButch

08-16-2013, 05:25 AM

Nope, I'm a working stiff who loves the yellow fuzzies...a lot. Wanna play? ;)

Four year Varsity Letterman in high school, but rarely play anymore. It's great that you are so nuts about it. :)

Mopsie

08-16-2013, 08:24 AM

I also enjoy tennis. Watching not playing. :popcorn:

Let me know when the two of you play a match ... I'm ready to watch! :)

Katelar

08-16-2013, 08:43 AM

I've been working out like a demon for the past two weeks and today was no different.

Need to shift the post ankle injury tub.

Today i've just polished off 50 mins on the stationary bike followed by squats and sit ups.

I'm going to go for a walk around the lake this evening to add to the fun.

nycfem

08-16-2013, 08:04 PM

I took another two hour walk in Riverside Park today. Squirrels seemed to be the theme. I saw a lot of them, rustling in the leaves and scurrying into the brush. Squirrels are so beautiful, and I am in awe of them. In fact it was a joke in my family that I was taken to the zoo as a child and seemed bored by all the animals but then saw a squirrel in the parking lot and pointed it out with much excitement. When I got cats, I remember thinking, it's like getting to have big squirrels that don't run away from me. But, really, squirrels are in a class of their own.

Here were the two oddest squirrel moments:

-a squirrel in the trash can seeking out food (one of those trash cans that is made out of a mesh pattern so it's easy for small animals to squeeze right in)

-the end of a squirrel's tail just sitting by itself in the middle of a path

I also came upon another site that I found myself thinking about. It was an old stone little one-room "house" right up against the woods with two windows and no other observable way to enter from the way I faced it. The windows had rusty, jail-like bars on them. Inside the house there were piles of leaves and dirt and nothing else. There were two shopping carts outside the house, each one tethered to the bars of each respective window. A mother and child passed by, and the child said, "Does anyone ever go inside?" And the mother said, "No one goes inside," and pulled her away. It was a creepy site, but then I started thinking how those shopping carts were most likely stored and hidden there by homeless people to use for storing and transporting stuff, like recycling bottles for money. There were a few empty bottles in the carts. I thought, "What if I reported those carts and tried to have them taken away?" Then I thought, "What a terrible thing to even think of as a fantasy! This was a smart idea, and they are being used for disenfranchised people's livelihood." The stone structure reminded me of a mausoleum in disrepair but still beautiful, while the carts seemed sad and ugly. But then when I thought of them being used by people and carefully locked there, I felt touched by the sight of them, as if they themselves were silenced people.

Then I found a winding staircase in the park with 87 steps called St. Clair Stairs, and I ran up and down it a few times.

Ginger

08-16-2013, 08:20 PM

...

The stone structure reminded me of a mausoleum in disrepair but still beautiful, while the carts seemed sad and ugly. But then when I thought of them being used by people and carefully locked there, I felt touched by the site of them, as if they themselves were silenced people.

...

Beautiful.

NorCalStud

08-16-2013, 08:23 PM

The above post was beautiful to read. Thankyou. Moved me for several reasons.

A squirrel tail in the pathway...very interesting as well. Ive spent quite alot of time around squirrels watching them in transportation mode.

Exercise: I am determined to start my day stretching...
Shopping, however, has to be named as the outstanding exercise today.

cinnamongrrl

08-16-2013, 08:25 PM

I took another two hour walk in Riverside Park today. Squirrels seemed to be the theme. I saw a lot of them, rustling in the leaves and scurrying into the brush. Squirrels are so beautiful, and I am in awe of them. In fact it was a joke in my family that I was taken to the zoo as a child and seemed bored by all the animals but then saw a squirrel in the parking lot and pointed it out with much excitement. When I got cats, I remember thinking, it's like getting to have big squirrels that don't run away from me. But, really, squirrels are in a class of their own.

Here were the two oddest squirrel moments:

-a squirrel in the trash can seeking out food (one of those trash cans that is made out of a mesh pattern so it's easy for small animals to squeeze right in)

-the end of a squirrel's tail just sitting by itself in the middle of a path

I also came upon another site that I found myself thinking about. It was an old stone little one-room "house" right up against the woods with two windows and no other observable way to enter from the way I faced it. The windows had rusty, jail-like bars on them. Inside the house there were piles of leaves and dirt and nothing else. There were two shopping carts outside the house, each one tethered to the bars of each respective window. A mother and child passed by, and the child said, "Does anyone ever go inside?" And the mother said, "No one goes inside," and pulled her away. It was a creepy site, but then I started thinking how those shopping carts were most likely stored and hidden there by homeless people to use for storing and transporting stuff, like recycling bottles for money. There were a few empty bottles in the carts. I thought, "What if I reported those carts and tried to have them taken away?" Then I thought, "What a terrible thing to even think of as a fantasy! This was a smart idea, and they are being used for disenfranchised people's livelihood." The stone structure reminded me of a mausoleum in disrepair but still beautiful, while the carts seemed sad and ugly. But then when I thought of them being used by people and carefully locked there, I felt touched by the site of them, as if they themselves were silenced people.

Then I found a winding staircase in the park with 87 steps called St. Clair Stairs, and I ran up and down it a few times.

Ok..my continuity here is flawed, but... I have a squirrel story....

I was visiting a favorite childhood park one day...now pretty much abandoned sadly. I heard a strange noise coming from the pavilion so I went over. The noise was coming from a trash can there. I carefully peeked inside...only to find...2 squirrels mating... :|
They paused and looked up at me...it was an awkward moment so I stepped back and left...and so did they...my only thought on the matter was...in all the great outdoors...they choose to mate in a trash can??? Although, I had a friend who was in the Navy and was on shore leave and had to have sex in a port-a-potty because of necessity...or so she says... so... really....have we risen that much above animals? I think not....back to regularly scheduled programing...

Umm I took a day off from the gym today...my body just said NO....but tomorrow morning I will begin again... :)

Kelt

08-16-2013, 09:03 PM

Okay, too much coincidence. Squirrels, porta-potty, parks... I wasn't going to share this, but what the heck.

I don't think I have mentioned this before, but the beach that I walk on is part of the state park system. One thing that is helpful for very long walks first thing in the morning, (post coffee), is the fact that there are restrooms every 100 yds or so. Sort of a "emergency only" situation, privvies that flush, rudimentary, small and dark.

There are also hundreds upon hundreds of California ground squirrels out there. Whole colonies of them, relatively tame as they are accustomed to being fed.

Yesterday morning while on my walk I stopped to use the facilities. It was only after I was all locked in and in what we will call a 'compromised situation' that I realized I had company in there. :blink:

I'm not sure which one of us got out of there faster.

batennisboy

08-16-2013, 10:55 PM

I also enjoy tennis. Watching not playing. :popcorn:

Let me know when the two of you play a match ... I'm ready to watch! :)

The US Open will be starting soon: 8/26 - 9/9. Western and Southern Open in Cinncy going on now. Federer is my tennis God...he lost today. :|

cinnamongrrl

08-17-2013, 04:48 AM

I got to the gym this morning around 630am...only to find that the slackers don't open till 8... and I have to be to work at 830.. :|

I totally forgot it was Saturday...sigh

If cleaning counts as a workout, I will still get one. I'm going to do some cleaning once the landlord and his kiddo are out the door... :) Then I can come home to a nice clean house after the weekend's adventures...

Gemme

08-17-2013, 09:34 AM

All movement counts.

Today was an awesome workout day!

Ye ole treadmill (T6 as my favorite, T5, was being horded by a notorious 'doesn't wipe the machine down after he's done' guy) and I had a marvelous time.

First, I did the first half hour warming up and walking and doing 1.5-2.5 minute running intervals until my legs starting to reconsider. Then, I switched to incline play. Every minute or two, I went up between .5 and 1.0 incline until I hit the maximum incline at 15.0 around the 80 minute mark.

As I got really high....about 11.0-11.5 incline...I knocked down my speed (which wasn't super fast to begin with) so that I wouldn't overextend myself and cause injury or create the situation where I'd have to hold onto the machine to remain upright.

rant

For those that do that, you are CHEATING! Totally. Besides making the machine do your work for you and you (general) not getting all of the health benefits from it, it's increasing the potential for falls and trips, because either the speed is too fast or the elevation is too high. If you can't do it on your own power, there needs to be an adjustment made somewhere.

My only exception to this is the guy with the walker but he keeps his speed verrrrry slow. I just worry for him when he works on an incline. He absolutely needs to hold onto the bars. Or be wrapped in bubble wrap.

/rant

So, by the end of it, I'd spent an hour and a half on T6 and we did beautiful things together like burning 612 calories (Kelt's stats can keep the 12 but the 600 is totally well earned and MINE!), covering 4.82 miles and having a damn good time.

Totally random and useless bit of trivia: my Cascada play list runs 32 seconds shy of 90 minutes.

I tentatively have weight training planned for tomorrow and maybe 15 minutes on the Beast.

nycfem

08-17-2013, 03:21 PM

It was a beautiful summer day out, and I went to the gym, making for a nice quiet gym experience.

I did 75 minutes on the Beast (which I guess is what we are calling the Arc Trainer these days), Level 5, while watching Bait Car (so embarrassing to admit). Then I did 45 minutes of weight lifting, core, and stretching on a new floor that blasts the same music mix constantly. There aren't enough women singing on it, though I can't argue with getting to hear old 80's favorites like "Turning Japanese" by the Vapors and "Let's Go Crazy" by Prince and the Revolution.

I ended up having a lengthy chat session (at least 20 minutes, I'd say) with a locker room friend, a strong fullish-figured straight African American woman who wears beautiful dresses. She does double work-outs, arriving right on the dot at 5am on week days and then also coming after work. She was changing during our conversation and did that weird thing where people change so that you never get to see any skin. I haven't come out to her lest things become even more careful :D

Graham

08-18-2013, 12:16 AM

The US Open will be starting soon: 8/26 - 9/9. Western and Southern Open in Cinncy going on now. Federer is my tennis God...he lost today. :|

I was really bummed out he didn't play last year...and Andy Murray...well enuff said:blink:

batennisboy

08-18-2013, 12:26 AM

I was really bummed out he didn't play last year...and Andy Murray...well enuff said:blink:

Federer played in the US Open last year. Lost to Berdych in the quarters.

Hollylane

08-18-2013, 10:46 AM

Various Latin music from around the world (all with a fast beat), dancing with exaggerated dance moves while I clean the house. Fun!! The Chessie & the Obi think I am nuts, but luckily there are no two legged witnesses outside of the possibility of Gaige catching me dancing in the bedroom, if I miss that she has woken up...

Gemme

08-18-2013, 04:28 PM

I warmed up on the treadmill for 15 minutes and had an interesting walking partner, if you will, next to me. He seemed average enough. Small guy, about my height, some facial hair. Nothing that really stood out until he got warmed up and adjusted his iPod. I was startled at first, because I didn't know if he was falling or having a seizure but I figured it out. He's a closet and/or gym rocker. I was privy to air guitar, keyboards and drums plus a swirly, conductor kind of move before I moved to the weights. Definitely a character and definitely into his music.

I worked on all major muscles today and then went back to cardio. I spent 25 minutes on the Beast. Between the two cardio machines, I did a smidge under 300 calories and went a little over one and three quarter miles.

No clue on how much the weight training burned but I was a bit smarter than last time and adjusted my lifting weight better and I am happy to report I have no pain or discomfort anywhere. Yay!

nycfem

08-18-2013, 08:01 PM

I did 30 minutes of stair sprints on the gym steps (not to be confused with the Stairmaster), alternating between using weights and not using weights. Fun!

Ginger

08-19-2013, 05:41 AM

I rode my bike in the neighborhood and around Prospect Park yesterday afternoon.

It was cooler out than it's been, and the streets were full of people walking and biking and sitting on stoops and at sidewalk cafes.

It's getting easier going around the uphill side of the loop at the park, and I'm happy at how quickly I'm building stamina.

I have two bikes; one a hybrid racing/trail bike, and one a folding bike. I've been taking the folding bike out, but the wheels are really small and while the workout is good, I don't get up to the speed I can reach on the other one, which I think I'll take out tonight when I get home.

I've also been stretching. I took my yoga mat out on the balcony this past weekend. It's pretty private; I'm up high.

Metro

08-19-2013, 07:11 AM

Yesterday I took a 2.5 mile speed walk with my dog, then spent the remainder of the day: touch-up scraping exterior 3 front windows/moulding and kitchen window; cleaning those three and two side window panes; and scraping and priming inside of the 3 front and kitchen storms; and vacuuming up the debris. It took all day. This morning I took a razor blade to remove the overpainting on the 3 storms windows and kitchen storm (all before 7am). All because the first two painters did not do a thorough job. The guy today seems like he is a lot more experienced so I have high hopes. My dog is currently waiting patiently for me to finish responding to emails (and checking out BFP) before we go on our daily speed walk before work. Gorgeous day -- will pull out bike after work for a 4.5 miles ride on park trail. Side Note: renewed gym membership at university Friday, and they reopen at end of week, so I can get started in cross training routine that will take me through winter (swim 2 days; bike 3 days; shoot hoops 5 days; sped walk 5 days. I like to take weekends off, but still end up doing speed walk with the pup for her sake.

Kelt

08-19-2013, 09:28 AM

I have been remiss in keeping up here.

Dialing back the hands of time to last Wednesday. I did my short Beachwalk and on that day I added an extra mile and a half barefoot. The sand and tide conditions were just right, and I had not done that for a while. That is my secret weapon in keeping PF at bay, it's really good for exercising all the little muscles in my feet when I get just the right squishiness and texture. It felt good, and I could tell that I needed it.

I also had another swimming lesson on Wednesday and learned a whole bunch of new stuff. I decided it would be good to start learning the fundamentals of breaststroke and treading water. Boy, who knew there were so many different ways to kick water. :blink:

Flutter kick makes sense. Frog kick is just plain weird, I can see where someone probably saw a frog doing it and it worked for the frog so they decided to try it, okay I get that. Scissor kick is a stretch but I guess maybe somebody watched an octopus one day or something. The one that absolutely befuddles me is the eggbeater. Who could ever possibly think this was a good or logical idea is beyond me. The whole scull with hands while egg beating with legs is just slightly worse than trying to rub your stomach, pat the top of your head, and chew gum, all at the same time.

I thought treading water was supposed to be the simple relaxing thing that you do after falling off of a boat. :seconddoh:

The rest of the days have been pretty simple. Short, three-mile beach walk each morning, adding swim practice Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

I like Metro's combination of activities, seems well-rounded and complete.

Gemme is right about the ellipticals. Your arms are supposed to be moving, especially the folks who are hunched over and support part of their body weight with their arms. Totally cheating.

I always just used the ones that also had the moving arms to have to hang onto. There's a built-in penalty for cheating, they keep moving even if you let go. With my level of coordination, that means that if I let go I will probably just end up hitting myself in the face with one of those waving metal arms.

Okay, I think that's about all. Today's roster includes leaving now for the beach for a regular three-mile walk, and midday today I will have a practice session at the pool.

:theisland:

Kelt

08-19-2013, 04:32 PM

<snip>

that weird thing where people change so that you never get to see any skin.

I can do that :cheesy:

Gemme

08-19-2013, 06:13 PM

nycfem

08-19-2013, 06:37 PM

I did 45 minutes on the elliptical, L7, and then 45 minutes of weight lifting, core, and yoga. For my non-cardio, I went to the part of the gym with the loud music again (got to hear "She Bop"- the oldddd song about masturbation by Cindi Lauper), kind of the hipper area to be. They have more equipment there which is nice, and they recently redid the layout so that it's kind of hoaky-cool. There is this fake grass long runway where you can slide your feet in frisbees and walk with your hands. What's really funny is that it turns people's hands green. People yell out, "Oh, no, my hands are green!" Obviously the revamping still has some kinks :D

Kelt

08-19-2013, 07:20 PM

My rant was aimed at treadmills primarily but yes, the ellipticals lose their magical special powers if all the parts don't work right. Hey! Maybe that's a reason that the stats are up to 42% off on ellipticals! If folks aren't using the arms of the machine, they are just giving up a ton of burnt calories.

No workout today. The workday was tedious and long and I developed a low grade headache mid-day. I thought it was dehydration at first...and I'm sure that played into it....but flushing my gut has done nothing for it. Boo.

Okay, I got the rant wrong, but now I'm thinking. :thinking:

Now you've done it.

I know for a fact that when I added my poles to my sand walk I started burning 30% more calories with just that one change. How do I know this?

I treated it as a single variable trial. I had been doing the exact same routine, same diet, location, distance, time of day, you name it. I made just that one change and watched the scale. I had been stable for months and it started dropping quickly. I started adding calories until I hit a point where I would slowly gain. Then I dropped back down a smidge, and got back to where I would maintain an even weight over time. Walaa! Eating 30% more food. :eating:

This has held true for two years.

Now I want to know if the elliptical manufacturers have accounted for this in the algorithms used between the two different styles; with and without the arms. All a person would really have to do is the same routine on the two different styles of machines and check the readouts. Everyone is different, but there should be a pretty good discrepancy between the two. While the readout would very likely be inaccurate as a total, the difference should show up clearly.

Gemme?? Jennifer?? Who wants to be our lil tester?
Blame Gemme, it was her idea...

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRiOHPddhp6pIKn4DMFKUBu6ceZUuqJc 3J0XgQX43MNtko5ZLKNSQ

Mopsie

08-19-2013, 07:27 PM

Too bad laughter doesn't count as exercise because I'd be burning all sorts of calories tonight. I love Pinky and The Brain!

cinnamongrrl

08-19-2013, 07:29 PM

I don't know if I should even think of it of exercise; it was too fun!

6 miles (over the course of 3 hours) of sea kayaking...it's nice to find a juxtaposition to the hiking I enjoy. You can bet I will be kayaking more now that I've gotten my feet wet....pun intended :)

SaltyButch

08-19-2013, 07:45 PM

tndoc

08-19-2013, 07:55 PM

played basketball tonight. got my @ss handed to me.
tells me how out of shape i am for the game.
also tells me back to the gym i go :)

Ginger

08-19-2013, 08:05 PM

... There is this fake grass long runway where you can slide your feet in frisbees and walk with your hands. What's really funny is that it turns people's hands green. People yell out, "Oh, no, my hands are green!" ...

That is freaky!!! I sort of don't understand. They slide their feet in frisbees? And walk with their hands? Is there a railing they pull themselves along with? I could see that really working a person's abs. And arms of course.

Ginger

08-19-2013, 08:14 PM

As soon as I got home, I took off my dress and leggings and platform sandals and put on shorts, biking shoes, a muscle T shirt, a white skateboarding helmet and black weight lifting gloves.

I rode my bike around Prospect Park and it was overcast and cool. A very light rain, barely there really, fell at the end of my ride, and then the sun came out. It became ridiculously bright out, and then, a few more raindrops. I wasn't tired, so when I got to my street I kept going, straight down a bike path to a major road, then rode illegally on the sidewalk for a short jog to hit the next street up, which goes one way, straight to my building.

It was a great. When I got home I sat on my balcony and had a slice of watermelon, which was so incredibly sweet and cold, and watched the sky which was changing fast from pink and grey streaks to dark. Then I had half a frozen banana, then some carrots and hummus. Then I watched last night's new Dexter episode. Now I'm heading for bed.

Hollylane

08-19-2013, 08:32 PM

That is freaky!!! I sort of don't understand. They slide their feet in frisbees? And walk with their hands? Is there a railing they pull themselves along with? I could see that really working a person's abs. And arms of course.

Here's the one I do, and it took me forever to increase my reps, it is hard. I may needto start doing that again, I think I intentionally forgot about this...

q3_i3Bs_k-A

Chancie

08-20-2013, 04:15 AM

My gym is closed this week.

:itisterrible:

Gemme

08-20-2013, 04:22 AM

Do not blame Gemme; blame the mad scientist.

:blink:

Daktari

08-20-2013, 04:35 AM

Okay so I read all these people hiking, kayaking and doing whatever...well let me tell you, I walk my dog daily....but today for some reason I decided to take a challenge along with a friend to do Planking.

Let me tell you this exercise KILLS you....especially if you haven't done any structured exercise for awhile but I will persevere because I am not a quitter..I may unable to type in the not to distant future though....lol.

If ya go back in the thread a little I posted so videos about planking. It's how I got my six pack back :cheesy:
However, said six pack is currently slightly covered by my marshmallow loving tum. :rolleyes:

Planking rocks! Build up your time relatively slowly. Add side planks and others as you improve.

Gemme

08-20-2013, 06:17 PM

I am officially ass backwards.

And before SOMEONE has something to say about that....:eyebrow:....let me explain.

Runners are really supposed to land on the ball of the foot. Ellipticals and arcs are designed so your feet can remain flat and distribute the pressure and stress evenly.

I run landing on my heel and then rolling forward (do not do this at home, kids....or anywhere really) and when I do ellipticals and arcs, I tend to wind up on either the balls of my feet or my toes. It makes for a weird gait and some sore tootsies some times.

This is one of those times.

30 minutes on the Beast gave me 295 calories of sweat and tears (no blood, thankfully) and 1.42 miles put behind me. Not sure where they went, but they are gone, baby, gone.

Ginger

08-20-2013, 08:18 PM

Here's the one I do, and it took me forever to increase my reps, it is hard. I may needto start doing that again, I think I intentionally forgot about this...

q3_i3Bs_k-A

Oh wow that is intense. Like planking, but more scary! You must have amazing pecs if you're doing that on a regular basis.

Ginger

08-20-2013, 08:31 PM

Tonight when I got home from work I took the 3-mile loop around the park, but this time I took the big bike, my old Mongoose hybrid.

The wheels are a lot bigger than those on the folding bike, so I went faster with less effort. And it felt good to be up so high, not that other bike is low or anything.

I had a great ride. When I got back, I didn't feel like going inside, so I wandered up and down the side streets. The brakes make a lot of noise so I have to check that out, but otherwise it was a smooth ride.

I feel like a broken record but I'm such a creature of habit and I like my little routines—when I got home I had watermelon on the balcony again, watching the few clouds in the sky (very dense, with dissolving pink edges), then I had half a frozen banana, and watched the new episode of Ray Donovan then the new episode of Breaking Bad, OnDemand.

The back door to my balcony was open and a cool breeze was wafting over me. It was a great night.

Oh I forgot, I also walked along the River Walk at lunch, and sat on a bench in the shade, so close to the Hudson I could smell it and hear it slapping against the rocks. There were quite a few sailboats out, and I walked by the little harbor where the yachts are docked and kids skateboard up and down the plaza.

nycfem

08-21-2013, 09:42 PM

I went to the gym and did an hour on the Beast at Level 7, and then 30 minutes at Level 10. I forced myself to watch Top Chef which was rather boring but with focused attention I was able to eek my way through it. Then I did an hour of weight lifting, core exercises, and yoga. I checked out the hipster area but it was flooded with sunshine, so I retreated to my quiet area. It was very nice. I feel so much at peace after I work out.

Hollylane

08-22-2013, 12:29 AM

Hollylane

08-22-2013, 12:32 AM

Oh wow that is intense. Like planking, but more scary! You must have amazing pecs if you're doing that on a regular basis.

No, because I haven't been doing this for the past year(since my hernia surgery), but I want to try it again. When I was doing it before, it had mainly strengthened my back and stomach.

Kätzchen

08-22-2013, 12:44 AM

*SoOoOoOooo,*

I spent the weekend in a gorgeous PNW location (Seattle) and spent the first day walking up and down a hill: from 1st Hill (Capitol) district to the waterfront. My legs were like j e l l o, after doing that. But, oh. mY. staRszszsz! I just fell in love with the city of Seattle, Elliott Bay, the sail boats, the music, the food (cookie heaven!), and people who were perfect strangers whom I had the most interesting random conversations with! Definately, an amazing way to spend a weekend and I plan to do it more often.

I think I will push walking up steep hills more often, even though my legs felt like they'd never walk again. The interesting part for me was that I discovered that I am still capable of strenuous excercise and lived to share about it here. For certain, walking up nearly vertical hills in Seattle broke a threshold in my tiny little world of excercise and dare I say that it was as fun as jumping on a trampoline? ~>>> *Yes* :)

:bouquet:

Gemme

08-22-2013, 04:36 AM

Chessie and I walked for three miles along the Columbia river in Astoria as the sun began to set. It was beautiful. But as we were coming back up the humungous hill to the hotel, both of my calves kept cramping. This is not new, but it still feels surprising (and extremely painful) each time it happens. I think I may need to ask the doctor about that.

Intake more potassium. That's helpful to me when I get cramps. Thankfully, it doesn't happen as much as it used to.

Yesterday, I had a little more time than usual during the week, so I did everything. I warmed up on the treadmill, did weight traing (albeit an abbreviated version) and then did 15 minutes on the Beast.

For the stuff I was able to calculate: 220 cal sweated and 1.51 miles walked/climbed.

I've woken up tired two days in a row and I haven't lost any sleep or gone to bed late, so I'm thinking today's going to be an off day.

Ye ole body seems to be saying, "Simmer down, now!"

Ginger

08-23-2013, 12:43 PM

Ginger

08-23-2013, 12:46 PM

So I've gone bike riding for the last five days in a row.

It's been glorious. I'm already thinking about the winter, what I need to get to be able to ride comfortably in the cold.

Also, it will get dark too early to ride after work, so I'm thinking about an alternative exercise, like returning to the gym I guess, and focusing on weight training like I did last winter.

Rockinonahigh

08-23-2013, 01:08 PM

Since I got back from my vacation I am cleaning the place up,if that isnt exersise nothing is.So far I have nearly got the laundry done,the den cleaned,then dinner is cooking in the crock pot,insaled a new phone.It will take a couple of days to really get it done right as my son hit the high places while I was gone and nothing else...plus I still need to totaly unpack....i'm tired already.

Gemme

08-23-2013, 08:05 PM

A mile and a half and 313 calories are behind me now. Britney helped me out.

I hate that the music is so damn loud at that location. I wish my home gym were closer to my job.

DapperButch

08-23-2013, 08:14 PM

A mile and a half and 313 calories are behind me now. Britney helped me out.

I hate that the music is so damn loud at that location. I wish my home gym were closer to my job.

Are you a member of two gyms?

To report in....cardio a couple of times a week, but no regular schedule. At least I am still moving sometimes! :blink: Bettter than nothin'

Metro

08-23-2013, 08:29 PM

DapperButch

08-23-2013, 09:37 PM

Have arrived at a point where trying to fit in two speed walks a day just ends up making my joints sore -- which is why the variety of cross training (walking, biking, swimming, shooting hoops) works so much better for me. The frustrating thing is that both my pup and I want to walk more (especially in this gorgeous weather) -- but the consequences just aren't worth it. I don't know how many of you are able to physically tolerate walking or running 4+ miles daily on a regular basis. My feet/knees/ankles can't handle it (despite wearing appropriate athletic walking shoes). Thank goodness the gym reopens tomorrow! It will be a full and fun day of exercise, plus!

I have not tried walking 4+ miles on a daily basis. I spoke before about difficulty with walking at high speeds on a treadmill (arches hurt). It can be the same on concrete/blacktop. Doing over 4 miles on a dirt trail is not a problem. I could easily do quite a number of miles daily. Consider trail walking/running as the softer ground will feel more comfortable. Plus, your pup will love it!

Cin

08-23-2013, 10:03 PM

I don't know how many of you are able to physically tolerate walking or running 4+ miles daily on a regular basis. My feet/knees/ankles can't handle it (despite wearing appropriate athletic walking shoes).

Weird as it may sound my knees, feet and ankles are not bad but my shoulder just wrecks me. I do okay sometimes going over 4 but if I am in the woods and the terrain is rough it sometimes really hurts my shoulder (injured it in a work accident awhile back). Sometimes I like to spend the day walking trails or at the botanical gardens but if the walk gets too jarring then I can end up in way too much pain. It's funny cause I can do short intense bursts like stairs and such without much problem.