End of the Week

Fitness Diary: Day Six (I forgot to count Sunday before)

My workouts seem to have deteriorated a bit over the couple of days.  Again tonight I went to the gym late, less than an hour before closing.  Still, I was there, when I really didn't feel up to it, so yay me!

It's not just that I'm really tired after nearly a week of four to six hours of sleep a night, but that's certainly a factor.  Tonight I was so sleepy and dragging that I seriously considered taking a night off from the gym, and just walking Tuffy instead.  But I kind of fell asleep for nearly an hour, and then it was too late. See, I really shouldn't walk Tuffy after ten PM.  I mean, it's okay with Tuffy and with me, but people don't appreciate all the neighborhood dogs barking at us that late in the evening.  Tuffy was disappointed, but I'll make it up to her.

So I went to the gym anyway.  My arms are more sore now from Wednesday's workout than they were last night.  My legs are sore, too, although Thursday night's weight training on the legs was rushed, almost cursory.  So tonight I went looking for machines that concentrate on the abs and back.  It took me a while to find them.  I ended up doing one leg machine I missed last night, plus abdominal crunches.  Then I rushed upstairs to the treadmill.  It was 10:29 PM.  Closing time on Friday is 11 PM.  Here I go again, I thought, pushing my luck on the time, after I promised the staff that I wouldn't.

But for a while, it looked as though closing time would not be a problem.  My legs (hamstrings) hurt, and I was tired.  I started at 3.2 mph, but soon had to drop down to 3.1, and then 3.0.  Even at that speed, I wasn't at all sure I'd make it past the ten minute mark.

The awful dance music wasn't playing, and the relative silence was almost worse.  I started counting off the seconds out loud, for most of the time I was on the machine.  Coming up on ten minutes, I decided to go for fifteen.   By the thirteen minute mark, I'd decided to try for twenty.  At eighteen minutes, I decided I could probably handle twenty-five.  My legs were hurting less than before.  I tried to come down on the right foot as each new second appeared on the dashboard thingy. I had the fan on high, and my heart rate was okay.  In the end, I tricked myself all the way up to the thirty minutes, and a new high mark for distance and calories burned. 

I recorded the stats on my phone, but in my hurry and tiredness, I may have done it as a voicemail greeting instead of a voice memo.  So if you need to lave a message on my Sprint phone this weekend, don't be surprised if you hear, "thirty minutes and one second, one...uh, a mile 55, uh, 131 calories."  (Actually, I just checked.  I didn't mess up my voicemail after all.)

But even with no arm exercises tonight, they still ache, and I'm certainly still tired.  I may skip the weight training entirely tomorrow, and just do the treadmill, and walk the dog extra far.  Will you think the less of me?

Wrapping Up The Week

Just to follow up on a few other things:  it turns out that at least seven people played musical desks this week at work, not five, and there was another new hire, or possibly a temp.  My boss asked me today whether I'm enjoying the job more now, and I was able to truthfully say yes, "now that I have some clue what I'm doing."  I'm more confident than I was, both about the work and my co-workers--at least, most of the time.  I even advised my boss about her vacation in San Diego and Anaheim next week.  My advice: take a cruise around the harbor in S.D., and give California Adventure no more than half a day.  But don't miss "Soarin' Over California" at California Adventure.

The only bad thing that happened this week at work was truly terrible, but had nothing to do with me.  I heard crying on the other side of the room, and I mean despair.  I didn't know what to do.  I waited, and heard other people comforting whoever-it-was.  Finally I worked up my courage to go see who it was, and whether there was something I could say or do to help the person, even a tiny bit. But it was someone I'd barely met, and the problem was way beyond my ability to do anything but stand there and mumble, "I'm so sorry," under my breath.  She had just learned that her ex- had killed himself.  As a complete stranger, whose closest brush with suicide was the death of a relative-by-marriage when I was seven years old, I had absolutely no standing to say or do anything.  Or maybe I was just afraid to try, especially when people who actually knew this person were right there with sympathy, support and helpful advice.  Bless them!

I've gotten a few pictures over the last couple of days that relate to the Fourth of July weekend, but I'll save those for another time.  I still have my JW installment to write for my two beta readers, although I may put that off until tomorrow.  Tonight, I fully intend to go for as many hours of sleep as my body will take.  See you tomorrow afternoon!

By the way, thanks to everyone for the supportive comments this week about the workouts, and the poetry and photos, and my friend.  I really appreciate it. 

And remember, another Round Robin Photo Challenge, topic "Summer,"  is coming up this Wednesday.  Check the Round Robin Photo Challenge journal for details.

Karen

P.S.  Yes, I know that tonight's pictures (from Thursday's workout) are technically lousy.  Sorry about that, but I was in a rush!  I think the treadmill one is kind of interesting anyway.