Monday! Here's an update on my training, and an example of my regimen.
As you can see by Itzl's concerned look, this group gives Kossacks a safe place to check in, a daily diary where we can let people know we are alive, doing OK, and not affected by such things as heat, blizzards, floods, wild fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, power outages, earthquakes, or other such things that could keep us off DKos. It also allows us to find other Kossacks nearby for in-person checks when other methods of communication fail - a buddy system. If you're not here, or anywhere else on DKos, and there are adverse conditions in your area (floods, heatwaves, hurricanes, earthquakes etc.), we and your buddy are going to check up on you. If you are going to be away from your computer for a day or a week, let us know here. We care!
IAN is a great group to join, and a good place to learn to write diaries. Drop one of us a Kosmail and ask to be added to the Itzl Alert Network anytime! We all share the publishing duties, and we welcome everyone who reads IAN to write diaries for the group! Every member is an editor, so anyone can take a turn when they have something to say, photos and music to share, a cause to promote or news!
We do have a diary schedule. But, when you are ready to write that diary, either post in thread or send FloridaSNMOM a Kosmail with the date. If you need someone to fill in, ditto. FloridaSNMOM is here on and off through the day usually from around 9:30 or 10 am eastern to around 11 pm eastern.
Monday:
BadKitties
Tuesday:
ejoanna
Wednesday:
Caedy
Thursday:
art ah zen
Friday:
FloridaSNMOM
Saturday:
Most Awesome Nana
Sunday:
loggersbrat
I have been seeing Tyler the Terribly Tyrannical Trainer, also known as the pink-cheeked beastie, for about 6 weeks or so now. Our early workouts were punctuated by moans, eyerolls, loud sighs, and The Glare of Death. Tyler simply laughed them off, much to my annoyance. I did, however, do everything that he told me to do. And the difference in what I can do now is amazing.
I have been healing from my upper-body surgery. Unfortunately, due to stress and lack of sleep (until I started sleeping naked), my healing slowed and my surgeon could not clear me for real upper-body work. Even now, I can only use fairly light weights and cannot do chest presses or box. Phooey. I can't do yoga, either.
But... I can do one hundred squats!
Yeah :)
This is the correct way to do them:
Blech!
I do five sets of 20 each. Uggggh. And on Saturday, Tyler upped the torture quotient by adding 60 kettlebell squats to the regimen in ADDITION to the 100 regular squats.
Squats with kettlebell. Horrid.
I do 80 step-ups, four sets of 20. We just added the 10-pound barbells in each hand in the last two weeks.
I hate these.
Next on the list of exercises that I loathe are lunges. Again, we just added the barbells in the last two weeks. I do three sets of 20 walking lunges.
Ick.
We also use some of the machines in the gym, although not many. This one is the dual leg extension machine. It produces burning pain in your knees, shins, and ankles. I do three sets of 20. This machine is the reason that it is painful for me to walk today.
Why yes, this IS a torture machine!
That was Saturday's one-hour session, with a 5-minute warm-up on the treadmill at an incline of 12 and a speed of 3.5 mph, and a 10-minute cooldown on the treadmill with no incline (phew) and a speed of 2.8.
I get water breaks when needed, and Kleenex breaks. I am allergic to something in the gym, maybe dust. All the plants are fake. Tyler suggested that I am allergic to exercise. Ha, ha, what a joker.
On the plus side, I am recovering faster and with much less pain. Tyler raised the weights on the leg extension machine to 55 pounds. Owww. Good thing that I bought this 20-lb bag of Epsom salts.
And you knew this was coming, even though it isn't entirely relevant...
I still have quite a ways to go before I can qualify for the bikini competition. I can't lift anything over my head, and we need to work on my abs. I can't use the rowing machine, yet, either.
Mentally, however, I feel transformed. I will be forever grateful to the friend that talked me into this. He gave me a gift more precious than any other: a mission for my SELF. I am not really surprised that I can do this in one sense, because I love challenges and do not give up. But given my age, it is nowhere as easy as it was in my 20's, 30's, or even 40's. And thank goodness that I quit smoking!!!
Wishing everyone a healthy and happy Monday! If you just want to do ONE thing, how about THIS:
Cannot think of anything worse. But I might try it :)
Here's how you do a squat, again :)
And this is why...
Yep.