So, one-armed pullups. They weren't as bad as I thought they would be on the elbows, but that's because they were **** on the wrists. In order to get enough involvement with the "off" arm to haul my body up, I had to grip the wrist that was holding the bar very tightly. Add some downward pressure, and some arm hairs () and you have a recipe for raw wrists. (Exterior, though, not in the joint or anything.) That was the failure point for me, rather than the elbow.
The WOD called for 15-12-9 rep sets, each arm. For each set, I could only manage three in a row with my right arm (right hand holding the bar, left holding the right wrist), and two with my left arm. I wound up doing 5 sets of 3 (R) and 2 (L), so, um, I was a bit short of the prescription. Still, I was reasonably proud of myself for getting any.
BTW, I don't think I've attracted so many stares in the gym in a while. Not stares as in, "wow," but stares as in, "wtf does that old lady [by comparison!] think she's doing?"
YES!!! I got the stuff for DS:
a used (but looking quite new) weider 150 system, with an adjustable bench, a lat tower, 2 dumbell bars, 2 barbell bars, 10 15 lbs plates, 2 10 lbs plates, 8 8 lbs plates all for the grand sum of 50 euros. The weights are silver vynil, and the bars are 2", so the stuff is not interchangeable with mine.
I like my own stuff better ( 30 mm bars & cast iron plates) but this is a LOT more weight and a LOT more stuff, for actually not all that much money. Just getting an extra BB and 2 5kg iron plates would have cost me about this amount. And I like the idea of a lat tower: it has a cable thingy that I can imagine uses for.
Kaw: OMG: One arme pullups! You are so my hero for even attempting this! I'm still mastering the assisted pull-up (managed 3 today, thank you)
I hear you on the looks: in my gymn the weights section is exclusively used by young men and teenage boys. No way that I would put my middle aged borderline overweight body in front of that mirror.
Birch: Schlepping christmas shopping is definitely a WO. I have to look at the map of GB again. I would have thought London was very far away from Wales actually.
Not stares as in, "wow," but stares as in, "wtf does that old lady [by comparison!] think she's doing?"
That's how I feel most of the time
I had a horrendous night of no sleep and skipped cardio this morning. Will do a full body regular gym workout at lunch if I can get out of the pit that work has become. I really don't feel up to a CF workout right now. That may change....
Rabbit- Who did you get the equipment for? Congratulations!
Lydia- feeling better and more relaxed? You will rock it!
Pat- I'm soooo envious of you retiring. Do they believe you yet? I may be displaced rather than retired at about the same time Unfortunately, kid still in college means no retiring for me.
Shannon- How is your shoulder? Muscle sore or bad sore?
Kim: Nice report on the one arm pullups. I'm thinking more about my rotator cuff and the counter weight I lug around in the trunk. I'll stick with my traditional pullups for now.
Those stares are a little disturbing. I received them too. Its magnified by the fact that I've lost ten years somewhere and I have no idea what "their" looking at.
This is my last morning to review before Saturday's exam. I realized while I was in bed this morning there are whole sections of the book that I can immediately outline in my head while I'm lying down. So, I have officially lived, breathed, ate, drank and now slept this information. Man I wish I scheduled this thing for today instead of Saturday.
Mel - I got the stuff for my 17 year old son. He got serious about working out a couple of months ago and is currently using my stuff & going to the gym 3x a week to do so.
Kaw - you rock! Sorry about the sore wrist, though. I workout at home, so I don't get the stares, except from DH sometimes.
Rabbit - DS is going to love all that stuff! And maybe now you will get your stuff back!
Lydia - I used to see things from my textbooks in my head, too. Good luck Saturday!
Mel - the shoulder is still a little stiff. I'm thinking muscle sore, not 'bad' sore, though.
Today is a cardio day, so I'll either go to the park or hit the elliptical or treadmill in the garage. As it is cold and cloudy right now, the garage is looking good. Will probably try another hip opener yoga workout, too, as I looked up the poses I did sortof wrong last night and now know what to do.
Another old, overweight, lady lifter reporting it. I've gotten over seeing myself in the mirror, as our gym is literally lined with mirrors anywhere there aren't doors/windows. And yay on 3 assisted pull-ups Rabbit. I'm still there as well, working on lower the pounds of assistance.
We're going to dinner at one of DH's friend's tonight. His wife is a school nurse, home at 3:30 or so. They've asked us for 5:30! I don't get off work normally til 5, and it's 10 min home in the opposite direction, then 20 min to their house - and I want to change my clothes in between. I'm leaving work early, but I obviously am now in the minority of working people in our circle of friends!
Mel - my boss did believe me about retiring, but wasn't thrilled. Of course now I have the job of recruiting my replacement. I'd love for it to be my deputy director, but she is still a couple years short of meeting the requirements.... I hope you don't lose your position. It's expensive having kids in college. (And don't forget I'm 10 years older than you).
Dinner was good. Two Asian dishes with white and brown rice. (There were 7 of us) One was chicken with peppers and walnuts, the other beef (well, caribou really ) with veggies and a sort of curry sauce. I was good, with small portions, plus one glass of wine, no dessert. great company - lots of good conversation and laughter. More dinners should be like that.
Lydia - good luck with your exam tomorrow. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you, but I'm sure you will ace that test!
Mel - how are you doing?? It's friday!!
Shannon --how is the shoulder?
Birch-have you conquered london yet?
Cheryl - are you lurking?
I am back on track - sort off. Did 15 mins rowing + weights yesterday and 30 mins run this morning, and I am sceduling more rowing & weights sessions for today & the weekend. I am however scaling back in that I do not require 1 hour per session anymore because no way could I keep that up this month, so I'm settiling for minimum of 30 mins per session.
And to my upper amzement the scales were down again this morning...It is like my week rest has convinced my body that it can let go of some more stuff. I am 2 pds down from my previous low, 6 pds now since I started this whole thing. And I have to use a belt. I'm amazed but happy about this, something is working! I hope this 10 week stretch will show the same results.
Rabbit: Awesome job with the loss during your rest. Thirty minutes two times a day counts too! Great adjustment for the times in our lives when a full hour can't be carved out of our day. It's all about being flexible both with our schedules and our idea of how to incorporate intentional exercise into our day. (Nope not a direct quote from one of the text books I've been immersed in this week but my apologizes anyway.)
Cheryl: Yea girlfriend. How are you doing out there?
Pat: Dinner sounds wonderful. Well, all except for the part where you so easily refer to Caribou as beef. Should I ever have the opportunity to share dinner with you, remind me that I may prefer the chicken...
And, you are retiring. Congratulations! But here's my question: "What will your community do without you running everything?" If your retirement is anything like my father's, uncles, or grandfather you will wonder how you ever fit employment into your day. Seriously.
Mel: My mother is still working. She has another four or five years before retirement. I think I'm looking forward to her retirement as much as she is. Especially once I relocate to VA. I'm looking for a home where there is plenty of room for an extended stay by the grandparents.
Shannon: Love hip opener yoga positions. How was your session last night? Our days have been dark and dreary too. I'm totally loving my "happy light" as one of my best friends refers to it.
Thanks for all of the well wishes for tomorrow ladies. I'm so excited to bust through this thing. My plan is to pass and then hit the gym for a decent workout. My mother is taking the boys early in the morning so that I can have the day to myself to test and then relax. That evening a group of my friends are gathering for a While Elephant party. It's an awesome way to kick off the holiday season!
Rabbit: London is 3h 12 mins on a straight through train. I had to go for work tho' Pat will tell you otherwise (especially when I say the new client took me out to lunch)!
My w/o today was a heavy rucksack full of hand-me-down clothes from my friends' boys to mine, combined with 4 types of public transport. Is it a CF w/o? If not, why not??
Ok, SB, I'll admit that you were doing some work, though the haircut and lingerie shopping were an extra benefit!
Lydia - my official retirement date is May 1, 2010 (in our retirement system you can only retire on the 1st of the month). I'll actually work til the Friday previous to that. And know about the "how did I find time to work" syndrome. Most of my friends are already retired, though some have taken some PT work, or volunteer work. And I'll echo the good luck vibes for the test - you'll do great! And kudos to your Mom for giving you the day to yourself.
Rabbit - 30 min is all I can usually manage on a weekday as well. I save my extended workouts for the weekend (not that they always happen). And how nice of your body to let go of a couple of pounds going into the holiday season!
Have a great weekend all. Mine is going to be super busy and I've been trying to figure out how to fit some exercise into it. I will be square dancing tonight as usual. We were supposed to go into Anchorage with some friends tomorrow night to square dance again, but the wife broke her wrist on Thanksgiving, and had surgery on it yesterday, so I suspect she'll not be wanting to go..... I think the gym is open until 8pm tomorrow, so that's an option if we're not going to Anchorage. Sunday, I'm at church til 12:30 or 1, and then at a local theatre production of Babes in Toyland at 2, and that should run 2-3 hours including driving to/from. Gym closes at 4 on Sunday, so I'm on my own for exercise then. Maybe some yoga.
Did my UB workout last night, but didn't get to the yoga. Fell asleep on the couch while watching the Rock & Roll HOF 25th Anniversary concert when we got back from dinner. Snowing outside this morning (not sticking though, sadness) so no early AM run at the park either. I'm thinking it is a treadmill day for me this afternoon. Shoulders and elbows are nothing but 'good workout yesterday' stiff, so I'm pleased.
Birch - That sounds like CF to me!
Lydia - I'm loving the hip opener yoga flows, but I'm not very good at them I don't think. My hips and hamstrings are pretty tight... The one I've been doing the last few days has pigeon in it, and my pigeon is pretty sad. The person leading the class says at one point "the closer your toes are to the front of the mat the better the stretch", well my toes aren't anywhere near the front of the mat... they are pretty close to my pelvis, actually. I might need to try a different way of getting into the position. I do like it a lot, though.
I think I need a light box...
Rabbit - glad the scales are down! Mine are up more again, but I expected that after a dinner out.
Pat - that dinner does sound great! And your weekend is packed! Wow. I suspect you will be no less busy after you retire, you just won't have to go to an official office every day.
Mel - sorry work is so crazy. I hope it gets better, without displacement.
_____________________________
Yesterday's workout:
deadlift (Krista notes that they are typically LB, but she puts them on the UB list) - 1x10x65lb, 2x10x85lb
pullup, assisted - 3x6
db row - 2x8x25lb, bb corner row - 1x6x75lb
back extensions - 3x10
Last edited by Shannon in ATL; 12-05-2009 at 10:21 AM.
Real quick note. I just finished my exam and I passed!
I'm sitting in a sun filled lobby surrounded by poinsettias thinking
about how I would never had been here accomplishing
this today without all the support and guidance I've received
from all of you during these few years. Seriously what a trip!
Thanks for listening to all of my whining the last few months.
Now it's time to get back in the gym and put all that I've learned to good use
beginning with myself
) and you have a recipe for raw wrists. (Exterior, though, not in the joint or anything.) That was the failure point for me, rather than the elbow.
That's how I feel most of the time 
Congratulations!
Unfortunately, kid still in college means no retiring for me.
If your retirement is anything like my father's, uncles, or grandfather you will wonder how you ever fit employment into your day. Seriously. 
My mother is still working. She has 
another four or five years before retirement. I think I'm looking forward to her retirement as much as she is. Especially once I relocate to VA. I'm looking for a home where there is plenty of room for an extended stay by the grandparents.
