All the other weights exercises are going well.  The front/lateral raises are still really difficult.  I can get through them but the last one or two of each set I have to really work for.  But I can see the difference in my shoulders.

I’m on Level 9 (Bike Programme 1) on the bike, and the walking is OK.   I don’t do cardio every day - I warm up on the rowing machine and sometimes do some cardio after weights on weights days, and I do the cardio on the non-weights days.  This seems to be working, I seem to be getting to the gym every day and not talking myself out of it. 

The rowing is also going well – I usually average 32 strokes a minute over 4 minutes now.  Feel good about that.

I also met an ex who used to row for his college at Oxford, and as the congnoscenti know, this is a big deal.  Anyway he is in his 60s now but has the body of a 40 year old, and he has been going to a gym for the last 4 years.  We were talking about the rowing machine and he enjoys it even though it’s nothing like real rowing.  He enjoys the workout it gives.  Then he told me what his trainer has him doing: four minutes at 32 strokes/minute, then 1 minute at 38, repeat, repeat, repeat (I don’t know how long for).  38 strokes a minute!  I cannot imagine it. He says it’s hard work

He has proved to be an inspiration because since coming back, I have been gradually building up my workouts to where they should be, and my rowing has been superb. For me, I mean. He was pretty impressed that I average 30-31 strokes per minute over my four or five minute rowing sessions, I was surprised (it may not have been totally clear that it’s only for four minutes although I did say so). Anyway since then I’ve been averaging 32 strokes per minute and have gone over 819m several times. And I look around and see that most people are doing 28 or 29. So maybe I shouldn’t underassess myself. Also he said that it’s much better if you use your legs as much as you can, which I kind of knew but have been trying to do that, that’s probably why I’m doing better. Today, just for laughs, after the first minute I did 30 seconds as fast as I could go, and I did that again on the last 30 seconds. I actually touched 37 strokes per minute for a couple of strokes but I still cannot envisage doing this for a whole minute!

Aaron gave me a wide selection of weights exercises to do, from which I can pick and mix. They go like this:

• Clean and Jerks with 6kg dumbbells in each hand (ie a step up from the 10kg bag, and separate dumbbells are more difficult to manage)
• Squats with 5kg dumbbells in each hand
• Lunges (the hated lunges) with 5kg dumbbells in each hand, no bicep curling though
• Front row with kickbacks with 4kg dumbbell
• Front and Lateral raises (new exercise) with 2kg dumbbell in each hand: this involves standing with feet at hip distance apart, raise left hand to the side so that arm is straight, simultaneously raise right hand to the front so that arm is straight, drop both arms, raise left to the front and right to the side. Repeat x 12. This works on the deltoids primarily, although I also really feel it in my neck and I see from the directory that these raises do work on the neck muscles (trapezius)
• Lat pull-downs – 10kg each side. I’ve only just made it back to 10kg today, been building up from 5kg.

I haven’t always been doing all of them, but I try to always do the squats, lunges, front/lateral raises and the lat pull-downs. The raises are a real killer, but I can feel the effec they’re having. The surprise is the lunges. I can do them! And they don’t hurt! And I don’t wobble (much). I am pleased about this and don’t actually hate them any more.

Then the core exercises, again a large menu from which I can pick:

• Swiss Ball crunches
• Swiss Ball hamstring curls
• Swiss Ball pelvic tilts
• Bird-dog (superman) – new exercise. I’ve seen lots of people doing this one, often with a swiss ball but I am to do them without. On all fours with hands at shoulder width and knees at hip width, then extend right foot and left hand, then switch to left foot and right hand, holding for three seconds each time. 3 x 10 of these
• Box pressups – new exercise. I practically swooned when Aaron said he wanted me to do these, but actually I find them pretty easy – same position as for the bird-dog, bend arms to get nose to floor while keeping back straight, then back up, 2 x 10.
• Bug – this is the exercise Tim had me doing, situps with one leg – 2 x 5 per leg, holding each for 5 seconds
• Single-leg bridges – same as before. These are now completely pain-, creak- and grind-free.

I haven’t been doing the swiss ball exercises at all, perhaps I should but I enjoy the floor exercises so that’s what I do.

You’ll notice a lack of cardio – this might have to be faced.

I did three sets of 12 on the clean and jerks and the curls/kickbacks, and three sets of 10 lat pull-downs at 20kg.  I almost did it without hurting my arm, I really do have to watch the posture.  Otherwise I was really pleased with that part.

Did the core exercises without incident.  The ab crunches may or may not be
doing anything for my abs but are brilliant for my back.

First, focus on strengths. The rowing normally tops 800m in 4 minutes now, and I have occasionally exceeded the 819 I did when Aaron first monitored me. I’m happy if it’s over 800m. The walking has always been OK, ie have been able to do the time at the settings Aaron chose. I now do the first five minutes completely hands-free, and the last minute hands-free, and some of the intervening minutes too. Occasionally I step on the frame of the treadmill at the front, this means I’m walking slightly faster than the treadmill is going, so that has got to mean I’m doing OK (I confess this has not happened when I’m on the 4% incline in the second half of the walk). My calves are rock-hard these days.

Weights: Now doing three sets of 12 of the clean and jerks and the bicep curl with tricep kickbacks. These are work but I don’t feel at any point that I’m not going to make it. The lat pull-downs are now pretty good, I’ve had three sessions where 17.5kg has not caused a problem, and today I did them so smoothly and evenly I was almost tempted to shout out “hey everybody, look at me!” On to 20kg next week, two sets, go up to three when I can. The trick is to lean back.

Core exercises: I confess I haven’t always been doing the hamstring curls. I really should though, because every time I do them I find I am doing them much better and more smoothly than I expect to. Which shows that they’re working and I’m improving. The pelvic tilts are fine and indeed fairly boring, I don’t feel like they’re doing anything. The ab crunches I really enjoy and never cut out, because my back feels so much better for having done them. I now have my fingertips on or near my head instead of hands on shoulders, and I focus on wrapping/unwrapping one vertebra at a time round the ball.

Weaknesses: I suppose the lat pull downs are a weakness in that I am not yet at the level Aaron set, but I have made such progress that I don’t see these as a weakness and I look forward to doing them. The main block is the wretched cycle programme. I am still only on level 10 and Aaron wanted level 12 at 75rpm. Today my rpm at level 10 was 79 on average, it is often over 80 and I’ve decided there is nothing wrong with that. I still feel like I might not make it, while I’m cycling I’m thinking, I’ll stop at 7 mins, I can’t do another hill, it’s ok if I stop… But I don’t, and I manage it. So I have reset my target to be level 11 at 80rpm by the time I have my next assessment, which brings me nicely to that.

I think I am probably due now for another assessment, but because I’m going away for December and January AND because I have not been in the gym much, I wanted to do that a bit differently. So I’ve booked a half-hour assessment and half-hour personal training session with Aaron on 28 November, we can look at my progress and he can give me some tips on what I might be able to do when I’m abroad. So I have three weeks to get to level 11 and if I make it I will be very happy indeed.

I wasn’t able to do the walking part of my cardio routine because all the treadmills were full. However I was able to do all the rest of it (tell a lie, between my second and third set I offered the pull-down lats machine to a woman who was waiting, so I never did the third set) and was pleased with it.

The cycling is still the hardest thing, I did level 10 today and it was really hard work. The big success was the rowing: 838 metres! I was amazed.

Pull-down lats – I put 17.50kg on today, and did not hurt my shoulder. I’ll do that weight this week and see if I can get to 20kg next week.

Core exercises on the ball – I’m ready to go to three sets now, even on the difficult hamstring curls, so I’ll do that on Wednesday.

Slowly slowly getting to where I’m supposed to be.

Today I gave myself a good 75 minutes to do everything. The rowing is no problem at all, except I have never yet made it to 819m the way I did when Aaron was sitting there watching. That was in the morning; I’m glad if I get over 800m in the evenings. The cycling is still hard work, I went back to level 10 tonight and just about achieved it. My neck started to throb a little bit but I got through it and was glad to do the whole 10 minutes. The walking is OK, but I’m still holding onto the heart monitor handles for most of it and I think I really should be walking with my hands free (this is more difficult) so will work on that.

I haven’t had time to do all the exercises for weeks, and somehow the squats and lunges were always cut, so this time I resolved to do them. They were fine, and although my knees are occasionally stiff now, I haven’t noticed any clicking or grinding for a week or two. The clean and jerks are good and even fun.

The pull-down lats still need a lot of concentration – I went back to 15kg which is OK except I was sitting too straight (I think) and hurt my shoulder again. But leaning back so that I’m slightly diagonal was better, and I was able to complete the three sets without any more pain. If I let myself be distracted for a second, I’ll get it wrong, so I really must concentrate on that. The bicep curls/tricep kickbacks are hard work but OK

The core exercises are a good winddown – the pelvic tilts and abdominal crunches are fine. My back really enjoys the massage you get with the abdominal crunches – I try to curl each vertebra round one at a time – so I rarely cut this one. The hamstring curls are difficult but I can reliably do a set of 10 without a break, both times. I’m ready to move the core exercises up to three sets, perhaps I should do that.

Targets:
Move up a level each week on the bike – I’m still not at level 12 which is where I was supposed to start! and it’s been a month
When walking, let go of the handles for 30-second bursts next week, 1 minute bursts in the following week
Move up to 17.5 kg next time on the pull-down lats, do that for a week, and move to 20 kg after that
Start doing 3 sets of the core exercises from next week

My next assessment is due in a couple of weeks, but I think I’ll delay it to give me a chance to catch up.

Still on Level 10 on the bike, almost ready to try level 11.  Walking and rowing are fine

Pull-down lats at 15kg are great, can do them now without hurting my shoulder. Am ready to try 20kg

From I can has cheezburger, of course

It was lovely

On Thursday last week I was working late, and Friday too, not so late but too late for the gym. So I haven’t been there for nearly a week.

Today I did the whole routine apart from the knee exercises (squats, lunges, bridges) and it was hard work but for the first time since Aaron put me on this programme I’ve felt, not just “I managed it” but “I did it”. True, I was still on Level 10 on the cycle and 15 kg on the pull-down lat machine, but I did the full batch of sets for each type of exercise, I did the walking even though I had NO dressings on the backs of my ankles, so all that’s healed up, so there you go.

Hope to have a nice swim tomorrow.