Workout analysis, 11/6/22 – 11/12/22

This week wasn’t ideal for exercise. I took 2 days off lifting and ended up both rock climbing and lifting on Saturday (11/12/22). The first day that I took off, Thursday, was because work was way too busy for me to take any time off. Then Friday was a holiday but I spent an hour working (2x pay per hour!) and spent the rest of the day with Mom. So the volume might not be as much as otherwise. I have to remind myself that my muscles won’t disappear if I don’t work out for 2 days.

Workout analysis, 10/30/22 – 11/5/22

This week my program is having me do more sets and reps with less rest time. I haven’t increased my weights (except for leg press) from last week, but I’m doing more reps. The random cardio is when I hopped onto the stationary bike to wait for my mom to finish her workout.

Workout analysis, 10/23/22 to 10/29/22

The hour is the rock climbing time from today. I increased the poundage on my legs a lot this week, and tried to keep up the chest stuff as well. What’s holding the chest and biceps back is joint pain on the outside of my left elbow. This makes me have to work around the elbow pain and think of exercises that don’t aggravate it. I realized that I have to work on shoulders more, also without hurting that left elbow! (Although I did dips and incline presses this week).

Workout analysis, 10/16/22 – 10/22/22

Workout analysis, 10/9/22 – 10/15/22

This week felt good – I went heavier on almost everything compared to the previous week.

Workout Analysis, 10/2/22 – 10/8/22

Also did rock climbing on 10/9/22, but I didn’t record it. Rock climbing (to me) doesn’t feel truly only cardio, but it’s also not just strength. I consider it a more comprehensive workout that works a lot of different dimensions (flexibility, mobility, endurance, conquering mental issues like fear or frustration or technique, intuition, balance, proprioception, etc.), especially once you go above a 5.9 grade. I’m in the “heavy lifting” phase of my workout program, and I’m setting a lot of PRs every workout! However, this week, I need to work on my chest more.

Workout analysis, 9/25/22 to 10/1/22

Walking and rock climbing included. This week I adhered to the workout program the best – it’s supposed to be a whole body workout twice a week. Trigger exercises are part of my program and they consist of exercise band exercises that give you a muscle pump – kind of like a light circuit training for your weak spots.

Workout analysis, 9/18/22 – 9/24/22

Trigger exercises are less intense, easier version of my heavier weight lifting sessions. The cardio is the leisurely bike ride I went on today.

The most interesting thing I saw on the bike ride? A middle aged man riding a unicycle, juggling bright orange juggling pins.

Workout analysis, 9/12/22 – 9/17/22

Some biceps and triceps were involved with the back and chest workouts

Also, less volume and less sets but also less soreness and no exhaustion. Finding a balance.

*P. S.: This is minus the 2nd half of my workout which will be at the gym. I’ve gotten used to splitting my workouts in half (morning session, afternoon session) due to accompanying my mom to the gym, to make sure she goes and does something there. This program has a foundational phase that has 21 sets for the whole body done 2-3 times a week plus small trigger sessions in between that feel like mini-HIIT workouts. After a month I’ll move onto a phase with less reps, more sets, and heavier weights.

Workout analysis of the past week

I’ve found that it’s been hard to track resistance training with a heart rate monitor. I forget to put it on and I just rush to the gym. It’s because I don’t sweat as much and my heart stays comfortable the whole time I’m weight lifting. So I downloaded a weight lift tracker and it does an “analysis” of everything I did over a period of time. Since I’ve only had this tracker for a week, here’s a week’s progress below.

Did I really work my legs out that much?! No wonder they’re sore!

It might look like I don’t work out my arms or butt that much. But some of these exercises work out multiple body parts. This week, I did want to focus on leg work. And it’s crazy to see that I lifted 39,076 pounds in a week.

Workouts in the last month

Not including the climbing days and any walking/hiking. Also, I went to the Boston area to tour the climbing gyms in that area and those weren’t included either, but I’ll include a picture that captures what physical activity I did.

Lots of walking (because we took the subway)

I was at my sister’s house (house sitting) and tried her spin bike, but the seat screw loosened and the seat started wobbling everywhere. I went to a nearby gym instead but didn’t bring my heart monitor.

At the gym near my sister’s house… A great workout!

Workouts since May 20

Not pictured: 3 hour climbing session out of town

Between the previous workout and this next one, I went to a festival (walked a lot), a hike the next day, and then had my 2nd COVID booster, which put me out for 2 days.

This was more cardio kickboxing but my old martial arts training “kicked” (ha ha) and I did all the kicks I knew how to do.

Workouts since May 4

I’ve been swamped at work hence the relative silence here. The past 2 weeks I’ve been trying to use heavier weights. Not included are the super long walks at festivals, trails, and parks. Also the weather is getting better so I’m using a lot of time gardening, and not going to the climbing gym as much. I am moving a lot of 40 lb. bags of soil and mulch, though. My goals have been to get at least 4 days/week exercise if not the usual 5.

Last 10 days of workouts

I was sore and my body felt better stretching on this day

Outdoors! Distance wasn’t working so average speed was off. This was a leisurely ride.

The workout videos I use

I workout based on my heart rate. That is, I watch my heart rate so that it doesn’t go beyond approximately 145-155 bpm, and when it’s close to that, I rest until it slows down. This way, I prevent asthma attacks yet still get sweaty. Some days, I feel like I can do more, and some days, less… some days, I just feel tired or sore or burnt out, so I go easier. In any case, I have to do mostly low impact movements (no jumping) to prevent asthma attacks. Just so you know, low impact doesn’t mean easy! If there’s jumping in a workout, I just take the jumps out. Here are a selection of workout videos I use on my full body days.