Starting up a workout log as a supplement to my journal. Why today? Because I'm setting a goal of 5 exercise sessions per week for the month of March and I need somewhere to keep myself accountable that won't get lost in the shuffle.

My exercise plan (subject to revision):
Monday - 35 minutes of variable medium/high resistance cycling, 5 minute cooldown
Tuesday - at least 30 minutes of steady walking, treadmill or outside as weather permits
Wednesday - same as Monday
Thursday - hour-long Forza sword exercise class
Friday - same as Monday

The biking and Forza days are at least as muscle-building as they are cardiovascular; I would be bored silly doing endless minutes of low intensity, monotonous, steady-state aerobic activity. I use a Precor bike on a "cross country" course that is usually between levels 10 and 18, with occasional dips to 6 (and even a couple minutes at 2) for recovery. In Forza, I repeatedly swing a wood sword, working the muscles in my arms, back, and torso. To be fair, yesterday was my first class and it was intense, but fun.

My one day of walking is simply because I don't walk well. I have an old hip injury that tends to make me limp and I'm often in pain. It vastly improves when I strengthen the surrounding muscles, but biking isn't enough: I need to actually practice walking to get the right muscle usage and balance. Wouldn't want to do it every day (boring!), but so that I can walk as much as I want on the evenings and weekends, I'll put in one day of practice each week.

That's what I'm committing to for March. In addition, I often stretch, do some yoga moves, and do crunches at home. I'm sure I'll also be practicing Forza between classes. But, I'm not counting that as part of my March goal, it's just peripheral activity that I do daily to feel better, like brushing my teeth.

Off I go!

Went to the gym before picking my kid up from school today. 35 minutes on the Precor bike, "cross country" setting, and a 5 minute cooldown.

Felt good. I can certainly feel the difference on a Monday (when I've had a lazy weekend) compared to a Wednesday or Friday -- doing that level 18 section halfway through is a real bear. I walked out feeling downright athletic.

Off to the gym, since it's icy outside. Walked on the treadmill for 35 minutes total (including 5 minute cool down). This was my first time walking on the treadmill, so I played around with the settings. I generally walked at a speed of 2.8, occasionally up to 3.5. I set the incline at 3 for 20 minutes, at 5 for 5 minutes, and at 6 for 5 minutes (with the speed down to 2.5). The cool down was flat at 2.2.

It was hard. I sweated buckets and my bad hip hurts. I found that working at the higher incline, slower speed was a lot easier for me -- no surprise, since my legs are strong. Moving my legs quickly enough for the higher speed was a real challenge and I had to hold on to keep from flying off the end of the treadmill.

Not very enjoyable, but I did it. Now, off to the shower!

Bike: 35 minute "cross country", 5 minute cool down.

My back really hurts. It was sore after walking on the treadmill yesterday, and then I did a lot of bending and reaching and scrubbing as part of today's housework. I'm trying to take it easy tonight so that it doesn't cause problems in Forza.

Survived Forza class, during which we worked for a full 58 minutes instead of ~50 last week.

It's one hell of a workout for such relatively simple moves. I wore a watch that contains a heart rate monitor so that I could keep an eye on my level of exertion. My target heart rate is from about 110-155 bpm. After the first set of warm-up swings, I was consistently in the range of 150-160 whenever we paused. I'd see that and try to take it a little easier for the next couple minutes. Unlike last week, I never felt faint, so that was an improvement.

Still not sure if I'll keep this up when the current set of classes is done. It's different and it really works my arms, shoulders, back, and torso... I'm just not sure if I enjoy it enough.

35 minutes on Precor bike, "cross country" setting, with 5 minute cool down. Woo.

35 minutes on Precor bike as usual, 5 minute cooldown. No biggie.

30 minutes walking on treadmill plus 5 minute cool down. I kept the speed between 2.5 and 2.8 today (not feeling very energetic) and varied the incline between 3.0 and 6.0. I spent most of the time at 4.0 or 5.0.

I *really* hate walking. I think it's a good thing for me to do, because it's a real life activity that I am clumsy at, but geez. I hate it. Maybe it'll be better when the snow melts and I can just go for a walk outside. The exertion won't be as high, but at least I'll be doing the motion I want to practice.

35 minutes Precor bike, varied/cross-country program. 5 minute cool down.

Today's workout was more vigorous than usual. My husband frequently reminds me that I am a competitive person by nature, and that is reflected by the way my performance shifts when I have someone to measure against. Usual, I'm surrounded on the stationary bikes by elderly people or young women who seem afraid of breaking a sweat. One time the woman next to me was biking so slowly, on level 1, that she was simultaneously painting her nails! I wish I were kidding.

Today, I was a couple minutes into my workout when the bike next to me was taken by a tall, husky guy in his 20s. Unlike the low exertion folks, he cranked his resistance up to 7 and started pedaling at a good pace. I was using higher resistance, but my natural instinct was to bike as fast as him. We had a conversation while we pedaled and I was stupidly proud to hear him gasping for air while I was breathing normally.

He quit about 10 minutes before I did. When I got to the end of my workout, I looked at the display in surprise. I had logged over a mile more than usual, due to my increased speed! *sigh* Guess that just goes to show that I could be working harder, which I'll have to keep in mind next time.

Survived my Forza class. The high intensity is such a challenge; I struggled to keep my heart rate below 160 today (and had to stop for a complete rest, just walking in place, when I saw it shoot up to 176).

Still, I managed to keep up to speed almost the full hour. My form was usually good. I could really feel the effort, not just in my arms and shoulders, but also my back, obliques, and abs. We did some diagonal and horizontal cuts today that really worked the core.

I came home with my face and chest flushed, covered in sweat. My feelings are still mixed about this class; I suppose I like doing something "real" (martial arts moves) rather than just bopping around in an aerobics class, and I think the exertion is good for me, but damn it's hard. Three more weeks and then I need to decide whether to do this for another session or find a replacement class. The jury is still out.

Delaying my normal Friday gym trip until tomorrow. Two reasons: Yesterday my husband and I took a long (45 minute) walk in the evening, so added to my Forza class it was a very physical day, and I'm busy cleaning the house today. I'm on a roll and don't want to interrupt my work for an hour. So, I'll go to the gym Saturday and maybe I can even convince my husband to come along.

35 minutes Precor bike, cross-country, plus 5 minute cool down. The YMCA is too darn crowded on Saturday mornings; don't want to do that again.

Doing some walking with my husband again today -- we're walking to a matinee at a movie theatre about half a mile away. Not far, but it's something!

Ooops, forgot to come here and write down my Monday gym visit. 35 minutes Precor bike, cross-country, plus cool-down.

Today I feel pretty miserable. It's a gloomy day, I've spent a lot of time walking around the cold, damp backyard with contractors bidding for our drainage job, and I'm bloated and unhappy. Could be ovulation; dunno. But I'm going to cut myself a break and NOT got to the gym and walk today. I hate walking on the treadmill and the last thing I want to do is force myself on a day when I don't feel good. I'll see about doing some resistance training, yoga, Pilates, etc tonight instead and will report in here.

On Tuesday, I did fit in some walking: I walked up to the store and back. Only about 20 minutes plus the store, but I did it even though it was drizzling and cold outside, so I'm satisfied.

Wednesday I wasn't able to get to the gym during the day, then found out that parent/teacher conferences were in the evening. D'oh! No workout; I'll owe one on the weekend.

Today I went to my Forza class and worked out hard for 55 minutes.