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The good news is, I got to the gym yesterday. Not so good, none of it went well. The first set on the hip adduction machine was fine (100lbx15 reps), the second and third tapped out at about 9 reps each. On the abduction, the same thing: one set okay, the next I gave up after 8 reps.
Cardio, 20 minutes felt like quite enough (though I'd have liked to do 30). Bench press, the first set (at 45 pounds total) I managed 15 reps, but only 12 each on the second and third. It'll come, I suppose, but all progress with that has been slow. The leg curl, I don't even remember whether I got through 3 sets or gave up after 2. 60 lbs, 15 reps per set.
The triceps thing went fine: 2 sets at 70 pounds with the straight handle, one at 40 pounds with the rope one (that particular machine doesn't have five-pound increments, and going up to 50 pounds was obviously not good, so I went down to 40, instead of seeking a machine that would let me do 45). Three sets of 15 at 80 pounds on the adjustable row, good.
Stretching, okay, except for the need to fiddle with the propped-open door to the cycling room, so I'd have room for my knees. On the mat, I managed one set each of the back arches and the crunches. I do not like crunches.
Tried the seated leg press. One set of 15 at 180 pounds, too much. took it down to 160--and gave up in annoyance after 8 reps of the second set.
Lunch at Tea Den, which was seeming overwhelmed. I overheard two different tables of people complaining about how long things were taking--this is mostly middle-of-work-day lunches, so time does matter--and I shouldn't have to ask three times for a pot of tea at a place called Tea Den. The wonton soup was fine, as usual, and so was the shrimp in black bean sauce--and I'm not on a clock, though I do bill by the hour.
So, after lunch, off to the periodicals room of the New York Public Library, the nice big one with the lions, for the rest of the afternoon. It's a cool, calm, pleasant place, with a helpful staff, enough chairs and tables, and a helpful staff. And two brochures, one listing available services and the other describing all the murals on the walls. That's Room 108, and I recommend it highly for all your recent periodical needs--if they have what you want, it's a much nicer place to work than the equivalent section at the Mid-Manhattan Library. And they have things Mid-Manhattan doesn't, which is how I wound up there (though the reverse may also be true).
The library closes at 6, so when I reached a good stopping point at 5:45, I decided to call it an afternoon. Stopped in Bryant Park for a couple of minutes, just because, then went down to the Village for coffee (beans, not a cup to drink then). Since they were handy, I got some plums, too.
Thence to a "meet-up" of some NYC webloggers. It was poorly organized--the alleged host of the event hadn't shown up by the time I left, at 9 (for an event that was supposed to start at 7, with a confirmation email urging us to be prompt). But several of us found each other, and sat around with assorted beverages and random conversation, some of it even about our Weblogs. Odd--I'm not used to being asked what I do for a living as a conversation-starter, because fans mostly don't start with that, neighbors tend to want to discuss the park, and coworkers already know. It was fun, but I don't think I'll be going out of my way to email any of these folks; maybe I should look at their blogs before deciding for certain. The location was just weird: part cafe, part bar, and part dating service, but the couches were comfortable, and the waiter was efficient but not pushy.
(Having written all that up, I'm not surprised that I've done almost nothing today except go to the drugstore.)
Cardio, 20 minutes felt like quite enough (though I'd have liked to do 30). Bench press, the first set (at 45 pounds total) I managed 15 reps, but only 12 each on the second and third. It'll come, I suppose, but all progress with that has been slow. The leg curl, I don't even remember whether I got through 3 sets or gave up after 2. 60 lbs, 15 reps per set.
The triceps thing went fine: 2 sets at 70 pounds with the straight handle, one at 40 pounds with the rope one (that particular machine doesn't have five-pound increments, and going up to 50 pounds was obviously not good, so I went down to 40, instead of seeking a machine that would let me do 45). Three sets of 15 at 80 pounds on the adjustable row, good.
Stretching, okay, except for the need to fiddle with the propped-open door to the cycling room, so I'd have room for my knees. On the mat, I managed one set each of the back arches and the crunches. I do not like crunches.
Tried the seated leg press. One set of 15 at 180 pounds, too much. took it down to 160--and gave up in annoyance after 8 reps of the second set.
Lunch at Tea Den, which was seeming overwhelmed. I overheard two different tables of people complaining about how long things were taking--this is mostly middle-of-work-day lunches, so time does matter--and I shouldn't have to ask three times for a pot of tea at a place called Tea Den. The wonton soup was fine, as usual, and so was the shrimp in black bean sauce--and I'm not on a clock, though I do bill by the hour.
So, after lunch, off to the periodicals room of the New York Public Library, the nice big one with the lions, for the rest of the afternoon. It's a cool, calm, pleasant place, with a helpful staff, enough chairs and tables, and a helpful staff. And two brochures, one listing available services and the other describing all the murals on the walls. That's Room 108, and I recommend it highly for all your recent periodical needs--if they have what you want, it's a much nicer place to work than the equivalent section at the Mid-Manhattan Library. And they have things Mid-Manhattan doesn't, which is how I wound up there (though the reverse may also be true).
The library closes at 6, so when I reached a good stopping point at 5:45, I decided to call it an afternoon. Stopped in Bryant Park for a couple of minutes, just because, then went down to the Village for coffee (beans, not a cup to drink then). Since they were handy, I got some plums, too.
Thence to a "meet-up" of some NYC webloggers. It was poorly organized--the alleged host of the event hadn't shown up by the time I left, at 9 (for an event that was supposed to start at 7, with a confirmation email urging us to be prompt). But several of us found each other, and sat around with assorted beverages and random conversation, some of it even about our Weblogs. Odd--I'm not used to being asked what I do for a living as a conversation-starter, because fans mostly don't start with that, neighbors tend to want to discuss the park, and coworkers already know. It was fun, but I don't think I'll be going out of my way to email any of these folks; maybe I should look at their blogs before deciding for certain. The location was just weird: part cafe, part bar, and part dating service, but the couches were comfortable, and the waiter was efficient but not pushy.
(Having written all that up, I'm not surprised that I've done almost nothing today except go to the drugstore.)
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