Lifting With a Purpose

I will get to the lifting, but first, some philosophical commentary. I debated (for like 35 seconds) over whether or not to include my blatant flirting with beefy guy (formerly known as match-my-sweatband-to-my-outfit guy) in this post. There are a couple reasons for this: 1) I would be *so* embarrassed if he ever saw it! and 2) although my life is truly an open book for all of the internet to enjoy/mock/pity/etc, some things are more on the personal side. Having said all of that, it is my understanding that many (if not all) of you could care less about how much I can bench (I was up to 120 lbs before the surgery!!!) and how many reps and sets I do of each exercise. As far as I can tell, my big fans eat up the relational aspects waaaaaaaaay more. You want to read about funny ZTT, ABD and HCL stories. You want to read about my hilarious rants and awkward encounters. I'd also like to believe that you want to cheer me on as I try and succeed and support me when I fail, laugh with me when I find something funny and be sad with me when things aren't going well. My life is a bit of a roller coaster and, if I understand correctly, you want to come along for the ride. :) If I do not understand correctly, I am just incredibly narcissistic and typing to myself. In either case, I type on. :)

Ok, on to today! Today I did a full body lifting routine. Yes, I did a few more exercises than I planned to to strategically smile at beefy guy more. I also selectively chose some exercises to be in his line of sight. Oh yes, I am playing *that* game. And I am a novice. ;)

The lifting:

Kneeling Leg Curls: 40/15, 50/15, 60/15
Seated Leg Press (Cybex): 150/15, 190/15, 210/15
Seated Cable Row: 50/15, 60/15, 70/12
BB Deadlifts: 95/15, 115/13, 135/10
DB Chest Press: 15/15, 20/15, 25/15, 30/15
Seated Leg Extensions: 70/15, 80/15, 90/15
Lat Pulldowns: 50/15, 60/12, 60/10
BB Upright Rows: 40/15, 45/15, 45/12
Pec-Decks: 50/15, 60/15, 70/15
DB Front/Side Raise Combo: 5/12, 5/12

So, I will explain my lifting choices. In general I try to do 2-4 leg exercises (with at least one focusing on hams and one on quads), a lats, a row of some sort, 1-2 chest, 1-2 shoulder. I flip and flop back and forth between upper and lower body, trying to move from larger muscles to smaller as I go. I haven't been getting more specific that that in pre-planning like I used to and it *appears* to be working I think...

Ok, so, I'm all cable rowing it up when I see beefy guy at the bench directly across from the deadlift rack. Guess I'm doing deadlifts next. :) So I went over and as I was 3 feet away another guy swooped in and took it!!! There was an awakward "Did you want this?" "No, no, you take it" "You can have it" "No, I'm good" exchange with him which served the purpose of getting beefy guy's attention. I went over the another rack on the other side of the weight floor and after my second set, beefy guy walked past and smiled at me. I smiled back--it's only polite. Erin's Feminine Wiles 1, Beefy Guy's Attempts to Stay Away 0.

I then went over to do a dumbbell chest press. I started with 15s--way too easy. By the time I was done set 3 (with 25s) I had more juice in me. I decided to do 30s but was a little worried about dropping them on me (I was at 35s before the surgery break and am not quite back yet). I saw beefy guy walking in my direction so I got his attention and asked if he would spot me. He said sure. Then, in true Erin form, I started rambling things like, "If you're too busy, it's cool. I'll be fine." He flashed me a smile--I choose to believe it was a "Man, you are adorable when you ramble" smile vs. the "Man, this girl is crazy" smile--and said it was fine. I started very strong--uh oh! What if I don't look like I need a spot?!!? I'd be made! I was so incredibly grateful when my right arm buckled a little during rep 9. He swooped in and grabbed my elbows! I finished the rest of the set fine and when I was done he gave me a "good set" and I thanked him. Erin's Feminine Wiles 2, Beefy Guy's Attempts to Stay Away 0.

I let things be at this point--don't want to use all my best material in one sitting. :) I *did* do the pec-decks and shoulder raise combo to lengthen my time on the weight floor in his peripheral vision. Hey! Extra working out is never a bad thing...right? ;)