Mixing it up a bit

Last Wednesday, I hopped on the Concept 2 rower and rowed a slow 5K - 25:20.  I followed that up with a mile on the treadmill.  The next day, I was a bit sore, so I walked 3.5 miles on the treadmill.

After that, the opening of trout season took over.  My wife and I saw a fly fishing film Friday night, so there was no workout.  I fished a decent amount of time over the weekend, and despite being on my feet all day, it wasn't really a workout.  And, just like in prior years, I caught zero fish in the Otter Creek Classic.  Someday, maybe...

Yesterday, I was looking at the CrossFit workout, and I found myself tempted.  Not by the strength training, which was front squats and barbell lunges.  But, the metabolic workout was 30 box jump-overs, 50 Russian Kettlebell swings, 100 air squats (just bodyweight - no additional weight), 50 more swings and 30 more box jumps.

I thought about it, but hopped on the rower instead.  While I was on the rower, one of our coaches, a regular competitor at the CF Games, asked me how I was doing with my recovery.  I mentioned that I'd thought about doing the workout.  She encouraged me to give it a shot, but to scale it properly.

So, I finished my 5K row in 23:36, much better than last week, and then set up for the workout.  I decided I would do 30 box step-up-and-overs, 30 kettlebell high pulls, 50 air squats, more high pulls and more box step-ups.  And, that was plenty for me.  It took me 7:31, about the amount of time it took the better athletes to do the prescribed workout.  It wasn't too bad, but I'm sore today.

The workout tonight is Olympic lifting followed by Fran - a combo of thrusters and pull-ups.  I think I'll walk for the first part of the workout, and then do a modified version of Fran - light thrusters and ring rows instead of pull-ups.

I see my medical oncologist tomorrow, mostly so she can see how I'm doing post-surgery.  I have to set up periodic appointments to get my chemo port flushed.  I may request a bit more pain medicine for the next week or so.  I'm using less all the time, although car rides are uncomfortable, anytime I sneeze it hurts a lot, and I'd like to taper a bit with less strong medications than I'm using now.  Anytime I'm not moving at all, such as at work or overnight, I'm fairly comfortable at present.  But, I still have more pain at times than Tylenol alone will handle.

But, things are better every day.  This weekend, I'm taking my daughter on her final 2 college visits before her looming decision day.  I think the decision is pretty much done, and she will end up at Syracuse.  We are going to Syracuse on Friday and then URI on Saturday.  Saturday is also her 18th birthday, so I want to stop somewhere nice, maybe in Boston, on the way home from URI to take her out to a nice dinner.

The next day, she is planning to celebrate her "adulthood" with a tattoo.  I'm not going to participate in that event (she knows I'd prefer she not do it, but at age 18, I'm not going to stand in her way), so I might sneak out fishing for the day.