Tag Archives: Orangetheory

I was happy when starting this past week of workouts since I knew it was when I should start to feel better. But as I wrote about last week, I ended up doing something to my back and had to deal with that just as I was feeling ok. It wasn’t ideal, but I’ve managed to get through worse things. And because I knew this was going to be a shorter workout week for me, I just wanted to make sure I did what I could.

I was finally starting to feel better by Monday’s workout. I wasn’t completely better, but it was significantly better than how I was feeling the week before. And since I was feeling better, I was able to push myself a little bit more than I had the week before. I had no idea that this would be the best I would be feeling all week.

For cardio, we had 3 blocks and they all had very similar timing. For all the blocks, we had 45-second base paces and the push paces or all-outs were either 1-minute, 45-seconds, or 30-seconds. In the first block, everything was without an incline and the first 2 intervals were push paces and the last one was an all-out. The second block had all the push pace intervals at inclines. And in the last block, we only had all-outs and base paces/recoveries and no push paces. I’ve gotten a bit more used to my new base pace, so that was good and I think I can eventually focus on increasing my push pace and all-out.

On the rower, 2 of the 3 blocks were timed with cardio. The first block was the same as cardio with the push and base paces. The second block had rounds of a 200-meter row with squats between each row. And the last block was timed with cardio, but when they had their base pace or recovery, we had squats.

On the floor, for the first two blocks both had 2 exercises. The first block had bicep curls and uppercuts and the second block had single-arm deadlifts and push-ups to side planks. I struggled a bit with the push-ups and planks so I had to go really slowly with those. And for the last block, we were timed with cardio and the rowers and we did squat to presses during their all-outs and recovered in between.

I worked out on Tuesday because my studio was going to be closed on Thursday and Friday and I wanted to make sure I got at least 3 workouts in for the week. This was the start of my dealing with the back pain I had last week, but I knew that I could exercise as long as I was being mindful of things. I was lucky that the back spasms were very infrequent and I had a good general idea of what would hurt and what wouldn’t so I could work around it.

For cardio, we had 3 blocks and they were all the same. We started with a 2-minute push pace followed by a 1-minute increased push pace and then ended the block with a 1-minute all-out. The increased push pace was supposed to be at an incline, so I used the resistance level between my push and all-out. And even with the back pain, I was able to continue to push myself since being on the bike wasn’t hurting me.

On the rower, we had one long block. We had timed rows and then we had rainbows with a medicine ball which I had to be a bit slow with since they were hurting me a little bit. We had a 90-second, 60-second, and 30-second row and we did each row twice before moving to the next timed row. And we finished with a 1-minute all-out row.

And on the floor, we had another long block. All of the exercises were drop sets and they were all with mini-bands. With the drop sets, we had 8 reps at a heavy weight and as many reps as possible with a lighter weight. We had high rows, deadlifts, low rows, and squats. By the time I was getting to the squats, I was feeling a bit weak so I did those without weights so I could make sure my form wasn’t sloppy. But I was able to use weights for everything else, even if they were a bit lighter than I would have liked to have used. And we ended the workout with weighted seated torso rotations.

Wednesday was my last workout for the week. I was thinking of going on the weekend to get 4 workouts in, but because of my back, I figured a few extra rest days would be good for me. I know exercise is good for stretching my back and staying active, but so is rest. So I just did 3 workouts for the week. I was still hurting a bit but I was even more aware of what would hurt my back and what would be ok to do so I modified the workout to work with that.

For cardio, we had a 15-minute distance challenge. Every few minutes, we were encouraged to increase how fast we were going, but I decided to just try to be steady with what I did with occasional moments where I increased the resistance level before bringing it back. I used my new base resistance level for the majority of the time and then my regular push pace level for a minute or two of increased resistance. But most of the time, I was at my base pace and just pedaling along as much as I could.

On the rower, we had 4 blocks. Blocks 1 and 3 were the same and blocks 2 and 4 were the same. For blocks 1 and 3, we had 30-second rowing sprints and we were supposed to do increasing lateral hops between each row. I tried to do the lateral hops the first time, and I knew immediately that it was going to cause too much back pain. Unfortunately, anything that I could do as a modification wasn’t working for me, so I just did 30-second sprint rows and rested for a moment before repeating them. And for blocks 2 and 4, we had a 90-second row for distance. I did ok for the first attempt of the 90-second row, but for the second one, I did have to take a quick break in the middle of it to do a quick back stretch.

And on the floor, we had one long block. We had rep ranges for each exercise, and I tried to keep it around the middle of that range. And I modified things as I needed to. We had sumo deadlifts, and I did as many as I could with a light weight and then did them without weights to finish my reps. For the kneeling wood choppers, again I used a light weight and I did some kneeling but ended up doing most standing since getting up and down was a little tough for me. For the bicep curls, I didn’t have to modify those so that was nice. And the last exercise was a push-up to a plank superman. For those, I did the push-ups as a single exercise and then I did bird dogs separately. It was a lot of modifications, but I got through it all.

I’m hoping that this week things go a bit better for me. My back has been getting better, but I’m still being cautious. And I’m possibly going to test out a new workout schedule for myself, so that could be an interesting change. I’m still figuring out what I’ll be doing this week with my workouts, but whatever I do I know that I’ll get through them.

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I knew going into this past week of workouts that it would be a tough week. I never know how bad it might be, and it was pretty bad. It wasn’t the worst I’ve felt, but there were moments when it was getting close to that.

Monday’s workout had some parts that were easier on me and how I was feeling and some parts felt like they were extra challenging. So I just tried to push when I could and go easy when I needed to.

For cardio, we had 2 blocks. For the first block, we had 2-minute push pace intervals and 1-minute base pace intervals. For the push paces, we went up by 1% for the incline each time. And the second block we had 1-minute all-outs and 1-minute recoveries. And for the all-outs, we did the same as the first block with increasing the incline (or resistance level) each time. I did use my new base pace and I did do the increases we were supposed to do even though it felt a lot harder than what it normally feels like.

For the rower, we were timed with the treadmills for both blocks. When the treadmills were in a push pace or an all-out, we had a row for the same amount of time. Then when they were in a base pace or a recovery, we had exercises off of the rower. In the first block, it was supposed to be forward and back shuffles and in the second block, it was supposed to be side hops. I tried the shuffles in the first block for the first time, and I knew that I couldn’t do it. It was making me even more nauseous and by the time I could start rowing again the rowing time was over halfway over. So I did squats instead in both blocks. It’s not the best modification, but it was one that worked.

The floor was a bit better for me. In both blocks, we only had 2 exercises. In the first block, we had lunges and low rows with weights. The low rows were supposed to be in a modified plank, but I did them standing to not add to my nausea. And in the second block, we had single-arm chest presses and hip bridges. Fortunately, I didn’t have to make any modifications in the second block so I felt better about my workout at the end.

My nausea was a little less extreme on Wednesday, but the pain from cramps was a lot worse so I think the workout was equally as tough. I still had to push when I could but also take a lot of rest when I needed to let the pain subside.

For each section of the room, we had one long block and one short block. For cardio, the long block had 3 parts to it. For each part, we had a base pace, base-to-push pace, push pace, and all-out. I did use my new base pace, but because of the increases we used, my base-to-push pace was the same as my push pace. First, we did each of those sections for 1-minute each. Then we did them for 45-seconds each. And finally, we did them for 30-seconds each. And between each of those sections, we only had 30-seconds to recover. And in the shorter block, we had 30-second intervals of a base pace, base-to-push pace, push pace, push to all-out, and all-out.

On the rower, for the longer block, we started with a 200-meter row. After the row, we had rainbows with a medicine ball. We repeated this pattern with a 150-meter and 100-meter row. Then we repeated the 3 rows again but we had overhead tricep presses with the medicine ball. For the shorter block, we worked along with the treadmills with 30-second intervals. I was proud of myself for getting through all the rows in the first block without needing to stop due to pain. But in the second block with the long row, I did need some rest.

On the floor, for the first block, we had 2 mini-blocks. The first mini-block had regular lunges and lunges using the straps. And the second mini-block had single-arm high rows with weights and low rows on the straps. And in the second block, because it was such a short block we only had one exercise. We had kneeling single-arm shoulder presses. I didn’t go too heavy with the weights on the floor, but I tried. But the pain was getting really bad while I was on the floor and I didn’t get through too many rounds because of the breaks I needed to take.

Thursday’s workout was one that I had done earlier in the month. And this might have been the worst I felt all week, but again I just did what I could and tried my best.

For cardio, we had 2 blocks. The first block had a 1-minute push pace, 30-second all-out, and 1-minute recovery and we repeated that pattern 3 times. And the second block was the same idea except the push pace was 30-seconds instead of 1-minute. I used my new base pace but was pedaling pretty slowly throughout both blocks.

On the rower, we had one long block. We started with an 800-meter row and then we had squats and lunges. The row went down by 200-meters each time and we repeated the pattern. I had to take a lot of breaks during the rowing, so I only got through the 800 and 600-meter rows. I hated how little I was able to do, but I just reminded myself that I tried.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks. The first block had chest presses with weights, push-ups, and side plank hip dips. And the second block had lunges, squats, and back extensions. I switched out the back extensions for bird dogs because of my nausea. And most of the exercises were supposed to be done with the Bosu, but I did them on the floor without it. It wasn’t my best workout, but it was better than doing nothing.

I wasn’t really doing better on Friday, but I think I tolerated things a bit better so that helped to make the workout better than Thursday’s. We had 2 blocks at each section of the room, but we switched between blocks so we did 1 block at each section first before doing another lap around the room, which helped to split things up nicely.

The first block for cardio had push pace and base pace intervals. All the base paces were 1-minute and the push pace started at 30-seconds and increased by 30-seconds each time. And we ended with a 30-second all-out. The second block was similar, but the push paces started at 90-seconds and went down by 30-seconds each time. Again, I was using my new base pace (I don’t know if I’ll go back down to the old one now) and just pedaled slower than normal to make things easier for me.

On the rower, both blocks were all about stroke drills where we had to do 15 strokes on the rower and try to keep the wattage the same the entire time. Between each row in the first block, we had squat front presses and between each row in the second block, we had lunges.

And on the floor, things were a bit more challenging for me. The first block had chest presses with weights and plank jacks to push-ups. The plank jacks to push-ups were so difficult because it’s always hard for me to be face down for exercises when I’m nauseous. I split the exercises up and just did as many reps as I could at a time. And the second block was challenging for my hips and balance. We had weighted step-downs on the bench and step-ups to knee raises on the bench. I wouldn’t have been able to do either of these with the old type of benches, but because the new ones get lower to the ground, I’ve been trying to do them more and more. They are still difficult for me, but I have noticed improvements in my balance each time we do them.

I’m happy I did what I could, but I’m ready to have a good week again. But this week, my workout schedule is going to be a bit different because the studio will be closed part of the week when Orangetheory films a commercial there! I’m still figuring out which days I’ll be going, and I’m looking at possibly changing up my workout schedule again because some of my coaches are changing which days they are there. But for this coming week, I know it might still be a bit of a bad week, so I’m hoping I will still just do my best and maybe I’ll be able to surprise myself.

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This past week, I wasn’t doing too great with my workouts. I thought the beginning of the week would start off well, but I had other medical issues come up that made those workouts harder. And then, I started to have to deal with nausea. So while I was hoping at least the beginning of the week would start off well, it really didn’t.

I was feeling a bit weak going into Monday’s workout. My gallbladder attack was on Sunday, and even though it wasn’t the worst attack I’ve had, I was still recovering from the pain and a few other symptoms. I probably should have taken some pain medication before my workout because my body was sore from being tensed up during the attack, but I didn’t think of that until I was already in class.

For cardio, we had 3 blocks and did the same pattern each time. We had a 2-minute base pace at an incline, a 1-minute push pace at the same incline, and a 1-minute all-out. Because of the incline we were at, the base pace was at the resistance level I would normally use for my push pace, so I kept it there for those first 3 minutes and just pedaled faster for the push pace. And for the all-out, I did go up to my normal resistance level. We had that same block 3 times and we were supposed to try to get better each time. But I think I probably did about the same effort each time because as I tried to push myself I was also getting tired so they canceled each other out.

On the rower, we had 1 long block. We had 2 rounds of a 300-meter row, 2 rounds of a 200-meter row, and 2 rounds of a 100-meter row. The idea was to get to each distance with the fewest number of strokes each time. To do that, you have to pause at the front and back of the rower and really explode from your legs. I’m not great at explosive power, but I have built up core strength so I can do better with the pauses. And between each row, we had lunges that were supposed to be with a medicine ball, but I did regular lunges.

And on the floor, we also had 1 block. We had 4 exercises and we were supposed to do each one twice before moving on to the next one. For all the exercises, we had the mini-bands around our legs and they were drop sets so we did 8 reps with a very heavy weight and then immediately go into as many reps as we can with a lighter weight. We had upright high rows, deadlifts, low rows, and front squats. I went heavier than I can remember with my deadlifts, and that was a real challenge for me. And for the front squats, I really needed to keep my hands free for balance because I was having a tough time with the mini-band on my legs so I did those without weights. But considering how I was feeling going into class, I was very happy with the work that I was able to do.

On Wednesday, I was feeling a bit better but it was also the start of having nausea. I tried to not let it affect me too much, but there were a few moments when it got a bit more severe and I just had to let it pass. But fortunately, this was right when the nausea was starting, so it wasn’t as bad as it can get.

For cardio, we had one long block. We started with a 90-second push pace followed by a 3-minute base pace. Since the base pace was so long, the idea was to work on increasing your base pace speed. Since my speed can be a big variable on the bike, I decided to increase the resistance level by one. So my base pace was between what my normal base and push paces are set at. That did add a challenge, but it wasn’t too different so it was manageable. We repeated the pattern with the 90-second push pace and 3-minute base pace a total of 3 times before we ended with a 1-minute all-out.

On the rower, it was all about doing 300-meter rows. I was surprised at how well I did with the rowing since I usually struggle a lot on the rower when I’m nauseous. I only had to take a break during the row once. Between each row, we had either front presses or calf raises with a medicine ball.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks. The first block had single-arm shoulder presses, squats to shrugs, and lunges. And the second block had chest presses, sumo squats, and lunges. I did go heavier with my sumo squats since I know I could probably go heavier than I think I can. Sometimes the bigger struggle is picking up the weight, and not using it in the exercise. But I tried and I’m glad I pushed myself a bit more on the floor to prove that I could do it.

Thursday’s workout was a 2 group class, so we had 23 minutes for cardio and 23 minutes for the rower and floor. I was still dealing with nausea, so having such a long time on the bike was a challenge, but the entire workout was set up to be a good challenge.

For cardio, we had a single 23-minute distance challenge. You could keep your speed the same for the entire thing, but there were 3 times throughout the challenge where we were encouraged to go a bit faster for about 90-seconds. Because it was such a long challenge, we were told to be at our base pace or a little above our base pace. Since I had just done a challenge with using one resistance level higher on the bike for my base pace the day before, I did that again. I also increased my push pace for the 3 short intervals where we were supposed to push ourselves. It wasn’t an easy challenge, and it was harder being nauseous while doing it. But I was really proud of myself for what I did and how I did push myself to do a bit more than what I thought I could do.

And for the second half of class, we alternated between floor and row blocks. We had 3 of each of them. For all of the blocks on the floor, we had the same exercises. We had sumo deadlifts, wood choppers, bicep curls, and bird dogs to push-ups. Every time we got back to the floor, we picked up where we left off. And on the rower, we were rowing while cardio was in their push intervals and we just rowed for those 90-seconds each time. I struggled a bit on the floor with the push-ups, but again I was proud of myself for what I was able to do considering how I felt.

Friday was probably one of the toughest days for me since it was the worst day of nausea. I knew it wouldn’t be a great workout and I would just do what I could. But it’s always frustrating when I feel like that.

The two cardio blocks were very similar. We alternated between a push pace at an incline and a base pace without an incline. And again, I tried to use my potential new base pace. I haven’t increased what my push or all-out paces should be just yet, so I didn’t challenge myself much harder outside of my base paces. At the end of each block, we had an all-out at an incline, which was 2 resistance levels higher than what my normal all-out is.

We also had 2 blocks on the rower and it was all about 400-meter rows. In the first block, between each row, we had squat presses and tricep extensions with a medicine ball. And in the second block, we had bicep curls and shoulder presses with the medicine ball between each row. My rows were pretty slow and I had to take a lot of breaks during them, so I didn’t get that much done in each of the blocks.

On the floor, I ended up doing a lot of modifications between my hip issues and dealing with nausea. In the first block, we had lunges, chest fly with weights, and push-ups. There were 2 types of lunges, but I can only do one type of lunges so I did squats to replace one of the lunges. And sometimes I modify push-ups to be on the bench, but this time I did chest presses instead since they work the same muscles. In the second block, we had lateral lunges, skater lunges, sit-ups with rotations, and sprinter sit-ups. I did bicycle crunches instead of sprinter sit-ups, but that was the only modification I had to make for that second block. I know I did the best that I could in this workout, but I hate when I finish a workout and feel like I should have done more. But I also know there was nothing else I could have done with how I was feeling.

And I’m mentally preparing myself for this week. It might not be as horrible as some of my bad weeks are, but it can be and I know I need to be ok with that. Hopefully, I’m preparing myself more than I need to so it won’t be as bad and I will feel better about myself and my efforts when I’m writing my workout recap next week!

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I knew this past week of workouts would likely start off with some bad days, but I was hopeful that they wouldn’t last long and things would get better for me. And I’m pretty lucky because I was feeling better at the perfect time for a really great workout moment.

Monday’s workout felt like all endurance work. I’m not sure if the templates are still supposed to always be a mix of endurance, strength, and power or if they are going back to having a singular focus for some workouts. But this one for sure felt like a big endurance day. I was still dealing with a little bit of pain and nausea, but it was tapering off so it was much better than the week before.

For each section of the room, we had 3 blocks. And for cardio and the floor, we repeated the same block each time.

For cardio, we had a 3-minute push pace followed by a 1-minute all-out each time. I did use my normal resistance levels for the push pace and all-out, but since there wasn’t a base pace in each block it felt like I was using a higher resistance level. I had to occasionally take a break during each block because the pain was getting bad, but I tried to not rest beside those moments to push myself as much as I could.

On the rower, the first and last blocks were the same. They were both 4-minute rows and the idea was to increase the wattage on the rower every minute. So ideally, we had a base to push row, a push row, a push to all-out row, and an all-out row. I did try to increase the wattage each minute, but it wasn’t going up as much as I would have liked each minute. But I did try and I did see increases each time. In the second block, we had a mix of lunges and rowing each minute. For the first minute, we had 10 lunges and then rowed for the rest of the minute. In the second minute, we had 12 lunges and then rowed. In the third minute, we had 14 lunges and then rowed. And the last minute was just rowing. And the goal was to try to get to half the distance from the first block. I didn’t quite get to half of my first distance, but I did beat the distance from the first block in the last block.

And for the floor, everything for each block was a 1-minute interval. We had a minute of bicep curls, a minute of arnold presses, a minute of front squats, and a minute of front squats to arnold presses. It was so much shoulder work and I had to go lighter with the weights than I normally would because of that. And for the second and third blocks, I had to rest during the squats because I was starting to have some nausea. And after the last block, my arms were so tired from the shoulder work, but it was a good feeling.

Wednesday’s workout was a mix of endurance, strength, and power. We had power for cardio, strength for the rower, and endurance on the floor. And for each section of the room, we had 2 blocks of work.

For cardio, the 2 blocks of work were the same. We started with 2 rounds of 45-second push paces and 1-minute base paces followed by 2 rounds of 45-second all-outs with a 1-minute recovery between them. I did much better than Monday although I did have a few random cramps during the entire workout that I had to rest to breathe through. But it was so much better than last week and I know I’m pretty much almost done with my bad days.

For the rower, both blocks were focused on doing 250-meter rows. In the first block, between each row we had deadlifts to shoulder presses with a medicine ball. And in the second block, between each row we were supposed to do isolated squats with bicep curls but I didn’t do the squats and just did bicep curls. But I did use a heavier medicine ball than normal. I wasn’t planning on going heavier, but the one I normally use wasn’t available and I didn’t want to go lighter.

And on the floor, the first block was timed with cardio so we had 45-second and 1-minute intervals. For the 45-second intervals, we had suitcase squats and we focused on one side each time. And for the 1-minute intervals, we had to do 12 hammer curls to shoulder presses and then could rest for whatever time was leftover. And in the second block, we worked at our own pace. We had all Bosu work for that block. We had crunches, hip bridges, back extensions, and plank toe taps. I didn’t use the Bosu for the plank toe taps, but I did use it for everything else so I got a good core workout in that block!

Thursday’s workout was a benchmark workout. For this class, we had the 1-mile challenge. The last time I did the mile benchmark was about a year ago, and I PRed when I did that. So I wasn’t necessarily expecting to PR again since that time seemed so fast and I knew I was coming off of a bad week.

Our cardio block was all about the benchmark challenge. On the bike, you do 4 miles (or 4 trips, which may not be the same as miles), but that’s what I’m used to doing. And I knew approximately how fast I had to get to each distance segment to be on track to be close to my last PR. And when I got to 1 mile/trip, I was actually only a little behind what would get me to my PR. I wasn’t expecting to go that fast, but I think seeing that motivated me to push myself harder. So I really went for it and knew that I would be completely gassed out by the end of the challenge. I tried to stay steady with how quickly I pedaled, but I did do a few moments of just going as fast as my legs could go to get a little extra boost. There’s no way I could pedal as fast as I did in a normal workout because that’s a lot longer, but somehow I continued to pick up speed and not only did I get to my old PR but I beat it by 16 seconds!

I was really exhausted at the end of those 8 minutes and I needed to rest and catch my breath before I could walk over to the tracking system so I could enter my new time. And for the rest of the block, we had short intervals to do but I just kept it between a recovery and base pace and took breaks as I needed them.

On the rower, we started with a 600-meter row. Since I was so tired from the bike, I was rowing slowly and needed breaks during it. But I tried my best. And after the row, we had crisscross hops. Each round on the rower we went down by 100-meters, but I only made it to the 300-meter row before the block was done.

On the floor, we had 1 block with 2 mini-blocks. The first mini-block had single-arm low rows with weights and chest presses on the straps. And in the second mini-block, we had single-leg lateral step-ups and single-leg deadlifts. I lowered the bench to do the step-ups since I have been trying to do that when I can instead of doing lunges. I did have to go slowly because my balance wasn’t great, but there was no need to rush through them and I took advantage of having the time to push myself and do them.

Because of how hard I pushed myself on Thursday, I knew I would be taking it easier on Friday. I did still want to push myself when I could, but I also knew that I really needed to pay attention to how I was feeling. We had 2 blocks in each section of the room and again it was a mix of endurance, strength, and power.

For cardio, both blocks had intervals with inclines and intervals without inclines. The first block had 2-minute push paces and 1-minute base paces. And the second block had 1-minute all-outs and 1-minute recoveries. For both the push paces and all-outs, the first time we had no incline and went up by 1% each round. I started at my normal resistance level for each and then went up from there instead of trying to just pedal faster.

On the rower, we were timed with cardio. In the first block, we had 2-minute rows and then we had the minute to do forward and back steps and then rest. And in the second block, we had 1-minute all-out rows and then in and out hops during the minute the cardio was in a recovery. I did ok with the rowing. I did take little breaks during the 2-minute rows, but it was more because of my hip feeling off than being tired. And even though I usually do modifications for any hopping activity, I did try the hops first before I switched to something else.

And on the floor, the idea for each block was to try to get heavier with the weights each round. But I didn’t do a great job at that because I didn’t want to start off too light and I knew I couldn’t get much heavier than the heavy ones I was using. In the first block, we had lateral lunges (which I did without weights) and single-arm low rows. And in the second block, we had bridge hold single-arm chest presses and hip bridges. The hip bridges were supposed to be single-leg, but I did regular ones.

Even though not every workout had a huge win, having that PR on Thursday really made my week last week! And it put me in a great mood for this week’s workouts and seeing what I can do during my birthday week workouts!

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I wasn’t paying a lot of attention to my calendar before this past week of workouts, so I didn’t realize at first that this was going to be the start of my bad week (or weeks). Fortunately, it didn’t hit me right at the beginning of the week so I didn’t have a totally bad week, but it is always frustrating when they do hit because it really affects every part of my workout.

I wasn’t doing too bad on Monday. I did feel a little off, but it wasn’t anything that was too distracting which is probably why I didn’t just assume it was kicking off my bad week. Monday’s workout was one that I did earlier in the month, but it felt different this time.

For cardio, we started with a 2-minute base pace and a 30-second all-out. We had a 1-minute recovery before starting the next part of the block. Again, we started with a 2-minute base pace and ended with a 30-second all-out but we had a 90-second push pace in the middle. We had another 1-minute recovery and then we repeated the second section again but we added a 1-minute push to all-out before the 30-second all-out.

On the rower, we had 3 blocks. Each block had a stroke drill and a medicine ball exercise. The first block had 10 strokes for each row and then we had bicep curls using the medicine ball. The second block had 12 strokes for each row and then squats using the medicine ball. And the last block had 15 strokes for each row and then we were supposed to do isolated squats with bicep curls with the medicine ball, but I split the exercise up so I did the squats and bicep curls separately.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks. The first block was all about building up to an ultimate burpee. Since I wasn’t feeling so great, I modified each exercise to make it easier on me. For most things, I used the bench for my hands so I wasn’t fully face down. We had plank low rows, push-ups, pop jacks, squats to shoulder presses, and then ultimate burpees. For the ultimate burpees, I didn’t do the low rows since it isn’t easy to grab the weights from the bench and hold on to them. But I did try my best with what I could do. And in the second block, we had plank jacks and high plank kick-throughs. I did the plank jacks using the bench, but the kick-throughs are really tough to do no matter how I feel since my hips don’t like that movement. I did try those from the ground since I was worried about falling, but I mainly did plank side reaches.

Wednesday’s workout was a new one for me. I was feeling a bit worse, but my medications were helping so it wasn’t as bad as I know it could be. For this workout, we had 2 blocks for each section of the room.

For cardio, both blocks had a mix of flat inclines and incline work. The first block started with a 90-second push pace without incline. Then we had a 1-minute base pace. The next push pace was 1-minute long but at an incline followed by a 1-minute base pace without incline. We repeated the pattern with shorter push paces with inclines and the 1-minute base pace without an incline. The second block was a little shorter so we only did 2 rounds with the inclines and then ended with a 30-second all-out with an incline.

On the rower, we started with a 300-meter row, and then we had high knees. We repeated this pattern for the first block and decreased the row by 50-meters each time. For the second block, we started with a 100-meter all-out row. Then we got to rest as much as we needed and we had a 50-meter base row and then a 100-meter all-out row. We repeated this pattern with adding 50-meters to the base row each time. Because we got as much rest as we needed, this wasn’t as bad as it could have been. I didn’t get that far in the second block but I was able to row each time without needing to stop in the middle of the row.

On the floor, each block had one drop set exercise and one regular exercise. The first block started with a drop set for uppercuts. So we did 12 uppercuts with a heavy weight and then did as many reps as we could with a lighter weight right after. After doing both sets, we had lateral lunges with hammer curls. For the second block, the drop set was with sumo squats. So we had 12 sumo squats with a heavy weight and then as many as possible with a lighter weight. And the other exercise after the squats was reciprocating rows. The rows were a bit tough since they were something that should be face down and but I did do my best.

Thursday was a much harder day for me, so I had to do a lot of rest throughout the workout. This was another repeat workout for me, but I feel pretty certain that I did much better the first time I did this one.

For cardio, the first block started with a 75-second push pace followed by a 60-second base pace. Then we had a 60-second push pace and a 60-second base pace. Then we had a 45-second all-out, 30 seconds of recovery, and another 45-second all-out. The second block was very similar to the first, but we had 3 rounds of a 30-second all-out instead of 2 rounds of a 45-second all-out.

On the rower, we started with a 600-meter row. Then we were supposed to do lunges with a tricep extension with a medicine ball. But I split the lunges and the tricep extensions into separate exercises. Then we had 2 rounds of a 300-meter row with the same medicine ball work. And the last part was 4 rounds of a 150-meter row with the same exercises. I didn’t get through all the rows, but I was into the last section when the block ended.

And on the floor, each block had a mix of strength exercises and stability exercises. In the first block, the strength exercises were front squats and chest presses. And the stability exercises were lunges to squats on the straps and chest presses on the straps. And in the second block, the strength exercises were single-arm shoulder presses and hammer curls and the stability exercises were lunges and balance bicep curls. I did the bicep curls as regular ones, so I didn’t really get the stability part of that exercise, but I know stability exercises are always the hardest for me with my hips.

Friday was another repeat workout for me and probably the worst I felt all week. And we also found out that the coach we have on Wednesdays and Fridays would be leaving and this class was possibly their last class. I was really sad about this because she’s been my coach since I started going to the Culver City studio and I really love how she coaches and pushes us. I’m really going to miss her and it was sad knowing this might be my last class with her.

I had done this workout toward the middle of the month, but again I know I did better the first time I did this workout. For cardio, we started at no incline and for those on the treadmill, they increased the incline by 1% every .1 miles (I increased it every .4 miles on the bike). We did this for 6 minutes before we had some recovery time. Then for the second block, we started at the highest incline/resistance level and then decreased it by 1% every .1 or .4 miles.

On the rower, both blocks were focused on 150-meter rows. But in the first block, between each row, we had bicep curls and in the second block, we had deadlifts to overhead presses. Doing a 150-meter row is a good distance for me, especially when I don’t feel great. It’s a pretty short row so I’m done quickly and I can push myself a bit more since it is shorter. But because of how I was feeling, it was still tough and I just tried to get through each row and I wasn’t too focused on making improvements each time.

And on the floor, both blocks had timed exercises. In each block, we had one exercise that was for 45-seconds long and we had another exercise that we had 1 minute to complete 12 reps and then we could rest. In the first block, we did lateral lunges for 45-seconds and 12 uppercuts within the minute. And in the second block, we had arnold presses for 45-seconds and 12 lunges within the minute. The arnold presses were harder than I expected and I possibly should have gone lighter with the weights, but considering how few opportunities I had to push myself in this workout, it was probably good to have this challenge.

This week of workouts could go a bunch of different ways. It might be a really bad week, or it might not be as bad as it could be. It’s something that I will just have to see how I feel each day and manage my expectations from there. But hopefully, even if I feel horrible I will have some workout wins this week.

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This past week of workouts was a mix of good and bad. I wasn’t necessarily feeling off, but I was dealing with the effects of having a rough weekend. So I was a little weaker than normal and I had some moments of being lightheaded. It wasn’t as bad as my bad weeks go and I was still able to push myself quite a bit, but there were a few moments in each workout where I just had to stop and take it easy for a bit before I felt normal again.

Monday’s workout was a signature class. This time, it was the Inferno workout. Doing Inferno as a 3 group class is a bit different since it’s not a run/row, but you still get a lot of chances to push yourself.

For cardio, we had 2 blocks. The first block had intervals of base and push paces, but the base paces got longer each time and the push pace was always 1-minute long. And we ended with a 30-second push pace to a 30-second all-out. And the second block was the same idea but this time all the push paces were 30-seconds long. And we ended with the same 1-minute push to all-out.

The rower is the main part of the Inferno workout. We started with a 100-meter row and then we had lateral hops. I had to do them more like skater lunges, but I did get a little hop into them. And every time we went back to the rower, we increased the distance by 100-meters. The goal is to get as many meters as you can in 14 minutes. I didn’t have a real goal in my head since I didn’t have the information from the past 3 group Inferno classes I’ve done, but I felt like I did a pretty decent job.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks. The first block had chest presses on the straps, chest flys with weights, and overhead tricep extensions. And the second block had low rows on the straps, reverse flys with weights, and hammer curls. And for the last minute, we had burpees and I used the bench as always for my hands.

On Wednesday, we had a repeat template, but I didn’t do this the first time it happened so it was new for me. It was originally before a benchmark run (which I didn’t do), so it was a prep for that benchmark. But even without having the benchmark coming up, it was a good endurance day for me on the bike.

For cardio, we had 2 blocks. The first block was a 6 1/2-minute distance challenge. We were supposed to keep things at one speed/resistance level and just see how far we could go. And in the second block, we did a 6-minute distance challenge with a 30-second all-out at the end. And the goal was to beat the first distance. Both times, I set my resistance level on the bike to be between my normal base and push paces. And I was very happy that I beat my first distance by quite a bit! Usually, it’s really close but this time I had a bigger difference than I can remember from challenges like this.

On the rower, we had 2 blocks and for both blocks it was all about 300-meter rows. We always had a 300-meter row and between each row we had a medicine ball exercise. In the first block, we had shoulder presses. And in the second block, we had tricep extensions. I have been going between the medicine ball I normally use and one that is a little heavier since I haven’t changed that in quite a long time. And while it is harder, that’s how it should be. I need to challenge myself more and push when I can. And that was the perfect way I could do that when I wasn’t feeling my absolute best.

And on the floor, we had one long block with mini-blocks within the big block. We did each mini-block 3 times before moving on. The first mini-block had goblet squats and jumps with back shuffles. I normally wouldn’t do a jump, but I decided to try it. I didn’t get a lot of distance and I stayed close to the ground, but I was able to do a bit of a jump each time. I did have the wall next to me to help with balance and I did need to use it quite a bit. But doing that is better than not trying a jump at all. But because I was doing the jumps and that took longer, I wasn’t able to get through all 3 rounds of the second mini-block. In that one, we had split stance deadlifts and lunges. And to finish the workout, we had plank jacks.

Thursday’s workout was a repeat from the 4th of July, so I had done it before. But I was happy to repeat this one since there were things I would be able to change about it. It was the workout where you could pick which of the options you wanted to do. I knew I would do a lot of it the same as the first time I did it because of some of my restrictions, but I did try to change it up when I could.

For cardio, we started with a .1 mile (.4 for me) distance with a 30-second walking recovery after. Then, we had the choice to either increase the distance by .1 (or .4) each round or increase the incline/resistance level by 1 each time. I picked increasing the distance since I didn’t want to get the resistance levels up too high. I kept my resistance level between my normal base and push paces, so it wasn’t too hard but there was a difference between when I was doing the distance challenge and when I was in the recovery.

For the rower, we had intervals of rowing and squats. And the options were to always do a 200-meter row and start with 6 jump squats and increase the squats each time or to start with a 100-meter row, do 6 regular squats, and then increase the row by 100-meters each time. I picked starting at 100-meters and increasing by 100-meters each time because I knew that adding more squats each round was going to be too tough on my hips.

And on the floor, the options were either a strength or a stability challenge. The first time I did it, I chose strength. But this time, I went with stability and knew I would have to just go slowly. I did have to modify the first exercise in the floor block because it was a lunge using the Bosu. I had to do regular lunges since I knew that there was no way I would be able to balance. Then we had bridge hold chest presses, hip bridges, and sit-ups; all while laying on the Bosu. That does involve stability, but it was more about core stability and not too much on my hips.

And by Friday, while I was still a little bit weak, I was very close to normal and took advantage of that. I still had moments when I needed to rest, but it was much better than the rest of the week.

For cardio, it was all about 30-second intervals. We had rounds of a 30-second push pace, 30-second all-out, and 45-second recovery. Each block had 4 rounds and in the first block the focus was going harder for each push pace and in the second block the focus was going harder for each all-out.

On the rower, we had a pyramid row. So we had a 200-meter, 400-meter, 600-meter, 400-meter, and 200-meter row. And between each row, we had medicine ball exercises. I modified them so they were just upper body work, so I had overhead presses and front presses and skipped the lunges and squats since I knew I would have some lunges and lower body work in the floor block. I did ok with my rows, but not great. I was working on the second 400-meter row when the block was done and I really was hoping to at least be working on the last 200-meter row before it was done.

On the floor, we had one long block with 3 mini-blocks in it. We did each mini-block twice before moving to the next one. We had close grip chest presses and low rows with weights, sumo deadlifts and lunges, and tricep extensions and concentration curls. I was just finishing the last round of the last mini-block before we finished with 30-seconds of lateral lunges to finish the workout.

I didn’t have the great week that I was hoping for, but I really am proud of what I did considering how I was feeling. And knowing that it wasn’t as bad as my bad weeks normally are helped me a lot. All I can hope for is to have a similar feeling this week and to know I did what I could no matter how I might feel.

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After so many bad weeks in a row dealing with pain and nausea, I was really hoping this past week would be much better. I’m so glad that it was and that I could really push myself. I have felt like I wasn’t doing a lot in my workouts lately since I was restricted with how I was feeling. But this past week, I really could see what I could do.

I got off to a good start to the week with Monday’s workout. I was motivated to work harder than normal and I was able to do so as well. My motivation and ability don’t always match up, so when they do I take advantage of that.

The 2 cardio blocks were similar, with a slight difference at the end of each block. We started with a 75-second push pace followed by a 60-second base pace. Then we had a 60-second push pace and a 45-second base pace. In the first block, we had 2 rounds of a 45-second all-out with 30-seconds in between, and in the second block we had 3 rounds of a 30-second all-out with 30-seconds in between. I wasn’t using higher resistance levels, but I could tell I was pedaling faster and I was able to get my heart rate up higher. And I was really tired by the end of the second block.

On the rower, we had one long block. We started with a 600-meter row and then we were supposed to do lunges with tricep extensions using the medicine ball. But because my hips were already a bit off, I skipped the lunges and just did the medicine ball work. Then we had 2 rounds of a 300-meter row with the same exercise in between. And at the end, we were supposed to do 4 rounds of a 150-meter row, but I was only able to complete 2 of them.

On the floor, we had two blocks and they each had some strength moves and some stability moves. I knew I would have to modify the stability moves, but I tried my best. In the first block, the strength moves were front squats and floor chest presses. And the stability moves both used the straps with lunges to squats and chest presses. I couldn’t do the lunges to squats as a single move, so I split them up but still did them with the straps instead of balancing against the wall like I normally do. The second block had single-arm shoulder presses and hammer curls for the strength moves and split squat shoulder presses and balance bicep curls for the balance moves. Unfortunately, by the end of the workout, I was really struggling to balance so I did the shoulder presses without the split squat and did the bicep curls as normal ones. But I did feel the burn in my arms at the end of the workout.

I was still feeling pretty great on Wednesday and continued to push myself in the workout. Although I might have pushed myself a little too hard since I was really feeling it after this workout.

For cardio, we had 2 blocks that were both timed on our own. The first block was a 6-minute distance challenge and we increased the incline/resistance level every .1 miles (or .4 miles for me on the bike). I was getting pretty high up in the resistance levels and was above my typically all-out, but since I was feeling good I wasn’t going too slowly for most of the challenge. And in the second block, we started at the level we ended the first block on and then decreased by 1 level at the same distance interval. And at the end of the second block, we had a 30-second all-out.

On the rower, we had one long block. Every row was 150-meters and we had different exercises between each row with a medicine ball. We had squats to bicep curls and deadlifts to overhead presses. I did have to split up the exercises so I did them separately, but that’s pretty normal for me now.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks that were timed for us. In the first block, we had 45-seconds of lunges followed by 1-minute to do 12 uppercuts. Any time we had after the uppercuts, we could rest. But that usually was only about 15-seconds. In the second block, we had 45-seconds of alternating arnold presses and 1-minute to do 12 lunges and then we could rest. It was a lot of lunges for me and my hips were really feeling it at the end, but I also know I pushed myself quite a bit.

Because of how hard I pushed on Monday and Wednesday, I was definitely sore on Thursday. So I went a little easier while still pushing myself. I just was being mindful of how I was feeling so I didn’t make things any worse.

For cardio, we had 2 blocks and they were almost the same. For both blocks, they started with a 2 1/2 minute progressive challenge where we started at a base pace and ended with an all-out. Then after that all-out, we had 30-second all-outs. The difference was that in the first block we had 1-minute between the last 2 all-outs and in the second block we had 75-seconds between them.

On the rower, we had one long block and one short block. For the long block, it was all about doing stroke drills for 15 strokes. Then, we had different medicine ball exercises between each row. We had front raises, tricep extensions, and rainbows. The goal with the stroke drills was to keep the strokes per minute down but the wattage up. And I was able to keep the wattage above what I do when I’m rowing regularly. And for the second short block, we were times with cardio for the 2 30-second all-outs with the 75-seconds to recover in between.

On the floor, we had 2 blocks that had some power moves and some strength moves. In the first block, we had shoulder presses, high rows, lunges, and sumo squats to high rows. And in the second block, we had regular chest presses and chest presses with explosive tempo. And we ended the workout with 30-seconds of sit-ups.

I was so happy that I was still feeling good on Friday. I was still a bit sore, but compared to the past few weeks this past entire week was a good week for me. So I continued to be mindful while pushing myself.

For cardio, we had 2 blocks and the first block was similar to Thursday. We had a 6-minute distance challenge and started between a base and push pace and increased every 2 minutes. Then we looked at that distance to use in the second block. For the second block, we also had a 6-minute challenge, but we were supposed to stay at the same pace the entire time. For the second block, I keep the resistance level between my base and push pace and I was able to go further in the second block than I had in the first.

On the rower, the first block started with a 250-meter row. Then we were supposed to do side hops and high knees. I was only able to do the high knees, but I did more than we were supposed to do to make up for skipping the side hops. Then we had a 200-meter row and continued the pattern, decreasing the row by 50 meters each time. And in the second block, we started with a 1-minute all-out row. Then we had a recovery row before a 45-second all-out row. We ended the row block with 3 sets of a 30-second all-out row. I was getting a little sloppy toward the end of my rowing because of my hips, but when I could feel my form being off, I made sure to make corrections as quickly as possible.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks and each block had only 2 exercises. So we were supposed to focus on going slowly and using heavy weights. The first block had single-arm low rows and step-ups. I did the step-ups as lunges. And the second block had single-arm chest presses and split stance deadlifts.

I have no clue how this week will be for me. It should be another good week, but I’m feeling a little uncertain since you never know when things might decide to change up on me again. But hopefully, I will continue to push myself and have hard workouts by choice.

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Well, I went into this past week of workouts thinking it was going to be a good week for me, but my body decided that I didn’t need a good week. It wasn’t as bad as some of my bad weeks, but my cycle got messed up so I ended up having another bad week (but maybe I’ll get my normal 28 days between them this time). So I ended up dealing with quite a bit of pain and nausea during this past week’s workouts, but I was grateful that it was a bit easier than what it was like 2 weeks ago.

Monday’s workout was a bit of a choose your own adventure type of workout. We had 2 options for what we wanted to do for each section of the room.

For cardio, we got to choose if we wanted to do a strength or endurance block. I picked the endurance block. For those on the treadmills, they started with a .1 mile run with a 30-second recovery and then increased the distance by .1 miles each time. For the bike, that meant I started with .4 miles and increased by .4 miles each time. The recovery time was never very long, but because the distances weren’t too bad either it was a good cardio block for me even with how I was feeling.

On the rower, both of the options had a row and squats. But the options were either to increase the row each time or increase the number of squats. I chose to increase the row each time. So I started with a 100-meter row and 6 squats and increased the row by 100 meters each time.

And on the floor, we could choose either a strength or balance workout. Considering all my balance issues, I knew immediately I would be doing the strength workout. So I had lunges, chest presses, hip bridges, and double crunches. I did try to go heavy with the weights when I could, but I wasn’t able to do quite as heavy as I know I can do when I’m feeling my best. But I still tried to challenge myself as that was the point of picking that workout.

I was probably feeling the worst of the week on Wednesday, so I had a bit of a struggle getting through the workout. But fortunately, the workout seemed to work with how I was feeling and had an easier format than a lot of recent classes.

For cardio, we started with a 2 1/2-minute push pace. Then after that was done, we had 3-minutes to recover at a lower base pace (but not at our regular recovery) and then get back to our regular base pace. For me, I did my recovery at my base pace resistance level but just pedaled slower than normal. We repeated this pattern 3 times with an all-out at the end. Because of the extended base recovery time, I really did get a chance to take it easy and not push myself too hard.

On the rower, we started with a 400-meter row where we were supposed to do the first 300-meters at a push pace and the last 100-meters at an all-out pace. Then we had lunges after doing the row. We decreased the row by 50-meters each round but always tried to do the last 100-meters as an all-out. I went a bit slower than normal on the rower, but I was happy with how I did and how I didn’t need that many breaks during the block.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks. The first block was focused on work and active recovery with back-to-back exercises. We had push presses which were like shoulder presses with a little squat to help followed by lateral and front raises. And then we had single-arm hip hinge swings followed by cossack squats. And in the second block, we had back-to-back exercises to work on tempo. So we had squats with explosive tempo (which meant going slow down and fast back up) and then squats at regular tempo (which meant going down slow and back up slow). We also did explosive and regular tempo push-ups which I did as chest presses on the straps instead.

I’m glad I was feeling better by Thursday’s workout because it was a really tough one! For all sections of the room, it didn’t seem like we got much rest time, but I think it was the hardest on the floor.

For cardio, the first block started at a .2-mile push pace (.8 miles for me on the bike) followed by a 1-minute base pace. We decreased the distance each round. And the second block was the inverse starting the distance at .1 miles (or .4 miles for me) with a 1-minute base pace after and increasing the distance each time.

The rower was a similar idea to cardio. The first block started with a 250-meter row and then 12 shuffles after. We decreased the row by 50-meters each time. And the second block started with a 100-meter row with shuffles after and we increased the row by 50-meters each time.

And on the floor, we were timed by our coach, and almost everything was done in 30-second intervals. The first block had tricep extensions, chest flys, and shoulder presses for 30-seconds each. Then we had reverse grip low rows and had to do 6 of them and whatever time was left in the 30-seconds we could rest. But that only was maybe 10 seconds for me. We repeated this 3 times and ended the block with 45-seconds of high knees to mountain climbers. The second block was the same idea with lunges, deadlifts, and squats for 30-seconds each and then 6 plank taps and we could use the rest of the 30-seconds to rest. And again, we ended with high knees and mountain climbers.

Friday was pretty much a normal day for me. I’m glad that even though I wasn’t expecting a bad week, this unexpected one was much shorter than what I’m used to. And it allowed me to do a pretty decent workout for Friday.

For cardio, we started with a 2-minute base pace into a 30-second all-out. We had a minute to recover and then we repeated the pattern but added a 90-second push pace in the middle. And then we repeated it again but instead of just a 30-second all-out at the end, we had a 30-second push to all-out and then a 30-second all-out. It was a good challenge to make sure that I could maintain my base pace for extended periods of time and to still have a bit left to push myself to go harder.

On the rower, we had 3 blocks. Each block had a stroke drill with a medicine ball exercise. The first block had a 10-stroke drill with bicep curls with the medicine ball. The second had a 12-stroke drill with 12 squats holding the medicine ball. And the last block had a 15-stroke drill with isolated squats with bicep curls with the medicine ball. For the last block, I did have to split up the exercises so I did squats and curls separately. But I was able to get a lot of power behind each stroke on the rower and a lot of distance each time.

And on the floor, we had 2 blocks. I was glad I was feeling better because so many of the exercises would have made me feel very nauseous. The first block was all about ultimate burpees and breaking down the individual moves. I did still use the bench for my hands, but that was more due to my hip than nausea. So we had plank low rows, push-ups, pop jacks, squats to shoulder presses, and then ultimate burpees. It wasn’t easy for sure, but it was a good challenge for me. And the second block had plank jacks and plank kick-throughs with sit-ups at the very end.

I’m really hoping that this week is better for me. I don’t want to jinx it, but I should have a good week at least as far as my nausea goes. And then I can do a lot better than I did this past week. And I’m hoping that I get more of a break this time between bad weeks and my cycle is back to normal.

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