Day 3 : Skipping in the Rain

I intended to get up early, unheard of on a Sunday morning, to do the exercises before it got too hot again but I managed not to press the "on" button on the alarm function on my radio and so I slept through until 8.30. But something seemed wrong - it was not chokingly hot (I don't like to sleep with the aircon on so my room is often a bit warm by morning in the summer) and it didn't seem too early because it wasn't very light.

The answer - heavy overcast skies and drizzle. A blessing because the temperature must be at least 10 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than yesterday but, oops, I have to skip outside (no way I can skip inside with my height) - will the tiled part of my garden be slippery?

Fortunately not slippery so I was able to go outside, do the skipping and stay reasonably cool. I ended up just as wet as yesterday but with rain causing most of it.

So I immediately thought of this although I certainly wasn't raining this hard - Gene Kelly must have been in pretty good condition himself.



I think the most skips I managed in one burst was 70 and I decided that 650 was the number for today. After yesterday, my right leg was complaining about the extra work it had to do, and the left calf is still stiff, but they just about balanced each other out so most of the time I was skipping fairly evenly. Progress!!

Then the squats. No problem because I really am not squatting down too far. Just to the level I feel comfortable with. But as I get used to it, I should be able to start going lower. (5x20)

Hmm, the push-ups. I did try again last night and managed one set of five (from the knee, not full length) before the particular point in my back that is giving me the trouble decided that enough was enough. So, was I going to do it this morning?

Surprisingly yes! The key is getting my back in the right position to avoid causing too much stress. So I start by lowering myself down rather than starting by lying flat, and if I can do that and avoid the twinge going down, I can manage to do a set, still only from the knee, not the feet, but a better try than yesterday. And I managed the required four sets. (4x5)

The crunch doesn't have me rolling too far forward either - basically until the same point in my back complains. But I can feel it in my abdomen so it is having some effect. (4x15)

I've just discovered the spell checker on Blogger so I may have fewer typos in future!