Saturday and I missed the swim this morning, the second in a row. I haven’t had a swim now for almost 2 weeks. I was feeling too crook. Also my lazy side took over. I finished the Don Winslow book Cartel last night at about midnight. And today I started reading something completely different – Andy Weir’s book The Martian – which has just been made into a motion picture with Matt Damon. Terrific book. I haven’t read much science-fiction in years although I was avid as a kid. The last one I really enjoyed was Frank Herbert’s Dune and that was in about 1972. I liked Martian because it was unambiguous – the good guy was a good guy. In books like Cartel even the good guys are bad guys. It’s the same with American cinema in films like American Sniper, Argo or Zero Dark 30, everybody seems to be a bad guy. What happened to American literature with people like Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird or Huckleberry Finn or even the Tommy Lee Jones character, the policeman Ed Tom Bell in No Country for Old Men. Unambiguously good people. What about the Frances McDormand, character, Marg Gunderson in the first Fargo movie. She didn’t have a bad bone in her body. American literature and cinema can do it, but most of the time they are too lazy.
Anyway, this is supposed to be about broken legs not broken American literature. Where was I? Saturday afternoon and I was in the Virgin gym at French’s Forest. Gee you see some weird things in gymnasiums. There was a guy there, probably about 40, not that fit looking, and he was on the leg press machine going as fast as he possibly could. Bang, bang bang. Then he jumped on the leg extension machine and was going like the clappers. Obviously with very light weights trying to see how fast he could do the exercises. It was a very jerky movement, totally opposite to what I have been told to do. On the extension machine lift slowly… hold for two seconds and lower slowly. On the leg curl forward and down slowly as far as it can go, then hold for two seconds and slowly release.
Today’s Saturday afternoon session.
Recumbent Bike………..Warm up 30 mins. Level 8/9/10. Speed 70rpm/max 80rpm. Power 150 watts. 305kcl. Distance 11km
On the bike today did 10mins on level 8..10mins level 9 and 10 mins level 10. Got my heart rate up to 120bpm
Leg Curl ……………..20 reps x 15kg broken-leg-only warm up
Leg Extension………….20 reps x 10kg broken-leg-only warm up
Adductor…………………….15 x 35kgs
Adductor…………………….15 x 35kgs
Adductor…………………….20 x 35kgs
Leg Press……………..20 reps x 50kg both legs warm up
Leg Curl………………10 reps x 30kg both legs two sets new exercise
Leg Extension………….10 reps x 30kg both legs two sets new
Leg Press……………..20 reps x 60kg both legs
The adductor machine. this was the easiest gym machine to date.
Bosu ball ……..sidestep 50 reps new
Bosu ball ……..step + hold 30 reps new
Leg Curl………………20 reps x 30kg both legs
Leg Extension………….10 reps x 30kg both legs
Leg Press……………..20 reps x 70kg both legs
Not a bad afternoon’s work. Allowed me to forget for a couple of hours how sore my neck is.
Hi Kieren,
Have just finished reading your book “Aspiring” which I enjoyed very much. I came across it here in Wynnum library, in Brisbane.
It was great to spend that time on that cold harsh mountain for a while with you and Anton. Good to learn of your childhood too, which to me seems to have been very tough. It’s always good to see life through other people’s eyes at times hey. My childhood was very safe and family orientated. I can only imagine how different I might have been if I had been separated from Mum and sent to an orphanage for a time. I can’t even imagine it, or the relationship with your step father. I think your adventure and literary achievements are marvelous
Thanks for the book, and all the best!
Vi
Vi,
Thx very much for your comments. Glad you enjoyed the book. I have also written two others which you may enjoy. How did you come across this blog. Have you had a broken leg?