Geezer's Long March Toward the Elite Sneaking Up On the Finish Line

[BrooklynJerry]

Glad you made out with no serious injuries. Last year my friend bought a bike after many years of not riding. He dropped it on a turn, seems there was a tar ridge on the road. He wound up having to get his ankle pinned . He sold the bike.Stay well.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Thanks for the good wishes Jerry. The Dark Lady's right front turn signal is currently held in place with gorilla tape. I ordered a new one at the local HD shop and the guy behind the counter related how he had gone down at 25 mph after having discovered a patch of antifreeze on the pavement. Shit happens.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Weight: 255.

I tried some warm up sets to gauge how they would feel. The ribs objected to the valsalva and my elbow really didn't like pushing OR pulling. So I decided to go easy again with rounds of speed bag, rowing, 30 lb. ball slam, elliptical, and stretching.

Average HR was 120 bpm @ 78% of MHR.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Weight: 254.

Another test of ribbage. Rounds of speed bag, cable crunch, ball toss, and longer slower walks in between. I had some trepidation about crunches, but all went well. Ribs were OK although still generally tender.

Average HR was 122 bpm @ 89% of MHR.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Weight: 253. Not bad, so far I'm down weight during the holidays.

Another test of fortitude with lingering sore ribs. The pain was significant enough to limit my top work sets to one, with the exception of leg presses. Following my own advice to a guy coming back from broken ribs, I worked up carefully in warm up sets and went for my last top work set. More next time.

Bench Press: Sets of 5. 45-95-135-155-185.

Hammer Row: Sets of 5. 90-180-270-380.

Leg Press: Sets of 5. 180-270-360-450-540-620-625-630.

Average HR was 120 bpm @ 78% of MHR.

[Mark E. Hurling]

So after months of waiting, the long anticipated appointment with the apnea specialist happened this afternoon. Very informative and rather scary getting the low down from review of the sleep study. I was fully wired for the study. Sensors everywhere.

The first 4 hours was monitored without benefit of the CPAP. My oxygen levels fell to 58% and I had 104 brain activations signalling sleep interruptions. A level of 5 is considered normal.
Plus, I was getting less than half the deep sleep considered normal. Jeez!

The last 4 hours was monitored with the CPAP on. My oxygen levels stayed in the upper 90's, I had 1 brain activation, and my deep sleep was in range.

So, CPAP is on the way.

If you have doubts about your sleep, check it out if you can swing it. My sleep already has improved from stopping drinking as have my energy levels. Further improvement can only make life better still.

[57bergstrm]

Very good news, think of the recovery and strength gains that can come with better sleep!

[Mark E. Hurling]

Very good news, think of the recovery and strength gains that can come with better sleep!

Who knows? Perhaps some more strength gains are in the offing.

[Mark E. Hurling]

Weight: 252.

My ribs are making me pay for my time pushing and pulling the iron yesterday. Deep breaths are undertaken slowly and with full consideration for the ensuing follow on flash over of pain. I guess that makes me a pussy. In addition, the rest of me was pretty creaky too. But off to the Rec Center, through the spitting snow, which is now coming down at a pretty good clip. No accumulation though. It's right around 32F, so it hits and melts on the ground immediately. Some of the trees are getting a fairy land dusting though. Very Currier and Ives.

Despite my nagging right rear armpit, I managed rounds on the speed bag, the SciFit, side bends, the heavy bag, and ball slams.

Average HR was 126 bpm @ 82% of MHR.

Most of my creaks get some resolution through movement, so I'm feeling better now generally. Alas, the ribs not so much.

[coleossus]

Hurling, you better wear that thing. Don't be one of those guys who drops the mask because it's uncomfortable to sleep in. Shit will kill you.

You should look into a specific kind of mask: nasal pillow. You can find some here (but I wouldn't buy from them): https://www.thecpapshop.com/all-cpap...al-pillow-mask

Won't have to worry about facial hair getting a bad seal. If you have the option, get a CPAP with a water reservoir that heats up, otherwise it'll dry you out and you'll catch colds more often and stuff. I hear that a CPAP with a reservoir can condensate in cold weather, depending on how cool/warm you keep your bedroom, and friends with CPAP have good luck wrapping their mask pipes with socks or towels or whatever (the ones who aren't lucky enough to have a fully heated unit).

Just some tips, in case other CPAP users haven't shared them with you. My dad and a couple of close friends of mine use CPAP machines.