My body went under protest this week. However, the blister on my right foot (my first since I began training) that I got from my 10 mile hike last Sunday is almost healed. Lessons learned: Trim your toenails and wear thick socks, even if you thing you are going on a short hike (I thought I was doing a five miler). Because of my gradual approach to conditioning, I really haven’t had any seriously sore muscles. My knees haven’t always been happy after Stairmaster, but who can blame them? But on Tuesday day, after my Monday Spin class, my legs seemed to be creaking when I walked. It wasn’t horrible, but the pain was noticeable, I’m not sure if I was compensating for my blister or if it was just a tough class. Anyway, I skipped the gym on Tuesday and Thursday nights, though I still did my usual two mile morning hike those days.
I discovered that Level 7 (60 minutes) for 5.3 miles on Stairmaster is just as hard, if not harder, than the Level 6 (90 minutes) for 7 miles workout that I did last week. I think the difference between Level 6 and Level 7 is about 8 steps per minute, which doesn’t seem like much, but I assure you it is. No way could I have survived 90 minute at Level 7 this week, especially when I discovered that my Kindle battery was dead after I climbed up on the Evil Machine. Thank goodness I had music.
I am really busy this week, so this week’s Stairmaster goal is going to have to be another killer Level 7 stint: 65 minutes or 5.5 miles whichever comes first.