Sunday, May 23, 2010

May visit to Roll 2 Walk

I'm having a little trouble starting this off, probably because I don't know where to start. Since the semester ended I haven't really been able to relax, so I'm a bit exhausted and don't really want to write. But I'm going to quit bitching and do it anyway.
Since Sunday (May 16) I've been in Austin for Roll 2 Walk (and for a concert). It's been an interesting week, to say the least. My mom and I were shuffled between three hotels at the beginning of the week and on Tuesday we bit the bullet and decided to leave the Rat Motel we were in (a.k.a. Studio 6 - NEVER STAY THERE) and stay at an extremely better hotel. So, how were my workouts at Roll 2 Walk, you may ask? Here are the day-by-day highlights:
Monday:
Monday was a kind of backwards day. We started off with free-standing (standing without the standing frame). It was the first time we had started off with free-standing which sort of threw me for a loop, but I didn't mind. My standing was awesome, my posture was straight and I was sort of connecting to my butt, except my hips wanted to bail to the right (all week they did that) every now and then. I stood for I think 30 minutes without having to take a break for my blood pressure. After that we got on the Total Gym and then after that I got on the table to do the range of motion with muscle stimulation. While I was on the table Chad and I did some triceps exercises. These were hard, mostly because I hardly have any triceps especially on the left, although Chad said my left was stronger than my right. After we did that we went to the floor to do some core exercises and to finish my workout I did some kneeling.
Tuesday:
Tuesday was a two hour workout but we did a lot, according to my notes, but for the life of me I can't remember what half of what I did. First, I got on the table and did range of motion with muscle stimulation. Gray did a little bit of massage therapy to unstiffen my neck because the bed at the Rat Motel was a rock! Boy did that feel good, once he finished my neck felt so much better. When we were done on the table I did some kneeling. I remember my balance was really good and that we worked on protraction and retraction of my right shoulder. Also, I remember Chad being a fool and almost letting me fall on my face, which wasn't cool and scared the begeezus out of me, and the Gray not feeling too comfortable doing the straight arm kneeling with the box. After that Chad and I got on the Total Gym. It seemed as if we were talking about Deadliest Catch (the best show on TV!) more than were doing leg presses, but I could be wrong. Eventually, we stopped talking and he sat me up and I worked on my balance. While doing that I got SO focused on a particular spot on Chad's Red Sox shirt that he couldn't break my concentration. At one point I told him I was actually looking through him. Nothing could break my concentration not even Chad lifting his shirt like he was flashing someone for beads on Bourbon Street. It was as if I was in a trance or something, it was nuts! After I broke my own trance we did some wall exercises to work on the shoulders and posture to end the day.
Wednesday:
Wednesday was pretty grueling, especially toward the end of my workout. Chad and I started off on the table with the range of motion and for the first time I connected to my adductor muscles in my right leg; the muscles on the inside of the thigh (the ones you use to keep your legs shut). It was pretty cool, Chad would bring my leg in some and I would kind of finish the movement. I don't know why, but I don't get excited about moving my legs on my own. Maybe I'm emotionally screwed up and I don't want to make a big deal out of it just in case it's a fluke, I don't know. I'm strange, I know. Anyway, after we did that we did kneeling but this time Gray was behind me and Chad was spotting my upper body. Before I got up into full kneeling position I did some balancing and core (mainly back extension and oblique exercises) and Gray worked on loosen the muscles below my collar bone to see if that would help with my neck and shoulders. When I got up in to the full kneeling position, though I had sharp pins and needles in my feet, it was not fun and was messing up my concentration. After a few minutes, though, it passed. The last thing we worked on that day was hardcore rolling, an exercise that involved me on my side and trying to flatten my hips while Gray resisted me, oblique exercises and flattening my shoulder to the ground while my hands were together. All of these were difficult, the hardcore rolling being the hardest of them all. I mean I was pooped, wiped out, annihilated; all I wanted to do was take a nap which I didn't do.
Thursday:
Thursday's workout was about the same as Tuesday's workout except I had this weird, uncomfortable feeling in my left butt cheek when Gray was doing the circles part of the range of motion. I did not like that feeling and I think it was associated with the pop I heard that morning when I transferred into my chair from the bed. Then when we went on the Total Gym I started sweating, a lot, and I wasn't sure if it was AD or not. Gray even said I was sweating through my shirt and while I was sitting up I almost got sweat in my eye. Once I got off of it and into my chair I immediately stopped sweating; it had been AD. This was weird because I hadn't had AD from doing the TG since my first week at Roll 2 Walk. I shrugged it off and the last thing we did that day was free standing, sort of, my damn dizzy spells kept my from standing very long.
Friday:
My last day (till June) was pretty much the same drill as the rest of the week. First was the table and range of motion and a little bit of rolling exercises. When I was done doing those exercises Gray had Mark, one of South Congress Athletic Club's trainers/massage therapists, work on my neck to see if we could loosen the muscles that may be causing the metal-on-bone popping I feel every now and then. He did one massage that was above my collarbone and another below my collarbone and then he did one at the back of my neck which felt really good. He showed my mom how to them and then I went on the TG and almost immediately started to sweat. Needless to say we didn't spend much time on that. We went to the floor to do core and kneeling balance and when were done I had completely feel out of my bra, feeling totally embarrassed ran into the bathroom and fixed myself… Why is it that every time I leave Austin I embarrass myself? Who knows, but it's not going to happen again… hopefully.
Sorry, this is so long. I had a lot to write about and I didn't want to skimp on the details. But thanks for sticking through and reading all of it. I know I said last time that I don't have very much money left to pay for more workouts, and I was only able to pay for this month's because my mom helped out. I'd love to continue Roll 2 Walk but I'm going to need some help, so please DONATE HERE. Also, if you're in the Austin area on June 12th hit up Roll 2 Walk's Casino Night 2010 Fundraiser. Here's the link: ROLL 2 WALK CASINO NIGHT. Merci beaucoup!