228 Push ups
- 16 sets
- 2 standard
- 1 standard
- 25 standard
- 29 standard
- 25 standard
- 41 standard
- 10 standard
- 10 standard
- 10 military
- 10 military
- 10 wide (3 with Finn added)
- 10 wide
- 10 staggered hands rt high
- 10 staggered hands lf high
- 10 staggered hands alternating
- 15 various (5 sets of 3, standard, wide, military, fists, standard)
I woke up worried about the scheduled push up session labeled Week 4 day 2. It called for 25, 29, 25, 25 then max (minimum on max set = 36). I was concerned about being able to even get to the max set without coming up short. Well, turns out that my brain has a safety feature built in, which is pretty remarkable I think, but let me explain so you can make your own assessment:
Set one went fine, I had done the 3 minute warm up at the start of a P90X DVD I intended to do after the push ups, so I felt I was ready. 25, no sweat. Not that I wasn't tired, I just didn't yet break a sweat. Set 2 went OK, but my concern grew as the 29 didn't come off as easily as I had hoped. Set 3, 25 were not bad, but I wasn't overly encouraged as they got tough after 20 due to the 90 second breaks/recovery between sets. I felt confident I could knock out the next set of 25, but equally as confident that the minimum of 36 on the last set would require a miracle. So, 90 seconds go by and I start that 4th set...I made a split decision to try to do them as fast as I could in hopes that doing so would help. It usually does, which makes me wonder why I don't always do them as fast as I can, but anyway. It helped! 20 were done before I knew it, I wasn't yet fatigued really...bam, 25, I might be able to get this 36! 30 now slowing down, but still feeling strong enough,...35!...yes, this is Awesome, I don't get it, but it's awesome!!! 40...41! DONE. Like really done. Can't believe I was able to do that, what go into me? I'll start P90x in a minute, but wow, still surprised.
Well, as you've probably already figured out what took me another 10 minutes to realize...I never did the actual 4th set, I just turned the 4th set into the 5th set because mid-effort I lost track. I think this is a rather handy safety feature my brain has. Disappointing? Well, I guess it would be if I thought there was any chance I could've done it right and accomplished today's goals -- I am certain I could not have, so I'll just be pleased about the safety mode feature I have. It makes much more sense than the fact that my TV has a screen saver mode that I don't know how to cut off. This is not a "if TV is paused or screen is constant screen saver, it just goes to screen saver every 30 minutes or so. WTF? Anyway, back to push ups...I need to read what to do when I can't do what is prescribed, do I just stay on that week until I can do it? Do I drop back a week on the schedule? Do I quit and be content with 25 push ups per day until my streak ends in some pathetic manner? Stay tuned! Exciting, I know.
Cumulative total: 1596
PS Looking back at my previous effort to do 25 push ups every day for a while I can see that today marks a new record for me, 26 straight days!!! WOOHOO!, who cares that I'll never get to 100 in a single set? Ya know, I mean, other than me.
