4-14-16 HY: Splits + TCF + Tennis + Splits.

4-14-16 HY: Splits + TCF + Tennis + Splits.

Here is an example of a sort of messed up workout schedule.  My hybrid is basically alternating resistance and cardio 6 days a week starting on Sunday.  But finding time for tennis is one priority, and this semester, Thursday seems like the only day of the week that my schedule and the schedule of my playing partner matches.  So, Thursday is tennis day until summer vacation, which starts in August.  So, I will either have to put up with 2 cardio days in a row, or make the switch and start my week with cardio instead of resistance.  But that will cause problems as well, because of Wednesdays.  My resistance workouts are a lot longer than my cardio workouts so if I do a resistance workout on Wednesday, it will have to be a short one, and I don't want to do that either.  Ah, decisions decisions! What to do???

ANYWAY!!! Today was sort of an odd day.  For some reason, I got the time for our tennis wrong and ended up going to set up at the gym about 50 minutes early.  Once I realized what I had done, it was too late for me to go back and wait, so I flipped my workout around.  I started off with doing my Splits stretch routine and then the Flow.  The Splits stretch was quite different in that I don't have the soft pad or my slide pads for my feet, so I had to push and hold the poses.  I also had to lean into a lot of the poses to stretch particular muscles.  Also, doing stretching with shoes on is much different.  The Butterfly pose, for example,  at home, I can easily get my knees down on the ground to open my hips, but wish shoes on at the gym, my left knee ends up being further from the ground so it took a lot more pushing to get my knees down.  But I got a good stretch either way.  I love doing the Flow in the gym because there is nothing to bump into like there is in my workout area at home.  So I just tied like 20 Flows together and just went the length of the Badminton court.  If felt so free and good.  FREE FLOWING is the name of the game. 

When my partner came, I was all centered and loose.  It showed in my play.  Last time we played was a total disaster.  I couldn't maintain anything or get anything over the net with any consistency.  Today was a totally different situation.  I quickly raised the level of my game and jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead, but then he raised his level and then he took a huge 2-5 lead.  I was temped to get tentative, but I knew I had to go for shots.  I worked my way back, and after almost an hour (with the adjusted ball scoring) I took the first set 7-5.  We started a second set, but only got to 3-1, then  had to finish because of time.  But our play today was so much better and more focused than the last time, and we both noticed it.  That made it so much funner.  We both hit some incredible shots, unreturnable shots!  Of course, smattered in the game were the usual, junking balls into the net or way out, or frame shots, but it was all good.  We had a great time.

I feel a little incomplete with my splits, so I am planning to do one more round of Splits stretch tonight after I get home from work.  I haven't done them yet, but once I write it down here, I am guaranteeing you that it will get done.  I don't plan to wear my HRM so no additional calorie burn for it.

In the end (of the morning session), I torched a big 1200+kcals.  One of the funnest most competitive days of tennis with my regular playing partner in a long time.  Hope we can keep it up.