Hotel Gym Mix & Match Workout

A family overnight trip for my son’s wrestling tournament meant a Saturday morning in a hotel gym. I did an awesome 7+ mile run Friday morning, but since I was going to spend the day sitting in an arena, I wanted to get some cardio in. I decided to do a 30 minute elliptical workout and then a free weights routine.

Since I usually workout in my basement, I enjoy getting to use fancy machines in hotel gyms, but the downside is not knowing what I’m getting into with unfamiliar equipment.  I selected a “random” workout at level 4. It probably was harder than I needed after a 7 mile run, but it got the sweat dripping and the endorphins flowing.  The machine had a built-in TV and a built-in fan that I turned on for the last 10 minutes. I couldn’t find a screen that showed the workout “profile” (what incline I was on, what was coming up), but I did find this screen at the end: 

I have no idea what the “WtLoss Training” and “Cardio Training” numbers mean, or how “Stride Length” correlates with the “Strides Per Minute” I usually monitor. 

The program did not give me a cool down, so I got on a treadmill and walked for 5 minutes before heading to the free weights area.

Since I’ve been doing my Bob Harper Pure Burn Super Strength DVD since January, I had to dust off some mental cobwebs to remember my free weights superset routine. This is what I came up with:

• dead lifts/overhead press/push-ups
• plie squats/tricep dips
• lunges/bicep curls
• chest flies/crunches
• squats

Yes, I skipped lateral raises, but they get overdone with Bob Harper!

I did 3 sets of each move, with 15 reps for each set.  For most of the segments I paused between the 2nd and 3rd sets to grab a sip of water .

After that, I tried out the stretching “machine:”

The tilting “chair” and handle bars really did seem to give the stretches an extra oomph.

Did I forget any of your “must do” moves in my free weights routine?

Have you ever tried the stretching machine?