Friday, February 25, 2011

end of the week

Well, I made it to the gym today and tried to have a strong finish to the week, since the middle of it I kinda slacked off. I got up early and had a light breakfast before I went to the Y, then I went to my water workout, then up to the treadmill for my Cto5K workout. I almost didn't make it thru the Cto5K workout. My calves weren't cramping today, and that was great, but my head was really hurting.

I took my bp while I was at the Y and it was pretty high, which is probably why my head was hurting during my workout on the treadmill. I called my dr's office and left a message after I got home, so hopefully she will call me back this afternoon and we can get it stabilized. I'm so paranoid about my bp now with all that has gone on with my kidneys.

I'm not sure how much time I will get in at the gym this weekend, but I'll try and get in some. Then next week I'll be at my mom's for the better part of the week and will have to be creative with my workout. But I am determined to get it in!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

blah

I don't think I'm going to make it to they gym today. I can barely walk today because my knees hurt so much, as do my wrists, fingers, hands, and feet. Stupid arthritis! This will be a very brief entry, too, because I am having to make so many corrections because my fingers don't want to type what they're supposed to be typing. At least the arthritis strength Tylenol takes the edge off. I had to get my wrist braces out to sleep in last night. Tomorrow is my water workout and that will help loosen up my joints so that I can do my Cto5K afterwards. I'm repeating week 1 because I know I'm not ready to move on, but hopefully that will be the only week I have to repeat.

As for today, I'll try and keep my fingers from stiffening up too much by knitting, but I'll be keeping the heating pad on my knees. And praying that spring will come soon!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Home again

Today was a good day...just beautiful outside! I went down to the pool at the hotel this morning to get my water workout in, even tho I couldn't go to the Y. The pool wasn't heated, tho, so I didn't get the entire workout in because it was way too cold! Then, I was going to get into the hot tub to warm up a bit and stretch my legs out, but it was way too hot....wow...this is starting to sound like the 3 Bears story!

Tomorrow I'll be hitting the Y again, it's Couch to 5K day! Going to drink my orange juice, eat my banana, and stretch really well both tonight and tomorrow and see if that helps with the cramping in my calf. Will try and get a good night's sleep tonight, too, because I'm sure that will also help. Last night wasn't too bad, but I forgot to take my pillow with me and had to use the ones from the hotel. They weren't too bad, but they weren't my pillow. And of course, the bed wasn't a memory foam mattress, so that didn't help. But at least it was a king-size bed, and that was nice! I would love for us to get a king-sized bed, but a new bed costs alot of money, and there's so many other things I need to spend that money on!

While I was waiting on Terry to finish up today I went to Hobby Lobby and looked at their yarn selection, which I must say was more extensive than I thought it would be! I picked up some free pattern sheets to add to my collection of patterns, and looked at the different yarns I would like to get to make each one of them! But, one project at a time, and right now it's the poncho I'm making for Syble. I hope to have it finished by this weekend and get started on the one for Anna next.

I'm not excited about the weather forecast for the next couple of days....winter weather makes another appearance....boo! My joints are letting me know that the forecast isn't too far off, which is not a happy thing. But as long as I can make it to the Y tomorrow to get my workout in, it should all be good.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Dodge City

Well, we are in Dodge City, KS tonight! Right after we arrived, Terry had a conference call for work, so I changed into my workout clothes and headed for the hotel's fitness center. I had it all to myself at first, which was great, because it is a very small area! 2 treadmills, 2 stationary bikes, and 1 elliptical. I did most of my Couch to 5K workout, but my right calf kept cramping up, even tho I made sure to stretch really well today. My hands and fingers are very swollen today, too, and the longer I was on the treadmill, the puffier they got! By the end of 1 mile/15 minutes, my hands were throbbing. I drank an entire bottle of water while I was working out, too! So, I walked the last of the workout, cooled down, and called it a day. I'll try again tomorrow and see how things go. I'm going to go by the store and pick up some bananas when we go out to dinner and see if that helps any. I think I will also pick up some Gatorade and see if that helps. It sure helped during softball games!

I'm very proud of myself for not using being away from home as an excuse to not work out. This Sunday I am going over to my parents' house for a few days and I've already been talking to myself about how much fun it's going to be to run outside for my workouts! Just pray that there's no more snow, or I'm not sure I'll be able to convince myself. And I know from experience that if you miss one day, it's sooo much easier to make excuses about missing more days until once again, you're a couch potato! So if I can just push past this week 2 achiness and stick to my workouts, I know I'll be much more likely to stick to it long-term.

Tonight we are going to go to Boothill Casino and check out their buffet. Also, we want to check out the casino, too. I'm sure we won't gamble tonight, because we have no money to waste, but it's still fun to walk thru and see all the different machines and hear all the commotion that is in a casino. So, if we're going out, I better go get a shower. Even tho I didn't do my full workout, I still worked up a sweat! And I may hit the hot tub tonight after we get back to the hotel. That would sure feel good on my poor hands and fingers!

I heard on the radio on the way here that the forecast has changed once again, and there is a possibility of snow/wintry mix at the end of this week! Hopefully that will not happen, but if it does, I'm glad I drive a Jeep! I just hope that the Y will stay open. But, for now, the sun is shining and it's another beautiful day! So, time to hit the shower! Ciao!

Monday, February 21, 2011

Week 2 begins

It was so hard to wake up this morning, but I still made it to my water class. I slept pretty well last night, but just couldn't seem to wake up this morning. I thought it was Sunday for some reason and kept thinking Terry was going to come in and tell me it was almost time to leave. Then, I finally woke up and realized it was Monday and I had to hurry or I was going to be late to class! But, I made it just fine and was very glad that I did.

It was really chilly today when I left for the Y, and it's still rather cool outside, but it's still a nice day. I'm very glad I made it to class. I was so stiff last night and this morning and it really helped to go to class and stretch out and move my muscles. I got in the hot tub for a few minutes after class, and that was really nice, too! I was thinking about going  back over this afternoon to go ahead and do my Couch to 5k day 3, but I don't think I'm going to make it. We're leaving around 11am tomorrow, so I'm going to try and get up and go do it tomorrow morning before we leave.

I have also gotten alot done on the poncho that I'm making for Syble. It's knitting up fairly quickly, so I'm thinking that I might even have it done by the end of the week! Then I think I want to make another one for Anna. After that, I'm going to try a pattern that involves some shaping and see how that goes.

Since it's been a week since I started this journey, I weighed myself today. I only lost a half a pound this week, but that's really about what I expected. I haven't checked my measurements because I've misplaced my tape measure, but I'm sure I'll find it this afternoon. For the first week I was more concerned about getting used to getting up and going to class. Now, this week I'm going to be doing that, plus starting to watch my portion size and making sure I drink lots of water. I'm also going to cut down on the sweets! All the yummy chocolates Terry brought me home for Valentine's Day are all gone, so pretty much all I have left in the house are healthy snacks, like fruits and nuts, and yogurt. So, next week's weigh in should be better!

So, here's to week 2!

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Beautiful day!

Today was such a beautiful day! It started off with services at Newspring Church and an excellent sermon from Jonathan Hoover, our associate pastor, finishing up the series "Going Pro". Then we fixed brunch and Terry spent some time playing fetch with Colby in the backyard. Colby is so good about bringing the ball back and not making you wrestle him for it.

About mid-afternoon, we loaded Colby up and headed out to the park. It wasn't a brisk walk, because Colby is still learning how to walk on a leash, but at least we were active today. I can tell that the weather is about to change again because of the way my joints are aching and my hands, fingers, and feet are so swollen. I did find some arthritis strength Tylenol at Walmart, and it helps a little bit. And since that's all I'm allowed to take, then I will appreciate any relief it can give me, no matter how small.

After the park, we stopped at the store because I finished my first knitting project and was ready to start my next one. I bought some heavy weight purple yarn and am making a poncho for Syble. Since it's a thicker yarn, and I'm using bigger needles, it's knitting up quite quickly. The knitting also helps to loosen up the stiffness in my hands and fingers, so it makes me more eager to knit.

In the morning I have my water class, so that will help with some of the stiffness, too. So, I'm off to bed so that I will be ready to get up in the morning. Good night!

Saturday, February 19, 2011

it's the weekend!

I didn't make it on the blog yesterday, but I did make it to my water class! And I was very excited because there was another lady there that was more my age! (she's a couple years younger than I am, but once you get to be our age, a few years doesn't really matter.) We are hoping that next week we'll both have a free day after class to go out and get a bite to eat or something. It's so much fun making new friends!

So, I made it to class yesterday, but didn't make it to the gym today for Day 3 of Couch to 5K. Terry and I did go bowling, tho, so it wasn't a total "couch potato" day. We have to go to both services at church tomorrow because Terry is running camera for both services. He went to first service tonight while I was at 628, and I'll be at 628 again for first service tomorrow, then I'll go to second service. I love how our church has 4 services each weekend and they really encourage everyone to attend one service and serve one service. It really gets more people involved because they can serve, but not miss any services! Terry and I are so blessed to be a part of Newspring Church and get to serve like we do! God was really working in our lives when he brought us here to Wichita!

Today when we went bowling, I could really tell that my water workout classes are really helping. Last week when we went bowling, I could barely lift my ball and it wasn't until the end of the second game that I had any kind of control. This week was so much better! I still am having a little bit of trouble getting my wrist turned all the way over and am still pulling the ball to the left, but I did much better. In the class we have been working on stretching and turning our hands and wrists. My left wrist doesn't bother me as much as my right one does, so some days it's a real struggle to be able to turn my hand palm up. So I've been trying to remember all the exercises my rhumetologist taught me all those years ago to keep my hands, fingers, and wrists loosened up. We are doing several of them in the water class and it makes it so much easier to do them in the water. And seeing the difference that it makes is really a good motivation to keep working out.

Well, it's off to bed now. Have to get up early tomorrow for church. Good night.