March 17, 2010 - Next Goal

Hello All!

Well, it is time to make PT Bruiser happy. She is glad the Half Marathon completed without an injury. However, I did promise her that I would not train for a Half Marathon for awhile. I would work more on strength training and other cardio work. Now we are still negotiating some of the details, but I did promise that I would not partake in a Half Marathon for at least 6 months.

Well, I cannot let her have the upperhand so I am adding to the goal. Today I purchased the book; "The Women's Health Big Book of Exercises." The main reason I wanted this book is because it has 619 exercises you can do with the pictures and instructions included. This will give me some tips of things to do at the gym when I am bored with the exercises I already know.

My goal is to do the section; "The Hard-Body Workout: Use this 12-week plan to tone your legs, arms, and abs faster than ever." I will have PT Bruiser help me with measurements and see if this book is just a bunch of crap or if it really works! LOL

The book will arrive Thursday so I will keep you all updated starting next week.

Til Next Week,

Kristi

Originally published to http://kristiasher.blogspot.com

March 4, 2010 - Marathon Motivation

Hello All,

Sorry for no post last week, I was getting ready for the Rock n’ Roll Half Marathon in New Orleans. I COMPLETED IT! Woo hoo!

I have a specific request this week to write about motivation. From the request I am assuming exercise motivation, but I will probably bounce back and forth on the topic.

As most of you know the main motivation for me starting on a healthier path was the fact that I thought I was way too young not to be able to walk a half marathon like many of my friends. On the day I realized there is no reason I could not get in shape to walk a half marathon, I called and sought support from a local weight loss clinic. This small step changed my life.

I still do not know why it started that day. I guess something just “clicked” or it was the start of a mid-life crisis (LOL). There were situations in the past that should have prompted me to lose the weight, but they did not.

Along the way my exercise motivation ebbs and flows. When it wanes I find something new to motivate me. Currently, I really enjoy walking the 5Ks, 10Ks, and Half Marathons. I find them fun and a bit of a challenge. When I complete one I am really excited and proud of myself. Why?!? Because it is something I am certain I would not have been able to do just a couple of years ago. This is very motivating to me.

As most of you know, I completed the New Orleans Rock ‘n Roll Half Marathon on Sunday. During the event I had to constantly re-motivate myself. In order to re-motivate I had to find motivation in the small things.

It all started when I could not get a cab to the start line. I realized that walking was my only option. The house where we stayed was at least 2-3 miles from the start line. I seriously thought about turning around and going back to bed. I did not because five friends flew down to New Orleans to see me finish that race. So, I walked. I did finally catch a cab.

Right before the race I called my sister to remind me to “suck it up.” I still was not “feeling it” before I started so I needed someone to motivate me again. Even when I was about to start I was reminding myself that I could always quit.

The Rock ‘Roll events have announcers keeping the participants motivated until their time to cross the start line. The announcer said something very interesting and motivating; “I like the people in the back corrals. They have the most compelling stories. You don’t find a recovering alcoholic in Corral 10.” Sure enough, the woman standing next to me was walking just because it was her mother’s birthday and she had died of breast cancer the prior year.

Right before I crossed the start line two people from the Biggest Loser (pictures will be on Facebook this weekend) hopped in front of me to start the race with my corral. I do not watch the Biggest Loser, but even I found that inspiring.

As I settled in to begin the race and tried to shake off the doubt I passed by buildings still with the X from the ruins of Hurricane Katrina. It was then I reminded myself that I lead a blessed life. I sped up and quit whining in my head.

For the next several miles I found the scenery kept my mind occupied. I spoke to other people as I went along. I also spoke to some of the spectators who were thanking the walkers for visiting their city. Also, the bands along the course were very motivating.

At one point, I passed a man with an obvious neurological disorder. He was shuffling along enjoying being part of the group. It was then that I realized he did not have a bib number. He just wanted to take part in the Half Marathon. As tears filled my eyes, I realized I needed to keep moving.

At mile 8.5 I had one of the best motivations of all. Five of my friends were wearing feather boas and cheering along all the participants including myself. Again I was reminded of how blessed I am. I am relatively certain that my paced picked up from the energy my friends projected. These friends had come to New Orleans not only to party, but to support me. This is priceless and highly motivating.

I had several other sightings of motivation along the way. Because I kept my eyes opened and absorbed my surroundings I stayed motivated. Granted, some days I would not have found any of these things motivating, but it worked on Sunday.

Motivation has peaks and valleys. To combat the valleys I always have a goal and keep that goal in mind. For the Half Marathon I wanted to finish and collect the cooool medal at the end.

For the past couple of years I have maintained my motivation by keeping track of a major goal that did not include weight loss goals, but would help me lose weight (e.g. half marathons, certain number of 5Ks). I also sign up in advance for these events so I HAVE to do them.

I also try to be motivated every day. Normally, if I open my eyes and pay attention I can find something that keeps me moving that day. For example, today was an absolutely beautiful day. I am glad that I am a healthier person that is enjoying it in all it’s glory because I have worked hard to be healthy. This will motivate me even more in the future.

There will be days that I do not have the motivated and happy thoughts, but being prepared for them and keeping the faith that there are fewer bad days than there are good does keep me motivated to live for the good days.

My ultimate advice to my friend is to find an activity you enjoy doing and find a goal to reach with it. It can be an official event or something else, but do find some accountability with it. I believe this will help you stay motivated. It always helps to be held accountable to someone and for that, just keep me in the loop.

Til Next Week,

Kristi

Originally Published to http://kristiasher.blogspot.com

February 17, 2010 - Seeking to be Understood

Hello,

First, let me tell you that I have lost one pound. Good for me! I may have slowed down considerably, but I am at least moving in the right direction.

I am sure that many of us seek to be understood. When I am not understood I feel alienated and frustrated. This topic is bothering me. Not just for myself, but also for some of my friends.

Yesterday, I had a routine visit with Dr. Pita, but I also had an appointment later in the day with the doctor he referred me to for my moodiness. We will call him…Dr. Mood. I do like Dr. Mood, I just do not like the practice and philosophy of his area of expertise. Basically, my appointment went like this:

Dr. Mood; “How are you today?”
Me; “Fine. Thank You.”
Dr. Mood; “So, have you had any side effects from the medication?”
Me; “No. I am doing well on it.”
Dr. Mood; “How has your mood been?”
Me; “Well, I experienced about a week of hypersomnia and then a week of insomnia. I also had some days where I cannot stop my thoughts from racing which causes me to be extremely tired and causes obsessive list making. All of this is enough to negatively impact my life.”
Dr. Mood; “Well your mood sounds fine for now. Let’s up your medicine and renew your other prescription. See you in two months.”

I was in his office a grand total of six minutes. Did he really understand?

What bothers me most about these types of appointments is if I had mentioned; “Hey, I am having incredible insomnia. I have not slept in days.” I am sure the next thing that would happen is that I would get a prescription for a sleep aid.

Many people go to the doctor and get exactly what they want. They think they are fat… they get a pill. They think that have headaches…they get a pill. Pills, pills, pills. This is what the consumer wants. Not what they need. This is what they expect. I do not expect my doctor to be a pill dispenser.

I want someone to understand. Tell me that my symptoms are normal or not. If it is normal, tell me to’ “suck it up.” If needed, tell me what I need to accomplish to get better. If I do not listen or act on the advice, remind me if my way worked I would not be seeking their advice. Tell me I need to fight. Tell me how to make the most of the rest of my life. Do not tell me my diagnosis and patronize me by stating it is chronic…this is the way you are going to be the rest of your life. How do you know, really?

I have a friend going through a tough period in her life. She is fighting a diagnosis much more severe than mine. I admire her strength. She continues to fight it every day, but underneath that tough exterior is someone just like me. Slightly worried this is it. That this is the way it will always be. However, she refuses to accept it. She wrote me some of the details of her life now. I cannot understand everything, but I can understand the struggle and that is all that matters for our friendship. I am sure she hopes to find someone someday who can relate to all of it. She is probably looking for someone who has beaten it. She needs someone to add ingredients to the faith that it will all get better.

I have a friend that has experienced great loss in her life. For her, I could do nothing. I could not relate. All I could do is call her and tell her I was there. I was sad, empathetic, and very worried, but I could do nothing. In truth, I could not understand. How could I? It never happened to me. She needed a support group. She needed to meet others that experienced the same loss and disappointment. She got better. She moved on from the experience.

I could continue with the many examples. I have friends with divorces, trouble marriages, troubled kids, medical issues, parental issues, etc. I do not understand their woes. Again, I do not have the same experiences. All I can do is listen.

Sometimes we cannot even understand our friends and families triumphs. I finished a Half Marathon. Yea, for me, but if you have never done it..do your really know what it is like to finish? Do you know what it is like to see a dog that you trained for four years FINALLY complete a flyball heat without attacking another dog? Probably not.

Recently, I decided that I would embark on a mission for a few of my friends to understand me. I was tired of trying to explain absences from events, tired of explaining why I was so tired, and tired of giving up and just lying about it. So I wrote a letter explaining the past 20 years of my life.

Today I read that letter for probably the twentieth time. Finally, I realized that I am not seeking for others to understand me.

I am seeking for ME to
…understand
…forgive
…fix it or develop plans to deal with it
…move on
….live life.

Have a great week,

Kristi

Published to http://kristiasher.blogspot.com

February 10, 2010 - Rehabilitation

Hello!

As some of you might remember, I have been attending Physical Therapy for the past few months due to a second mishap with my dog, Calvin. If you do not remember, you may read about it in Calvin 2 vs Me 0.

Of course, my patellas do like to visit the side of my leg occasionally, but this time it was worse. Baby Doc (Primary Physician) and I decided the only thing to do was go to Physical Therapy or see the Surgeon. What I thought would be a couple weeks of physical therapy turned into over three months of it!

Since *I* had to attend therapy, Calvin did too!

Calvin was to work on several things for his rehab. He was to learn to hurl his body to the floor as soon as I say; "down!" He, for the most part, was to give me at least 3 inches of space when walking next to me. He also was to try to stop jumping on me when stressed or excited. He also was to learn a 2 minute stay. However, sometimes he throws a fit, as seen in the picture accompanying this post.

I was to work on much harder things! Have you seen the tortures they put you through in physical therapy?!? I only briefly wrote about the Physical Terrorist once. You may read about it here.

Well, I am happy to say that I graduated! Now the truth can be told (or my warped version of it), about the tortures that go on in Physical Therapy.

1) The Treadmill - Fortunately, I avoided this torture at all costs. Most of the time I was able to use the bike to warm up my muscles, but occasionally I had to use my nemesis. This one also gave me electric shock REPEATEDLY because I did not have any shoes on and kept touching the heart rate monitor. Apparently, the current was running straight through me!

2) Sleep Deprivation - Okay, even the most casual reader of my blog realizes that sleep is practically a hobby for me in the winter. Well, the best time for me to see the Physical Terrorist was at 7:00 or 7:45 in the morning. Ugh! One day, I fell asleep on the leg press machine for a couple of minutes when she went to do something on the computer.

3) Psychological Torture - Pittsburgh Steeler and Ohio State fans. Enough said.

4) The Deadbeats - PEOPLE, PEOPLE, PEOPLE -- Physical Therapists need to eat, too. Pay your co-pay at time of visit. NO EXCEPTIONS. Also, do not blame the person calling to collect because YOU have not paid your bill. Sheesh.... On behalf of the staff, *I* wanted to slap some people.

5) Sensory Deprivation - After awhile, doing some of the exercises to strengthen the muscles means that you lose all feeling in other muscles while you are doing the repetitions! One day, I was doing an exercise called "The Bridge" and realized that my arm had gone numb. Well, it had gone numb because I was putting too much weight on my arms.

6) Contortionistic Standing - SUPPOSEDLY, this exercise is to help my IT Band. I still think I am on candid camera when I am trying to do it. Here are the instructions: put your right foot behind and to the opposite side of your left, taking your right hand bend at the waist and stretch your arm across your body. Feel the stretch. WHAT?!?!? Took me 2-3 weeks to get that one right.

7) No Name Torture - This one is so awful I do not know what to even call it! Well, apparently to heal muscles you must massage them and break down scar tissue? I guess that is what she was doing. Okay, so "ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch" was all I would think. I would then see her later in the week and she would wonder why I had bruises. Phhht! Sometimes she would get a little to close to my knee cap which would make me EXTREMELY nervous. COME ON! My knee likes to take a visit to the outside. One day, I saw an PT actually moving a patients knee cap. WHAT?!?!?! Shouldn't you have 4 years of specific certification for that!?!?!?

Ahhh, I make fun, but I did learn A LOT in physical therapy. I believe that when I finish the Half Marathon in a couple of weeks the Physical Terrorist deserves some of the credit. All of the staff are extremely knowledgeable, conscientious, and enjoyable to be around. I could not have gotten up to go to physical therapy if I did not think I was getting a lot out of it. Hopefully, I will never have to return, but in case I do...I know who I am going to call - whether they like it or not.

I cannot end this post without an update on Calvin's rehab

Well, last night he calmly tiptoed to me, providing the proper amount of personal space, and stole my sandwich. Using the new found strength in the muscles around my knee, I lunged at him and got my sandwich back in the blink of an eye.

Me - 1 vs Calvin - 2

Til Next Week,

Kristi

P.S. I am working on a different way to update you all on my goals. It just doesn't flow right in the middle of telling a story.

Originally published to http://kristiasher.blogspot.com