I'm making a new commitment to fitness! I want to exercise for an entire year on a weekly basis.
I've been good at sticking to a rock solid routine for 1, 2 or even 3 months. 3 months was the longest when I did the full P90X routine. It always ends the same. I take a week or two break, or something comes up and I miss a few workouts. That week or two, or couple workouts turns into months with little to no exercise. That absolutely WILL NOT do!
I've been through this many times before and motivated myself to start working out and have stuck to it for awhile, but ultimately fizzle out and quit again. This time I want it to be different. This time instead of trying to kill it for 2-3 months, I want to set a realistic goal and stick to it for a year. I figure if I can set a goal of a year and actually meet that goal, working out should have long become a habit by the time a year rolls around.
You may be wondering how this all came about. Well, it's been brewing for awhile. I saw some pictures of myself not too long ago of when our boys were born and it actually disgusted me. I thought, "Do I really look that scrawny and weak?" I guess my mental image of myself was better than what the reality was. Good for self esteem I guess, but seeing the reality of how scrawny I look in pictures brought that way down! This past weekend, two things really brought all this to the forefront.
We had our annual work picnic on Saturday. It was a lot of fun! Monica was working so I solo parented the trip with the boys. Everybody loved them! They were so good and smiled at everyone! They got passed around the entire time I was there. I held Jace for a little while, but most of the time I only took them out of their car seats and put them back in a few hours later to leave, lol. We played volleyball, threw a Frisbee around, ate hot dogs and burgers. It was a blast! While me and a buddy were throwing the Frisbee around, I realized just how out of shape I am. The small amount of running I did had me breathing heavy and gassed. I actually had to quit because I was breathing heavy and ran out of steam. This never happens to me! I'll get worn out and breath heavy sure, but never do I have to quit playing around because of it. No bueno! That was number one.
Number two happened Sunday. The release of the long anticipated Living Extreme: Beyond Cystic Fibrosis documentary! It's an awesome video!! I strongly encourage everyone to follow the link and watch it, especially if you are a fellow CFer! When I first heard of the video I honestly thought "Oh I should submit myself and see if I could be on it. I'd probably make the cut." After watching the trailer I knew right away.... I'm lame. Haha!! I'm not extreme! The folks in the video (in my opinion) are the epitome of extreme! There's a brother/sister duo that are crazy good snowboarders. I'm talking travel the world competing snowboarders! A doctor in her 50's who works out like crazy, and a lady who golfs 18 holes on a regular basis, carrying her clubs and walking the coarse, as well as swimming laps several times a week! These folks are extreme!!! The most extreme of all was a guy named Brooks. His PFT's got down in the 40's. He started running and now runs ultra-marathons. That's 100 miles!!! I have yet to do more than a 5K and he's running 100 miles. This was number two.
So what's my goal??? Here it is...
To run 2 days a week and lift 2 days a week.
If I do more, I do more. I wanted to make it 5 days a week. Thought about 3 days a week. Maybe 4 is a little ambitious, but it shouldn't be. Wednesdays are tough for us. Sundays are tough. My schedule on Wednesdays goes as such, leaving me with literally one hour or less of down time.
5:00am - wake up, get dressed, grab meds out of fridge
5:05am - start treatments
5:40am - end treatments, grab bite to eat to go
5:45am - leave for work
work 8 hours
4:00pm - get home from work, play with boys, spend time with wife
4:15pm - start treatments
5:15pm - end treatments, maybe eat dinner
6:00pm - leave for church (I teach youth on Wednesday nights at our church)
9:00pm - arrive home, start putting boys to sleep
9:45pm - usually by now boys are both down for the night, grab a snack, shower, get ready for bed
10:30pm - hopefully I am snoozing by now so I can get 6.5 hours of sleep before getting back up at 5am again.
This leaves me with Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday to workout.
I figured 4 days should be good to start because something will always come up. A birthday party for one of the families, a church outing, something will inevitably eat up an entire evening on one of the weeknights I'm supposed to workout. So with leaving 1 of the 5 days I have available open, I should be able to compensate for such events.
Ideally I want to run a third time. For right now I'll stick to two.
I thought about holding off on posting this until I got closer and had more time to think about this. A post I read by a fellow cyster (female CFer) encouraged me to do it now! Here's her post, click here. I need to be held accountable and now I will be :)
I have to make exercise a priority and get into a routine. It has to become a normal part of life. After all, my life depends on it. The stories of those in the video are living proof that exercise is key to survival with CF.
My start date is October 1st.
I hope to look back on this post on October 1st, 2014 with an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment and not be overwhelmed with shame.
As one of my favorite reality TV stars Christopher "Big Black" Boykins would say "DO WORK!"
Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts
Monday, September 16, 2013
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
"Running" Back on the Band Wagon
Since the boys have been born, life has gotten much... busier. I don't like to use the word harder. Nothing about raising twins is physically hard. It can be exhausting at times running off little sleep. But hard I feel is the wrong word. Now having said that, let me remind you all that we have had a tremendous amount of help from family and friends. I've heard of people raising twin babies by themselves with no help at all. THAT I would classify as hard! It definitely tests your patience, an area I need a lot of work in. It is very time consuming, especially in the beginning.
When we first had the boys, they would eat every 3 hours. Sometimes we had to wake them up and make them eat, but they ate every 3 hours. Each boy would take about 45 min to eat. They were still learning how to latch and were so tiny, it took a lot of energy. They would eat, take a break, eat some more, take a break, and so on. You could tell that the slightest bit of exertion seemed to drain all the energy they had in their tiny little bodies. To add to their exhaustion, the poor, little guys were loosing weight as all babies do once they're born. We only had an hour and a half (if we were lucky) in between feedings. They took a lot of our time and attention. We didn't mind one bit. They're only the cutest babies in the history of mankind! :) It's gotten 10x better though! Now they eat less than ten minutes a piece and it goes much quicker! Lately they have been sleeping up to and sometimes exceeding 5 hours in between feedings at night! Mommy and Daddy are happy, happy, happy! (Thumbs up)
With all that going on, I was only fitting in one set of treatments and no exercise. Most of the time we were just wiped out. Any spare time we had, we slept. I knew going in, that it would be hard to fit in treatments and exercise. The doctors and I had discussions about staying on top of treatments and all of us expected that I would probably see a dip in my PFT's by my next clinic visit after the boys were born. My CF doctor has a set of twins, so he understands. In my mind, I wasn't going to have a "dip" in my numbers. They had been steadily rising for over a year with no hospital admissions. I was determined to keep that up.
I failed.
I haven't been doing two sets of treatments and exercise has been non-existent around our house these days. Well, Monica has been doing her ab exercises. Her abdominal muscles separated so she has special exercises she has to do to pull them back together. Since her ab muscles are separated, she cannot run or do any heavy lifting. In fact, she is supposed to stand up and get out of bed by turning/rolling onto her side and standing/sitting up that way so she does not engage her ab muscles. Any use of her ab muscles will pull them apart further.
The moral of this post is that starting Monday, Monica and I agreed we will do what has to be done to ensure that I am getting two sets of treatments in a day and exercising. My FEV1 had dropped from 66% to 60%. It's going to be difficult at times, because I can only do so much to help when sitting doing my vest and treatments. Especially now that I'm going back to work full time. I wish I could do more sets of treatments a day or exercise more, but with a 40 work week it's just not doable. I'm hoping to find a job that is more flexible so I can do more treatments and exercise more. I've been praying about it. Any prayers my way are much appreciated! :) Obviously something needs to be done to ensure that I'm getting my treatments and exercise in. Now so even more than before. Now I have THREE people depending on me! It just so happened that my best bud and former running buddy (until we both stopped running) called me Saturday and was telling me how he really wants to start running again. Perfect timing! We went for a run on Monday. It was awful, lol! To know how far and fast we used to be able to run and see how much we struggled was a bummer. We only have ourselves to blame. We weren't as far gone as I would have thought, which is a plus. So, I'm "running" back onto the band wagon!
Time to whip myself back into shape. I know I'm a much better husband, son, sibling and friend when I'm feeling good and my numbers are up. So I assume the same is true with fatherhood. I can't take care of my boys, my wife, my family if I'm not taking care of myself. (Swift kick from myself to myself in the rear)
On a side note it felt great to lace up my running shoes and get back out there. We were sweating bullets and breathing like freight trains. I had full on stabbing rib pains through most of the run, but it felt awesome when it was all said and done! It's an accomplishing, rewarding feeling knowing I'm taking the right steps to being healthier for my family.
God always knows when we need a little motivation too. In the midst of realizing I need to make some changes and get back to taking the best care of myself as possible, I read a post by an awesome guy. A fellow CFer who I consider a buddy even though we've never met. He did what I, and most people I know, would of thought as impossible. He was admitted to the hospital with an FEV1 in the 20's and sent straight to the ICU. After 52 days in the hospital he left with an FEV1 of 50%. Doctors told him they'd be happy if he could bump it to 55% but not to count on it. He is the type of guy that when he's told he can't do something, will prove everyone wrong and work his tail off to accomplish it. He has been kicking some CF tay ever since and has his FEV1 up to 75%!!! Talk about motivation!!! His name is Ronnie. I've mentioned him several times in this blog. He's an inspiration to CFers around the world and does A LOT for the CF community! To read his post that I read yesterday, click here.
When we first had the boys, they would eat every 3 hours. Sometimes we had to wake them up and make them eat, but they ate every 3 hours. Each boy would take about 45 min to eat. They were still learning how to latch and were so tiny, it took a lot of energy. They would eat, take a break, eat some more, take a break, and so on. You could tell that the slightest bit of exertion seemed to drain all the energy they had in their tiny little bodies. To add to their exhaustion, the poor, little guys were loosing weight as all babies do once they're born. We only had an hour and a half (if we were lucky) in between feedings. They took a lot of our time and attention. We didn't mind one bit. They're only the cutest babies in the history of mankind! :) It's gotten 10x better though! Now they eat less than ten minutes a piece and it goes much quicker! Lately they have been sleeping up to and sometimes exceeding 5 hours in between feedings at night! Mommy and Daddy are happy, happy, happy! (Thumbs up)
With all that going on, I was only fitting in one set of treatments and no exercise. Most of the time we were just wiped out. Any spare time we had, we slept. I knew going in, that it would be hard to fit in treatments and exercise. The doctors and I had discussions about staying on top of treatments and all of us expected that I would probably see a dip in my PFT's by my next clinic visit after the boys were born. My CF doctor has a set of twins, so he understands. In my mind, I wasn't going to have a "dip" in my numbers. They had been steadily rising for over a year with no hospital admissions. I was determined to keep that up.
I failed.
I haven't been doing two sets of treatments and exercise has been non-existent around our house these days. Well, Monica has been doing her ab exercises. Her abdominal muscles separated so she has special exercises she has to do to pull them back together. Since her ab muscles are separated, she cannot run or do any heavy lifting. In fact, she is supposed to stand up and get out of bed by turning/rolling onto her side and standing/sitting up that way so she does not engage her ab muscles. Any use of her ab muscles will pull them apart further.
The moral of this post is that starting Monday, Monica and I agreed we will do what has to be done to ensure that I am getting two sets of treatments in a day and exercising. My FEV1 had dropped from 66% to 60%. It's going to be difficult at times, because I can only do so much to help when sitting doing my vest and treatments. Especially now that I'm going back to work full time. I wish I could do more sets of treatments a day or exercise more, but with a 40 work week it's just not doable. I'm hoping to find a job that is more flexible so I can do more treatments and exercise more. I've been praying about it. Any prayers my way are much appreciated! :) Obviously something needs to be done to ensure that I'm getting my treatments and exercise in. Now so even more than before. Now I have THREE people depending on me! It just so happened that my best bud and former running buddy (until we both stopped running) called me Saturday and was telling me how he really wants to start running again. Perfect timing! We went for a run on Monday. It was awful, lol! To know how far and fast we used to be able to run and see how much we struggled was a bummer. We only have ourselves to blame. We weren't as far gone as I would have thought, which is a plus. So, I'm "running" back onto the band wagon!
Time to whip myself back into shape. I know I'm a much better husband, son, sibling and friend when I'm feeling good and my numbers are up. So I assume the same is true with fatherhood. I can't take care of my boys, my wife, my family if I'm not taking care of myself. (Swift kick from myself to myself in the rear)
On a side note it felt great to lace up my running shoes and get back out there. We were sweating bullets and breathing like freight trains. I had full on stabbing rib pains through most of the run, but it felt awesome when it was all said and done! It's an accomplishing, rewarding feeling knowing I'm taking the right steps to being healthier for my family.
God always knows when we need a little motivation too. In the midst of realizing I need to make some changes and get back to taking the best care of myself as possible, I read a post by an awesome guy. A fellow CFer who I consider a buddy even though we've never met. He did what I, and most people I know, would of thought as impossible. He was admitted to the hospital with an FEV1 in the 20's and sent straight to the ICU. After 52 days in the hospital he left with an FEV1 of 50%. Doctors told him they'd be happy if he could bump it to 55% but not to count on it. He is the type of guy that when he's told he can't do something, will prove everyone wrong and work his tail off to accomplish it. He has been kicking some CF tay ever since and has his FEV1 up to 75%!!! Talk about motivation!!! His name is Ronnie. I've mentioned him several times in this blog. He's an inspiration to CFers around the world and does A LOT for the CF community! To read his post that I read yesterday, click here.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Second Wind 5K
Monica and I participated in a 5K Saturday that benefits those who have had lung transplants. It's called the Second Wind Lung Walk. This was their 9th annual event. It was a lot of fun! I saw several RT's I work with volunteering there, and several people from work came to run/walk with us. My parents and several of our friends that we run with on a weekly basis were there too, along with my buddy's dad who was doing his first 5K at age 57! That's Greatness!
Just want to take a second to thank everyone who came! I wanted to run the race because I thought it was for a good cause. I was very surprised at the support that I got from family, friends and co-workers who came to the run to support me. I'm very happy we were able to help raise money for a good cause!
As always, Monica did amazing! She's officially 13 weeks pregnant as of this past Friday! Whoo-hoo! She ran the 5K on Saturday too. I know it kills her to have to take it easier and not get out there and pound the pavement, sweat her booty off, and be huffing and puffing. Taking it easy, she still posted a time around 31 minutes. She's so awesome! We got her a really cool shirt to wear for the race too!
It was a great day! I set a new personal best of 26:55! The course had several steep hills as well, which made it very tough. We're not used to running hills at all! haha! If you are struggling to find motivation to work out, hopefully some of this post will help you! I feel the best I've felt in a long time!
Just want to take a second to thank everyone who came! I wanted to run the race because I thought it was for a good cause. I was very surprised at the support that I got from family, friends and co-workers who came to the run to support me. I'm very happy we were able to help raise money for a good cause!
As always, Monica did amazing! She's officially 13 weeks pregnant as of this past Friday! Whoo-hoo! She ran the 5K on Saturday too. I know it kills her to have to take it easier and not get out there and pound the pavement, sweat her booty off, and be huffing and puffing. Taking it easy, she still posted a time around 31 minutes. She's so awesome! We got her a really cool shirt to wear for the race too!
It was a great day! I set a new personal best of 26:55! The course had several steep hills as well, which made it very tough. We're not used to running hills at all! haha! If you are struggling to find motivation to work out, hopefully some of this post will help you! I feel the best I've felt in a long time!
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Monsoon Run
A buddy of mine and I went on our usual 4.6 mile run tonight. It was a little cloudy but looked like it was going the opposite direction and would pass by. Wrong! If you remember it was only a few weeks ago we had a similar situation occur with tornado type clouds looming overhead. Of course, holding to our typical fashion, we said to each other "We got this!"
We decided to run it anyhow. A little after mile one, the rain started. Monica was passing us, running back to the car. (She tags along often on our runs and is much smarter than either of us.)
We kept on truckin'!
Just before mile 2 it began down pouring and did not stop until we were finished, at which point it let up. Haha! Had to laugh about that.
Anyway here's our post run interview. It was with my iPhone, which is now stuck in headphone mode and will not play sound through the speakers. It's in a bag of rice as we speak which hopefully will fix it. It's my own fault but still extremely frustrating, lol!
Moral of the story: When it looks like it may be bad weather when Matthew and I get ready to run....... it will be. AND, don't run with my phone when bad weather is present.
We decided to run it anyhow. A little after mile one, the rain started. Monica was passing us, running back to the car. (She tags along often on our runs and is much smarter than either of us.)
We kept on truckin'!
Just before mile 2 it began down pouring and did not stop until we were finished, at which point it let up. Haha! Had to laugh about that.
Anyway here's our post run interview. It was with my iPhone, which is now stuck in headphone mode and will not play sound through the speakers. It's in a bag of rice as we speak which hopefully will fix it. It's my own fault but still extremely frustrating, lol!
Moral of the story: When it looks like it may be bad weather when Matthew and I get ready to run....... it will be. AND, don't run with my phone when bad weather is present.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Thankful Thursday: Friends, Fall & Softball
It's Thankful Thursday Time!! I can't believe it, but I actually almost forgot it! Monica is going to a men's hater meeting tonight (as her dad refers to Joyce Meyer conferences, lol), and I have a softball game. As soon as I got home, it was eat, treat (my lungs), greet (my wife), and get ready to bounce! Luckily, someone posted on facebook asking about our Thankful Thursday post. So here it is folks! Thankful Thursday!
Monica's list:
I'm thankful for my friend Kristy! We got to hang out this morning and I had so much fun!!! Her birthday was recently so we were finally able to get together and go out for her birthday. Kristy is one of those women who is truly as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. She inspires me to be an even better person and I think that is a Great thing to have in a friend! I believe God brought our friendship together when He knew we both needed each other the most. I love you Kristy! Thank you for everything! And Happy Birthday again!!! ;)
I am thankful for fall weather. It is so beautiful out that most days I just want to be outside all day!! LOVE IT!!!
I am thankful for my hubby!! (Sigh) He is just wonderful... and I love him SOOOO MUCH!!! I'm so thankful to get to wake up with him everyday and share this wonderful life of ours together! I couldn't ask for a better man! Forever and ever babe!!
Jeremy's List:
I'm thankful for softball leagues! I'm not a drinker, so I don't play softball to get drunk. I play because I'm one of those guys who always dreamed of being an MLB player, and this is as close as I'll get, lol! I loved playing baseball as a kid! Most little boys do, but I loved it! I played summer and fall ball growing up. I even worked as an umpire for 3 years, starting when I was 13. It gives me a chance to hang out with my buddies. It's a really good workout, when you get a hit or when you're playing in the outfield chasing balls all night. It's also awesome having your wife there cheering you on and getting to show off for her when you make a good play, or get a good hit. I'm thankful it's time for softball again! We usually do terrible, but we have a blast losing!
Sorry it's so short this week! What are you thankful for?! There's always something! Don't live life full of regrets and looking at what you don't have. I'm a glass half full kinda guy. Actually, in my opinion, my glass is overflowing. Some may not think so looking from the outside, but it's amazing from my point of view! So now what are you thankful for?! :)
Monica's list:
I'm thankful for my friend Kristy! We got to hang out this morning and I had so much fun!!! Her birthday was recently so we were finally able to get together and go out for her birthday. Kristy is one of those women who is truly as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. She inspires me to be an even better person and I think that is a Great thing to have in a friend! I believe God brought our friendship together when He knew we both needed each other the most. I love you Kristy! Thank you for everything! And Happy Birthday again!!! ;)
I am thankful for fall weather. It is so beautiful out that most days I just want to be outside all day!! LOVE IT!!!
I am thankful for my hubby!! (Sigh) He is just wonderful... and I love him SOOOO MUCH!!! I'm so thankful to get to wake up with him everyday and share this wonderful life of ours together! I couldn't ask for a better man! Forever and ever babe!!
Jeremy's List:
I'm thankful for softball leagues! I'm not a drinker, so I don't play softball to get drunk. I play because I'm one of those guys who always dreamed of being an MLB player, and this is as close as I'll get, lol! I loved playing baseball as a kid! Most little boys do, but I loved it! I played summer and fall ball growing up. I even worked as an umpire for 3 years, starting when I was 13. It gives me a chance to hang out with my buddies. It's a really good workout, when you get a hit or when you're playing in the outfield chasing balls all night. It's also awesome having your wife there cheering you on and getting to show off for her when you make a good play, or get a good hit. I'm thankful it's time for softball again! We usually do terrible, but we have a blast losing!
Sorry it's so short this week! What are you thankful for?! There's always something! Don't live life full of regrets and looking at what you don't have. I'm a glass half full kinda guy. Actually, in my opinion, my glass is overflowing. Some may not think so looking from the outside, but it's amazing from my point of view! So now what are you thankful for?! :)
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
My Exercise of Choice... + a bonus funny
As we all know, we all should exercise. Exercise is one of the main ingredients, if not THE main ingredient, in living a healthy life. AND, as we all know, exercise is tough. It involves pushing yourself past comfort to pain. Ever heard the saying no pain, no gain? It's true. Whether lifting weights, running, whatever kind of exercise you participate in, if you're not breathing heavy, feeling your muscles burning, or saying to yourself "I want to stop!" you're probably not gaining much at all. It's hard to hear, but true.
Honestly though, once you get past the point of hating it, and dreading your workouts, you will come to look forward to it. I promise this will happen! It may take awhile, we're all different. When I was doing P90X before our cruise last year, I was doing 5 videos a week. Each video is an hour long and there are NO BREAKS! You get maybe 5 minutes of breaks in the hour video. It's craziness! At first I was loving it, because I like to be pushed physically. I enjoy the extreme aching and soreness you get the 2 days following an intense workout. Then came the dreading it phase, where it was getting tiresome to fit in an hour workout 5 days a week while working 40 hours a week, and doing my treatments and such for an hour each day. But alas, the days began coming where I had more energy and I was really looking forward to them! I was seeing results, felt incredible, and it was totally worth all the hard work! As Monica or my buddy Matthew. I gained over an inch in each arm, an inch and a half in each leg, and was looking sexy! lol! It will happen that you look forward to your workouts, and you will see results if you stick to it!
That actually was not at all what my post today is about though. That was a freebie! :) My post today is about my exercise of choice. Swimming! Or rather playing in the pool, and swimming! Jumping on a trampoline at a place like Skyzone (a warehouse with elevated trampolines joined together to form a basketball sized trampoline floor)! Our best friends have an outdoor pool, and Monica's grandma has an indoor pool with a slide and diving board. Talk about fun! And a good workout! Every time we "swim" it turns into some sort of jumping, diving, flipping, see who can grab and hang from the rafters by jumping off the diving board, human chicken, breath holding retrieving under water objects contest! haha! Which involves a lot of physical exertion and gets the body MOVING! I cough like a banshee every time.
In fact, my buddy made a very astute observation this year. We were at his house swimming (the one with the outdoor pool), and he says "You seem to cough a lot anytime you're in the pool. You cough, but never as much as when you get in the water." He's right! Monica and my buddy's wife noticed too. For some reason simply being in the water causes me to cough a lot. And not just cough a lot, but produce a lot of sputum. In fact, one night I coughed up 2 mucus plugs while we were swimming! This is now my exercise of choice! It's fun, and it works! Now just have to convince Monica to move somewhere tropical with a pool! :)
P.S. If you want a really good workout, chop down a tree! My brother-in-law, my sister-in-law's fiance and I chopped one down Sunday and I'm sore all over! You don't realize all the various muscle groups you use when swinging an axe! Here's a few videos for you to enjoy! We have kinda made it a tradition on special occasions or just because, to chop down dead trees in my in-laws backyard!
Honestly though, once you get past the point of hating it, and dreading your workouts, you will come to look forward to it. I promise this will happen! It may take awhile, we're all different. When I was doing P90X before our cruise last year, I was doing 5 videos a week. Each video is an hour long and there are NO BREAKS! You get maybe 5 minutes of breaks in the hour video. It's craziness! At first I was loving it, because I like to be pushed physically. I enjoy the extreme aching and soreness you get the 2 days following an intense workout. Then came the dreading it phase, where it was getting tiresome to fit in an hour workout 5 days a week while working 40 hours a week, and doing my treatments and such for an hour each day. But alas, the days began coming where I had more energy and I was really looking forward to them! I was seeing results, felt incredible, and it was totally worth all the hard work! As Monica or my buddy Matthew. I gained over an inch in each arm, an inch and a half in each leg, and was looking sexy! lol! It will happen that you look forward to your workouts, and you will see results if you stick to it!
That actually was not at all what my post today is about though. That was a freebie! :) My post today is about my exercise of choice. Swimming! Or rather playing in the pool, and swimming! Jumping on a trampoline at a place like Skyzone (a warehouse with elevated trampolines joined together to form a basketball sized trampoline floor)! Our best friends have an outdoor pool, and Monica's grandma has an indoor pool with a slide and diving board. Talk about fun! And a good workout! Every time we "swim" it turns into some sort of jumping, diving, flipping, see who can grab and hang from the rafters by jumping off the diving board, human chicken, breath holding retrieving under water objects contest! haha! Which involves a lot of physical exertion and gets the body MOVING! I cough like a banshee every time.
In fact, my buddy made a very astute observation this year. We were at his house swimming (the one with the outdoor pool), and he says "You seem to cough a lot anytime you're in the pool. You cough, but never as much as when you get in the water." He's right! Monica and my buddy's wife noticed too. For some reason simply being in the water causes me to cough a lot. And not just cough a lot, but produce a lot of sputum. In fact, one night I coughed up 2 mucus plugs while we were swimming! This is now my exercise of choice! It's fun, and it works! Now just have to convince Monica to move somewhere tropical with a pool! :)
P.S. If you want a really good workout, chop down a tree! My brother-in-law, my sister-in-law's fiance and I chopped one down Sunday and I'm sore all over! You don't realize all the various muscle groups you use when swinging an axe! Here's a few videos for you to enjoy! We have kinda made it a tradition on special occasions or just because, to chop down dead trees in my in-laws backyard!
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Thankful Thursday: Running spots, fishing and momma
It's Thursday, which means it's time for our second rendition of Thankful Thursday! I know we missed last, and I feel terrible about it. We had a very busy week where there was something going on every night of the week, and it completely slipped our minds, until I was doing my last Cayston treatment around 10:30. So now that I'm finished with my excuses, let's get back to being thankful! Here's my list:
I'm thankful for nearby places to run! Since about February Monica and I have started running on a regular basis. Which makes me very anxious/excited for my next clinic appointment. My appointment just happens to be this Monday, May 21st. I'm really hoping my PFT's are up! Last visit was after 2 weeks of IV antibiotics and my FEV1 went from 62% (down from 70% 3 months prior) before IVs to 60% after 2 weeks of IVs. So I'm hoping with the addition of all this running, they will be back up! As I was running at a park nearby our house, Cliff Cave Park, I was thinking about how happy I was that we have such a nice park close by where we can run. It's a 5 mile loop, all paved, half of which is in the sun (so you can get your tan on) and half that winds through the trees. It's really nice and we love to run there. Sometimes you'll get lucky enough to see deer playing and eating, even though it's in the middle of the county. It's also right next to the Mississippi river, which presents a fishing opportunity and it has several hiking and biking trails through the surrounding woods. It gives a nice place to go run, and it's only 5-10 minutes from our house. With it being so close, it's much easier to get motivated to run and especially when it's so nice. On those lazy days where I feel like 5 miles would suck all the life out of me, I run the road by our house. We're right at the entrance to our subdivision and the main road outside the subdivision is an outer road to the highway, it has pretty minimum traffic one way and VERY wide shoulders. We always have a place close by to run, which is great! I'm very thankful for that!
I'm thankful for fishing! Fishing is something as a kid I didn't like to do. My dad and uncle would put a bobber, hook and worm on our poles and we would sit. And sit some more.......... and still sit....... for what felt like HOURS! All with no success. Growing up I never understood why people would fish. My brother-in-law, Ricky, who was a buddy long before he became my bro-in-law, has always been into fishing. The first year after Monica and I got married, we went on the annual family trip to the lake. Ricky convinced me to get a pole and fish with him there. He said everybody fished and I would wish I had one if I didn't. So I got one, and we went fishing. Since then I'm hooked! Hahaha, get it, hooked! :) I really enjoy it. Ricky says it's because I'm getting older and appreciate things more. He could be right. I like how relaxing it can be. Being in nature is awesome to begin with and I love water. I always end up "swimming" when I fish, retrieving a snagged line, and usually lose a lure. Second to last time I went I broke my reel. BUT, I enjoy it nonetheless and am thankful I discovered it. What do you have to be thankful for?! I know there's something so let us hear it!
Monica's List:
On the heels of Mother's Day, I am thankful for my mom!! If there's one person that I've never had to doubt loves me, it would be my momma. I could never express how much she's impacted me and done for me! I would say my mother is a very strong woman! Strong in her faith in God, strong in her providing for our family, strong in her will, strong in her control of her emotions. I can honestly say I've never seen my mom completely lose it! That can't be said for a lot of women! It seems like nowadays there are many women who are still actually little girls... like they never got to that point where they grew up and become a woman/lady and put their childish ways behind them. I know many women who fly by the seat of their pants and blurt out every little thing that comes to their mind, like they have no filter or discretion (and then later blame it on pms or who knows what else?) My mom IS NOT one of those women! She taught me by her example, to love God first, to be generous and faithful with what God gives you, to love people, and so much more! For that I am so thankful! Proverbs 31:25 describes a wife of noble character saying, "She is clothed in strength and dignity...". I pray God make me like that! A strong Woman of God! Seeing how strong a mother's love is just fuels the desire in my heart to be a mother that much more and I can't wait to see what God has in store!
I love you Mom!!! I could never say thank you enough!!!
I'm thankful for nearby places to run! Since about February Monica and I have started running on a regular basis. Which makes me very anxious/excited for my next clinic appointment. My appointment just happens to be this Monday, May 21st. I'm really hoping my PFT's are up! Last visit was after 2 weeks of IV antibiotics and my FEV1 went from 62% (down from 70% 3 months prior) before IVs to 60% after 2 weeks of IVs. So I'm hoping with the addition of all this running, they will be back up! As I was running at a park nearby our house, Cliff Cave Park, I was thinking about how happy I was that we have such a nice park close by where we can run. It's a 5 mile loop, all paved, half of which is in the sun (so you can get your tan on) and half that winds through the trees. It's really nice and we love to run there. Sometimes you'll get lucky enough to see deer playing and eating, even though it's in the middle of the county. It's also right next to the Mississippi river, which presents a fishing opportunity and it has several hiking and biking trails through the surrounding woods. It gives a nice place to go run, and it's only 5-10 minutes from our house. With it being so close, it's much easier to get motivated to run and especially when it's so nice. On those lazy days where I feel like 5 miles would suck all the life out of me, I run the road by our house. We're right at the entrance to our subdivision and the main road outside the subdivision is an outer road to the highway, it has pretty minimum traffic one way and VERY wide shoulders. We always have a place close by to run, which is great! I'm very thankful for that!
I'm thankful for fishing! Fishing is something as a kid I didn't like to do. My dad and uncle would put a bobber, hook and worm on our poles and we would sit. And sit some more.......... and still sit....... for what felt like HOURS! All with no success. Growing up I never understood why people would fish. My brother-in-law, Ricky, who was a buddy long before he became my bro-in-law, has always been into fishing. The first year after Monica and I got married, we went on the annual family trip to the lake. Ricky convinced me to get a pole and fish with him there. He said everybody fished and I would wish I had one if I didn't. So I got one, and we went fishing. Since then I'm hooked! Hahaha, get it, hooked! :) I really enjoy it. Ricky says it's because I'm getting older and appreciate things more. He could be right. I like how relaxing it can be. Being in nature is awesome to begin with and I love water. I always end up "swimming" when I fish, retrieving a snagged line, and usually lose a lure. Second to last time I went I broke my reel. BUT, I enjoy it nonetheless and am thankful I discovered it. What do you have to be thankful for?! I know there's something so let us hear it!
Monica's List:
On the heels of Mother's Day, I am thankful for my mom!! If there's one person that I've never had to doubt loves me, it would be my momma. I could never express how much she's impacted me and done for me! I would say my mother is a very strong woman! Strong in her faith in God, strong in her providing for our family, strong in her will, strong in her control of her emotions. I can honestly say I've never seen my mom completely lose it! That can't be said for a lot of women! It seems like nowadays there are many women who are still actually little girls... like they never got to that point where they grew up and become a woman/lady and put their childish ways behind them. I know many women who fly by the seat of their pants and blurt out every little thing that comes to their mind, like they have no filter or discretion (and then later blame it on pms or who knows what else?) My mom IS NOT one of those women! She taught me by her example, to love God first, to be generous and faithful with what God gives you, to love people, and so much more! For that I am so thankful! Proverbs 31:25 describes a wife of noble character saying, "She is clothed in strength and dignity...". I pray God make me like that! A strong Woman of God! Seeing how strong a mother's love is just fuels the desire in my heart to be a mother that much more and I can't wait to see what God has in store!
I love you Mom!!! I could never say thank you enough!!!
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Thankful Thursday
Well as I mentioned in my previous post, we want to start doing Thankful Thursdays. Ronnie and Mandi at runsickboyrun do a post every thursday where they each say a few things they are thankful for. I love it and look forward to reading the things they are thankful for! Like them, Monica and I agree that there's ALWAYS something to be thankful for! So anywho, here's my list:
I'm thankful for my health! That may sound weird to some, but I really am. I see so many people at the hospital (where I work) everyday that have so many various health problems going on, that it makes me thankful for my health! I have complete use of my arms and legs, I'm thankful for that! I can talk and don't have a tracheostomy (a hole in your throat to breathe through)! I'm just thankful that I am in good health, able to exercise and live my life to the fullest!
I'm thankful for sunny, hot days! I really dislike the cold, I'd be ok with 2 or 3 weeks of snow and cold weather a year, and then back to the 80's and sunny! I don't mind sweating at all. My blazer has no AC, so when it gets hot..... I sweat! lol! It seems all my vehicles have lost their AC at some point despite efforts to fix it. So I just accept it, and sweat! To me sweating comes with sunny days, and I love sunny days so much that I almost love to sweat! Haha, I'm saying sweat a lot, I know. Sunny days put you in such a good mood and seem to give you extra energy, which in turn gives me more motivation to GET MOVING as Ronnie says and exercise! Spring and Summer are my favorite seasons and I look forward to them every year, no matter how hot it gets!
Lastly I'm thankful for opportunities. I was given the privilege of speaking at the Missouri Society for Respiratory Care state conference about living life with CF to RT's from all over! It went phenomenally well! I met some amazing people, and reconnected with a close friend, G.W.! He is one of those RT's that I talk about in my presentation. He truly cared about my health and whether I was taking care of myself and really pushed me and motivated me to take better care of myself. He always watched out for me and has ever since! I guess that's another thing I'm thankful for..... people who care! It seems I'm surrounded by them and I feel tremendously blessed! Going back to the presentation, I've had offers to speak at another conference, have my presentation published, and give 2 presentations to groups of kids! When God opens doors, He opens doors! :) The presentation will be at the bottom after Monica's Thankful Thursday list if you care to watch it!
Monica's List:
I'm thankful for cake... yes, you read that right C.A.K.E.... CAKE!!!! It comes to my mind because I stopped trimming and undercoating the cake I'm working on, to write this. Fancy that! ;-) Seriously though, I LOVE what I do!! Ever since I can remember my dream job was to be a cake decorator! For those of you who do not know, I am a baker and cake decorator. I am so thankful that I am able to do what I love! I know many people who wouldn't be able to say that... so I know it's a blessing! I am thankful for my job! I work at Costco as a baker and do specialty cakes on the side. I work with some awesome people and have a great schedule! I actually look forward to going to work most of the time! I just can't complain!! I am thankful for actual cake though, I don't eat it very much (You're probably thinking, "Yeah right!!"), but when I do I am thankful that it tastes SO GOOD!!! Thank you God for cake! MMMMM....Who wants cake now?!
I am thankful for our mini vacation to the Ozarks for Jeremy's presentation! We actually had a lot of down time together and I treasured every minute of it! Life can get so busy and it's easy to get distracted by all the things that have to get done. It was nice to slow down and spend quality time together, just the two of us! I am thankful for my hubby! To say he made me proud when he gave his presentation would be the biggest understatement of the year! He is a Wonderful man! He has fixed dinner twice this week, for me, while I've been busy working on my cake. I am very appreciative of such a good helpmate and a man who isn't lost in the kitchen!
I am thankful for God's word, the Bible. It has become so precious to me! God never ceases to amaze me! He continues to reveal Himself to me through His word, and I am so thankful for that! I never put it down without feeling he poured something back into me! I am thankful that we have a personal God who cares about our every need... and want! He has blessed me more than I could ever explain! I could go on... and on... and on... of the things I am thankful for and the blessings He has placed on my life. But I will stop there, until next thankful Thursday! What are you thankful for?!
I'm thankful for my health! That may sound weird to some, but I really am. I see so many people at the hospital (where I work) everyday that have so many various health problems going on, that it makes me thankful for my health! I have complete use of my arms and legs, I'm thankful for that! I can talk and don't have a tracheostomy (a hole in your throat to breathe through)! I'm just thankful that I am in good health, able to exercise and live my life to the fullest!
I'm thankful for sunny, hot days! I really dislike the cold, I'd be ok with 2 or 3 weeks of snow and cold weather a year, and then back to the 80's and sunny! I don't mind sweating at all. My blazer has no AC, so when it gets hot..... I sweat! lol! It seems all my vehicles have lost their AC at some point despite efforts to fix it. So I just accept it, and sweat! To me sweating comes with sunny days, and I love sunny days so much that I almost love to sweat! Haha, I'm saying sweat a lot, I know. Sunny days put you in such a good mood and seem to give you extra energy, which in turn gives me more motivation to GET MOVING as Ronnie says and exercise! Spring and Summer are my favorite seasons and I look forward to them every year, no matter how hot it gets!
Lastly I'm thankful for opportunities. I was given the privilege of speaking at the Missouri Society for Respiratory Care state conference about living life with CF to RT's from all over! It went phenomenally well! I met some amazing people, and reconnected with a close friend, G.W.! He is one of those RT's that I talk about in my presentation. He truly cared about my health and whether I was taking care of myself and really pushed me and motivated me to take better care of myself. He always watched out for me and has ever since! I guess that's another thing I'm thankful for..... people who care! It seems I'm surrounded by them and I feel tremendously blessed! Going back to the presentation, I've had offers to speak at another conference, have my presentation published, and give 2 presentations to groups of kids! When God opens doors, He opens doors! :) The presentation will be at the bottom after Monica's Thankful Thursday list if you care to watch it!
Monica's List:
I'm thankful for cake... yes, you read that right C.A.K.E.... CAKE!!!! It comes to my mind because I stopped trimming and undercoating the cake I'm working on, to write this. Fancy that! ;-) Seriously though, I LOVE what I do!! Ever since I can remember my dream job was to be a cake decorator! For those of you who do not know, I am a baker and cake decorator. I am so thankful that I am able to do what I love! I know many people who wouldn't be able to say that... so I know it's a blessing! I am thankful for my job! I work at Costco as a baker and do specialty cakes on the side. I work with some awesome people and have a great schedule! I actually look forward to going to work most of the time! I just can't complain!! I am thankful for actual cake though, I don't eat it very much (You're probably thinking, "Yeah right!!"), but when I do I am thankful that it tastes SO GOOD!!! Thank you God for cake! MMMMM....Who wants cake now?!
I am thankful for our mini vacation to the Ozarks for Jeremy's presentation! We actually had a lot of down time together and I treasured every minute of it! Life can get so busy and it's easy to get distracted by all the things that have to get done. It was nice to slow down and spend quality time together, just the two of us! I am thankful for my hubby! To say he made me proud when he gave his presentation would be the biggest understatement of the year! He is a Wonderful man! He has fixed dinner twice this week, for me, while I've been busy working on my cake. I am very appreciative of such a good helpmate and a man who isn't lost in the kitchen!
I am thankful for God's word, the Bible. It has become so precious to me! God never ceases to amaze me! He continues to reveal Himself to me through His word, and I am so thankful for that! I never put it down without feeling he poured something back into me! I am thankful that we have a personal God who cares about our every need... and want! He has blessed me more than I could ever explain! I could go on... and on... and on... of the things I am thankful for and the blessings He has placed on my life. But I will stop there, until next thankful Thursday! What are you thankful for?!
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Thankful!
Does anybody ever feel like they have days where they are just surrounded by negative things? Well, I do. It just seemed like today at work, everywhere I turned people were telling me all kinds of negative stuff, just complaining about other people and carrying on about things that annoy them. I find myself getting caught up in it at times and going along with the conversations. Then later I feel bad for being a complainer. I hate complaining by the way. :) I just feel that there are way too many things to be thankful for, than to spend time focusing on negative things or simply just being a whiner/complainer. Today was one of those days. Everybody I talked to had something to complain about. At the end of the day I found myself in not the best mood, even though my day at work went really well, and we have plans to hang out with our awesome friends tonight! It was as if the negative rubbed off on me. haha! I was just thinking of all the things I'm thankful for!
I'm thankful first and foremost for my relationship with Jesus! It has completely changed my life. I grew up in church, but when I truly gave my heart to God and developed a relationship with Him it has changed my life! I'm thankful for the amazing wife I've been blessed with! Monica is so good to me! It's an unbelievable feeling to know that you're loved! I know my family loves me, but for someone who is not related to you to come along and love you for you.... it's awesome! I love her more than I ever thought I could love someone. I'm thankful for my family. My parents made so many sacrifices for my sister and I and my extended family as well. They have given us the best life! They are two of the most selfless people I know! They are extremely supportive and give of themselves to everyone they meet who has a need. I'm thankful for my health! My FEV1 last visit was 60%. It went down 2 percentage points after 2 weeks of IV's. Stumped me along with my CF team. I felt better so we rode it out. I've been doing my part staying on top of treatments and exercising and have been feeling really good lately! I'm thankful for that, my PFT's could be much worse.
I could keep going, but I don't want to bore anyone. My buddy Ronnie does a thing called Thankful Thursday where every week him and his wife say a thing or two they are thankful for. I really like it! We may just have to start that on our blog too! There's ALWAYS something to be thankful for! What are you thankful for?
I'm thankful first and foremost for my relationship with Jesus! It has completely changed my life. I grew up in church, but when I truly gave my heart to God and developed a relationship with Him it has changed my life! I'm thankful for the amazing wife I've been blessed with! Monica is so good to me! It's an unbelievable feeling to know that you're loved! I know my family loves me, but for someone who is not related to you to come along and love you for you.... it's awesome! I love her more than I ever thought I could love someone. I'm thankful for my family. My parents made so many sacrifices for my sister and I and my extended family as well. They have given us the best life! They are two of the most selfless people I know! They are extremely supportive and give of themselves to everyone they meet who has a need. I'm thankful for my health! My FEV1 last visit was 60%. It went down 2 percentage points after 2 weeks of IV's. Stumped me along with my CF team. I felt better so we rode it out. I've been doing my part staying on top of treatments and exercising and have been feeling really good lately! I'm thankful for that, my PFT's could be much worse.
I could keep going, but I don't want to bore anyone. My buddy Ronnie does a thing called Thankful Thursday where every week him and his wife say a thing or two they are thankful for. I really like it! We may just have to start that on our blog too! There's ALWAYS something to be thankful for! What are you thankful for?
Friday, April 6, 2012
Just Do It
On the heels of my hubby's post on exercise, I figured I would add my two cents and make my first post on our blog! :)
I will start off with saying I am so very proud of my hubby! He motivates me every day! He motivates me to never take a day, or a single breath, for granted! It AMAZES me when we pray together and Jeremy will pray, "... and thank you Lord for our health, for keeping your hand on us, and keeping us from sickness." Maybe it's just me, but to hear my hubby (who has a chronic disease with which he battles daily) say, "Thank you Lord for our health", I can't help but think, "WOW, God you gave me a Wonderful Wonderful Wonderful man! Would I be able to pray that if I had Cystic Fibrosis?!" I know people who could complain every day over an ugly toe... random I know... that's the first silly thing someone could complain about that came to mind. :) You get what I'm trying to say though right?!
Anywho... on to the real reason for this post. Exercise. I labeled this post "Just Do It". I did that... this may sound so silly... because I am so motivated by Nike's slogan "Just Do It". Whoever coined that phrase is a genius!!! :) Just three simple words, but to me they say so much! When I see it posted somewhere what it really says to me is, "Quit making excuses.. and "Just Do It!!!!" I feel the absolute NEED to work out! Not only for myself and my health, but for Jeremy as well! Anytime I work out, he is motivated to work out... and vice versa. And he HAS to work out for his health. I want that boy around as long as possible... and I know all of you do too! :)
A couple of months ago Jeremy and I began jogging a 5 mile trail by our house. I don't think we had a clue what we were getting ourselves into the first time we did it, Jeremy commented, "Are you sure this is only 5 miles? It seems so long!" I told him, "My goal is to someday do this all the way through without stopping!" From the shape I was in I thought it'd take years before that could ever happen! I snicker to myself thinking about that first jog. It took us 1 hour and 13 minutes. Not too great...I know... probably because we walked more of it than we jogged! :) I proceeded to do it in an hour, then 50 minutes, and today I did it for the first time in 45 minutes! I've continued jogging it every week since then, 2-3 times a week. I've also recently started going to a Zumba class once a week. My whole point is, we had to start somewhere. We got off the couch, MADE THE TIME, and just did it! Still a work in progress, definitely, but we can do more than we could the first time we did it!
When I first started running the trail regularly I had to stop at least once a mile to walk and catch my breath, I then got to where I was able to go halfway (2.5 miles) without stopping, then 3/4 of the way, and today I made up my mind I was doing the whole thing without stopping once... I got halfway and thought, "Oh yeah I've got this! I can do this! I just have to do that again." ... fast forward to the 4 mile mark and I wasn't so sure, my legs felt like jelly and I thought, "Ok, not today, I'll just do it next time maybe?! I've got to stop or I'm gonna die!" (I know a bit exaggerated).....and right when I was about to give in and start walking the song (Fireflight "Stronger than you think") started playing on my ipod, and a man who had to be almost 60 buzzed passed me running like it was nobody's business. It was like God said, "Uh uh, today you're doing it! If he can do this, you can do this! You are stronger than you think!" And guess what?!..............I DID IT! I ran 5 miles nonstop in 45 minutes! I was so Excited when I got done! People at the park probably thought I was crazy walking around by myself grinning from ear to ear! Got some fitness goals that you don't know if you'll ever acheive? The first step is getting up and starting... you won't regret it! So lets quit making excuses... and "JUST DO IT!"
I will start off with saying I am so very proud of my hubby! He motivates me every day! He motivates me to never take a day, or a single breath, for granted! It AMAZES me when we pray together and Jeremy will pray, "... and thank you Lord for our health, for keeping your hand on us, and keeping us from sickness." Maybe it's just me, but to hear my hubby (who has a chronic disease with which he battles daily) say, "Thank you Lord for our health", I can't help but think, "WOW, God you gave me a Wonderful Wonderful Wonderful man! Would I be able to pray that if I had Cystic Fibrosis?!" I know people who could complain every day over an ugly toe... random I know... that's the first silly thing someone could complain about that came to mind. :) You get what I'm trying to say though right?!
Anywho... on to the real reason for this post. Exercise. I labeled this post "Just Do It". I did that... this may sound so silly... because I am so motivated by Nike's slogan "Just Do It". Whoever coined that phrase is a genius!!! :) Just three simple words, but to me they say so much! When I see it posted somewhere what it really says to me is, "Quit making excuses.. and "Just Do It!!!!" I feel the absolute NEED to work out! Not only for myself and my health, but for Jeremy as well! Anytime I work out, he is motivated to work out... and vice versa. And he HAS to work out for his health. I want that boy around as long as possible... and I know all of you do too! :)
A couple of months ago Jeremy and I began jogging a 5 mile trail by our house. I don't think we had a clue what we were getting ourselves into the first time we did it, Jeremy commented, "Are you sure this is only 5 miles? It seems so long!" I told him, "My goal is to someday do this all the way through without stopping!" From the shape I was in I thought it'd take years before that could ever happen! I snicker to myself thinking about that first jog. It took us 1 hour and 13 minutes. Not too great...I know... probably because we walked more of it than we jogged! :) I proceeded to do it in an hour, then 50 minutes, and today I did it for the first time in 45 minutes! I've continued jogging it every week since then, 2-3 times a week. I've also recently started going to a Zumba class once a week. My whole point is, we had to start somewhere. We got off the couch, MADE THE TIME, and just did it! Still a work in progress, definitely, but we can do more than we could the first time we did it!
When I first started running the trail regularly I had to stop at least once a mile to walk and catch my breath, I then got to where I was able to go halfway (2.5 miles) without stopping, then 3/4 of the way, and today I made up my mind I was doing the whole thing without stopping once... I got halfway and thought, "Oh yeah I've got this! I can do this! I just have to do that again." ... fast forward to the 4 mile mark and I wasn't so sure, my legs felt like jelly and I thought, "Ok, not today, I'll just do it next time maybe?! I've got to stop or I'm gonna die!" (I know a bit exaggerated).....and right when I was about to give in and start walking the song (Fireflight "Stronger than you think") started playing on my ipod, and a man who had to be almost 60 buzzed passed me running like it was nobody's business. It was like God said, "Uh uh, today you're doing it! If he can do this, you can do this! You are stronger than you think!" And guess what?!..............I DID IT! I ran 5 miles nonstop in 45 minutes! I was so Excited when I got done! People at the park probably thought I was crazy walking around by myself grinning from ear to ear! Got some fitness goals that you don't know if you'll ever acheive? The first step is getting up and starting... you won't regret it! So lets quit making excuses... and "JUST DO IT!"
Thursday, April 5, 2012
I Work Out!
Well, I started working out regularly again last week. About time I know! The past couple months have been a bummer for me health wise. Up until a week or two ago I've felt crummy since January. Been fighting fevers, congestion, incessant coughing, rattling in my chest (which I never have had before and induced more coughing), and the inability to clear secretions. I don't mean to whine or complain. Every time I tried working out, it would drain me for a couple days. Probably because I push myself too hard. Not that I'm super fit, I get down on myself for slacking and try to compensate by over-doing it when I work out.
Anywho, I'm super glad to be feeling good and getting back into workout routine! I started back up doing P90X! Get supersonic "X" style ripped! :) It's what works for me. After work, doing my treatments and eating dinner, it's usually around 6:30. By then I just don't feel like changing and driving to a super crowded gym (6-9pm is peak workout time at the gym by us) to work out for an hour and then come home. This way I can workout in my basement and Tony Horton (P90X guy) really pushes you, which I like!
I like to have a regiment, a routine, but it's easier to have someone tell me, do this, this, and then this. Know what I mean? I don't have to come up with a workout routine or think about what to do, just start the video and go! It's high intensity and really gets me breathing hard and coughing up gooky stuff! AND.... it builds muscle at the same time! I'm thin enough as is, so I want to get my aerobic exercise in without risking losing weight. This way I can workout 3 days a week (I don't do the full 6 day a week schedule) and supplement additional cardio by running. It's a win/win for me! Plus, Monica is a HUGE motivator! Since we're looking into IVF and hoping to start soon, she has been really pushing herself to be in the best shape she can before hopefully getting pregnant. Seeing her workout and push herself helps me to push and we feed off each other, another win/win! We're hoping to get a set of decent bikes soon so we can include biking into our barrage of exercisio. Anybody know of a good place to look? Or a good brand to buy? I'm clueless on what to look for.
I hope this helps push you to get out there and GET MOVING as my buddy Ronnie would say! Start wherever you can. Even if you just dedicate yourself to going for a 30 minute walk once a day. Everybody can find 30 minutes to just walk! If you have a treadmill, drag it out, get the dust off, put it in front of the tube and walk to your hearts content while watching your favorite show. Start somewhere, and STICK WITH IT! that's the key, make up your mind to keep doing it! That's the biggest battle of working out, to keep with it. That being said, I'm off to do Shoulders & Arms! Let me know what you did this week to GET MOVING!
Anywho, I'm super glad to be feeling good and getting back into workout routine! I started back up doing P90X! Get supersonic "X" style ripped! :) It's what works for me. After work, doing my treatments and eating dinner, it's usually around 6:30. By then I just don't feel like changing and driving to a super crowded gym (6-9pm is peak workout time at the gym by us) to work out for an hour and then come home. This way I can workout in my basement and Tony Horton (P90X guy) really pushes you, which I like!
I like to have a regiment, a routine, but it's easier to have someone tell me, do this, this, and then this. Know what I mean? I don't have to come up with a workout routine or think about what to do, just start the video and go! It's high intensity and really gets me breathing hard and coughing up gooky stuff! AND.... it builds muscle at the same time! I'm thin enough as is, so I want to get my aerobic exercise in without risking losing weight. This way I can workout 3 days a week (I don't do the full 6 day a week schedule) and supplement additional cardio by running. It's a win/win for me! Plus, Monica is a HUGE motivator! Since we're looking into IVF and hoping to start soon, she has been really pushing herself to be in the best shape she can before hopefully getting pregnant. Seeing her workout and push herself helps me to push and we feed off each other, another win/win! We're hoping to get a set of decent bikes soon so we can include biking into our barrage of exercisio. Anybody know of a good place to look? Or a good brand to buy? I'm clueless on what to look for.
I hope this helps push you to get out there and GET MOVING as my buddy Ronnie would say! Start wherever you can. Even if you just dedicate yourself to going for a 30 minute walk once a day. Everybody can find 30 minutes to just walk! If you have a treadmill, drag it out, get the dust off, put it in front of the tube and walk to your hearts content while watching your favorite show. Start somewhere, and STICK WITH IT! that's the key, make up your mind to keep doing it! That's the biggest battle of working out, to keep with it. That being said, I'm off to do Shoulders & Arms! Let me know what you did this week to GET MOVING!
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