<p>^^^^Thank goodness you’re alright. </p>
<p>The last time something like that happened to me, the guy flipped me off as if I had done something wrong, lol. I didn’t have a stop sign-but he did.</p>
<p>Oh, Consolation! I bet you did pull/wrench/damage somethng! </p>
<p>Went to the gym this morning and got 22 miles in 55 minutes on the bike. Thankfully the wine didn’t keep me from exercising! Still on track for my second week of 100 miles.</p>
<p>I think I have agreed to go with H to an organized bike ride (the kind where you pay and they support the course). I’m being a brat about it, because I’ll have to do one of the shorter courses (the 35) while he does the 100K (62). The 35 isn’t the shortest- the 20 is for the families/fat tires etc., but to me it still feels like the equivalent of doing the “fun run” and not the main race. I’m just feeling sorry for myself since I feel like I’ve been off from running forever. It is a pretty flat route (basically up at the TN/KY border) but I don’t think I could handle the 62.</p>
<p>Consolation- how frightening! Glad you are OK.</p>
<p>MOWC…Sorry you still can’t run! I kind of know how you feel about the bike race. H and D2 are doing a a little 3 mile walk for heart disease and I had to decline. Even though I am biking daily at the gym I didn’t think my knee would hold up walking the distance. I am a little embarassed about it actually.</p>
<p>I’ve been biking for a while…granted…a weekend warrior on that front…but I’m quite sure I couldn’t handle 62 miles at this point - even all flat. The most I’ve done so far is around 40 miles but I must say some of the hilly shorter rides I’ve done have left me more weary. I guess it’s all what you’re used to. MOWC,…you’ll probably have fun regardless. And even with your injury, your blowing must of us away…:)</p>
<p>Consolation…sorry about that hip pain. I’ve been struggling with nagging lower back pain for months now. Wakes me up at night…in fact it’s worse at night and doesn’t seem to bother me during most activities (thank God). It does hurt when I sneeze though! It’s worrisome and I really should go to a doc. But I know how crazy difficult it is to diagnose lower back pain.</p>
<p>Toneranger - about your back pain. DH had similar pain about 8 years ago. He was fine during the day, but the pain would wake him up at night. His sister is physical therapist who teaches grad students - she said that when pain occurs mostly in a.m. or with inactivity it is likely arthritis. Movement is key. She recommended a new mattress, stretching exercises similar to Pilates, and if possible manipulation by chiropractor or PT. He followed her suggestions and in about two months was much better. Good luck!</p>
<p>Thanks WIP. What kind of mattress? We bought a new one (foam) from Marriott about two years ago. Not cheap. H likes it. Don’t want to have to go with twins…ack. </p>
<p>I do yoga regularly. Lately, it hasn’t been helping much. Tried a chiro too but I didn’t think he was very good. I should probably give another one a try (they differ in quality I’m sure).</p>
<p>I live right near a beautiful pond and went out kayaking with some friends last night to check out the full moon–just before dark. I found the kayaking enjoyable, but it didn’t cause me to break out in a sweat. I was wearing my heart rate monitor/watch and was surprised to find out that I burned almost no extra calories. Granted I wasn’t racing or anything but I was paddling for almost 90 minutes. My question–how do you get your heart rate up when kayaking? Is that possible?</p>
<p>toneranger, look up sciatica on the Mayo Clinic site. I think they even say something about it being worse when you sneeze.</p>
<p>Bromfeld- I hear you about kayaking. My arms would wear out before I could get my HR high. It’s because you aren’t using the big muscle groups (legs). It does burn some calories, but unless you are on the crew team, not that many.</p>
<p>I lost a pound. Since I don’t weigh too much to begin with, I’m kind of surprised at how that might have happened. I am working at this new job, and I don’t feel as relaxed as usual, and I’m eating less.</p>
<p>Well, duh. I guess I know how it happened. I just explained it, didn’t I.</p>
<p>I’m trying to eat a reasonable amount every day, but my schedule is kind of funky, so it’s not always working.</p>
<p>Edit…nvm.</p>
<p>Bromfield-on calm water, it’s difficult. If there are currents, winds, tides, etc., I can definitely feel my heartrate going up. I’ve gone against the current in a tidal river when it felt like my heart was going to burst it beat so hard (don’t have a monitor), and the same is true when I’m in open water, going against the tide.</p>
<p>Also, if there’s a strong crosswind, you can use up a lot of energy trying to go straight, especially if youi don’t have a rudder.</p>
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<p>I bet it wouldn’t take me long to get my heartrate up while paddling a kayak. You could try smoking for thirty years or putting on some extra weight. Either of those would do it! :)</p>
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<p>This is true. I can sit on the stability ball doing dumbell lifts, like a curl and press, and basically go until my arms burn and not see high heartrates or heavy breathing. I’m limited only by muscle fatigue. However, if I do the same lift while doing leg squats, or stepping up and down, or lunge walking, my heartrate and breathing go up immediately because now I’m using large muscles and moving my entire bodyweight while also doing the arm exercises. It’s a pretty dramatic difference.</p>
<p>^^^^Lunges do it for me. Oh, the burn…</p>
<p>:(…So depressing! I weighed in this morning and am up almost 2 pounds! I have just completed 105 total miles on the bike and treadmill this week. I have been measuring and weighing food. How could this happen!!! I had three glasses of wine this week as my only cheat. So discouraging!</p>
<p>NM, what you need to be so proud of is the level of endurance you have built. </p>
<p>Face it, the two of us are never going to be swimsuit models. Even if we achieve our desired weight, Victoria Secret and Sports Illustrated are never going to call. But we can avoid being the mom or grandma who can’t go the graduation because she can’t walk up the stairs in the arena. We can avoid saying “oh, you just go ahead” when the rest of the group is climbing the Leaning Tower of Pisa. </p>
<p>Yes, we all want to look our best, but health and fitness are what matters in the long haul.</p>
<p>NM, I’ve learned that my weight just cycles. Sometimes I am up two pounds for no apparent reason, but it usually goes down again. I had three parties on Saturday - and ate too much baklava (but it was soooo good!) and drank too much wine (though only at party number one - I had seltzer at party number two and coffee at party number three). No surprise when I was up three pounds on Sunday. By Wednesday, I’d lost a pound and a half and expect that today will have taken care of the rest.</p>
<p>Being in good shape is as important as losing weight. And remember muscle really does weigh more than fat.</p>
<p>NMINN:</p>
<p>I hear ya. Since Monday, I have lost 2 pounds, gained 2 pounds, and lost 2 pounds. Nothing to explain any of that. Just the way weight fluctuates. And, I’m talking weighing myself at the same time every day, jump out of bed, hop on the scale, get dresssed.</p>
<p>I think you really have to look at long term trends. You also have to know that all the cardio you are doing is helping you gain fitness and will pay dividends in many ways, including the way your clothes fit.</p>
<p>Having said that, I’m not an expert, but my iPod nazi swears that cardio expercise, while an essential part of a fitness program, is not sufficient by itself either for well-rounded fitness training or fat loss. I think he’s probably right. Cardio is really to improve aerobic capacity. I’m sold on body weight, large muscle resistance/weight training as the other prong of a complete workout program – especially core muscle development. I’m talking simple stuff that builds muscle tone in all the large muscles and burns calories both during the workouts and for hours afterwards.</p>
<p>NM, the same thing happened to me this week. I just decided that the scale had gone insane and decided to ignore it.</p>