<p>Our Jungle Gym came today but we are leaving for CO in the early morning. Not that I can even MOVE with these broken ribs. There are no installation instructions at all with it. Any tips? We have overhead beams. H likes to have some instructions.</p>
<p>Well that didn’t last long. I don’t know if I’m an addict, lack willpower or just plain stupid. I ran today.</p>
<p>After a 17 mile bike ride today, a buddy suggested that I go on a 5 mile run. He said maybe I couldn’t handle his pace.My knees were feeling decent TODAY and I thought a small little run wouldn’t hurt.</p>
<p>Think I need a sponsor and a 12 step program to stay off the roads. Plus probably not a good idea to associate with other runners if I’m going on a running hiatus.</p>
<p>I hear you, Ohio. I jogged 4 steps in my sandals just to see if my ribs would let me run. The answer was NO. </p>
<p>MOWC, so sorry! Sending healing thoughts your way.</p>
<p>3 miles walking. Slow but steady. 
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<p>No Jungle Gym with broken ribs! :)</p>
<p>Here’s a video showing the standard mount:</p>
<p><a href=“LifelineUSA Jungle Gym XT: Proper Cinch Installation - YouTube”>LifelineUSA Jungle Gym XT: Proper Cinch Installation - YouTube;
<p>I bolted a 2 x 4 across four beams and wrapped the Jungle Gym around the 2 x 4 as shown in the video. You could also install a couple of BIG eye-bolts into beams and thread the Jungle Gym as shown.</p>
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<p>Back a day early from camping/hiking. Weather forecast was originally for showers Wed afternoon, which gave me time to pack up Wed morning. But, the forecast deteriorated. Heavy rain and flash floods staring after midnight tonight. Packing up a tent and tarp and so forth in the pouring rain is not my idea of fun, so I figured I’d pack up today and beat the rain. Life’s too short!</p>
<p>As it was, the overhead tarp came in very handy. I got rain showers both nights while I was grilling my dinner (yum… I out did myself as I get the hang of my new port-a-grill). I’m getting the hang of easy camp cooking and cleanup. Everything for a meal goes in one freezer bag. Steak drops from the bag onto the grill. Corn on the cob is already buttered, salted. an wrapped in foil to drop on the grill. Serve it on a plastic plate. Everything goes in the trash except for one fork, one folding camping, knife, and one set of bbq tongs to wash. Easy peasy and so good… </p>
<p>Really nice camping. My favorite campground was completely full with summer family camping. I got a site in the tent loop away from the pop up trailers. A couple dozen tent sites along a brook. Fun to see the wide array of tent setups. My setup takes a couple of hours to put up and take down, but it’s functional and very comfortable. I slept like a baby.</p>
<p>Awesome hike on Monday. Champney Falls and Mt. Chocorua on the infamous Kancamagus Highway. It’s one that’s been on my bucket list, but I didn’t think I was ready for (distance) until now. Garmin says 9 miles up and back. 2400 feet of elevation gain including some steep rock scrambles. I was out of gas at the end. I screwed up mixing my energy shakes and only went with half-strength compared to my usual concoction. Probably not enough fuel. Video tomorrow.</p>
<p>Thanks, iDad. That helps. Glad you had another good excursion!</p>
<p>Hi to NorthM!!! A three mile walk sounds lovely! Brought my walking shoes to work today - been hunched over at my desk all week working on grants and a noon time walk sounded like good mental therapy.</p>
<p>Nice 30 min run last night - after being warm, extremely rainy and extremely humid the last couple of days, the weather turned last night - and it felt like a windy fall night. Not quite ready to give up summer by any means, but it was also nice to turn the AC off for a bit! </p>
<p>Yet another hiking video:</p>
<p>[Champney</a> Falls and Mt. Chocorua](<a href=“Champney Falls Trail - YouTube”>Champney Falls Trail - YouTube)</p>
<p>MOWC:</p>
<p>Another option for mounting the Jungle Gym in the basement:</p>
<p><a href=“CHINNING UNITS”>http://www.newyorkbarbells.com/chinning.html</a></p>
<p>Depending on your exact beam/joist configuration, mount one of these chin up bars to the beam and then hang the straps from that. You said you were looking for some new upper body exercises! Kill two birds with one stone.</p>
<p>Jungle Gym also makes wall/ceiling mount anchors:</p>
<p><a href=“LifelineUSA Jungle Gym XT Wall Anchors - YouTube”>LifelineUSA Jungle Gym XT Wall Anchors - YouTube;
<p>Or, if you have standard exposed floor joists, you could get one of these 8-steel sign posts from Home Depot:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.homedepot.com/p/Brady-8-ft-Steel-U-Channel-Sign-Post-97204/100676656”>http://www.homedepot.com/p/Brady-8-ft-Steel-U-Channel-Sign-Post-97204/100676656</a></p>
<p>It would bolt across six joists with a 3/8 inch lag bolt in each joist and would be strong as heck. This would be a fancier version of what I had with a 2x4 spanning several joists.</p>
<p>Thanks. We have engineered wood joists which are 2 feet tall and holey. They are made of 2x4s. He seems to know what he wants to do. I don’t understand it exactly. :)</p>
<p>MoWC, I’m sorry to hear about the ribs. What terrible luck. </p>
<p>I’m up north for a family visit and so enjoying the cool weather. What a change! I’ve been taking in the beautiful scenery while walking and running. My son and I have a temporary Y membership, so we went to tackle the weights today. I thought of you all earlier in the week when I flew through Chicago, avoided the moving walkways and escalators and opted to walk through the neon tunnel between concourses and climb up and down the stairs, lugging my too heavy carry-ons. It’s not so hard to create a decent little workout that way.</p>
<p>Beautiful weather in this part of the “north” right now - hope you’re enjoying the warm but not hot and warm but not cold weather! </p>
<p>Thanks Plantmom. It’s really, really painful. I know I’ve been in lots of pain before from bruised ribs, but knowing they are broken somehow makes it worse. We traveled all day (got up at 3:30) to Crested Butte, so I’m in my happy place. The rent car is NOT a good one and bothers my ribs- 2 door Altima. I did OK on the plane. I’m regretting declining the pain meds because maybe I woukd at least be able to sleep at night if I took a small dose. Looking forward to walking and hiking, though.</p>
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You are in Crested Butte? My D is there for the summer.</p>
<p>Sorry about your ribs… rib injuries are so painful. I pulled cartilage between two ribs once and thought I was having a heart attack. Every breath felt like someone sliding a knife in me. Hope you feel better.</p>
<p>MOWC, can your doc call in a scrip to a local pharm there??? No need to suffer while out of town…</p>
<p>Notrichenough- I’ll look for her! We love it here.
Abasket- I’ll up my Tylenol. I don’t do well with pain meds generally. It settles down for awhile. Then I get the knife stabbing pain. Walking and standing upright are OK. I’m in long sleeves! </p>
<p>^ She’s staying in Gothic at the Lab. She is coming home tomorrow. :D</p>
<p>She hiked a bunch of 12,000+ foot peaks. The scenery is spectacular. </p>
<p>I’ve read that it is less painful to sleep on the side with the busted ribs, although that seems counter-intuitive. </p>
<p>I do (well- not this year) a run from the Gothic lab back to downtown Crested Butte. I walk parts of it. It’s beautiful and hard. The last 3 miles are a huge downhill. That is so neat that she got to be here!</p>
<p>I like to sleep on my side, but getting there is a problem…</p>
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<p>GT Alum:</p>
<p>I feel your pain. After two years of immaculate cholesterol tests, mine went to hell in a hand basket with absolutely no change in diet since the prior test. LDL went from 106 to 172. Triglycerides went from 32 to 80. Particle count went from 1050 to 1300. The triglycerides were the most surprising. I suspect that it was the cumulative effect of three fancy restaurant meals in the days before the bloodwork (concert week), all of which were big carb/sugar fests (compared to my usual diet). I eat so little sugar normally that seeing triglycerides increase like that is hard to figure.</p>
<p>In your case, the particle number would be the only one that would really concern me. Typically, the particle number would be 10 times the LDL. So an LDL of 130 would lead you to expect a particle count of 1300. When the two don’t match, you’ve got “discordance”. Your moderately high triglycerides and high LDL particle number suggest a bit of insulin resistance. The liver dumps triglycerides into the blood in the form of VLDLs, which become LDL particles after a few hours, but they don’t contain much LDL cholesterol (since they are carrying triglycerides). Hence a large number of LDLs compared to the amount of LDL. This usually suggests a need to cut sugar, grains, and carbs in general. It sounds like you’ve already done that (and the 10 pound weight loss tends to confirm the benefit of that). Although your doc would probably not agree, I think there’s reason to think that these numbers are all out of whack during a period of active fat loss. A 10 pound loss is a pretty significant change for you.</p>
<p>Maybe you’ll see more improvement in time as you continue no sugar, no grains and your weight stabilizes? Are carbs still high from something else? Maybe it’s just the luck of the genetic draw?</p>
<p>I don’t know what I would do in your case. There’s never been a study that shows improved health outcomes from statins in women of any age. And, in population studies, women with your LDL cholesterol live longer than women with low LDL. So, overall, I probably wouldn’t be that concerned. But, Thomas Dayspring would be really concerned about the 1900 particle count. He would go strict low carb and a statin and maybe a second drug to bring it down.</p>
<p>On the flip side, there are people who are hyper-absorbers of cholesterol in the diet. These are the people who tend to benefit from lowering dietary cholesterol (which for most of us is barely a blip compared to the cholesterol our bodies make internally).</p>
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<p>In my case, I’m going to retest in three months and see if this one was a fluke.</p>