Wednesday, January 09, 2013

This is Where the Title Goes!

Yeah, I was totally at a loss when it came to naming the post :P

This morning I weighed on the thin side of 146, so I figure by Monday the scale will show a "loss" of 5+ pounds from this past Monday's high of 149.  "Loss" is in quotation marks because let's face it, 5+ pounds in one week for a woman of my weight* and height is ridiculous -- it's primarily water retention, and I know that.  But I have to say that I don't mind seeing the scale go down.

I am 100% on-track with both my food and my fluids, and I'm staying there.  I keep a tally of fluids, and I take in a minimum of 80 ounces of water per day, 18 ounces of unsweetened herbal tea (Tazo's "Passion" and a peppermint tea), 18 ounces of unsweetened caffeinated tea (1 cup Tazo's Green Ginger, 1 cup black mint), and a jeroboam of black coffee (okay maybe not quite that much, but at least 24 ounces).  Diet Coke also happens, but in much smaller quantities than it once did because one can't drink tons of Diet Coke while also consuming the rest of that mess. 

I used to sweeten at least the Passion, but I've since determined that if I can't justify actual, honest-to-gosh sugar in my tea and coffee, I'll drink them straight.  I already get more than enough artificial sweetener with the Diet Coke; I don't need to add more. 

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The Nia class I took last night was interesting on a few levels.  I'd heard about Nia for awhile and had been curious as to what it entailed, but we had no local providers -- the nearest class was an hour away.  That changed when one of my friends got herself certified in Nia.  She offered an open house for it, so I attended.  And I have to say... it's not my style?  Or perhaps it's just not for me at this time in my life.  It's got a "get in touch with your inner goddess" vibe to it, and my inner goddess is as much of a klutz as my outer goddess, so frankly she's no help.  Furthermore, neither my inner nor my outer goddess are fans of any sort of improvisational movement.  Moving in a choreographed fashion strains my abilities enough!

Also, I learned just how freaking awful my knees really are, in comparison to every other woman in that class.  The attendees ranged in age from early twenties to late sixties, and the lone standout, literally, was me.  The movements we used involved a lot of circling, knee bending, knee flexing, etc, and I... couldn't participate much of the time.  It sucked.  I felt old.

I've never really considered myself disabled or anything like that.  I mean, I have to be cautious with all lower-body exercises thanks to my knees.  My quads, hamstrings, and glutes are all affected by this.  But there are absolutely exercises I can do for them, and I do.  I'm just limited in how much I can do which means their potential development is less. 

I also have to be cautious with my aerobic exercise.  The terrain where I walk has to be stable or familiar lest I risk re-injury (unacceptable, because that means zero aerobic exercise until it's better).  Running is off the table.  It's too high-impact.  Even walking past a certain speed is a no-no.  I can go up to 4 MPH, which isn't godawful slow, but dang it cheeses me off.  So we're stuck with walking or the recumbent bicycle.

I know, I know.  Suck it up, Buttercup. I'm just annoyed.  Last night brought it home to me that I'm really in much worse shape with those joints than I'd realized. I've gotten used to it, and with the accommodations I tend to use for myself it's livable for the most part.  I'm accustomed to the near-constant twinge in my right knee.  It's normal for me to watch something to make sure if I can do it without hosing my joints yet again.  I. Am. Functional.  I look at my little brother who had two back surgeries at age 32, had another one less than two weeks ago, and who's using a walker. 

He's only 39.

I'm blessed, truly. 

Oh well.  I've been living with it awhile, I can keep on living with it.  I don't have the 6 weeks of zero driving time that surgical recovery would require, and even with this latest revelation I simply can't justify the expense or the way my entire family -- nuclear and extended -- would be inconvenienced by me being out of commission.  I can move, and I can exercise.  It's not the way I want to but it's the way I've got.

Whine over.  Humpday is here.  That's a good thing.  Carry on, folks!


*I know I weigh more than I prefer, but I also know that I'm still well within a normal weigh range for my height and age.

2 comments:

The Ninja said...

I can walk at pretty good clip, 4.5 is usually where I start to trot and jog a little, but i thinks it's because i like the bounce better than the Monthy Python-esque look of me trying to speed walk at 5.

Sorry to hear about the knees, but i know that's where im headed too, im genetically gifted that way.

Amanda said...

Thank you for this -- I know my knees are a genetic thing too, LOL, and it was probably just happenstance that no one else at last night's event had any knee issues. But DANG, I felt ancient and I know for a fact that at least three people there were 8+ years older than I am!