It was really cold this morning so I figured I needed to add some extras to my walking outfit. I had been cleaning out the console in my vehicle the other day and found a pair of large gloves. I decided to wear those today and use some hand warmer packs. That worked really well as the gloves fit quite loosely and that meant the warmers worked so well that I actually had to take them off a couple times. I also added a gaiter which for those who don’t know is really just a neck scarf. I guess I made the right decision because I stayed nice and warm.
Last week my husband came down with a cold. While he tried his best to keep it from me including sleeping downstairs in the family room, by Saturday I knew I was about to get hit with it. My colds always start in my throat and by time I got to Sunday I had a baritone voice. However, I didn’t feel too bad. I went to the gym as normal yesterday but afterwards instead of going for my 10 km walk I came home and crawled straight in to bed. I then spent the rest of the day doing absolutely nothing which seems to have worked because I feel much better today.
I have my personal go to list of products to use when I have a cold. I am a firm believer in using decongestants especially at night. I simply can’t sleep if I’m all clogged up. I also like to use cough medicine and there is one brand in particular that has a no-sugar added version which works for me. I always ‘read the label’ when buying OTC products and I have to say one of the cough medicines I was looking at for my husband had pretty scary warnings about significant damage to the liver which could result in liver failure or even death. Yeah, I left that one on the shelf.
About 40 years ago my Mom was working in the postal outlet at a pharmacy. I dropped in to talk to her one day and mentioned I was coming down with a cold. Her boss, the pharmacist and owner, immediately brought me over some zinc supplements and told me to take them until the cold was gone and in future do the same whenever I felt a cold coming on. I was skeptical but I admit the cold wasn’t that bad and only lasted a few days. Ever since then zinc is my absolute go to product. There have been numerous studies done on zinc’s ability to block the rhinovirus (cold) from getting in to human cells. Some studies did not find any results but others found that taking zinc reduces the virus’ life span (less time sick) and the symptoms. That is what I have experienced over the years but there is also a few things to watch for. I never take zinc on an empty stomach (I only made that mistake once) and because supplements are much higher than the RDA, I stop taking them as soon as I feel I am out of the woods with the cold.
There is one other thing I am doing, staying away from people. Yes, I went to the gym again today but I am back to the keeping 2 meters away from everyone (and at our gym each of us disinfects our weights at the end of the session). Today I should be cofacilitating my caregivers’ support group but everyone who attends are seniors so I don’t want to risk infecting any of them. I’ll see how I am doing tomorrow and decide then if I will join my weekly coffee group.
I think the bottom line is that when dealing with a cold just do what works best to help you get through it. Yes, go for those comfort foods you might not normally indulge in (for me it was a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup for dinner last night). Get lots of rest, drink plenty of fluids and keep away from other. Here’s hoping that once this cold is over I don’t get another one for a while.
I have always lived by the rule that Christmas decorations do not go up before December 1st. Nor is there any Christmas music played in the house or in my vehicle. But this year my sister and I decided screw that, the season is going to be hard for us this year so we are going to make it super happy. And so tomorrow the tree is going up and the outside lights will be turned on and our Christmas season will officially have started. And, every week in December we will be doing something fun with several events already booked. I also have committed to myself that rather than be sad I am only going to think of happy memories with my lil’ bro’.
Over the past few months I have really worked on building my confidence during fitness classes. When I first started at my fitness centre in June 2023 there were so many things I wasn’t willing to try. I had some pretty good rationale though. Couldn’t do things that caused me to bend my cranky knee very much. I couldn’t lift heavier weights over my head because of my stenosis. I couldn’t stand on platforms etc because I fell through a ceiling more than 30 years ago and it destroyed my knee and so was terrified of even trying. But, that is now all gone.
I think it started when many months ago we were supposed to do pull ups. To do these the instructor sets up several large rubber bands elevated between 2 posts. You then climb on a bench and step on the bands and pull yourself up until your face is level to the top bar. The first time this was explained to me I was like, hell no I am not doing that. But then the next time pull ups were part of a class, I thought ok, try it once in the 4 rounds. I did it! Then the next time it was one of the exercises I told the negative thoughts in my head to piss off and all 4 rounds I did pull ups (note, the instructors were great about giving me a different exercise when I didn’t want to do the pull ups). Now I’m like, hell yeah I got this.
But lately I have been going even further. I realized that there is absolutely no reason why I can’t push my knee to see how far my knee will bend especially when I am not in pain. Having said that, there are a couple things I learned a while ago that I can’t do 1) bench step ups (it just simply does not bend enough to do that) and 2) split squats (those cause serious pain). Otherwise it is game on and I will try everything and push myself as long as it doesn’t caused real pain.
I should note kneeling is also out because the cranky knee is so full of arthritis and scar tissue that it causes a lot of debilitating pain. But, there is a positive side to this, I can’t do push ups and planks the easier way by doing them from my knees, rather I have to do the full on exercise. I confess at first I would do these from the bench but I gave that up a long time ago and now I do the full version.
The same can be said for using light weights for exercises involving lifting them over my head. I realized that unless I am having a stenosis flare up there is no reason for me not to at least try. Yes, I sometimes start with a heavier weight and then have to go to lighter ones but that is just because my muscles are seriously fatigued, not because I don’t think I can do it. Even doing squats I have bumped up how much weight I am holding and surprise, surprise, it hasn’t killed me.
Today I realized this has all been about my own confidence. I have always been able to do these things I just was afraid I would fail. So while doing reverse lunges today (the original exercise was get ups which is going down on one knee then the other then getting up one knee at a time which there is no way for me to do without being in extreme agony) I asked the instructor if my back knee was close to the floor. She said that wasn’t the point of the exercise to which I replied that it is to me. So she watched me and I was thrilled to learn I am very close to being able to hit the floor with both knees. Damn I have come a long way!
At the end of a brutal class today I made a new commitment to myself, I am a little more than 13 months away from the 30th anniversary of my 30th birthday (think about what I am really saying) and I intend to be in the best shape that I have ever been. By that I mean in even better shape than I am in today. Oh, and I am confident that I can meet that goal.
Every morning when I leave for my walk right now my husband laughs at me. Apparently it is because usually absolutely nothing I am wearing matches. For example, yesterday I was wearing a bright orange reflective toque, bright yellow reflective jacket, green camouflage sweatpants and navy blue runners with bright pink laces. Now I admit that is not exactly colour coordinated but it certainly should make me visible.
The last several weeks I have really been trying to improve my form. I mean, I am pretty good about things like watching my core, keeping my knees from going past my toes when doing squats, holding the barbells equally, etc. But I realized there are some extra things I could do that might give me just a little bit more. And so I started doing things like turning my feet out just slightly when doing squats, holding dumbbells in positions that allow me to use heavier weights, making sure to drop straight down when doing lounges and repositioning my pullups to better do scap pulls.
Today I realized this has really been paying off. I watched myself doing squats and I am dipping down much further (squats are always limited by the fact that my cranky knee only bends so far). I also know that doing my lounges my back knee is getting closer to the ground. Normally when doing weights where I have to lift above my head I go with 10 lbs but now I am sometimes fully comfortable with 15 lbs. These are all major improvements to what I am capable of doing and all of it is just from adjusting slightly. Truly I never thought I would willingly be trying to do scap pulls.
You know you are improving when the instructor comes over and removes one of the bands that you are standing while doing pullups because it was too easy for you and you gratefully let her do it. Yes, there are major impacts from improving my form.
We are exactly one month since we did our Provincial election. My role in this has been that of the Financial Agent for one of our candidates. Yes, it now seems every time we have some sort of election I end up the financial agent. This time though I was doing a lot of the work from our condo in Mexico. Still, having enough experience now means it is not that much of a challenge. Today I happily learned that our books will not have to be audited which is awesome. Now if I can just get the last bill submitted then I can file all my elections reports.
First winter storm of the season (yes I know it is still fall) is about to land. As a matter of fact in some cities in Metro Vancouver last night they had snow. But the one about to come through is being called a bomb cyclone. That means we are about to get hit with massive winds and lots of rain (I see the treadmill being used tomorrow). It will also bring on a bit of a cold front with the temperature feeling like close to zero.
I’ve been watching the weather and plan on doing what I can to be able to continue walking outdoors. I have picked up some leggings to where underneath my sweatpants. I have added more layers under my jacket. I have been wearing a toque for a while. I also have pulled out the heavy duty gloves and likely will start adding hand warmers to them. Finally today I even put on a small neck gaiter (note to self, need a much bigger, warmer one). I have even started wearing thicker socks to keep my feet warm.
But we are prepared in other ways. While normally the windows in our bathrooms are cracked open a small amount as there are no exhaust fans in them, those have been closed to avoid really cold air being blown in. I have checked the batteries in our lanterns and all is good. We always ensure we have non-perishables stored away though we are lucky that we have a gas stove allowing us to cook during a power failure. And everything else that needs to be battened down has been. Overall I think we are ready.
So, bracing ourselves for the weather ensures we are as prepared as possible to endure a bomb cyclone. The only thing I don’t have the ability to prepare for is if the storm is raging and the power is out tomorrow morning. That would mean no outdoor walking nor treadmilling. It actually might also mean I simply roll over and go back to sleep.
Yesterday I did my normal 10km walk at 7am and quickly realized it was quite chilly. Now I do tend to layer clothing this time of year so had on a long sleeved t-shirt followed by a fleece pullover and then my reflective jacket. I also had on gloves and my reflective toque. However, I just had on my normal walking pants and my legs got pretty cold quickly. And so seeing that it was going to be really brisk this morning I want and bought a pair of leggings (which were on sale quite cheap) and this morning set off wearing those under a pair of sweatpants. Boy was I glad I did that because it was at freezing level. I also changed out my gloves from being a light pair of magic gloves to a thick pair. While my face was still pretty cold the rest of me was good.
Yesterday I got to the gym and realized that I had what felt like a stich on my left side. I figure it was likely because I had slept in an awkward position. Despite the slight pain I still managed to get through the class and actually pushed myself a bit. But then I got to thinking about it and realized I often have some sort of pain particularly in my joints. Don’t get me wrong, I have lived with having pain in my bad knee for more than 3 decades. Then of course is the spinal stenosis which manifests in my shoulders. And now I have that whole ankle issue happening. But there are different aches and pains going on.
Today was Power Hour which is one of my favourite classes. At one point we were doing high pulls and I all of a sudden recognized that my left elbow hurt when I did that movement (I switched to shoulder presses). In thinking of it I acknowledged that this wasn’t the first time I had felt that pain. As a matter of fact I sometimes feel pain in most of my joints. I’m not sure with this one if it is tendonitis or maybe more arthritis (I know I have arthritis in the bad knee as well as in my shoulders). But then it hit me, I’m actually getting old.
As of last Sunday I am 14 months away from turning 60. I guess I have to deal with the fact that I am heading towards being a senior soon. Whoa, not sure how that happened. But knowing that I am not 18 anymore I realize that I am likely just having the normal aches and pains that come with aging. Are they going to stop me from doing what I am doing? Hell no! I truly believe that if I keep moving it will stave off even worse pain. Moreover, I like the idea of being a super fit senior.
And so I will just keep doing the moaning, groaning and creaking every time I get up. I will also keep going to my fitness classes and walking because those are the things that tend to make me feel good.
We’ve had horrible weather the past few mornings. Of course that means I had to use the treadmill. I did about 1 hour 15 minutes on it yesterday and as usual hated it. Today it was an hour and then I thought maybe try the recumbent bike. And so I tried that which of course meant using a whole new set of muscles. That was really not the problem, it was it is just as boring as using the treadmill. Sigh, I hate it when we are in the rainy season.
This past week grief has been everywhere. It started with recognizing that it has been 5 months since my brother passed away. That in itself is hard enough as I still miss him. Then Saturday we went to a gathering for our neighbour’s father who ironically had the same 1st name as my brother. We didn’t know him well but since we adore his son and his family there was no way we would miss it. 2 days later that same neighbour let us know that at the Remembrance Day ceremonies the Legion called out my brother’s name as someone that was lost this year. To top it all off a former co-worker passed away.
So you would think that would be enough to deal with but no, there was more. Tuesday I received a text that a former BC Premier, John Horgan, had passed away that morning. John was an extremely popular premier and many people in BC are mourning his loss. But for me it went deeper than that. John and I worked together on many issues within the energy industry when he was the official Energy Critic. We became good friends and so his passing at age 65 was just another hit for the week.
Again I thought I was done but fate would have just one more to pile on. It wasn’t that someone else had passed rather it was a memory on FaceBook that 10 years ago today my sister found her partner dead in his apartment after having suffered a heart attack during the night. Her partner was actually a friend of mine before they got together and my heart broke when we lost him Sadly that reminder just added on to the weight of the grief I was feeling this week.
But, it’s ok. We are taking my sister out for a drink this afternoon and we will take a moment and celebrate all of them. I am not letting all of this get to me today, instead I am going to remember the good times with each of them because really it is time to just take in the fond memories.
Ok, time for this week’s goal because I crushed last week’s goal. Yes, an average of 3 hours of workouts each day. So what to do this week? Frankly I have been lax in my fibre intake so this week my goal is to increase it by at least 25%. Let’s see how that goes.
So Monday is Remembrance Day here in Canada and I realized that for me it is time to do some reflection. Moreover today was the remembrance for my neighbour’s Dad. I’m going to start with that. Our heart broke when we learned our friend’s Dad had passed having been through this so recently. It was such an amazing open house today with great food and wine. The speech our neighbour did to remember his Dad made me have tears in my eyes. Ironically, our neighbour’s Dad had the same name as my brother so each time we toasted it was to the Drews.
Monday is Remembrance Day which has always been a big deal to my family because our Dad was a WW II veteran. Normally we would all go celebrate at the local Legion with a bunch of our friends. But this year we have decided it is time to make new memories. We will not be going to the Legion but rather some local craft beer places. We will spend the day remembering those that we have lost but more importantly what Dad did for our country.
And so this year we will remember all of those we have lost this year as well as in the past. I’ll end this on saying, thanks Dad, because of you I have the freedoms I have this now.
As I was leaving the gym yesterday the instructor told everyone if they were as down as she was over Tuesday night they should take a page out of my book and go for a long walk (I did do this and it didn’t help all that much). She also suggested we all do a self care day and stay off of social media. And so for the first time in I don’t know how long I intentionally avoided both FB and X. You know, I am kind of glad I did. As an added bonus I sat on the couch reading a book after dinner which is something I haven’t done at home for a long time.
Tuesday I was out doing a walk to a community service office where I do my Caregivers’ Support Group sessions. On my way I was at an intersection with traffic lights and entered the crosswalk when the white lighted walking symbol came on. I noticed as I was crossing a large group of children (I’d say 8 or 9 years old) coming towards me. As I stepped up on to the curb on the opposite side I looked up and the hand flashing signal was now on and it showed 11 seconds remaining. Much to my astonishment the teacher leading the first group of children led them into the crosswalk anyways. Then a second teacher led her group into the crosswalk when there was only 6 seconds remaining. Not all of the children managed to get to the other side of the crosswalk before the traffic lights changed.
I was disgusted by those teachers. Leading those children into a risky situation is just not acceptable. Not only were they putting them in danger but they were also teaching them that this kind of behaviour is ok. Needless to say I have sent an email to the school advising them of what happened. I should note there were two other groups but their teachers correctly opted to wait for the next light before crossing.
Pedestrian safety is not just about keeping yourself safe from drivers who are distracted or who ignore the rules, it is also about pedestrians obeying the rules. Having said that, let’s review what the signals on crosswalks indicate. 1) the white lighted walking symbol means it is safe to enter the crosswalk. Actually it is the only symbol that allows you to do so. 2) the red flashing hand with the seconds counting down indicates it is not safe to enter the crosswalk and the seconds indicate how long those already in the intersection have to finish crossing. 3) the solid red hand is clear, DO NOT ENTER the crosswalk. These are simple signals designed to keep pedestrians safe but also to allow those turning right on a green light to be able to do so.
So when you are out walking think about your responsibility when using a crosswalk and for god’s sake, obey the signals.
Yesterday when I got up at 4am the weather was terrible. I headed off to the gym as usual but when I was coming back home I swear the wind and rain were even worse. Of course being Monday it is walk day with the seniors. However, I took the stance that given all the debris flying around it simply was not safe to walk which trust me the seniors all agreed to immediately. Still got my daily hour workout in which of course is this week’s goal.
So today was a new class at the gym. Normally on Tuesdays we do a strength and mobility class (we do the same on Wednesdays just with a different instructor). Last week the Tuesday instructor announced she was shaking things up and going to more of a bootcamp style class. While I like the strength and mobility classes, bootcamp classes tend to have more cardio which I really like. I was actually looking forward to trying this class and I am happy to report it lived up to my expectations.
The new name for the Tuesday 5:30am class is Reboot (Rebecca’s Bootcamp). While this was not a step class we did make good use of the step platforms. In total we did 3 rounds of a a group of exercises. You would do the group for 40 seconds with a 10 second rest and repeat this 3 times. Then in between round 1 and 2 and then again between 2 and 3 it was a 2 minute cardio set. What I liked about today was each group had an intense focus on a group of muscles. The leg section was amazing with many squats being done using the step platforms. The group with arms allowed me to challenge myself and instead of doing triceps kickbacks I instead did full on triceps dips from the bench. Let me assure you that the 3rd time doing those and my triceps were screaming. And finally was the core section which I always find the most challenging.
Now don’t get me wrong, most of the instructors in whatever class I attend ensures you work all your muscles. I think this one was different to me because there were several new exercises thrown into the mix and the significant use of the step platform.
Overall I really enjoyed this change and I can’t wait to see what we are going to do next week.
Yesterday I had no choice, I had to walk on the treadmill. It was pouring rain and was cold most of the day. I know I can’t do 2 consecutive hours on that boring piece of equipment so I split it up into 2-1 hour walks and hated every minute of it. After that I opted to give up for the day (ok I was able to get in another 1/2 hour walk when the weather cleared later in the afternoon) though then felt bad because my goal this week was an average of 3 hours of walking each day Monday to Friday. However, when I added up the hours I had actually achieved that goal and will get in another 3 hours today.
I’ve come to realize that I need to go back to setting weekly goals for myself. To me this really helps keep me focused on where I want to be. I seem to stay on track much better when I have something that I want to achieve. I want to feel my own sense of accomplishment when I have done what I set out to do. Sure I could just set a goal every day but I find that less challenging, I want something i have to complete for the full 7 days.
Now there is a downside to this, I have a tendency to beat myself up if I miss achieving a goal. I often let it get into my head that I have failed. To avoid this I try to set goals that are realistic but challenging. Knowing what my schedule is like for the next few weeks I have to tailor my goals to not put so much mental pressure on myself that I get stressed. I really was good at doing this for about 9 months when I started at the fitness centre but somehow I let it slide.
This week’s goal is realistic, at least 1 hour of exercise every day. I’m starting with this one because I have gotten a little complacent about Sundays. It started happening in Mexico but then stuck around so that last Sunday when the alarm rang I just turned it off and went back to sleep. Let me assure you 6 days a week I do my fitness classes and then walking so Sunday I give myself a bit of a break but I need to do something.
And so tomorrow, which is when I consider the week starting, whatever time I get up (likely early because of the time change) I am going to head out for an hour walk. I also think but putting my weekly goals here you can also hold me accountable to them.
gwennefarrell 