Leslie Sansone’s October Challenge: Week Two Schedule

(photo credit - www.collagevideo.com)

Well, week one went OK. I missed two days though, oops. Oh well, on to week two. I don’t plan on missing days this week. I weigh in every Monday morning, and this morning I was down one pound. I actually checked it three times, because I wasn’t sure if the scale was flat on the floor. But the needle was down one tick (yep, a needle scale, still thinking about the FitBit Aria scale).

So, the week two schedule has been posted. Here we go.

Monday, October 7 – 2 (or 3) miles.

Tuesday, October 8 – Full body strength (see the bottom of her blog post).

Wednesday, October 9 – 2 (or 3) miles.

Thursday, October 10 – Full body strength.

Friday, October 11 – 2 (or 3) miles.

Saturday, October 12 – Full body strength.

Sunday, October 13 – 2 (or 3) miles.

There you have it. Two or three miles today. Totally up to everyone as to what they want to do. I’m thinking I may do one or two miles with a DVD and then a mile on the elliptical. No miles to be done Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday, but I may do a DVD anyway since I skipped a few days last week.

Keep moving everyone. I have some blog posts I want to put up this week. Still need to write them though. Will work on that today. Have a great week!

World Cerebral Palsy Day 2013

Today’s the day! What is World Cerebral Palsy Day? Well, this sums it up. “World CP Day is a global innovation project to change the world for people living with cerebral palsy and their families. It is designed to gather ideas from people around the world and make the best of those ideas a reality.
The project is led by a group of non-profit cerebral palsy charities, and supported by organisations in over 30 countries.” (from http://en.worldcpday.org/about/)

You can find the World CP Day on FaceBook also, and a few weeks ago, they posted an interesting informational graphic.



(photo credit - http://en.worldcpday.org/about/)

I don’t know how big this picture will be on the blog, so go to this website to blow it up. http://en.worldcpday.org/assets/Uploads/about/WorldCPDayCP-Infographic.pdf

I found this information interesting, particularly all the statistics at the bottom. I usually describe my CP as ataxic, but I’ve recently discovered that I was never diagnosed with any particular type. Looking through the various types of CP, I’m leaning more toward the spastic description. My muscles and tendons are very tight and stiff. I also identify with the ataxic type because i do have bad balance. I don’t think my “sense of positioning in space” is impacted at all. Not really sure what that means, depth perception maybe?

The parts of me that are impacted are my right arm and left leg. My gross motor skills are technically level 2, but right now, I act more like a level 4. I’m working on that though. Get myself back to a level 2.

My manual ability is OK. I have no problems with eating, dressing, writing, or catching a ball. Although I do get hit in the head by a ball if I’m not expecting someone to throw it at me. When people start playing catch, I pay very close attention to who is throwing it. Been hit in the head by flying objects a lot over the years. The only real issue I have with getting dressed is buttons. I have a hard time with really tiny button on shirts. Also, the button has to be on correct side of the pants for me (the right side in my case).

I can walk and I can talk. I do experience pain from time to time, but it’s not as bad as is was a year ago before I started going to the chiropractor regularly. I have very tight muscles in my upper back and neck that are a pain frequently. I don’t have epilepsy, don’t have a behavior disorder, and I don’t have an intellectual impairment. I have no vision problems (almost 39 and still don’t wear glasses). I thankfully don’t have bladder control problems or a saliva control problem. And I don’t really have any sleep disorders other than the occasional hard time getting to sleep.

So, there you have it. Me in a nutshell. Not too bad. I got very lucky. My CP could have been a whole lot worse. I was lucky enough to have parents who didn’t treat me any different from my older sister. If I couldn’t do something, I’d get creative and find a way to get it done (still do that).

CP doesn’t get worse with age, although the impact on the body (joints, tendons and such) can deteriorate if they’re not worked. Walking ability also suffers if it’s not utilized often. That’s why I’m keeping up with exercise and trying to regain my confidence with walking.

I hope this information helps anyone out there wanting to know more about CP. Every case of CP is totally different. There are a lot of people with cerebral palsy that are trying to get more awareness of CP out there and help people understand this disability more. Here are links to a few of the people I keep up with whether it’s on FaceBook or through their blogs.

Charisse – FaceBook Page and YouTube Channel

CP Family Network – Website and FaceBook Page

Tina’s Blog – Living With Cerebral Palsy

Amelia's Blog - Life In The Blue Ridges

Have a great day and keep moving!!

Leslie Sansone’s October Challenge: Week One Schedule

(Photo Credit - http://www.walkathome.com/sansone/walk-it-off-in-30-days-challenge-week-1/)

OK, so Leslie Sansone posted the schedule for week one on her blog yesterday. She wants participants to choose a measurable goal to keep track of during the month. Either weigh yourself, take your measurements (waistline, hips, and upper arms), choose an outfit and see how the fit of it changes throughout the month, or have your healthcare provider check your vitals (blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol (blood lipids), resting heart rate, body fat percentage, and that sort of thing. You can also take not of how you feel mentally throughout the month.

Everything starts October 1. Weigh or measure yourself Tuesday and write it all down. Get your outfit picked out and ready to go. I think I’ll pick my weight. Even though I’m smack dab in the middle of my weight range, I would like to lose another 5 pounds. Set aside 30 to 45 minutes every day for exercise this months and write it down down on your calendar! This is why she’s posting the schedule every Sunday, so we all can plan our weeks.

Here’s the schedule for week one:

October 1 – Two mile walk.

October 2 – One mile in the morning, one mile in the evening, and core (abs) strength training.

October 3 – Two mile walk.

October 4 – One mile in the morning, one mile in the evening, and upper body strength training.

October 5 – Two mile walk.

October 6 – One mile in the morning, one mile in the evening, and lower body strength training.

There you go! The first week of exercise is planned out for you. I have my own strength training routine, but I don’t normally spread it all out. I do abs, arms, and legs all at the same time. However, I’ve done no strength training at all for the last several months, because my left arm has been bugging me. So this is a good way to ease back into it.

Leslie also says that if you have no way of tracking mileage, you should walk for 15 minutes or walk 2,000 steps to go approximately one mile. She also gives some suggestions for strength exercises on her blog post, so check it out.

Plan out your week, and let’s get it done! Important things is to keep moving no matter what!

Oops…Error No Mileage Monday Post

 

(photo credit: blog.extreme-advice.com)

My computer farted this morning, and I had to reinstall Windows 8.  Not sure what happened. I wasn’t even in the same room when it messed up. I came in and found my computer was shut down. When I started it, I got the blue screen of death. I’ve been installing programs and setting this up again for a while. Yippee.

So, no mileage Monday tomorrow. I do have several posts I need to write up and upload. I was hoping to write one of those today, but the schedule hasn’t been posted yet. Leslie Sansone is doing another month-long challenge, and is supposed to be posting the week’s workouts to her Twitter page sometime today. As soon as I get that, I’ll post it. I plan on doing some sort of Leslie Sansone workout every day in October, while still including my elliptical. Even if it’s just one mile (15 minutes) of Leslie Sansone.

Hopefully my computer won’t have any more problems. At least most of my files are stored on the cloud in one place or another. I did lose some stuff, but…that’s life sometimes. Keep moving!

Twenty Years Ago…

(photo credit - www.homoeopathynow.com)

I don’t remember the exact date, but it’s around this time of the year. Twenty years ago, I had one of the scariest experiences in my life. It was my first year of college, and that was scary enough. I’d never spent more than a night away from my parents, and even when I did spend the night at a friend’s house, I’d call to come home early (I was such a wimp). So, being away from home was a big deal.

About two or three weeks into the first quarter, I was on the phone with a friend who lived in the Atlanta area (about 90 miles from where I was). We were talking, and everything was fine. All of a sudden, I felt a dull ache in my lower back on the left side. I thought I was sitting oddly, so I shifted around a bit. Didn’t help, so I decided to stand up. Still didn’t help, and it in fact was getting worse.

I told my friend I had to go. Which was true, I was going to meet a friend from my English class for dinner in a bit. So I hung up, and I tried laying on my bed. The pain in my back just kept getting worse and worse. I tried laying on the floor, and still it got worse. I was starting to get scared at this point. Not sure what to do, I went and knocked on my suite-mate’s door (my roommate was out). No answer. I tried my friends down the hall, no answer. Luckily, the dorm’s resident assistance came out and saw me. I told her what was going on. As I was talking, I just couldn’t stand any longer. I slunk down along the wall, and actually laid down in the hallway.

She called 911 and an ambulance came. Freaked me out. I’d never been in an ambulance, let alone being laid out on a stretcher. The EMTs wheeled me out on the stretcher and put me in back of the ambulance. Everything after that point was a blur. I don’t remember much. I know I was sitting in a wheel chair talking to someone about medical insurance. I remember almost puking when I was being wheeled on a gurney (NEVER look at the ceiling if you’re being wheeled on a gurney). I remember having an unpleasant “womanly” exam (first ever, so was freaked out by that).

They came to the conclusion that it was either an ovarian cyst that had burst or a kidney stone. There was a test that they did to confirm it, and I remember signing a form that said one of the risks of the tests was death. I don’t remember the test other than having to be on an x-ray table in several awkward positions.

Turns out it was a kidney stone. I was in the hospital for 12 hours, 8 of which I was in excruciating pain. They didn’t want to give me anything for the pain until they knew what was wrong with me. It wasn’t pleasant I’ll tell you that.

The doctor said the cause of my stone was dehydration. I wasn’t getting enough water. I was drinking plenty, I was just drinking the wrong things, When I got thirsty, I grabbed a root beer or orange juice. I rarely drank straight water. Since that day twenty years ago, I usually drink water with every meal. If I’m out of town, I’ll have an alcoholic drink, but I also have water. I don’t think I’ve ordered a soda during a meal since that day. If I have, it’s only been a few times. Water for me all the way.

Too much soda, or even too much juice (orange and apple in particular) can lead to kidney stones. I make sure I only have one serving of juice when I do drink it.  Haven’t had any more kidney stones since, and I hope I never do again. I’ve heard several people who have had kidney stones say that the pain from a kidney stone is worse than the pain of childbirth. Ugh.

For several years after this incident, if I got a twinge in my lower back, my first reaction was always “Am I having another one?”. So far so good. As long as I keep chugging water, I doubt I’ll have any more of those nasty buggers.

So please, drink your water every day. Be careful with how much juice you drink. And please cut back on the soda. OK. I’m off to drink a gallon of water.

Mileage Monday

Still loving my FitBit Flex! It’s helping me to stay moving. I check my FitBit dashboard periodically throughout the day and watch those steps increase. Great motivator. Plus, I added a few SparkPeople members who also have FitBits to my FitBit friend list, and that’s another good motivator. See how many people I can beat step-wise. Not many. Some are able to get in 20,000 steps a day. How? I have a hard enough time getting 5,000. Right now, my daily goal is 8,000.

Am flying through the virtual walk lately because of my increased activity. Since my last Mileage Monday post, I’ve passed through the cities of Emmalena, KY and Dwarf, KY, both in Knott county. I have about 15.75 miles until I reach Chavies, KY in Perry county. Here a the pictures from the site!

Mile 639.8 (watp for 3.1 miles)                               Mile 640.8 (elliptical for 1 mile)

                

Mile 641.8 (elliptical for 1 mile)                               Mile 642.8 (elliptical for 1 mile)

                

Mile 646.8 (watp for 3.1 miles)                               Mile 648.8 (watp for 2 miles)

                

What’s motivating you to move more? Have a great week!

FitBit Flex: First Impressions

  

(photo credit – Me)

(left from top to bottom and left to right – 2 wrist bands, dongle, FitBit tracker, and USB cable)

(right from left to right – FitBit tracker and my wrist band)

This is not going to be a full review. This is just going to be my first initial impressions. I’ve had my FitBit Flex for a little over two weeks, and so far I love it. The setup on the FitBit website is super easy.

You plug your FitBit device into the USB port and it prompts you to download the desktop dashboard. It asks you to enter your name, age, height, and weight. From there, it syncs your information to the website, and generates basic goals (set up as “tiles”) for you to achieve. Daily step count, daily calorie burn, distance/miles, very active minutes, sleep, badges, and friends. I think those were the original tiles. I also added the weight tile, the calories in versus out tile, and the food plan tile. I’ll go into more detail about the tiles in my full review.

Thoughts on the wrist band. It’s very comfortable. It’s like wearing a watch. It’s very light weight, and the band is adjustable. They send you two wrist bands, a large and a small one. I wear the small band. The FitBit Flex counts steps every time your arm moves, so I had a wild thought the other day. I thought maybe the large wrist band would fit around my ankle. No such luck. So, it’s on my wrist. Some people choose to place the tracker in their sock, or for the ladies,  in their bra. I’ll stick to the wrist.

Charging the FitBit Flex is great. The website FAQ says the Flex should last about five days until it needs to be charged. Mine lasted for eight days, so I am very impressed by that. Charging the device is simple. You plug in the charging cord into a USB port, pop the tracker out of the wrist band, and pop it into the charger. I timed it, and it took about two hours to charge. It’s fully charged when all five lights are lit up. The first four lights popped up in about an hour. That last light took about another hour. Not too bad though. Two hours of charging for eight days usage.

Calorie calculation is interesting. Especially on my elliptical. On SparkPeople. when I enter the calories for a Leslie Sansone video it comes up as light aerobics and is about 230 calories burned. On FtBit, when I look at the time frame that I did the video, it comes up to about 286 calories burned. For my elliptical workout, my machine tells me I burn about 280 calories in 30 minutes. During that time frame on FitBit, it usually comes out to around 180. I believe that’s about right. I’ve always heard that cardio machines overestimate the calories burned. So, I’m trusting FitBit with my calorie burn.

The sleep tracker is awesome. I know I wake up several times during the night, so I was curious as to how this would register. To get the FitBit Flex to go into “sleep tracking” mode, you need to tap it several times until you feel the device vibrate and you see two lights (one on either side) flash. Now you’re in sleep mode. You do the same thing to get it out of sleep mode, just tap it several times until it vibrates.

Each morning I look at the sleep tracker tile on the FitBit website. It tells you how long you were in sleep mode, how many minutes you were restless, and how many times you woke up. I’m not sure how it knows when you actually wake up, probably by how active your arm is. But it is accurate. I tested it a few times. I mentally remembered the times I woke up, and it was there on the tracker in the morning. Wednesday night for example, I was restless for 13 minutes and was awake for three. That’s right. I remember exactly when and why I woke up Wednesday night.

The last thing I’ll talk about is the mobile app and the fact (and I love this) that SparkPeople and FitBit have joined forces. The FitBit mobile app is great. You can check out all of your goals on your smart device. You can also access their food and fitness trackers from the app. Here’s what I love. You can sync your FitBit account with your SparkPeople account. What happens with this, is your active minutes (I’m still not sure which minutes are chosen) from FitBit will sync over your your SparkPeople fitness tracker But, whatever activity you enter on SparkPeople won’t sync over to FitBit. Vice versa with the food trackers. Your SparkPeople food tracker will sync over to FitBit’s, but not the other way around. Fine with me as I have all the food entered on SparkPeople. Plus, if there’s a food that’s not on Spark, I can add it quickly with the bar code reader. My iPod Touch can scan a bar code and the food information will magically appear. FitBit does not have a bar code scanner option.

OK, so these are my first impressions. A little longer than I had intended. but I tend to ramble (at least in writing) when I’ve found something I really enjoy. I’m going to wait another month or so before doing a full review. I may break that review up into parts, we’ll see.