Something Amiss

I did something to my shoulder while rowing and, while the pain is not intense, there is something amiss. I took Aleve for about three days which didn't alleviate the tenderness. Actions that cause me to move gingerly include:

Belaying (taking out slack with left hand/arm)

Lifting my bike out of the basement (duh)

Parallel parking

Putting on an article of clothing

Towel Tug of War (left hand at lower back, soap in the middle and right hand at upper back)

You really don't miss your water until the well runs dry.

When I went swimming on Tuesday, I didn't stay for very long since any stroke that involved back (crawl, elementary backstroke...) was out of the question. If I were more confident with the front crawl, I would have stayed longer.

I'm assuming that I tweaked my shoulder because I was port side while rowing and my left arm is unaccustomed to handling a heavy load.

I went rock climbing last Sunday and I went again today. It's a very weird situation in that I can climb without feeling discomfort unless I'm over gripping.

I guess this is just another reminder to fully appreciate when the body is working in concert.

If you look closely, you can see that Patti has her right ankle wrapped. She sprained it during an encounter with a brick while gardening about two weeks ago. I joked with her that gardening is far more dangerous than rock climbing. Patti, if you're wondering, got her doctor's permission to climb. I also know that Diane's Training... has been exercising while not completely up to par. So, I'm going to keep on keeping on and if something doesn't feel right, I'll just stop.

A newbie, fresh out of class, walked over and introduced herself and climbed with us for awhile. Patti provided back-up belaying while Susan (the newbie) got some practice. I love rock climbers; they are such a welcoming bunch or am I biased? :)


Route Tally:

Beware of Bats, 5.9
Bright Idea, 5.8
Chag, 5.8/5.9 (hunh?)
Face Plant, 5.8
Hallelujah, 5.8
Rainbow Bright, 5.8
The Seven, 5.7

Hope you all are having an active and enjoyable weekend...

No Shoes Required

I once did Pilates for Wimps or Pilates for Dummies but it felt awkward.

Still, I didn't ignore one of the most recent Discovery Health newsletters that arrived in my inbox, a Pilates 101 article. In addition, Diane over at Diane's Training Journal always has my curiosity piqued when she mentions Pilates. Recently, I took a proper look at 10 Minute Solution: Quick Sculpt Pilates.

I love props and I love a challenge. Guess what? I found both in Quick Sculpt which comes with a cute little pink ball.

I really enjoyed the Strength & Flexibility Pilates segment which concentrates on spinal flexibility. Placing the ball under your lower back supposedly mimics spine corrector apparatus. I don't know anything about the apparatus but my lower back was slightly tweaked and when I finished scissoring, helicoptering and frogging, my back was tweak-free.


The Core Conditioning segment wore me out and I don't ever think that I've had my abs worked over so intensely the way they were worked over in Core Conditioning with the exception of Jackie Warner's Personal Training Circuit (the 40 minute stint).

All of the routines took some getting used to. I had to concentrate on precisely flexing my feet and working with holding the ball between my ankles. Also, the breathing pattern took some getting used to but I also have breathing issues with yoga and, for that matter, with the front crawl.

I don't know the Pilates vocabulary either but I got the gist of what Andrea Leigh Rogers, who is so graceful by the way, was talking about when she kept saying articulate your spine.

While I was laying on my side doing the routine for Buns and Thigh Sculptor, I was thinking, Oh My God, I'm going to have to do this on the other side and it's going to hurt burn just as much. I liked doing the bridge with my feet on the ball but it was definitely an accident waiting to happen challenging to extend the bridge by moving your legs outward with your feet on the ball.


In Standing Pilates Sculpt, Prince's song Baby, I'm A Star kept going through my head because, at one point, you were supposed to have your body positioned in a star-like state.

I was so happy to release my arms at the end of this segment because they were on fire.

Here is me at the end of Core Conditioning. It was a TKO, y'all.

Oh yeah, the one thing that I really liked about Pilates is that shoes are not required. Really, I know it seems trivial but sometimes when I'm in the locker room trying to negotiate the gauntlet, I swear, every little thing that I need to do in order to be workout-ready seems tiresome. After I inserted the DVD, I was getting ready to put on my Nike shoes and, when I realized that I didn't need them, it made me happy.

What's something small that puts a smile on your face -- besides exercise? :)

The Inflamed Body

I don’t know how YOU On A Diet: The Owner’s Manual for Waist Management did not get on my radar sooner. I absolutely loved this book. It was so easy to relate to and it often made me chuckle. I also saw a review of YOU: Staying Young: The Owner's Manual for Extending Your Warranty over at Diane's Training Journal that sounds great. My conclusion: I really need another 'Drea to help me get more reading done.

One of the major takeaways from YOU On A Diet was this statement:

Most important, the process of gaining weight is often a process of inflammation. (75)

The authors (Dr. Michael F. Roizen and Dr. Mehmet C. Oz) go on to say:

Inflammation also makes it more likely that your DNA will be damaged, and a cell will become cancerous. (75)

I can’t say enough how much I liked the illustrations and how the authors broke things down. This book is one that I wish that I had read eons ago. It was excellent and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I said that already, didn’t I?

Don’t have time or money to exercise? Here’s the authors’ take:

You need only one piece of equipment: your own body. Your body is your gym. (138)

If you don’t have time to do this, then you have to be willing to admit that the problem is not the fact that you’re out of time but the fact that your life is so out of control that you can’t budget enough time for your health and well-being. (150)

I just touched the surface of this book. The authors cover so much including cheat words (dextrose and mannitol), chemistry, desserts (consider them every other day) metabolism, nutrition felons (in your kitchen) and stress. There are also recipes and a troubleshooting guide.

And for a final quote that moved me:

But to put fat in perspective, remember that it’s an all-body risk factor – with implications everywhere. (118).

This is my body when it was inflamed. At the time, I was at Café Nastaha with coworkers on the occasion of someone who had resigned. It’s so crazy to me how much "birthday" cake and punch and restaurant food we consume at work-related functions. I’m sure that I was having fried falafel on top of my salad at the time and I'm so glad that I don't eat fried wild things anymore.

Have you all seen this video about the New Calorie Counting? As if the old way wasn't challenging enough...