LEARN 13

OWIE!

I've LEARNed that I REALLY need to work harder in the gym to get fit.

I've been going to PT since my knee surgery in early December and have seen a marked improvement.  Hubby is worried, though, that when we go to Florida this summer on our vacation, I won't be able to keep up.  He keeps making comments like, "We can't be just going to the parks for a 1/2 day" or "There's an awful lot of walking in the parks" or "Are you going to be able to walk around the parks?"

I've told my PT therapist that that's my goal, to be able to walk easily and without pain, able to keep up with my Energizer Bunny of a husband in Harry Potter World.  Yesterday we sat and reviewed my current PT plan, and tweaked it a bit.

We removed the balance work - no more balancing on one leg while I throw the ball at the trampoline and catch it on the return.  No more standing on the balancing ball and circling clockwise and counterclockwise.

My lunges were removed - thank you, Jesus!  BUT then he took me out to the gym and showed me a way to do lunges and squats using the arm straps on the big swing frame.  He added a modified way of planking, something I had planned to try "someday" - now I have to lay face down on the floor, support my weight on both arms and bring each knee up to the corresponding elbow, 3 sets of 20.  It's supposed to work on my core and on my upper body.

I've LEARNed that it's hard.  And I've LEARNed that muscles you didn't know you had can still hurt, almost immediately after you've stopped doing the exercise!

I've LEARNed that I want to do nothing more than cancel my Thursday training session, the free one I get with my gym membership.  Brendan, the PT doctor, said he'd be surprised if the trainer wants to do any more than just try to sell me training lessons, but I reminded him who he was talking to - I'm in sales.  NO one can sell ME something I don't want, but it's likely I'll be able to get what I want from them!  And what I want from her is a brief rundown of how the machines work that I'm planning on using to get a bit more fit than I am now, even if I'm the turtle:  slow and steady.

On a side note, I've LEARNed, too, that I might be allergic to citrus/orange juice.  I'm not really into OJ but every once in a while, during the year, I crave it, and it's been that time.  I've been drinking 14oz of Tropicana Orange Tangerine Juice 5 times a week for the past 2 weeks.  Back when I was about 16, Dr. Bierenbaum (mom's cardiologist, who I used as a GP) told me to listen to my body.  He said if I all of a sudden crave oranges or orange juice, it's likely I need some vitamin C and I should pay attention to these cravings.  (He also taught me that when I'm sick with a stomach virus of some kind, if I crave something it's unlikely that something will make me sick, even if it seems to fly in the face of medical reason!)

On Saturday, I got that neck thing again:  bright red flush in a square-ish spot on the front of my throat.  No itching, no swelling, no pain.  Just color.

Then on Sunday, a new symptom - a rash of raised bumps and redness along the side of my neck.

So I called my doctor and took Monday off so I could see her whenever she had a minute or two.  They called me to come in at noon, so I went.  No, I didn't change perfumes, soaps, deodorants, shampoos, conditioners, laundry detergent, fabric softener, dryer sheets, hairspray, mousse, volumizer...  I didn't eat anything different, drink anything different...

I posted the first picture on Instagram and got a comment back from a former work friend that a friend of hers gets that same flush when she drinks wine.  I don't drink wine, but two weekends ago I did have a glass of sangria...  I checked with Dr. Internet and one of the symptoms of a sulfite allergy is that sort of flushing.  Dr. C. sent me for bloodwork and added an allergy screen to it, just for $hit$ and giggles.

But then I went to my sister-in-law's house.  It was Monday, after all.  The first question out of my niece's mouth was, "Have you had any citrus lately?"

Well, yea, the OJ - WHICH I never thought about when my doctor asked because it's normal to me to drink it at random times during the year.  But I never paid a bit of attention as to if I get this condition around the same time as I drink a lot of orange juice...

So even though it's fading fast today, I'm back to my OJ drinking to see if it gets aggravated again...

I'm LEARNing to be my own experiment!  Will keep you all posted!