Healthful Living and Weekly Workout Support Group - Week of Jan 27

[Leslie Ferguson]

Greetings to all our friends, neighbors, lurkers, and newcomers as we begin the last week of January and get ready to close out our first month in 2008. It’s been a busy week for the regular visitors in and around all the weather that has been impacting the country, luckily none of us (the regulars that is) had too bad a week and there was lots of talk but it was nothing more than cold air (I’d say hot air in the summer but cold at this time of year). We saw a few folks report in with frazzled reports from work hours and medical appointments and we’ll keep those people in our minds this week as we pray that they start to return to a little bit of normalcy shortly. Still it has been a good year so far and there’s lots of fun stuff planned for the next couple days I’d imagine. As always, I’ll start this week’s thread with a short recap of last week or so and even with the busy schedule it shouldn’t be too hard this week (I hope).

Life successes include - Kate reporting that the new medical regimen seems to be helping a long standing condition even if her PT isn’t the greatest thing for her pain-wise, off looking for stability balls to sit on (it makes her feel better so we hope she found the things she needed); Karen had a good week with the kids off for MLK Jr. holiday but DH took them to the museum in the city, and she changed up her workout routines to get a new outlook and refresh herself; and I had a good week with myriad things going on including a night of volunteering at a homeless shelter, three runs, time with LW before starting back to school and some healthy rest time.
Stressful living - Laura dropped by to tell us she had worked 64 hours two weeks ago at her new job and had been missing from most of her workouts because of burning the candle like she was; Kate let us know that her PT, although beneficial, left her sore and in need of other sitting arrangements; Karen really had a good week with her “only stressors” being running the taxi service for her kids; and I had a good week too and only had to reset my clock after a bad night (no sleep to speak or) at the homeless shelter (nothing bad going on just tried to sleep on a thin mat on the floor), an interview for a field education parish for the coming 18 months, and preparing myself to go back to class.

Workouts: I’ll probably run on Monday and Wednesday - Monday for certain because I’m still off but Wednesday is the first full day of classes, I’ll try to spin on Tuesday if I can - I’ve got an interview in the early afternoon and a special service or my Kenyan friends in the evening; Thursday will be a little up in the air but I’ll try to swing something. The remainder of the week is also up in the air because I’m going out of town for a 2.5 day conference and probably won’t be able to run at all during that time - unless I sneak out of the conference and play hooky (which is always possible).
Healthful living: No major concerns except PT exercises (still) but new scoots have been helping all around and I’m doing well.

More interviews this week and the out of town meeting will throw a wrench in things but I still think I’ll be fine, just need to do it and get back into the school routine.

I think that will have to do for now so until later... peace,
Les

[karen w]

Les-Thanks for starting the new week. Looks like you had a fantastic run over the weekend. I bet that felt great! What are the out-of-town meetings about? I thought now that you are in school, some of that would settle down. Either way, good luck on your interviews and have a great week.

Good weekend here with an elliptical ride yesterday and treadmill run/power walk today plus weights. Tomorrow I am thinking of doing the cardio. boxing class again in addition to my swim. I really liked that alot last week. Kids were busy today with youth group at the Temple. They watched a movie and had pizza and popcorn; then played games. I guess that is why they were'nt too hungry tonight when we went out to dinner! Of course, they still had plenty of room for ice cream afterwards!:) Gave me the night off in the kitchen anyway.

Have a good week everyone,
Karen

[mackandme]

Hey all, I'd like to report a pretty good weekend all around. After various therapies Thursday and Friday I was pretty exhausted, but woke up Saturday feeling better than I've felt in about 9 months, pain-wise. Got to spend a lot of time with DBF (we went furniture shopping and to lunch), which is always great. Felt well enough that i did some stuff around the house, including finally putting away all the Christmas stuff that was piled up in a corner. Today I had a nice 35-minute ride on Mack. He was feeling pretty well, too.

More PT Mon., Wed., Thurs. I'll go to the barn Tuesday, and Friday DBF and I are going to the stock show and rodeo. I've been a bunch of times, but he's never been. It should be a lot of fun.

Les, sounds like you have a very busy week coming up.

Karen, of course, there's ALWAYS room for ice cream!

[Leslie Ferguson]

Karen - I thought you knew that kids (and not-so-kids) always have room for ice cream - even if they've eaten a whole 16" pizza. ;) :cool: It sounds like you have a good week planned and I like your renewed kickboxing attitude - sometimes a "step back" to the basics is great and a rejuvenator. As for the out-of-town meeting, this is the annual Convention/Council for the Diocese (a group of churches) that is sponsoring me in school. It's "highly encouraged" for me to attend and besides a few of my friends will be ordained on Friday and I'll have a chance to see some of my friends that I went through 12 months of evaluation with for the first time in over 7 months. As it stands I'll only miss one day of classes and since it will be the first class I shouldn't be too far behind for missing it.

Kate - Great news from you and I'm glad things are finally looking up. How long has it been? Too long in my book. It sounds like you have a packed week too. Enjoy your rides and congratulations on your ride today. enjoy the stock show (I seem to remember that you did last year when it came around). Christmas decorations... one of the benefits of a small townhouse, no Christmas decorations although there are Christmas cards that need to be put back into the storage box with cards. :rolleyes: Have a great week.

Nothing much more from here except I had a good afternoon and found another keeper in the most recent CL magazine - Pork Medallions with Orange-Apricot sauce. I think the sauce would be great on other things besides pork (for you Karen), chicken and maybe even beef. Other than that, made a revision to a script I wrote for one of my classes and I'm going to send it back to the instructor for critique but I'm liking it more and more.

See you all tomorrow and peace,
Les

[karen w]

Les-Thanks for the explanation about those meetings. Makes sense now. I'll have to take a look at that recipe. I often substitute chicken in their pork recipes with great results.

And speaking of which. . . we had a yummy dinner tonight and I even got to have it with DH(a rare weekday occurrence as he usually works too late). Tonight he decided to leave early and pick up DS#2 from school on his way home. DS#2 had an after school activity(Robotics) and I was with DS#1 at a doctor's appt. So I took DS#1 to his appt., picked up DD on the way home while he got DS#2 and we met at home to eat together. Gotta love it!

As for the earlier part of the day. . . My swim(of course) and I did my weekly staple shopping. Bought some collards today. That is a first for me. I love all sorts of greens, but have never tried collards for some reason. I know they are similar to kale and I love kale. Anyway, I made a collard and black eyed pea soup from the latest issue of Eating Well for my lunches this week. Smelled good. I hope it will taste just as good. Back to the day. . . went to cardio boxing class again. I think I am going to do it on Friday as well since there is a different instructor on those days and I am liking the variety. I really like it alot, but I do notice it is a bit more stressful to the knees(mine anyway) so I don't think it will be a regular thing, but it is a nice change to throw into the mix(as if there is not enough already!:D ). Rest of the day was my usual "taxi" responsibilities in addition to another side trip to the store to exchange the box of oatmeal that I had bought this morning for one that was not all exploded inside!!!:eek: Guess the glue on those instant packets was not so hot(kids love 'em. . . not me and on the spectrum of processed packaged foods, it is not such a terrible thing. . . gotta pick our battles, right!;) ) . Anyway, got a new box so DS#1 is set for breakfast in the morning. He loves them and since he makes his own each morning and we have one of those instant hot water dispensers, it is something he can do by himself before I get home from the pool. Alright, enough oatmeal! As for tomorrow. . . .a swim and ???? May stay home to do some bed stripping unless I can procrastinate that a few more days. If I do stay home, I will likely bike. Otherwise, I'll beat up a bag as usual.;)

Good evening,
Karen

[Leslie Ferguson]

I think the recipe would be grand with chicken and the sauce may actually be good on some of the heartier fish - salmon, mahi mahi, and trout but not the lighter ones. I hope that you continue to take care of your knees (I know you will) because it's nice to have someone to chat with during the week. I'm not a big collards fan but it's been years since I've tried them. Maybe now that I'm a more accomplished cook and have broader tastes I might just like them. You're right, you have to pick your battles when it comes to the kids too - oatmeal, even with all the junk in it is still a lot healthier than much of the junk they peddle to kids these days. Your day sounds as busy as ever too.

Today was fun and probably the last stress-free day for a while. I was set for my normal run today - about 60 minutes, but (not by design mind you) it morphed into just over 70 minutes. I really didn't want to run that long but I got to a turn point and thought I had covered the distance back to home in 25 minutes a while ago but alas it was closer to 35 minutes (and I wasn't running all that slow either). Luckily I had the time to do it but it was a bit unnerving to say the least.

The weirdness begins tomorrow with "final" registration for school tomorrow (I'm not sure what's so final about it - we all registered a while ago and we can change courses for a couple days still but that's what it's called so...) and it takes 45 minutes for my whole class to pick up schedules and pay fees, then I have another interview for another internship (lasting 18 months). We're also getting together tomorrow evening for the folks from school who are from Kenya and who haven't been able for safety reasons to get home - might be a weird night tomorrow. Hope to spin between my interview and the service.

Peace all,
Les

[karen w]

Les-Hope the day was not too weird for you and FINAL registration went smoothly.

I had a good swim and did end up biking at home along with doing some core exercises and weights since I decided to do the linens afterall. Got all the kids beds stripped and clean sheets back on their beds. I even got the laundry folded right away this time! (It's not put away yet. . .but hey, don't push things!

This afternoon I headed out for a few errands and finally got around to getting some new scooters. I also found a pair of slippers and a pair of shoes I can use for boxing that were both deeply discounted. Gotta love that!

This evening the boys had their last guitar lesson at the old school. Next Tuesday we start the new school. Hope it works out.

Have a good evening,
Karen

[Leslie Ferguson]

Running late but a few quick comments, I wish it was really my FINAL regstration - just the final registration for the semester - and it went well as expected. I'm glad you had a good day and I'll give you a bye for not getting the clothes put away. But I'd almost give them to the kids to put away - would serve them well. Great buy on your scooters too! Discounts on two pairs - better than I can do. :)

The service for our Kenyan friends tonight was moving and well attended. We had about 100 for the service with the 3 students and at least 3 other Kenyans from the local area in attendance. It was a moving time and they were all honored by our presence. It's going to be a long road but there's light in Kenya now but Mary (the one who's house was destroyed) has a tough couple months ahead but her husband is as safe as he can be.

I also had a good interview today - I guess I shouldn't worry about them any more but still it's nerve wracking. After that I got a 45 minutes spin in on the trainer in the basement. Looking at the weather I should have spun tomorrow because they're talking a huge cold front blowing through and 20-30 mph winds with gusts to ~50mph until tomorrow afternoon. Great. :rolleyes:

Have a good hump day tomorrow and peace friends,
Les

[karen w]

HI,

A bit tired today as I went to bed a bit too late last night(for me), but I had a decent day. I had a good swim this morning and revived a bit in the jacuzzi as well. I went to boxing and the instructor changed things up a bit from her normal routine which made for a nice class. I tried out my new boxing scooters, too. For $12 they are pretty darn good!:D This afternoon did my fruit and vegetable shopping.

Les-Never fear. . . I DO make the kids put away their own laundry, but yesterday's loads were all the bed linens and towels. I put those away. . .and finally did so this evening!:o I knew it was not your FINAL registration, too!:D Glad to hear everything went well yesterday including the service and the interview. We got the cold front and wind today, too.

See you tomorrow,
Karen

[Leslie Ferguson]

I figured you weren't "that soft" on them and let them get away without putting their own clothes away. Sometimes it's amazing what bargains we get isn't it? What a day for you - good boxing, good swim and jacuzzi what more could you ask for. And I figured you knew it wasn't the last registration but I couldn't pass it up either.

The winds weren't that crazy here as I thought they would be but still had gusts in the 40 mph range. After classes today I ran this afternoon - it was 45 when I started but the wind - made it pretty nasty. Felt good to get on the road for an hour today (no overage to speak of this time either). Yuck may be coming by tomorrow as they're predicting heavy rain late afternoon/evening into Friday.

Off to study - classes started today.

Peace to all,
Les

[karen w]

Gotta make it short and sweet tonight as DH did me a favor and is picking DD up at gymnastics this evening and will finish working from the computer at home. I had a great day with a really good swim and awesome boxing class. Some days you just feel so much more energized and "on" than others! Not saying my less "on" days are bad or low energy; this one today was just more supercharged than usual!;) Anyway not much else new to report. Tomorrow will be another swim and then likely try the Friday cardio-boxing class as that is taught by a different instructor(one I have not had the pleasure of being tortured by yet!!!:D ). And you know how changing things up is a good thing, right!:D Anyway, have a good evening everyone.

See you tomorrow,

Karen

[Leslie Ferguson]

It will be short and sweet tonight here too (again). It sounds like a fabulous day and you are beaming all the way down here. I hope you do have fun at boxing tomorrow -it will be nice to inflict your pain on someone else for a change. ;) I do fully understand that a super-charged workout is a lot when you have pretty super-charged (for most people) workouts most days. I hope tomorrow is nice for you and your family.

As expected, I got a little derailed today getting ready for my trip away for the next two days. I hope that the nasty weather stays away like predicted so the trip down isn't too hairy. And hopefully the weather will support it and I'll be able to carve some time out for a run or two between now and Sunday. I may be a little scarce because my traveling computer is questionable (HD is acting up) so I may be without connection.

Peace and have a good Friday all,
Les

[karen w]

Les-Hope your travels went without a hitch today. Have a good(and safe) trip.

Our predicted ice storm was pushed back from last night until today but fortunately it did not affect school in my town. Just North of us the schools were all closed today. We ended up getting an icy rain beginning at 10-11 am and it is still ongoing tonight. Kids all made it home from school just fine, though. I had a nice swim this morning and went to cardio-boxing class. It was very good but brutal with this new instructor. She focused alot more on stretching/core exercises and I think I am going to become very familiar with a few muscles that I never knew I had tomorrow.:p Anyway, stayed put at home for the most part this afternoon because of the yucky weather.

Have a good weekend,
Karen

[Leslie Ferguson]

Thanks, flying by to say I had a good trip but weird. It was 33 and raining when I left the house and 2 1/2 hours later when I got to Williamsburg it was bright and almost 60. Not bad except I was wearing a wool topcoat over a sweater and turtleneck. :( A great day and saw a bunch of folks I haven't seen in forever. I hope that you have a good day/night in tonight and the ice isn't too bad.

Time to hit the hay and I'll se you tomorrow.
Peace,
Les