As predicted, I was able to workout while the kids were at swim team practice yesterday. I ran 4 miles with a few walk breaks and then walked a 5th mile. The whole process took an hour and I was warm and toasty on the RPAC indoor track. My miles were 10:28, 10:33, 10:29, 11:00, and 17:28.
I followed up the track workout with 20 minutes of stretching and another 20 minutes of upper body weights, mostly benching and curls.
Today I am so sore - everywhere. My legs are wobbly, my back is stiff, my abs hurt when I laugh, and my arms don't want to move any directly very quickly. What a wimp!
We're packing today, going to church tonight, having a family Christmas in the morning, and then we're off to Utah to see my brother and his family. My parents are meeting us in Utah where we'll have an extended family Christmas/Hanukah celebration. We'll also be celebrating my nephew's birthday and the New Year. Party central at Bryan's house!
I wish you all a very merry Christmas and a new year full of hope, health, happiness, and love.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Vacation starts today!
I'm now on vacation until Jan 3, 2011. Yea! Work has been insane lately and I certainly can use the down time.
With the extra hours at work and holiday preparations, I've really let my running slide significantly. On Sunday, I played 90 minutes of volleyball, but other than that, I haven't exercised in a week. Yikes!
Today I got in a 5K on the indoor track at RPAC while the kids were at swim practice. Tomorrow, I'll be taking them to practice too, so I may be able to run again. It seems like it always works like this for me: I can't squeeze in a run for days and then I have several days in a row when I have the time and opportunity. It's the perfect recipe for injury.
To be safe, I stopped at 5K today even though I had time and energy for another mile or two. My miles were 10:11, 10:18, and 10:06, but I had a few minute break between the first and second mile (off the clock) to stretch and work out the kinks before finishing the run. I also took about 20 minutes after the run to stretch and do a little ab work before picking up the kids.
Steverunner is talking about doing a relay running event in Boston and I'd really love to go. We'll see if he has room for another "poco" runner and if I can make the date they pick. It would be really cool to do that.
With the extra hours at work and holiday preparations, I've really let my running slide significantly. On Sunday, I played 90 minutes of volleyball, but other than that, I haven't exercised in a week. Yikes!
Today I got in a 5K on the indoor track at RPAC while the kids were at swim practice. Tomorrow, I'll be taking them to practice too, so I may be able to run again. It seems like it always works like this for me: I can't squeeze in a run for days and then I have several days in a row when I have the time and opportunity. It's the perfect recipe for injury.
To be safe, I stopped at 5K today even though I had time and energy for another mile or two. My miles were 10:11, 10:18, and 10:06, but I had a few minute break between the first and second mile (off the clock) to stretch and work out the kinks before finishing the run. I also took about 20 minutes after the run to stretch and do a little ab work before picking up the kids.
Steverunner is talking about doing a relay running event in Boston and I'd really love to go. We'll see if he has room for another "poco" runner and if I can make the date they pick. It would be really cool to do that.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
5 miles yesterday
I put in 5 miles on the indoor RPAC track yesterday.
Using the run-walk-run method (3 minutes running to 1 minute walking), I ran the distance in about 53 minutes. I wasn't really speedy, but it was a good run and I'm glad I went the longer distance instead of stopping at 5K (3.1 miles).
My running has been very inconsistent lately, which is evidence of the kids' inconsistent attendance at swim practice. We've been busy with holiday concert practice and performance, extra hours at work, basketball, homework, swim meets, and Christmas shopping and planning. It's the same for everyone right now, I'm sure.
In addition to the time crunches, winter has hit us hard. It has been snowy and in the single digit temperatures every morning this week. Even before these insane temps, it was too cold outside for a fair weather runner like me. I look for upper-30s and sunny before I get excited about running outside. So I've been inside when I have been able to put in any miles.
The kids made it to swimming tonight, but Ken took them. I had to stay late to get a bunch of work done. I have deadlines to meet before I go on vacation to Salt Lake City for Christmas.
Using the run-walk-run method (3 minutes running to 1 minute walking), I ran the distance in about 53 minutes. I wasn't really speedy, but it was a good run and I'm glad I went the longer distance instead of stopping at 5K (3.1 miles).
My running has been very inconsistent lately, which is evidence of the kids' inconsistent attendance at swim practice. We've been busy with holiday concert practice and performance, extra hours at work, basketball, homework, swim meets, and Christmas shopping and planning. It's the same for everyone right now, I'm sure.
In addition to the time crunches, winter has hit us hard. It has been snowy and in the single digit temperatures every morning this week. Even before these insane temps, it was too cold outside for a fair weather runner like me. I look for upper-30s and sunny before I get excited about running outside. So I've been inside when I have been able to put in any miles.
The kids made it to swimming tonight, but Ken took them. I had to stay late to get a bunch of work done. I have deadlines to meet before I go on vacation to Salt Lake City for Christmas.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
New Albany swim meet
I haven't been getting much exercise in these days. I ran on Wednesday this week and put in a 30:40 5K. My miles were 9:33, 9:42, and 10:19. I walked a little during the second and third mile.
Today I played 90 minutes of hard volleyball. We played two teams and won against the first but lost against the second. I was running all over the place and felt a step behind all the time; out of shape, no doubt.
The big sports news for us today, though, was the swim meet. Both kids swam in a B meet, which means the participants' best times have to be ABOVE a BB time to swim. Therefore, all of their friends who have qualified for State or are close, couldn't swim in this meet. The results of the meet are on the New Albany Aquatics Club web site and a summary of the Orr performance is below.
Jason is age 9 in the 9/10 age group and beat all other 9 year olds in every event except IM:
Today I played 90 minutes of hard volleyball. We played two teams and won against the first but lost against the second. I was running all over the place and felt a step behind all the time; out of shape, no doubt.
The big sports news for us today, though, was the swim meet. Both kids swam in a B meet, which means the participants' best times have to be ABOVE a BB time to swim. Therefore, all of their friends who have qualified for State or are close, couldn't swim in this meet. The results of the meet are on the New Albany Aquatics Club web site and a summary of the Orr performance is below.
Jason is age 9 in the 9/10 age group and beat all other 9 year olds in every event except IM:
- 1st in 200 Free Relay (swam first leg)
- 2nd in 100 Free
- 4th in 50 Free
- 4th in 50 Back
- 4th in 100 IM (another 9 year old beat him by .1 second)
- 1st in 50 Free (by 3+ seconds)
- 1st in 50 Breast
- 1st in 100 Breast (by 2+ seconds)
- 1st in 200 IM (by 16 seconds - really, 16)
- 2nd in the Free Relay
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Annual appt & Lymphedema treatment
My first ever annual appointment with my surgical oncologist was very uneventful, as anyone would hope. He did a physical exam that lasted maybe 3 minutes and then was done. He didn't find anything and said he'd see me next year unless I found something of concern between now and then. I guess I should be doing self-exams, though it seems overkill with no breast tissue.
The more impressive part of the visit was with the Lymphedema specialist. First, I must give the James breast center huge KUDOS. I didn't have an appointment to see the Lymphedema specialist. I'd been meaning to make one for months. So I called them from the waiting room and told them I was in the office for an appointment with Povoski and they squeezed me in immediately after I saw the doctor. They were fabulous!
The specialist (who is a physical therapist) did all the measurements and said everything looked really good. I was slightly down from the last time I'd been in (which was . . . gasp . . . September). She said I had been managing the swelling very well and that I was due for a new glove in February. She did a really long treatment on my hand and arm which consists of a massage technique designed to activate the lymph system and get the fluid moving. It really helped and when she was done, you could hardly tell my hand was swollen at all. On my self-created swelling scale, it's probably a 1 out of 10 now. Going in to the appointment, it was about a 2 or 3. For some reason, I'm not very swollen this week. I have no idea why.
The PT and I talked about their group's pending move to the campus area which will be much more convenient for me. She also talked about the workout room they will have, the extra PTs, and some other services I may be able to get there, including some upper body workouts tailored just for me. I'm really looking forward to seeing them next time in mid-January at the new facility.
Ken noticed a sign in the doctor's office asking for volunteer survivors to give feedback to the James. The location for the feedback interview is in the same building where we work. I'll call the number tomorrow to see if they want to talk with me. I've got quite a bit of feedback to offer. I was much more impressed with Riverside's holistic assessment and consultation (that's where I got my second opinion) than the James' linear process (which I thwarted by making appointments I was advised not to make).
The more impressive part of the visit was with the Lymphedema specialist. First, I must give the James breast center huge KUDOS. I didn't have an appointment to see the Lymphedema specialist. I'd been meaning to make one for months. So I called them from the waiting room and told them I was in the office for an appointment with Povoski and they squeezed me in immediately after I saw the doctor. They were fabulous!
The specialist (who is a physical therapist) did all the measurements and said everything looked really good. I was slightly down from the last time I'd been in (which was . . . gasp . . . September). She said I had been managing the swelling very well and that I was due for a new glove in February. She did a really long treatment on my hand and arm which consists of a massage technique designed to activate the lymph system and get the fluid moving. It really helped and when she was done, you could hardly tell my hand was swollen at all. On my self-created swelling scale, it's probably a 1 out of 10 now. Going in to the appointment, it was about a 2 or 3. For some reason, I'm not very swollen this week. I have no idea why.
The PT and I talked about their group's pending move to the campus area which will be much more convenient for me. She also talked about the workout room they will have, the extra PTs, and some other services I may be able to get there, including some upper body workouts tailored just for me. I'm really looking forward to seeing them next time in mid-January at the new facility.
Ken noticed a sign in the doctor's office asking for volunteer survivors to give feedback to the James. The location for the feedback interview is in the same building where we work. I'll call the number tomorrow to see if they want to talk with me. I've got quite a bit of feedback to offer. I was much more impressed with Riverside's holistic assessment and consultation (that's where I got my second opinion) than the James' linear process (which I thwarted by making appointments I was advised not to make).
Monday, December 6, 2010
Tomorrow's appointment
Tomorrow I have my first annual follow-up appointment with my surgical oncologist. I've been so busy that I forgot about it until today. I have no idea what to expect. I know I'll have a physical exam because I can't have mammograms anymore. We'll probably talk about the lymphedema but I don't expect to learn anything from him about that. It may be just a quick check for lumps that might be hiding in any breast tissue he left behind. There should not be any breast tissue left behind, though - that's the whole intention of the bilateral mastectomy, after all.
This will be my first post-mastectomy appointment with a doctor who is not my plastic surgeon. It will be strange to have someone else seeing my breasts now. The scars are large and still very prominent, which means they will probably always be that way. It's been more than 6 months since my last reconstructive surgery.
This will be my first post-mastectomy appointment with a doctor who is not my plastic surgeon. It will be strange to have someone else seeing my breasts now. The scars are large and still very prominent, which means they will probably always be that way. It's been more than 6 months since my last reconstructive surgery.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Thursday and Sunday
On Thursday, I ran while Val was at swim team practice. I wimped out and ran inside on the track because it's cold outside now. I know it's not too cold to run outside this time of year (20's and lower 30's), but I'm really a fair weather runner.
I decided to run a 5K and then stretch a bit, so I ran the whole thing instead of alternating running and walking. I did the 5K in 29:41! That's fast for me. My miles were 9:40, 9:42, and 9:16. I was winding down very quickly the last half mile, at least, but I hung in there. Then I stretched for 30 minutes which was really helpful because my back has been acting up from tight hamstrings, IT bands, and hips.
Today Val had a birthday party all afternoon, so I only had the hour that Jason was at swim practice to get in a run. I ran inside on the RPAC track again (cold, snow, and lack of time were all factors in that decision). I put in 4 miles in 40:23 using the run 3 minutes and walk 1 minute method throughout. My miles were 10:13, 10:04, 10:05, and 10:01.
My back is still bugging me a bit and needs stretching. I'm headed to volleyball tonight which might make it better or worse, I have no idea.
The great news is that my hand has significantly reduced in swelling. The Lymphedema was running a self-reported 5 or 6 on a made up 10 point scale. I'd say it's down to 2 or 3 today.
I decided to run a 5K and then stretch a bit, so I ran the whole thing instead of alternating running and walking. I did the 5K in 29:41! That's fast for me. My miles were 9:40, 9:42, and 9:16. I was winding down very quickly the last half mile, at least, but I hung in there. Then I stretched for 30 minutes which was really helpful because my back has been acting up from tight hamstrings, IT bands, and hips.
Today Val had a birthday party all afternoon, so I only had the hour that Jason was at swim practice to get in a run. I ran inside on the RPAC track again (cold, snow, and lack of time were all factors in that decision). I put in 4 miles in 40:23 using the run 3 minutes and walk 1 minute method throughout. My miles were 10:13, 10:04, 10:05, and 10:01.
My back is still bugging me a bit and needs stretching. I'm headed to volleyball tonight which might make it better or worse, I have no idea.
The great news is that my hand has significantly reduced in swelling. The Lymphedema was running a self-reported 5 or 6 on a made up 10 point scale. I'd say it's down to 2 or 3 today.
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