Staying the Course: It's July, the Heat Is On!

[Superbob]

I am going to defer to Chuck C's post just below this one -- "Let's Set Some Goals -- a Throwdown!"

Great idea!

Whether you respond here, or in his thread below, or both, it matters not to me. He has revived some of the spirit of the original Throwdown, which was basically a weight-loss competition but necessarily entailed goal-setting.

I will paste Chuck's thread-starter below, but by all means go to his thread also, because there are good responses to read.

Three weeks out from my heart-related incisional hernia surgery, I have a few simple goals:

1. Complete the at-home physical therapy being provided me. My PT thinks I will be a candidate for graduation in just a few more weeks. He said I passed his agility and endurance tests with flying colors.

2, Return to the senior fitness class which I was enjoying immensely and benefitting from when detection of a big booger of an aneurysm derailed me in mid-2019.

3. Try my hand at writing poetry.

What are your goals?

Here is Chuck's starter:

I am going to put down some personal goals that I have set for myself as I recover from my valve surgery. I encourage all to do the same. We can encourage one another and keep each other accountable.

They can be weight related, fitness related, goals for recovery, getting ready for surgery, diet, or anything else. You can put a time frame on the goal if you wish to, or not.

My own goals:

I weighed 178 the day before my surgery and I now tip the scale at 185.

Goal: Get back to 178 within 3 months.

Goal: Spend at least 3 days per week lifting weights.

Goal: Climb Mt Monserate in less than 30 minutes

Goal: Take at least 14,000 steps per day on average. Smart phone apps are great to track this. Walking and running count- they count rotations on the bike and elliptical stepper also.



So, what are your goals?

****
Thanks, Chuck!

Cheers and Happy Independence Day in the USA,
Superbob

 

[Paleowoman]

Hi SB - I have two goals at the moment:

1 - to make sure my son, who is on the autistic spectrum, gets good and appropriate support this year….so far his support has been pretty poor so he gets all his support from me and DH, but he's in his thirties now and like to be more independent from us.

2 - to get to France this autumn….Covid in the way at the moment.

I hope you succeed in all your three goals SB !

 

[Superman]

Get caught up or ahead at work in July so I’m ready for vacation in August. I lost about 30 or 35 lbs a couple years back. I found about 15 of it. Time to lose it again.

I’m still running and biking. I’m just not as mindful of my intake lately.

 

[Superman]

Happy Independence Day for those of us in the USA!

 

[Superbob]

Happy Independence Day for those of us in the USA!

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Watched the Tour de France this morning as part of my Independence Day celebration. Remember, France was an important ally in the USA winning its independence. And talk about endurance athletics! It boggles my mind the way those guys tackle the mountaineous sections of the competition. A guy from Perth, Australia -- Ben O'Connor -- won a stage in an Alps portion of the course this morning. He made some of those climbs look like they were flat land.

 

[Superman]

It is incredible. Until one tries to ride up a hill at speed, it’s difficult to fully appreciate the effort and athleticism involved.

Before the fireworks yesterday, there was an Independence Day parade followed by a car show. It was nice to return to some semblance of normalcy after last year.

 

[MartinF]

Just read this thread and Chuck's thread. I have a couple goals this year.
No weight goal, I lost 15 lbs early in Covid and have kept it off a year now. I'm at a good weight for me.
1. Would like to get back to running more. It's been a challenge because I have trouble getting enough oxygen for the first mile. So I walk and run to start. I have a hilly 5K in October and I would like to do well there, maybe equal the time from last time I ran it.
2. I need to get some upper body weights into a weekly routine. I need motivation to make this a weekly routine.
3. Will do some hiking in the eastern Sierras this summer. A friend has permits to climb Mt. Whitney and I might try part of that if she has unused permits. Would like to make it to base camp at 12,500 feet elevation. Without permits you can only go to about 10,000 feet and you hit the wilderness area.
Martin

 

[cldlhd]

It is incredible. Until one tries to ride up a hill at speed, it’s difficult to fully appreciate the effort and athleticism involved.

Before the fireworks yesterday, there was an Independence Day parade followed by a car show. It was nice to return to some semblance of normalcy after last year.
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I fly up the hills but, in interest of full disclosure, my bike has a battery and an electric motor.. . Took a nice bike ride up the Delaware canal trail with my son Saturday and came across a nice classic car show at Washington Crossing National park.

 

[Chuck C]

fly up the hills but, in interest of full disclosure, my bike has a battery and an electric motor..

You cheater!

 

[cldlhd]

You cheater!

Yeah I know. I confess I stay in pretty good shape but I'm not hardcore. I definitely wasn't a hardcore cyclist before but I found I get more exercise with the electric bike because it's more fun so I'm out on it more. I get the same amount of exercise on each trip I'm just out twice as long and go three times as far. I've had it up to 33 mph but I usually keep it around 15 as I like to keep all the important parts on the inside.....

 

[rich01]

This is prime tick season.

I found a tick on me about 2 months ago and I don't know how long it was attached. I pulled it off and wasn't too concerned as I never developed a bulls-eye rash. I had Lyme disease about 7 years ago from a tick bite, and a person develops immunity to some of the bacteria.

About a month later, I was hit with overwhelming fatigue. The first couple of days I had to tell myself to just put one foot in front of the other to walk. Over the week, the fatigue was less and less and then gone. I thought I should see a doctor anyway, and the day of my appointment I had one of the worse headaches I have ever had.

The good news was I didn't have Lyme disease. The bad news was I had Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, (RMSF) which occurs all over the US, but predominantly in the South and south-central states. The treatment for Lyme and RMSF is the same, 21 days of twice a day doxycycline hyclate (doxy). On day 4 of doxy, I guess the bacteria had been knocked down enough that the headache finally went away.

Both of these can turn into very serious diseases. RMSF can kill even in the initial phase. If you find a tick stuck to you and there is any chance it has been there for hours or even over a day, remove the tick making sure not to pull the body off leaving the head still in you, and take the tick with you to the doctor. They may start you on doxy even before the lab results are in. If the labs come back negative, they will probably call and tell you that you can stop the doxy. If you have had Lyme in the past, make sure you tell the doctor because he will need to run a different test. If you are put on doxy, it is a good idea to also take a good probiotic to rebuild your good gut bacteria. Just make sure you take the probiotic at least 2 hours before or 2 hours after taking doxy.

I think many of us associate fatigue with our heart and may overlook the possibility of a tick-born disease.

 

[Superbob]

Well, I will have to adopt a goal of relearning how to walk without being accompanied by a dog on a leash.

My rescue dog Ellie passed away last night in her sleep curled up at my feet at this computer. Her heart just gave out. She has walked me almost through my 70s.

My previous retriever dog, Sadie, walked me through my 60s. She lived to 15, Ellie to 14, both exceeding the average life spans of their breed. So walking was good for them too. The Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. The Carolina coasts. We had some wonderful walks with Nature.

Waking is literally hard for me without a dog. And spinal stenosis makes it dificult with or without a dog. So just get another dog -- one to walk me through my 80s, if I make it there in November? Don't know if I am emotionally able to make that step right now. May try to get another round of PT to help with the stenosis. Don't want a back surgery to go with all the front-side ones.

So a pretty muddled goal from me right now. Maybe when my eyes aren't so moist, I can make one.

 

[Superman]

My condolences on your loss. It’s hard losing such a loyal companion. But I don’t need to tell you that.

 

[dick0236]

Bob, I am sorry for your loss. There is something different about the loss of an animal "friend"........maybe it is that they never take your inventory and they give their loyalty unconditionally. Take sometime to "grieve" your friend.

 

[Chuck C]

My condolences Bob.
It is so hard losing a dog. It sounds like you gave her many good years and she gave you many years of loyal companionship.
I'm on my third Shepherd. It was so hard losing the first two and took a long time to bounce back and I can't imagine how hard it will be to lose Bear because I'm even closer to him. Maybe it's because he's been there for me in this valve surgery phase of my life and helped me through my recovery.
You'll know when the time is right to get a new friend.

Bear climbing Mt. Monserate with me.

 

[cldlhd]

Well, I will have to adopt a goal of relearning how to walk without being accompanied by a dog on a leash.

My rescue dog Ellie passed away last night in her sleep curled up at my feet at this computer. Her heart just gave out. She has walked me almost through my 70s.

My previous retriever dog, Sadie, walked me through my 60s. She lived to 15, Ellie to 14, both exceeding the average life spans of their breed. So walking was good for them too. The Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. The Carolina coasts. We had some wonderful walks with Nature.

Waking is literally hard for me without a dog. And spinal stenosis makes it dificult with or without a dog. So just get another dog -- one to walk me through my 80s, if I make it there in November? Don't know if I am emotionally able to make that step right now. May try to get another round of PT to help with the stenosis. Don't want a back surgery to go with all the front-side ones.

So a pretty muddled goal from me right now. Maybe when my eyes aren't so moist, I can make one.

So sorry to hear about your puppy. I can relate, I had a dog for 15 years she was a shepherd lab mix mostly Shepherd. When she passed I just couldn't bring myself to get another dog and my son was just born so we had her hands full. I went almost nine years without one and then this personality overflowing Norfolk terrier fell in our lap and I remembered how much I loved having a dog. I don't know if you're feeling the same way but when I lost mine after 15 years I didn't want to get another one too soon because it felt like I was just replacing her but the reality is there are so many great dogs out there that need a home and if you're happier with a dog, I know this might sound corny to some but dog people will probably get it, your Ellie would want you to have a walking partner. There's my little buddy....

 

[heartlikeawheel]

This is prime tick season.

I found a tick on me about 2 months ago and I don't know how long it was attached. I pulled it off and wasn't too concerned as I never developed a bulls-eye rash. I had Lyme disease about 7 years ago from a tick bite, and a person develops immunity to some of the bacteria.

About a month later, I was hit with overwhelming fatigue. The first couple of days I had to tell myself to just put one foot in front of the other to walk. Over the week, the fatigue was less and less and then gone. I thought I should see a doctor anyway, and the day of my appointment I had one of the worse headaches I have ever had.

The good news was I didn't have Lyme disease. The bad news was I had Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, (RMSF) which occurs all over the US, but predominantly in the South and south-central states. The treatment for Lyme and RMSF is the same, 21 days of twice a day doxycycline hyclate (doxy). On day 4 of doxy, I guess the bacteria had been knocked down enough that the headache finally went away.

Both of these can turn into very serious diseases. RMSF can kill even in the initial phase. If you find a tick stuck to you and there is any chance it has been there for hours or even over a day, remove the tick making sure not to pull the body off leaving the head still in you, and take the tick with you to the doctor. They may start you on doxy even before the lab results are in. If the labs come back negative, they will probably call and tell you that you can stop the doxy. If you have had Lyme in the past, make sure you tell the doctor because he will need to run a different test. If you are put on doxy, it is a good idea to also take a good probiotic to rebuild your good gut bacteria. Just make sure you take the probiotic at least 2 hours before or 2 hours after taking doxy.

I think many of us associate fatigue with our heart and may overlook the possibility of a tick-born disease.

I had RMSF when I was 10. Almost died as I didn’t get treatment until late. Fever so high I was hallucinating. But good news as you indicate with Lyme there is some immunity afterward. Which is great as my dog Timmy and I seem to get ticks every day on our walks! I pulled four off him the other day. Fortunately he is on a tick med which kills them when they latch on. There is some good tick repellent clothing but with things so hot I can’t bear to wear it.

 

[heartlikeawheel]

Well, I will have to adopt a goal of relearning how to walk without being accompanied by a dog on a leash.

My rescue dog Ellie passed away last night in her sleep curled up at my feet at this computer. Her heart just gave out. She has walked me almost through my 70s.

My previous retriever dog, Sadie, walked me through my 60s. She lived to 15, Ellie to 14, both exceeding the average life spans of their breed. So walking was good for them too. The Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. The Carolina coasts. We had some wonderful walks with Nature.

Waking is literally hard for me without a dog. And spinal stenosis makes it dificult with or without a dog. So just get another dog -- one to walk me through my 80s, if I make it there in November? Don't know if I am emotionally able to make that step right now. May try to get another round of PT to help with the stenosis. Don't want a back surgery to go with all the front-side ones.

So a pretty muddled goal from me right now. Maybe when my eyes aren't so moist, I can make one.

Very sad for you. It’s devastating to lose a pet (companion). Try to take it day by day. It sounds like you will need assistance sooner rather than later. I am sure your pup would never begrudge you another for the support and love provided. Especially another rescue!

 

[Paleowoman]

Really sorry to read that Ellie dog passed away Superbob. When an animal family member goes it is just as heartbreaking as when a human family member goes.
I can still feel grief for cat familiy members I had years ago, even as a child over 60 years ago.

 

[Seaton]

My rescue dog Ellie passed away last night in her sleep curled up at my feet at this computer. Her heart just gave out. She has walked me almost through my 70s.

Condolences for the loss of dear Ellie, Bob.
And the very best to you for the days ahead.