Not dead, just in a CFA hole! I’ve been feeling 100% good for about a week now, so I think I’m fully recovered from SuperBronchitis. A victory! I haven’t trained in I don’t even know how long anymore… 8 weeks maybe? My exam is a week from tomorrow and I think every spare minute I have needs to be spent studying. Only 30% or so of people will pass it, so it’s tough! First thing I’m going to do on 3 June is go out and get some exercise!
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Not dead, just in a CFA hole!

I’ve been feeling 100% good for about a week now, so I think I’m fully recovered from SuperBronchitis. A victory!

I haven’t trained in I don’t even know how long anymore… 8 weeks maybe? My exam is a week from tomorrow and I think every spare minute I have needs to be spent studying. Only 30% or so of people will pass it, so it’s tough!

First thing I’m going to do on 3 June is go out and get some exercise!

losingitall: This is the truly inspiring Claire Lomas, she finished the London Virgin Marathon today. She is paralysed from a showjumping horse accident, but with the help of a ‘Bionic’ suit, she managed to walk the 26.2 miles in 16 days. It takes this amazing woman such strength to walk in the suit, every step a real effort. The rules, that were just changed this year, says that all competitors for the marathon only get medals if they complete the course that day, so I’m thrilled so many runners who got their medals a few weeks ago came out to support Claire in those final miles today and she did get a medal from Branson himself. She never gave up, even though it took her hours to walk 1 mile, an amazing achievement for her to finish today, and she raised £80,000 for Spinal Research.  Truly inspirational. Kudos!
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losingitall:

This is the truly inspiring Claire Lomas, she finished the London Virgin Marathon today.

She is paralysed from a showjumping horse accident, but with the help of a ‘Bionic’ suit, she managed to walk the 26.2 miles in 16 days. It takes this amazing woman such strength to walk in the suit, every step a real effort.

The rules, that were just changed this year, says that all competitors for the marathon only get medals if they complete the course that day, so I’m thrilled so many runners who got their medals a few weeks ago came out to support Claire in those final miles today and she did get a medal from Branson himself.

She never gave up, even though it took her hours to walk 1 mile, an amazing achievement for her to finish today, and she raised £80,000 for Spinal Research. 

Truly inspirational.

Kudos!

(via regainingmymoxy)

Source: losingitall

NPR: 'Wired To Run': Runner's High May Have Been Evolutionary Advantage

Now researchers suggest that those chemicals may have helped turn humans, as well as other animals, into long-distance runners.

Steadily on the Mend after nearly 6 weeks

40 days since the start of what I’m affectionately calling, *SuperBronchitis”, I’m feeling on the mend. 

I’ve been off the antiibiotics for 5 days and the Prednisone is tapering. My lungs are still a bit sore, my voice is still screwed, but my energy levels are definitely increasing. At this time last week, walking to my office would have been work, whereas I’ve walked nearly every day this week. It’s progress, and after having been quite so sick, I’m pleased.

MAF buddy Leo asked me earlier this week about whether there were signs I could look for again, and he reminded me of something quite key. Before this all kicked off, I went though a time where my RHR was unusually high. I gather this was probably due to reduced lung capacity (thanks, asthma!) and my body coping with the resulting lung inflammation. I didn’t rest up until I got really sick, which was definitely a mistake, too. So, now I have a little signal to look for. We’ll see if it helps me next time. 

So, it’s May, and I’ve been lazing around for over 5 weeks.  I have a crazy hard exam four weeks from tomorrow that has to take my priority, and while in my mind I’m read to work out, my lungs aren’t so up to the task yet. What’s a girl to do?

Here’s the plan:

  1. Study. Plain and simple, prep for CFA 2 has to rule my life for the next 4 weeks. 
  2. Exercise gently if/when my lungs aren’t hurting. I’ll be starting up very slowly. My usual MAF is 141 bpm, but I expect to target any workouts I get over the next week to peak at 125bpm. I don’t see it so much as training as much as simply getting the blood flowing a little. I’m hoping to do a little bike soon. I hoped I would today and even brought my kit, but I felt pretty sore this afternoon. The recent London weather has not been to my advantage
  3. Enjoy NYC: I’ll be in New York from the 10-18th to hole up and study and eat dinner with people I like. I have a new set of 10.5 AA running shoes coming while I’m there, but I don’t know if I’ll get to test them. I’m packing my garmin, just in case
  4. Get back to full health/ my pre-SuperBronchitis level
  5. Kick some CFA Exam Butt on 2 June 
  6. Start training for Amsterdam and Dublin - yes, Dublin too. A friend who I cajoled into Amsterdam has signed up for Dublin 2 days later and, well, solidarity matters!

So, I’m probably not going to post much of anything for next month because I’m not going to have much time, but who knows. I suppose it all depends on how long it takes me to be ready to exercise, but I’m looking forward to June. 

Jogging 'increases life expectancy'

“The greatest benefit came from jogging at a “slow or average” pace - enough to cause slight breathlessness - rather than pushing to physical limits.”

Dr. Maffetone would be pleased to see this!

FT Masterclass: Ultra-running with Lizzy Hawker

Badass.

Milton Keynes' first marathon hailed a success

Kudos to those who ran Milton Keynes. 

Running the World’s great cities is something, but Milton Keynes? You guys really meant it. 

Q:Tag you're it! List 10 random facts about you - play along if you like! Can't wait to see you next month :)

sippinlattes

10 Random Facts… 

1. I have been on 4 continents, Las Vegas, and the Floor of the NYSE on Crutches.

2. The worst sunburn I ever had was in Bolivia. All it took was 30 minutes of early morning sun off Lake Titicaca. My head was purple and I couldn’t brush my hair for 2 weeks. 

3. My hair started turning white when i was 11. I didn’t dye it until I was 27. When it was first dyed, I often was surprised by my own reflection. Now, I can’t imagine it being white. 

4. I always wanted to live in London, and now I do. 

5. When I was little, I was obsessed with dogs and horses. Some things never change. 

6. I have a rubber band around my right eye. It’s called a scleral buckle, and I got it when I had a detached retina in 1998. I think it’s extraordinary. Because of it, I see 20/70 instead of not at all. 

7. I have been pulled over for speeding multiple times, but I have never been given a ticket. I never cried, either. One time, I offered to write a check there and then.

8. I was the only Francoise in my class at school. (Shocker.) I never had a nickname until college. 

9. My second toe is longer than my big toe. 

10. In economy, I always pick an starboard side aisle seat so my left leg can go into the aisle. 

Dr.’s Verdict, day 36

My usual doc was sick, but I squeezed into another’s schedule this morning.

Good news-
Signs of infection are gone
Lung capacity good
Blood oxygen is good
No more antibiotics
Start tapering the prednisone
Can go to work

Bad news-
I was really sick
I need to still take it easy
My lungs may not be back to normal/ not hurt for another six weeks.

I’m going to put off even light training (brisk walk or bike) for the week at least, as today is my first day off antibiotics and I want to be confident that I really don’t need them before I test myself at all. I trust the doc, but this bug has been crazy.

Me v Asthma & Bronchitis: Day 35

Still sick, but definitely improved. I’m so thankful for that. 

I go back to the doctor tomorrow. We shall see. I can’t imagine running anywhere right now, but maybe soon?

BBC: Kenya's Rift Valley, where everyone runs

Teenagers in many countries will whip you at Call of Duty… In Kenya, 7 year olds will probably outrun you.

I’m still really, really good at eating cake, though. 

UK Guardian: Does music help you to run faster?

Interesting (No, I’m not going to tell you why, you have to read it yourself!)

Day 29 of my personal Battle of Lungs.  Since the last visit to the GP, I’m better, but not all better. I still sound like the progeny of a Hoover and a Ducati Monster, but it’s much less deep. The sinus pain and headaches are gone. My lungs still feel sore.  So I went back to the doc today, and here begins round 4 of antibiotics. (Already done two rounds of amoxicillin and one round of what we call Biaxin in the States. This new one is about as unpleasant as the Biaxin. Rather harsh with lots of unpleasant side effects. I really hope this is it. Then there are the steroids (Prednisone). Dosage increased and I’ll have those for another week plus another week of taper, assuming this is the final battle.   Prednisone is a real bitch, for lack of better words, while at the same time, being a bit of a wonder drug. It suppresses the immune system. This helps an asthmatic like me because once my lungs are all flared up, it’s hard to convince them to calm down. It’s a bit like when if scratch a big bite; it gets bigger and itchier and takes longer to go down than it would if you had just left it alone. It’s like my body thinks it’s sick, even when it isn’t anymore.  As a result there are lots of fun side effects, but having been on this stuff quite a bit, there are some good ways to cope.  The most frequent complaint I read about is weight gain, and I tend to lose weight on Prednisone, so I may be on to something. Unfortunately, my body fat% does go up like everyone else’s, but it’s usually not too bad. Everyone is different, but here are some Prednisone side effects and how I deal. Hungry and Nauseous at the same time & Weight Gain: I eat often and I eat small meals. I found that if I ate a big plate, I just felt so, so sick. Now, I just eat most of my meals in two servings and it really helps. I also found popsicles tend to be good, because you feel like you’re eating but you’re not. The only problem there is that popsicles are full of sugar, and this doesn’t go well with the steroids because Prednisone raises your blood sugar anyway. So, if you eat a bunch of sugar, you’re just really just giving yourself a hard time and further weakening your immune system. So, homemade popsicles are a good bet. Insomnia: This one is tough. Some nights I sleep. Others, I am up all night. I tend to give myself 30 mins to make it happen, If I don’t, I get up and do something and then try again. I think it helps me not stress on the fact that I’m wide awake at 4am. Thinning Skin: While it won’t fix it, I’ve found that putting moisturizer/lotion/ oil on more than once a day makes it a bit better. I also watch out for things that might scrape me/ scratch my skin. Whatever you do, don’t have your eyebrows waxed after you’ve been on this stuff for a while. I started doing threading a few years ago as a result, and it was a wise move.  Weakened Immune System: Can’t fix this, but avoiding sugar will probably help. Lots of things are loaded with sugar that seem healthy, like orange juice. Once I figured out that sugar made me feel crappy, my quality of life got much better.  Muscle Loss/ Fat Gain: Again, another one that can’t be fixed, but another plus of avoiding sugar will be that you probably won’t be quite as affected as you would be otherwise. I pretty much avoid the scale. There’s nothing I can really do about it, and you shouldn’t flog yourself, either. If you’re on this stuff, you’re clearly sick, and you need to focus on getting better. You can go kick ass in the gym later, as long as you just get better. So, back to my Tumblr hiatus for what will likely be at least a week and a half, barring the sharing of an article or two. This can’t last forever.  I’ll be running again soon, and I can’t wait!
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Day 29 of my personal Battle of Lungs. 

Since the last visit to the GP, I’m better, but not all better. I still sound like the progeny of a Hoover and a Ducati Monster, but it’s much less deep. The sinus pain and headaches are gone. My lungs still feel sore. 

So I went back to the doc today, and here begins round 4 of antibiotics. (Already done two rounds of amoxicillin and one round of what we call Biaxin in the States. This new one is about as unpleasant as the Biaxin. Rather harsh with lots of unpleasant side effects. I really hope this is it.

Then there are the steroids (Prednisone). Dosage increased and I’ll have those for another week plus another week of taper, assuming this is the final battle.  

Prednisone is a real bitch, for lack of better words, while at the same time, being a bit of a wonder drug. It suppresses the immune system. This helps an asthmatic like me because once my lungs are all flared up, it’s hard to convince them to calm down. It’s a bit like when if scratch a big bite; it gets bigger and itchier and takes longer to go down than it would if you had just left it alone. It’s like my body thinks it’s sick, even when it isn’t anymore. 

As a result there are lots of fun side effects, but having been on this stuff quite a bit, there are some good ways to cope.  The most frequent complaint I read about is weight gain, and I tend to lose weight on Prednisone, so I may be on to something. Unfortunately, my body fat% does go up like everyone else’s, but it’s usually not too bad.

Everyone is different, but here are some Prednisone side effects and how I deal.

  1. Hungry and Nauseous at the same time & Weight Gain: I eat often and I eat small meals. I found that if I ate a big plate, I just felt so, so sick. Now, I just eat most of my meals in two servings and it really helps. I also found popsicles tend to be good, because you feel like you’re eating but you’re not. The only problem there is that popsicles are full of sugar, and this doesn’t go well with the steroids because Prednisone raises your blood sugar anyway. So, if you eat a bunch of sugar, you’re just really just giving yourself a hard time and further weakening your immune system. So, homemade popsicles are a good bet.
  2. Insomnia: This one is tough. Some nights I sleep. Others, I am up all night. I tend to give myself 30 mins to make it happen, If I don’t, I get up and do something and then try again. I think it helps me not stress on the fact that I’m wide awake at 4am.
  3. Thinning Skin: While it won’t fix it, I’ve found that putting moisturizer/lotion/ oil on more than once a day makes it a bit better. I also watch out for things that might scrape me/ scratch my skin. Whatever you do, don’t have your eyebrows waxed after you’ve been on this stuff for a while. I started doing threading a few years ago as a result, and it was a wise move. 
  4. Weakened Immune System: Can’t fix this, but avoiding sugar will probably help. Lots of things are loaded with sugar that seem healthy, like orange juice. Once I figured out that sugar made me feel crappy, my quality of life got much better. 
  5. Muscle Loss/ Fat Gain: Again, another one that can’t be fixed, but another plus of avoiding sugar will be that you probably won’t be quite as affected as you would be otherwise. I pretty much avoid the scale. There’s nothing I can really do about it, and you shouldn’t flog yourself, either. If you’re on this stuff, you’re clearly sick, and you need to focus on getting better. You can go kick ass in the gym later, as long as you just get better.

So, back to my Tumblr hiatus for what will likely be at least a week and a half, barring the sharing of an article or two.

This can’t last forever.  I’ll be running again soon, and I can’t wait!

UK Guardian: How much water should you drink during a marathon?

I’m still sick, but I saw this and had to post it. I’m still on Tumblr hiatus. 

After all that good behavior, my lungs still sound like the progeny of a Hoover and a motorcycle.  The good news: it doesn’t seem to be turning into pneumonia The bad news: I’m still sick. So, enter my third round of antibiotics and the reintroduction of steroids, in addition to Plan B, which is Singulair, and has been helping.  I’m feeling a bit low. It has been three weeks now, and I’m the sort of person who really needs exercise because I get really crabby without it. Hopefully this will sort me out once and for all, and with any luck, I’ll feel well enough to productively study before I return to work on Thursday. Anyway, I’m extending my Tumblr vacation. I’ll be back soon!
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After all that good behavior, my lungs still sound like the progeny of a Hoover and a motorcycle. 

The good news: it doesn’t seem to be turning into pneumonia

The bad news: I’m still sick. So, enter my third round of antibiotics and the reintroduction of steroids, in addition to Plan B, which is Singulair, and has been helping. 

I’m feeling a bit low. It has been three weeks now, and I’m the sort of person who really needs exercise because I get really crabby without it. Hopefully this will sort me out once and for all, and with any luck, I’ll feel well enough to productively study before I return to work on Thursday.

Anyway, I’m extending my Tumblr vacation. I’ll be back soon!