Friday, August 19, 2011

Workaholic = More Pain in my Leg

My job has been calling for longer hours than I am used to. That means less time for exercise, sleep and more time sitting for long periods of time. Luckily it is Friday and work has calmed down for now. But by now, my leg and hip (and my back) are in quite a bit of pain and more swollen than usual. I tend to have an issue sitting still for long periods of time which is good for Lymphedema but this week of sitting for extended periods has set me back with my leg.

I think at times when stress and work load is high, it is good to stand up for periods and take a break from sitting. Rather than emailing a coworker, get up and go talk to them or stand next to your desk for a bit.

Also, that thing you have your butt on for long periods of time? Your chair...matters. I have been working from home and so sitting on a wooden stool (kitchen table) working 12 hour days and that is part of the reason my leg is more swollen and in pain. I need to invest in a desk and a good work chair for when I work from home.

So, even though life gets busy, there are always little ways to keep your Lymphedema in check. I will hopefully do better myself with that.

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Staying motivated

I feel like life has been handing me a few lemons lately so what did I do last week? I went to the gym twice and sat on my butt and whined the rest of the week. Really healthy and motivating huh? Staying motivated to go to gym or exercise when life gets busy or crappy or even when it doesn't and you just lose motivation is really hard. So how do you keep it up?

I think most people go through this, even athletes; at least that is what I tell myself to make myself feel better... But how do you keep up the motivation when you have that extra obstacle of Lymphedema. It could have been stress on Thursday but my body, leg and hip ached so badly I went straight home and got into bed. I am not sure if going to the gym would have helped but it probably would have helped if I had just gone for a 20 minute walk. I worked late on Friday and instead of going on a run or walk, I just walked to the red box. Saturday I finally got myself together and did 90 minutes of cardio on the treadmill and in the pool. Here I am on Sunday and I don't want to repeat last week but I feel that unmotivated bug creeping back in (because the darn thing bit me today – grill with friends or exercise, well you see which won out).

I wrote my workouts down for the week so I am thinking I will stick to it. Possibly just writing this post will make me stick to it. My Lymphedema isn't going to magically disappear with my butt on the couch. It won't disappear in the gym either, but the swelling and pain will be near nonexistent if I stick with my exercise and healthy eating. New week = better focus on my priorities.