Two years ago I stood on this hill behind my little family thinking how perfect the day was. Sunny, warm and calm on the outside. A bag of nerves on my inside.
It was the perfect “last day” before filling my body with enough toxins to wipe out a large part of my immune system.
“Shit I hope this treatment works and doesn’t make things worse” I remember thinking.
So far so good.
Phew.
Living with MS means I am constantly thinking about how to take good care of myself. What I eat, how much I eat, sleep and exercise all makes such a difference to me. And if I spend a couple of weeks on holiday eating and drinking too much (like now) then I try and counteract the overindulgence with more exercise (preferably in a forest-it really is true what they say about forests and forest bathing).
I’m currently trying all sorts to get fitter and stronger. This can be quite a challenge due to the fact that my leg gives up after a few minutes of walking or running, and I barely break into a sweat before I have to stop to rest my crazy leg.
So yesterday I cycled up a massive hill pulling my (heavy) children in a trailer behind me to try and get a sweat on.
The husband was getting loads of dirty looks as I struggled up behind him. He even got heckled at one point.
I was mostly giggling at my ridiculousness and the dirty looks hubby was getting (the giggling makes it impossible to cycle up steep hills by the way). He was mostly taking the piss out of my cycling-up-a-hill-tactics, and trying to explain to the heckling strangers how stubborn I can be.
But I did it. I broke into a sweat and was quite out of breath at the top.
And I felt a sense of achievement that you get from things like childbirth and completing a marathon. (By the way a marathon for me now is walking further than I did yesterday, which isn’t very far, so please don’t think I only consider 26.2 miles a worthy challenge. I’ve done both. And my mini walks are so much harder than when I actually could run a marathon).
So here it is. My sweaty-forest-look. Crazy hair optional.
Here’s to finding ways to stay as strong and fit as you can for as long as you can. It feels pretty amazing.
Love, Lynne x
9 minutes and 23 seconds.
Doesn’t sound like much does it?
But it was. And it is.
Loving my new running challenge.
Come on crazy leg. You know you can do it…
I am always grateful to have been diagnosed with MS when I was relatively young.
I think I managed 4 whole minutes before my leg gave way and I collapsed into this.
Totally worth it for this early Sunday morning view.
Come on crazy leg. I know you can do better than that…
Last week was my first trip to the gym in at least 3 years.
I hadn’t been there since my leg decided to start doing its own thing about 3 years ago, so I had no idea how long it would be before I needed to sit down; however, I was hoping to at least break into a sweat before I needed a rest.
I decided that if it was an embarrassingly short time before that happened, I could pad things out with some yoga (for which I never seem to run out of energy). However, I would risk being that person who does yoga postures in front of the mirror, in the gym, wearing trainers.
At least I would have this lovely lunatic with me to keep me on the straight and narrow.
In the morning I was disproportionately excited. I used to be extremely fit, so not being able to exercise properly for the last few years has been really frustrating. This week was the first time in ages I felt I might be able to get at least a chunk of that life back.
And as it turns out, I did alright. And in spite of not being able to lift my arms above shoulder height without pulling the face above (not that helpful for a yoga teacher), I’m already planning my next trip.
For now I’m off to whip up some post-workout energy balls. And then sit down for a bit. Because aside from the fact that I have Multiple Sclerosis, I am also 41 and a half…
Love, Lynne x
Two weeks ago I wrote this. At the time I was feeling really tired and in desperate need of a boost. So I got all health-obsessed to see how much difference it would make.
So how has it been?
“Boring” – according to my husband.
Regardless of his reaction, I have carried on (and added a few extra veggies to his plate too). Two weeks in and I am feeling great.
There has been very little “cutting out” and a lot of “adding in”, just as planned.
And as expected, my energy has soared.
I plan to do so much more over the next few weeks in terms of what I eat and how I live to stay well, and after years of searching for a miracle cure, I think I’ve finally found something that works for me and fits in with my family.
The following ideas are not rules (I love a list opportunity), as we are all different and have different needs, but these simple changes have made such a difference to me that I really wanted to share them:
How to boost energy levels and reduce inflammation
Yes I know I sound boring. In fact my husband thinks this angle could be the death of my blog (and maybe my friendships!) I’m sure those more sweary blogs will still appear on occasion. I do still have MS.
But for now, I will stick at the healthy stuff and keep you posted.
I am a yoga teacher after all. I should at least post one quinoa-related blog in 2017…
Happy healthy week to you all
Love Lynne x
