d_p_pank’s BodyBlog

Co-dependent.

Enable.

Mutual support.

When is it too much? I couldn’t get over how weak they made Phil look this week on the Biggest Loser. I mean if you have a chance like that even if your wife of 20 years gets booted off . . . stay focused. I mean how hard is it to bust your gut working hard and eating well. The whole emotional display makes me think this is how Phil got here in the first place.

Anyway, I was sucking it up last night and watching Phil cry during my evening cardio. As I continue to Pre-hab I’m pushing my cardio even more to try and get back to the pre-scope weight. I’ll be making some homemade tortilla soup today with the guac, tomatoes, and onions. Can’t wait for that and some PM spinning.

Our cafeteria manager changed again at work and now trying to eat something healthy has become a very big challenge. After two jumbo salad days in a row with overpriced chicken, I’m back to packing my own. Since the cold has now hit the southwester PA area I’ve resigned to making soup once a week with a dummy’s recipe.

I’ve been starting with sweet onions, celery, garlic and olive oil in my stock pot, then after chopping add carrots and parsnips and potatoes. Next up chopping up the zucchini and yellow squash then add to the mix. Finally 3 chopped red tomatoes. Then 6-8 cups of chicken stock, low salt for me.

 It’s now a daily occurrence until the cafe turns around.

I’ve been quiet about the soccer team I coach. Besides me not being able to teach by demonstration due to my injury, most of the kids I had over the past few years have moved up the age ranks. My team this year has been a lot of work as I’ve looked for ways to minimize the holes that are created by the inexperience. Anyhow we’ve been able to keep the games to within a goal or two of the other teams, but we’ve not been on the winning end yet. Yesterday was the day that they finally were able to find the back of the net and in grand fashion. I quit counting after it was 5-1 when the one kid I never thought could find the back of the net actually made a pretty nice goal. Only one more game to go for them then I don’t have to even walk on the field again until after I’m a good 4 months into my post-op rehab. I’m officially skipping their indoor season as I disagree with the parental choice of playing at a place with boards and field turf instead of futsal. I’m a big fan in teaching footskills and positioning at the U-12 to U-14 range so I don’t see much use in playing with boards. I need to improve first touch not place less importance on it.

Anyhow, I’m still in moving along mode keeping the quads, hammys and calf muscles firing and growing until the surgery. I’m still working on reducing weight and finding other ways to balance the mental insanity that goes with the surgery and then rehab. It’s really kicking me since I’ve had to do it in two parts due to the revision process since I had this done when I was in college.

The ultimate challenge is fighting for a  wellness budget at work. I know in a time of corporate cutbacks asking for money is crazy but I look at a $10,000 expense for 300 people to put toward wellness promotions, classes and programs a no brainer if it just keeps one or two people in the facility from facing a life threatening condition that could have been prevented. I look at the economic stress as a challenge to my workplaces overall well being.

As part of my little road trip I did venture to a new gym. Urban Active, in NE Cincinnati. Nice little place, Nice combo of machines: freemotion, hammer, and cybex. Perfect after sitting around and watching football all day, just what I needed after seeing signs of stadium gluttony. One good thing is my team played as expected and I was able to feast out of the cooler I packed instead of breaking down for the double cheese nachos. I also was able to buy H2O off of my favorite vendor, since he had a mixed cart of beer, pop and H2O. They loaded up various stadium staff from the ’burgh onto a bus to make sure all the fans were well taken care of. . . now talk about effort to bring out the stadium munchies.

Yep I made the day trip trip to Who Dey land, home of the Cincy Bungles. Nothing like the apathy shown by the home town fans when they realize the hopelessness of their situation.

I had fun, put my workout on hold, but  did get some walking in around town. I also finally broke my live NFL football hiatus for the first time in two years. I really understand why I’d rather watch on TV. Too many breaks. ugg.

After watching people eat and drink at the game I took it easy on dinner tonight. I went out to a wing joint and had dinner of grilled grouper, no bun. That is tough, but after watching various forms of overconsumption it was much easier to eat out and keep it as lean as possible.

That being said, I’m not feeling all the collision’s that happened today and can’t wait to hear about the Stiller’s latest fines (Ward and Troy)e .

 Here’s my challenge: keep my head from thinking about what is ahead and continue pushing my cardio program on top my regularly scheduled lifting days.

I think my sensitivity to everything is really messed up right now. I was listening to Howard Stern on my drive to the gym Monday morning and tearing up as they were talking about the guy who wrote the "When I see Beth Smiling" song that was sung at his wedding by Natalie from the Dixie Chicks. 

Ok, maybe it’s because of some physical pain too. My body was still sore from trying to run and play soccer in my club’s coaches game. I mean I really feel I strained my left oblique while turning to take a ball off of one of the other coaches foot. My knee needed ice for the first time in two weeks so I guess I did push it a bit. Which only reminds me of my need to stick to my lifting as I approach the ACL reconstruction.

Oh yeah, that is the real reason for my mental state. I circled the surgery date on the calendar, planned an OAR show a week before, then circled my post-op appointment dates and therapy dates and then that date sometime between April and May where I could/should be back up and running normally.

The part that kills me is the way it messes up my usual workout schedule, the way it limits my cardio, and the possibility of just not functioning at my usual level.

That is the true issue. Oh well. Sticking to the game plan until 11/18 and planning on using crutches to get around on Turkey Day.

Ok Knee Surgery part 2 now has a realistic date. I just got the all is well from the scope and old screw removal on Monday and now I’m clear to schedule my ACL reconstruction. This is the part that sucks. I chose to play it safe and do this in two parts instead of trying to do it all at once with the possibility that there may not have been a good spot to drill the new holes for the new ligament.

Here’s the tough part. I’m just now getting back to normal from the scope and can coach and run and workout as usual. I’m also working to get my weight back to where it was before the scope. Now the big challenge is to keep on track until the ACL reconstruction.

Knowing the date is a set sucks now since I can prepare for the first two weeks post-op on crutches. Yipee! No driving for 2 weeks.

Anyway, I’m sticking to the evening cardio and AM lifting for the next few weeks. I’m going to enjoy the coaching and even a little pick up until Turkey Day. The big challenge is to keep my mind going instead of dwelling on what’s ahead. 

I tend to work in a high stress environment. I have several co-workers that tend to do the food stress reduction program. I love it when I get the looks by bringing in my little cooler each day, but it sure beats breaking down on some of the neat dips and deserts that show up daily.

This was extremely hard to deal with especially after I was getting back to normal activity post-op on my knee.

I’ve currently started ramping up the cardio to at least 45 minutes daily. Sometimes it will be a walk around my work campus, sometimes I’ll save it for an evening spin class. In order to deal with the food stress group at work I’ve started disappearing to the gym on high stress days for lunch instead of working through my lunch which often happens when I have too many fires to put out. I realize a 30 minute weight or cardio session typically gives me that energy boost for the afternoon. Not to mention the milk and protein shakes for that mid afternoon snack.

I wished I could invite the rest of them to join me, but I wouldn’t want to be accused of being a health pusher. I mean when I retire, oh wait that will never happen for me, but if I were as close to retirement as some of my coworkers I’d definitely be investing in my health the way most of them are loading up on their 401K contributions. 

Anyway enough about pushing and more about making the right choice.

After coaching soccer the other night I definitely need to go ahead with the ACL reconstruction later this fall. Why? I like coaching soccer. I like demonstrating as I play. I tend to feel that playing along teaches more that a clipboard or screaming from the sidelines ever will. I realized that without the reconstruction I will need to put a do not cut in front of me jersey on as I’d hate to kill one of my U-12’s since I can’t stop on a dime right now. The kicking thing may be back but the cutting is NON Existent.