Know When To Walk (away), Know When To . . . Walk.

NEWSFLASH!
CG is now on Twitter! Follow me with username CysticGal ! I can't wait to tweet with you.

I realized my dates were wrong in the Exercise Tracker! New Exercise Tracker coming! I've been at it every day except 2- both publicized honestly :) Thanks for all your support!

On to the regular post . . .

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Know When to Walk (away), Know When to . . . Walk

Ok Readers. Here it is. I'm gonna give it to you straight. After 30 days of research, both bold and careful, easy and hard- here is the hard truth.

I am not a runner.

I am no "RunSickboyRun." I'm never gonna be one of those peeps who runs a marathon and "oh my God she has Cystic Fibrosis!!" is said on the evening news. It's not in the cards. Not this year.

For the past thirty days, I've been conducting secret research, trying different methods to try to incorporate running into my workout. I was a Cystic Gal with a dream. I tried doing one minute of running every ten minutes of my work out. Nope. I tried doing thirty seconds. Nope. I tried FIFTEEN FRIGGIN SECONDS. Nope. My heartrate is not happy with me running, and neither is my O2 regardless of how high it is set. My lungs and heart are not ready to run.

Sigh.

I'll be okay.

To bring me out of my doldrums, I wrote myself a little diddy. It is sung to the tune of "The Ants Go Marching In." (the kids song, not the DMB song).

Gal Goes Walking In
By Cystic Gal

2.8-3.5 for me, hurrah. hurrah.
2.8 is the speed to beat, hurrah, hurrah.
3.5 is the max for me, hurrah, hurrah.
I'm the best walker, you see- HURRAH! HURRAH!

My point: I am learning that it is not about matching someone else's workout even if that's your romantic dream. I have much lower FEV's and O2 SATs than most of my bloggies. I canNOT compare myself to them fairly. I might as well compare myself to Lance Armstrong. That would be pointless.

I must work to the highest part of my target heartrate, and keep my 02 between 88 and 95, and sustain for >30minutes! That is all!

I worked hard today! HURRAH!!!

Goodnight, bp

The Vow of the Cardio- REVISED

The Vow of the Cardio.

It is a promise between me and my lungs.

1. I will exercise daily so that my lungs can reach their capacity and serve me better.

2. I will exercise for a minimum of 30 sustained minutes every single day no matter what.

3. Only my own doctor himself can tell me not to exercise.

4. I will keep oxygen for for a variety of types of exercise by calling the 02 company ahead.

5. I will not "replace" daily cardio/aerobic exercise with yoga, sex, or weight lifting.

6. I will monitor my O2 SAT and heart rate diligently and work to my full potential.

7. I will not get mad at myself or my Lungs if they have a bad day, week, month, or year.

8. I will set goals for me and my Lungs, and when we complete them, I will reward us.

9. I will continue exercising my Lungs daily during a health setback.

10. I will be honest with my Readers about my adherence to The Vow of the Cardio.

Make you own ten-point "Vow of the Cardio" today! Don't make YOUR Lungs say, "What have you done for ME lately?"

In an upcoming post, "The Lung Agreements," or what your lungs promise to do for you.

-CG

The Vow of the Cardio-ORIGINAL

The Vow of the Cardio.

NOTE: This version of the Vow will remain published, but revisions will be posted here, as I move forward with my progress and thoughts on exercise!

You, too, may take this vow. Or you may make your own. It is a promise between you and your lungs.

1. I vow to provide my Lungs with daily exercise so that they can serve me to the best of their ability.

2. I vow to exercise my Lungs for a non-negotiable minimum of 30 sustained minutes every day including during religious holidays, family events, unforeseen circumstances, and regardless of the time of day, the status of my Tummy, and even when I am very sick unless my doctor actually tells me directly that I may not exercise.

3. I promise my Lungs that their oxygen needs will be met. To ensure that my Lungs will believe me, I will call my home health company ahead of time to prepare for travel, holidays, and changes to my routine. I will program the home health 02 company's name into my cell and set reminders to call them for supplies.

4. I will not fool my Lungs that other forms of non-sustained exercise can take the place of my Cardio/aerobic time. I will use other forms of exercise to compliment my aerobic activity, not replace it.

5. I will monitor my Lungs' ability to use O2, and the status of their dearest friend, the Heart, by checking my O2 SAT and pulse. I will work to my full potential during my workouts by steadily increasing the difficulty as I track my improvements. I will expect my Lungs to work to their full potential, but I will not get mad at them if they have a bad day, week, month, or year.

6. I will set goals for me and my Lungs, and when we complete them, I will reward us handsomely. The goals I set will not be based on how "hard" I work out, but how often, as I cannot truly control how fast I can go or how long I can go on a given day.

7. I promise to keep exercising my Lungs during a health setback- especially during a health setback. My Lungs are sad then and need the pick-me-up endorphins.

8. I will use The Vow of the Cardio to defeat The Demonic Yukkies and their ever-increasing liege, and drive them out of my Lungs forever.

9. I promise to review my Vow regularly, both alone with my Lungs, and with my physician, to make changes as needed.

10. I promise my Lungs that I will be honest with my Readers about my adherence to The Vow.

Make you own ten-point "Vow of the Cardio" today! Don't make YOUR Lungs say, "What have you done for ME lately?"

In an upcoming post, "The Lung Agreements," or what your lungs promise to do for you.

-CG

You Gotta Know When to Hold 'Em

Ok, I really really really didn't want my first blog on here to be a rant. But here goes.

I'll begin by employing the Letterman Method:

Top Ten Reasons that Asthma and CF Comparisons Annoy Me

[This post was posted, then removed, then posted, then removed, and it's ba-ack, by popular request. It's not a great attribute to our current culture that we like the negative emotions more than the positive ones, but it is an attribute. It is. You ask, you receive. The original Asthma Rant. Love, CG]

“You Gotta Know When To Hold ‘Em”

(between an Asthma pal and a CF pal today on the phone)
(also last week and the week before that)
(also many times over my lifespan with other Asthma pals)

10. Asthma kills very few of the people that have it (3), while virtually everyone who has CF will die from it or from complications resulting from it, whether pre or post transplant (3, FORTHCOMING).

9. 20 Million people in the U.S. have asthma(1). Boy- that's a lot! That's 400,000 or so in each state! Approximately 30,000 people in the US have CF (2). Asthma, though challenging, is relatively common. Commonly experienced. Commonly discussed. Commonly understood. CF is none of those things.

8. Asthma-like symptoms are only one component of CF. Hearing comparisons of someones last asthma attack to my Teeny Tiny lung capacity is like hearing somebody tell me about the morning after a bad burrito in comparison to my nutritional issues.

7. When CFers share that they're having a hard time, like other people that have a hard time, they just want someone to listen, not make constant comparisons. Recently my friend T-Money^ literally sliced part of her finger off in a freak moving/unpacking incident. When she called me to go to the ER with her, did I regale her of the time I cut my hand opening a string cheese when I was ten, interjecting, "I know JUST HOW YOU FEEL," over and over again? No, I said, "I'll be right over. Which hospital?"

6. Not for nothing, but your meds don't compare to my meds. Get over yourself.

5. Since you go to ER to get a "z-pack" and a nebulizer treatment, I guess I'll have to start referring to my house as the Emergency Room and my couch as "Curtain 3." I guess that would also make my cat B-Kitty^ a resident, while S-Purry^ would be the nurse. And I'll need to get some carbon paper intake papers for the front door and some of those "no inferme" signs to ward off the swine flu.

4. The conversation ends with YOU saying, "Okay, I gotta run to the gym and the grocery store and I have a party tonight but maybe I could stop by sometime next week...oh I'm not sure, I've been really busy and my asthma's really keepin' me down." I can totally tell.

3. It is somehow impossible for me to get out of this conversation without sounding like a biotch.

2. I adore looking back on the days of my early early childhood when questioned about my health I could pass off my illness as asthma and kids would shrug and say, "Oh, my brother has asthma" and continue to invite me over. By fifth grade the question changed to "What's wrong with you?" and my asthma excuse was gone baby gone. Also many playdates.

1. I can't go to the regular gym because my o2 tank doesn't last long enough. So thanks for braggin' about that particular errand.

Footnotes:
*I am the CF pal
^Pseudonyms
(1) Available http://www.aafa.org/display.cfm?id=8 06/15/2009.
(2) Available http://cff.org 06/15/2009
(3) _Trends in Asthma Morbidity and Mortality_. American Lung Association, Epidemiology and Statistics Unit, Research and Program Services Division. January 2009. Available http://www.lungusa.org/ 06/18/2009

Okokokok. I really didn't want to start on a rant, but there it is.

With actual love, because I do love my Asthma pals,
CG

Footnotes:
*I am the CF pal
^Pseudonyms
(1) Available http://www.aafa.org/display.cfm?id=8 06/15/2009.
(2) Available http://cff.org 06/15/2009
(3) _Trends in Asthma Morbidity and Mortality_. American Lung Association, Epidemiology and Statistics Unit, Research and Program Services Division. January 2009. Available http://www.lungusa.org/ 06/18/2009

Okokokok. I really didn't want to start on a rant, but there it is.

With actual love, because I do love my Asthma pals,
CG