May 14, 2010 (Not feeling too creative in the headline department)

It's been threatening rain all day today, so I'm glad we seized the day and did a Trader Joe's run yesterday. The rain held off during the day but I just heard some thunder.

Today was my second day without any prednisone.

Things are beginning to settle and I'm more able to see what my functioning is actually like.

Earlier in the week, I did my last Aquatics class of the series on Monday and went to Occupational and Physical Therapy appointments on Tuesday.

It was interesting that I was able to complete the sets of strengthening exercises that I usually do, however, I would not have been able to do any more than that. Several weeks before my flare up, I could have, and did, do two to five more than the set as given, if I felt able to do so.

When it came to the balance portion of my session, I was able to some tasks at almost the level I usually do, but was easily fatigued, and of course as I became more fatigued, my balance got worse. The tandem walk was really poor.

It was good to see what was really happening in terms of the routines I had been doing. I now have a baseline from which to judge my progress from here on.

By next week, I hope that I'll be all set up with my YMCA membership which will mean at least one session in the pool per week and more if I can manage it. That is, by far, my most preferred mode of exercise.

In the meantime, while I still have a bit of a "buzz", I figured that I would get going on some exercise time, particularly since I wasn't able to do much in the way of exercise for the past several weeks, due to the fatigue I was experiencing due to my flare and the subsequent medication course.

Wednesday, I tried out my new SparkPeople CardioBlast DVD (Walk it Out Workout), previewed the Fitness Starter DVD and used the Inflatable Balance Board that I ordered.

Thursday I did some strengthening exercises and the Inflatable Balance Board. At this point I can just about stand with two feet on the board for one minute at a time.

Today I did the one mile easy walk using the Leslie Sansone DVD and the most of the Resistance Band workout on the Fitness Starter DVD.

Of course, I was not able to do any of these workouts without stopping several times but I did complete them.

I know that there will be times when I won't be able to do what I've planned, but I want to know that:
A. That I'm doing some exercise on a regular basis
B. I'm doing what I can, when I can

In the meantime, I'm increasing my intake of fruits and veggies.