MSers in Training 2015

[npavlato]

Funny- I don't have a lot of pics of my ballroom outfits but I've got pics of every nerdy cosplay we've done. I love everyone's pictures! Here's one of my husband and I social dancing. I can't do Zumba even a little bit right now, although it's fun. I've discovered playing "Just Dance" sitting down is actually a mini-workout so I do that with the kids. I also got my ass back to the gym- I get some stares but it's worth it.
Juliet- good luck on the marathon!
And, 60 mike bike rides- impressive!
Anyone have good ab exercises that protect your back? Regular crunches are too difficult; I'm doing planks but I have a small amount of scapula winging so can't do them for too long.

[teena marie]

Hi all,

Simply wonderful to meet all the new members. Amazing goals and accomplishments. I have to be quick so I can't respond individually but I applaud every time I log on. Congratulations to all.

Swim training is going well and have the outdoor pool almost ready to go. I have been concentrating on my kick and increase the number of reps when kicking at the ladder. To help increase muscle strength I have been working my quads when time permits. I do a static leg extension at my desk and am trying to increase my holds. I alternate intensity of kicks with endurance-kicking with less force and for longer. This in turn is really working my core. I use a noodle to support my legs but also alternate not using it so that I have to use everything to keep me afloat. I've incorporated sprints doing a series of 1 length sprint, 3 off. All this is contributing to more streamlined swimming. I start ocean training the end o June. The first team triathlon is 3rd week of July, the second mid August.

My hospital is moving and my office moved yesterday. Epic in all ways. My body really needs a rest, so I'm moving about as little as possible today as so no training today and tomorrow a little light movement.

Take care all,

Teena Marie

[Veronica]

Ok, I am not happy. I am giving the training wheels an "F"..... Really unsafe to ride on any surface that isn't completely flat from side to side...hard to turn...just a disappointment. I tried them out today on my rail trail and am never using them again. So, I came home from this little ride resolved to look into the racing trike set up that Suebee mentioned. I researched what Jill Walsh uses, and found the following article that basically tells me that this would be no different as far as stability.

http://www.caths.cz/storage/sekretar...UCI%20Para.pdf

So right now I am just sad/mad... had so hoped to get riding upright, and there were moments today on the rail trail through the woods that made me feel so good.... I have to adjust my thinking ....and focus on maybe trading in the Greenspeed for what Marina has, the Catrike 700.....and then figure out how I would transport it....issues, issues..... I'm gonna hang in there,my buddies...gotta see this as just another one of those challenges we face all the time....

And in the meantime, I am training on my old bike on the Rock and Roll trainer really hard, and loving it....sweating bullets, getting my heart rate up, and just having fun with my Sufferfest video... any one else use these? I love the snarkiness/ bike geekiness of them....great Techno music that normally I wouldn't care to listen to, but boy does it work with these....There is one part where one of the Schleck brothers, Andy, I think, is riding, and turns to the camera and gives a thumbs up....Always makes me smile and I give him a thumb up too!! Really!! My secret is out....

[Marinadca]

Awww I was really hoping Jill Walsh of Carole Cooke's set ups might be the next step for me, how disappointing.

I am sorry to hear that the training wheels are not working out, getting upright again sounds amazing.

Anyhow, I do love my 700 but it does not fold up in any way!

[AMFADVENTURES]

Nicole, re: ab exercises, almost anything you do while sitting in a chair or laying on the floor with your legs in the air exercises the abs. Side planks are good and can be done from the knees instead of the feet, much easier on the shoulders. I actually agree with you, crunches suck and you shouldn't need to do them at all if you can do enough other core work.

TM, moving offices this year seems to be a tough one on you and Marina. Very impressive how well you guys are hanging in there with all that going on.

Veronica, I feel your frustration, bummer the training wheels didn't work out. Didn't Dave get a folding Cat Trike? I just remember how quick and nimble he seemed to be on whatever he got. I also remember seeing a guy on a hand crank trike at the CO MS ride one year going up the Horsetooth hills with his trike tethered to the back of his buddies mountain bike. Horsetooth is a respectable 10 mile long hill. They might have been going pretty slow toward the top but nevertheless, they made it. At any rate, I have faith you'll figure something out, you were so resourceful at last years MS ride. Glad to see your sense of humor is still in tack.

I got 45 minutes on a trainer in last week. It was cold and rainy all week. It finally played itself out on Mothers day with 8 inches of snow. It's supposed to be nice this week though so I'll be back out there pronto. Truthfully, I needed the break anyway.

Hang in there guys,
Larry

[ActiveMSers]

Just so you folks know, I've been following everybody and all the dynamite posts (great to see Juliet, Steph, Nicole, Suebee, etc, on the thread), just zero time to post lately. And all because of my trike. Let me explain.

My Pocket is small, but not foldable, and not fast (quick, not fast). But I've come up with two brilliant solutions. One: ride with others my own speed. In other word: runners! Laura runs, I ride, it's perfect. More on that later. Two: ride on trails that are next to your house so you don't have to transport said trike, which opens up a world of possibilities, including battery assist for the inevitable bonk. Such a trike is too heavy to transport, but cake to ride right out of your garage.

The problem? We don't live near a trail. Not just yet. But as of Friday, we now have a new 30-year mortgage and a new bike-friendly, universal design house. More on that later, too!

I kept telling Laura I didn't want to buy a $30,000 trike (cost of trike plus new pickup). Little did I realize my trike would cost waaaaay more! Doh! Y'all will have to visit.

[Veronica]

Dave, all I can say, is if you are MOVING to be closer to a bike trail....well, you really are "Biker Dude Dave"..... congrats....sounds like heaven! ( Well, maybe not the 30 year mortgage payments....)

[Mouse]

Dave - that's possibly the most expensive bike in the world, and it's not even made of gold! Congrats! Hope the move is swift & uneventful.

I've not done any exercise for 10 days now due to tendonitis in my ankle & I am starting to crawl up walls.

Went to see a different Doc today about it. He was - unlike previous medics in our neck o'the woods - very positive.

Very supportive of running! Very keen that I continue it long term from a disease progression point of view.

He reckons that I haven't done too much damage to my tendons, and if I want to think about marathons etc. then I need to think about the fact that I have one flat foot & one normal foot (yeah, thanks Dad). So, not just orthopaedic arch supports, but also referral to a physio to strengthen my feet & ankles.

He's going to have a think about who best to refer me to, then phone me back after surgery this evening.

He also suggested that I find a "...community online, maybe? Of people with MS who are also active, athletic or sporty?" So I told him all about you guys, and he was mightily impressed!

You just don't get this kind of encouragement normally in the UK. A very positive start to today.

[CEngel]

Mouse - I'd be honored to be part of your online community :-) That's the big reason why I joined, as to remind myself that I'm not alone.

So, when I posted my intro I never said anything about my fitness goals. I'm a recovering couch potato & a bit thrifty. So, I found that if I paid money to do a run, bike or duathalon, I'd actually train. I'm also a huge Star Wars fan, so on April 18th, the day after I was diagnosed, I decided to start the next chapter in my life by training for Disneyland's Star Wars Marathon weekend's 10k run in January 2016. This girl's gonna live out her fantasy of running with a Wookie & I'm taking my MS with me :-) Besides running with a Wookie, I plan on fundraising for my local MS society. That way, I can give back to the community that welcomed me with open arms the moment that I heard the word MS & stuck with me through the months of testing, and now has officially become my community.

[Mouse]

Mouse - I'd be honored to be part of your online community :-) That's the big reason why I joined, as to remind myself that I'm not alone.

Yay! *High five*

I decided to start the next chapter in my life by training for Disneyland's Star Wars Marathon weekend's 10k run in January 2016. This girl's gonna live out her fantasy of running with a Wookie & I'm taking my MS with me :-)

This is possibly the best motivation I have read on this site, yet! I didn't even know there was such a thing! Now I want to be an ewok in a running vest.


How is the running going?

[CEngel]

Wonderful training schedule on the Run Disney website at http://www.rundisney.com/.
Basically, it's 30 minutes on Tuesday & Thursday with a long day on Saturday. Depending on how I'm feeling (what I call the "weakness/ tingle factor"), I'll walk the 30 minutes at a very slow pace or do a brisk walk/slow jog combo. My long days, I do the same thing. I'm still adapting & adjusting to my life w/ MS, so don't know how much I can push my body before I go overboard. So, I've decided that I'm okay if I do a walk/brisk jog combo in Disneyland or walk only. This is part of my new attitude courtesy of MS. I'm taking it one day at a time, keeping myself motivated living one adventure at a time & living my life at positively as possible.
If anyone's gonna be at Disneyland in January, come cheer me on or better yet, come run/walk/roll with me :-) I'll be buying the MS is BS shirt & wearing that along with my Princess Leia hair buns :-)

[AMFADVENTURES]

Cyn, welcome, running with Wookies huh, sounds like fun, and you're right, Wookies, pay money, whatever it takes to motivate us, it's worth it.

Dave, hope to hear more about the new house, maybe even get a chance to see it one day. Congrats!

Bummer on the tendonitis Mouse, hope you're able to get back out there soon. I've been under the weather a bit myself, not good for the training that's for sure.

And speaking of weather, it's been abysmal here. Cold and rainy, too miserable to get out much. I only managed a couple of days for a total of 80 miles on the bike last week but did get the yoga, weights, core and a walk in so the week wasn't a bust. Kind of back to square one on the walking, not sure what that's all about.

At any rate, keep on going all,
Larry

[Marinadca]

Good to hear all the updates and I am loving all the new members.

I am having a bit of a tough time trying to figure out training for my Bike MS ride that will happen on 6/6.

I was off the bike for 5 days due to travel. On the trainer for 70 minutes yesterday. Off today due to other commitments. Likely off Sat-Sun because of travel (Husband is doing Mountains of Misery...100 miles and 21K feet of elevation, ouch!) and then less then 2 weeks before the ride.

I was thinking the Sunday before the ride to do a ride about 75% of the distance and then an easier ride 2 days before the event. But of course I have gotten into Google and I am hearing all kinds of things about training before the ride? Not taking time off like I have been for travel and all that stuff. So of course I am freaked out now.

What are all of your opinions?

[AMFADVENTURES]

Marina, don't panic. Fact is, you are where you are by now and your finishing plan looks good. The main concern is to be well recovered by the ride date.

I know how much you hate to slow down but if worse comes to worse, you should be able to go quite a bit further just by dropping your speed/heart rate by a few percentage points.

Good luck and I think you got this one Marina.

Larry

[Veronica]

Marina, I TOTALLY agree with Larry. You are there....And forget that Google search stuff...I speak from experience, it can drive you nuts and depress the heck out of you. Fact is, you've been training strong from what you've reported here, so I'd say you've got the reserve in the tank and the muscles that'll kick in..... What ride are you doing? I'll be sending you good vibes....

Short version of my epic search for the right wheels.....I should have my Catrike 700 in a week ! I am selling the Greenspeed and am hoping that it is true that trikes are hot commodities now. Mine is barely a year old, so I hope I can recoup a good amount of my investment... Let me tell you, staying active with MS can be an expensive undertaking.....but it's good for stories!

Have a good Memorial Day weekend everyone...