timed laps at the park

Hello!!  I pointed out in my Post from April 30th, Special Help From My Walker, that I wanted to start timing my Walking Laps at the park and sharing those times with you.  Well, I started timing these Laps last Friday.  I am so glad that I did!  I will now time more of my therapy/rehab exercises and use the time to make better judgments and decisions, and to make sure I am improving!

The first lap at the park that Friday was 6 minutes 36 seconds and the second lap was 6 minutes 4 seconds. The second time I timed my laps at the park was the very next day, Saturday, May 4th. The first lap was 5 minutes 44 seconds and the second lap was 5 minutes 23 seconds! And the third time was Sunday, May 5th. The first lap was 5 minutes 36 seconds and the second lap was 5 minutes 9 seconds.  An amazing thing was that the laps I made on Sunday included the wearing of my knee-brace. I wore that to make sure I avoided any double extension of my knee. I thought the extra weight and the cumbersomeness of that brace would add time to my lap. It did not! It actually made me walk faster!!

We were having a lot of wind and rain and bad weather lately, so I kept my walking indoors for a few days. Yesterday I timed my 10 indoor laps and it took me 8 minutes and 46 seconds.  I will keep track of this time when I have to do indoor laps.

Yesterday I was able to make it back to the park and I broke my 5 minute mark!!  My first lap was 4 minutes 57 seconds and my second lap was 4 minutes and 50 seconds!!  It drizzled a little bit when we went, but that didn’t stop me! I loved the big drops of rain - and there was no wind!!  It really was refreshing!!  I am excited to return to the park for timed laps again (today if it doesn't rain a lot) and days after!!

And now for a couple of other comments to share.

(1.) My right Arm has been making progress, especially yesterday!!  To work on my spasticity issue with my right arm I am now doing arm extension exercises immediately after my Arm Roller work. I remind myself that my arm moves straight and then bends with its elbow (and that it does not rely on the roller alone).  So after I do about 20-30 minutes of Arm Roller exercise, I do Arm Extension exercises. I make my right arm do alone the same movement it was doing with the roller attached.

(2) After I do my “60s” exercise with Tom (which includes Up ‘N Overs, Touchdowns, and Butterflies), I do an exercise where I “kiss” my right hand with my lips.  I start seated and with my right hand in my lap I bring it up to my lips for a kiss. I can now do 60 kisses!!

(3)  My bicep curls (posted on March 27th) have been quite a tremendous help!! I can now do 50 bicep curls on my own!!  This allows me to carry things in my right hand/arm again and to do other things that I used to with my right side.

GOD BLESS! PEG

“Look in the mirror. That’s your competition.” – John Assaraf​