Going Nowhere Fast

One piece of advice I received from many people when I first decided I was going to start this healthy adventure was don't try to do too much too fast. My first week really just focused on eating better and doing some research on motivation. The motivation was primarily on how to force myself to exercise.

I have a condition called arthritic sarcoidosis. Basically, it means my body is attacking my joints (right now it's only in my hands,) but it causes a lot of swelling and a good amount of pain. Although I can dull the pain with medication, I no longer have much strength in my hands or wrist. So forcing myself to exercise is a pretty big chore, because the last thing I want to do when I'm hurting is do something that I know will make me hurt more. With that said, I promised myself no excuses!

I used the elliptical for only 15 minutes yesterday morning and was struggling for breath... yes, I'm THAT out of shape. As I was starting to feel really down after a great weigh-in, I remembered when Nic and I first went to the gym with Scott it was the same way. I also remembered that by the end of the week I was at 45 minutes with no problems. So I got back on today and went for 30 minutes, then did 15 minutes of stretching and light (5 lbs) weight lifting.

Although my body is a little shaky, I feel really good! I don't feel like I'm pushing myself too hard too fast, and I just keep reminding myself that it will get easier, and the more weight I lose, the less pressure there will be on my already tender joints.