Weights and Walking

"Weights and Walking are probably the single
most important elements of stroke recovery."
Stronger After Stroke: Your Roadmap To Recovery.
Peter G. Levine

Thursday May 9, 2013 12 Days Post Stroke


It's 5:30am time to do my weight training.
I'm determined to do a full cycle
 from my 'prep' workout:
16 Minute Body Sculpting Kit: Attain your dream body in just 16 minutes a day
Wow, that took me almost an hour and a half!
I Had to rest a lot between sets. However,
I feel victorious!  As hard as it was. I Did It!

(At 7:00am I did my 'report card,' which I already told
you about.)

I'm not supposed to drive a car. This is good. I was a horrible
driver pre-stroke and I am completely incompetent to drive now.
I used to rely on my bicycle for much of my transportation.
Can't ride it now. It's not a balance issue. I can't use the right
brake and gears. As soon my hand heals up I'll be back in
the saddle.

I have a lot of walking and running coming up today.
I'm looking forward to it.

First, I'm going to go get my blood work. That's about a mile
round trip.
Next, one of my clients is picking me up at my house.
We are going to Schenley  Trail. That's two miles.

I'm on the trail. My cell phone rings.
Never fails, someone always calls when I'm in the middle of
this trail. Too sweaty to see who it is.

"Hello, Rich this is Shmuel Shapiro. My wife and I are hoping to come
visit you."

He must think i am at home laying infirmed in my bed.

"Shmuel, I am in the middle of  Schenley Trail with a client.
I appreciate it, but I'm back to work now. I'll call you later."

When my client and I finished the trail loop, he drove me
back to my house. I called the Shapiro's.

"I'll be happy to come to 'Your House' to visit. We can talk
about anything, except for my 'set back.'

I have another appointment at 1:00pm Schenley Oval. I could
stop by after that, Ok?"

"Sure, sounds good," said Mrs. Shapiro.

Rabbi Rosenblum picked me up. We did two miles of walking
at Schenley Oval. He dropped me off in front of the Shapiro's
house on the way back.

The Shapiro's showed me amazing pictures of their trip
to Switzerland and Israel.

Mrs. Shapiro said ," I did the Pittsburgh Half Marathon
very slow. Since we were away I didn't have time to
train for it." (She gave me permission to say she was 68 years old.)

"Wow! I am impressed."

She said, "here, I brought you this band."

'RUN BOSTON'

I am crying inside. That has so much meaning to me.
I was worried about running the Pittsburgh Half Marathon
for security reasons. Rabbi Rosenblum said I should definitely
run it and Not give in to terror.

Mrs. Shapiro also gave me a little card with a Prayer for Health.

The Shapiro's walked me home. I live about a mile away.

What a great day! Complete circuit of weight training.
Six miles of walking.

And Baruch HaShem the Kindness of the Shapiro's.