record activity not working in Google Chrome, and can't seem to find my custom logs?

You rock so much!!! I'm so proud of you. Every time I read your reports I think about signing up for a mini-one. We'll see ;) Awesome run!!

Yay! Finished my race today without walking, which was my goal. It was a LOT hillier than my normal training routes, and I finished in 36:02. I definitely could have been faster- I had enough in me to pick it up considerably at the end, and was very comfortable throughout. I think I got psyched out by the hills- I ran the same course last year and had a too-fast start and got my butt kicked on the hills. So I think I was a little (too) cautious this year. Happy nonetheless!

I really have to disagree with the idea that cutting back to as little as 5 hours of sleep to fit in exercise is a good idea.

Ashley- great plan so far! I like how you are picking a few changes to start with. This is definitely a journey, and you will find that some things are a total flop for you and some things come very easily. I like to read different articles that are a smattering of small changes- over time, I've picked up quite a few tips that shape my health & life

In general, I think the Weight Watchers articles for fitness are helpful and really geared to people who are just learning how to exercise

http://www.weightwatchers.com/health/index.aspx

Cardio is anything that gets your heart rate up (sex included!!) and the "right" way to do it is by finding something you like to do and will do again- then mixing it up. If you can do 30 minutes on a treadmill every day, you're a much better person than I am!! Think about putting on music and dancing at home (alone, if need be), pick up a used copy of Sweatin to the Oldies (http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B000YENUJ0/ref=sr_1_olp_3?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1244509264&sr=1-3 say what you want about Richard Simmons, but these are pretty easy to follow along to), throw the kid in a stroller and go for a walk with your husband, or swim some laps in the pool (you don't have to be fancy about it- if doggy paddle gets your heart rate up, doggy paddle it is!!).

When you're first starting out, (I think) it's best to focus on increasing your overall level of activity and experimenting with different exercises, rather than immediately jumping into a rut of chaining yourself to a treadmill. Looking at the activity log selections of traineo will give you an idea of how many things there are to do!!

I do have one suggestion though, that I think is really important. For the next couple weeks, grab a small notebook and commit to writing down everything you eat. Then take a few days and pay attention to portion size (measure out a cup of cereal or 8oz of juice a few times). Finally, take a look at how many calories you're consuming and what the calorie/nutrient value of the foods you eat frequently. The 100 calorie packs are awesome (and way better than the 300 calorie alternative!) but I try to limit myself to no more than one a day, because they tend to have no nutrients and even 100 calories can add up if you're adding 2-3 bags and calling it good for you.

GOOD LUCK!! You are doing an amazing thing.

Welcome to traineo, Salek! (Morgan?) Congrats on your progress so far, 13 pounds is a great accomplishment. What part of PA are you from? I grew up near Hershey, went to Penn State in State College and then lived in Philly for 4 years. Good times. Look forward to seeing your progress!!

Woooooooooooooooooooooooohoo!

I never thought I'd celebrate a 35:18 - not a real meaningful change or actual progress for me.

BUT, it's on the tail end of...
-running at all maybe 3 times in the last 2-3 weeks
-not running >2.25 miles at ALL for at least 3 weeks
-a dismal (too dismal to log) weigh-in this am
-a hot, humid day
-a post-call day (I was at the hospital all last night)
-at least two days of eating TERRIBLY
-a night and day of worrying about a patient I cared for overnight who passed away today
-generally not feeling good at all about being able to finish the race this weekend.

I didn't walk. I didn't even do that much worse.
I'll take it.

You might be - especially on hot days, your body likes to redistribute blood to the skin to cool off, or to your intestines after a big meal- more sources of diversion that leave less for the brain when you stand up. Just take your time and transition slowly.

Your body and blood vessels are smart & fast, but they're not instantaneous. When you're lying down or squatting, the veins in your legs don't see much pressure and they relax & become bigger (can hold more blood). When you change position quickly, gravity takes over and suddenly those nice relaxed vessels are filled with a significant portion of your blood volume. Your heart can't pump the remaining blood to your brain fast enough, and you feel the effects- lightheaded, dizzy, seeing spots. The extreme effect would be "orthostatic syncope" - passing out. Fortunately, time/evolution/nature/higher powers located some special sensors in your neck to detect this problem and send a signal to the veins in your legs to tighten it up and send that blood north- but this isn't instantaneous. Being dehydrated exacerbates this problem because there's even less blood to reach the heart once those veins fill up by gravity. People with longstanding diabetes can experience this more because their nerves don't conduct the "tighten up!" signal as well, and people with heart problems can't compensate for it as well either. Young, healthy people can still experience it- make sure you're "tanked up" with enough fluid, then remember to change positions slowly on hot days.

I've read this thread a lot and thought I didn't have anything to contribute to it. I try hard not to be judgmental. What struck me tonight at the grocery store was watching how much marketing was affecting the ADULTS who were clearly trying to make good decisions, but didn't know how to. Those to me were more important than the carts full of cheetos and coke.

Women's multi for the folate and calcium/vitamin D chews.

Yes.

No problem. Megan believes firmly that all boys and girls should eat at or slightly above the RDA for calcium. Yay.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18838979?ordinalpos=5&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15672116?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_Discovery_RA&linkpos=1&log$=relatedarticles&logdbfrom=pubmed

Careful, Google Scholars.

You can eat them first if that's better. I think the caramel ones taste aight. Anything that contains around 500mg calcium AND 200 units vitamin D will do the trick, though.

Sorry Rachie. Make them your dessert.

Yay calcium. Eat your viactivs, kids. With meals.

Glad you found it

Hi Traineo friends
Thanks for all your hard work on the site- it's fabulous.
I made this suggestion a few years back and thought I'd throw it out there again. Could the small icon to the left of each thread/topic title change to something else when we've posted in it?

Stomping out medical myths wherever I can, Matt ;) Thanks! Now I just need your mad shedding skillz...

You're not in the "danger zone" but at your age it is the "worry zone". You almost certainly can improve this NOW with exercise and weight loss (some people, no matter how many marathons they run, just have a mechanism to their high blood pressure that can't be fixed without medication). Kudos to you for asking about it and your doc for picking up on the trend. It might be worth it for you to get a household BP monitor and track it yourself, too. Many docs forget to mention that 130/80 consistently is abnormal since we see such horrendous numbers all day, that starts to look "relatively" normal. Hypertension is best squashed super early, when the only "symptom" is the number.

Acid reflux occurs at all ages, from infants to the elderly. Taking ibuprofen can cause irritation to your stomach, not helping matters. If you have to take it, make sure it is always with milk or food. The thyroid nodule is very unlikely to be related to your chest pain. You might just have some rib muscle/cartilage inflammation (costochondritis) that some think might be linked to a virus and can take 6-8 weeks to fully resolve. In the meantime, good job on getting yourself looked at, keep paying attention to your body and don't do things that hurt. It's not likely to be something to do with your lung after a normal CT scan.

Your body is pretty smart about water balance. The kidneys and heart send out hormones that can affect is, so certain kinds of health problems can cause significant retention. For the majority of us, it's possible to alter fluid status for hours-days, but not really a lasting change over the longterm. (ie, sure you could lose 14 pounds over 10 days, but you're going to put it right back on- it means nothing). In the absence of disease, people don't really carry around "extra water" that they don't need. We are MADE out of water...

Caffiene (coffee, tea, etc) is actually a diuretic for those who don't consume it frequently, which means it causes you to pee out more water. Diuretics, like laxatives, are not a sustainable weight-loss plan.

100% need more (or better quality, if sleep apnea is in the picture) sleep.

I spoke incorrectly. The date doesn't refresh properly, but if I click the "today" it does. Some days it seems like it does update to the correct date, other times it's living in the past. Probably just my browser settings.

It happens to me all the time in Firefox

I did mine I am NOT a morning runner, but I'm working an 11a-7a shift today so I got my 5K in early this morning. 35:26, but had a belly ache towards the end.

Wow, this thread really gave me an appreciation for how inactive a desk job forces you to be . I'm an anesthesiologist. I work 60-80 hours/week depending on the month with scattered 24-30 hour shifts. Unless there's just one long surgery scheduled for my OR on a given day, it's a lot of time on my feet- setting up equipment, moving patients, setting up more equipment, doing procedures, moving more patients. It can be very high-stress at times. The nice thing is, I CAN'T leave the OR except for a 15 minute morning break and a 30 minute lunch break. This makes it super easy to pack my lunch and only eat what I brought. Unfortunately, it's physically, mentally, and emotionally demanding and most nights I want to come home and eat ice cream instead of running. The ICUs are especially bad- I was in there for the month of February and got through by having "hot Southern breakfast" every day (they give us free cafeteria meals there, and our cafeteria workers have never heard of Egg Beaters- no joke). Fun job though

Danielle, I was the exact opposite! I could always eat shrimp, crabs, and lobster... until I was about 13. By that time I already loved them, but after a few episodes of progressive reaction, I called it quits. The only exposures I've had in the years since have been accidental, and each time more severe wheezing and airway swelling. I have to admit, though, there's been more than one occasion when I've eyed a Maryland crabcake while gripping my epi-pen tightly. ;)

Woohoo! 33:56 on a pretty much flat outside course and it KICKED MY [butt].