Second Wind Thursday

I seem to underestimate just how much time caring for our senior pup takes me in the morning. I have to unwrap him from the "diaper" which doesn't prevent all leaking, but at least keeps his flanks dry. Of course, his belly and inner thighs are soaked with urine, because the "diaper" isn't really a diaper but a washable, fabric "male wrap" with absorbent padding. After gently wiping him down, I affix his butt harness and leash, grab some poop bags and go for his morning walk. Once he's home, I wipe him down with either waterless dog shampoo or scented wipes so he's not so stinky. Then I need to prep his breakfast, which involves pulverizing the Proin tablet (for incontinence), warming the ground turkey-gizzards-sweet potatoes-rice mixture and adding a measured amount of Metacam to his food. Lately he's been turning his nose up at the deli cuts of honey turkey breast if they have his meds on or in the slices. But he'll eat just fine if I sprinkle the Proin on the gizzards and squirt the Metacam all around.

Yes, the dog is picky and I'm constantly having to change things around so he doesn't get bored with his food. Toasted ciabatta is still his favorite treat, but lately ciabatta bread has been hard to come by. It's not the same as Italian or French bread. Meanwhile, his wrap needs to be washed out and then tossed into the washing machine. His harness may or may not be dripping with urine as well. That'll need to be washed out and hung up to dry on the railing outside. Luckily, I bought two so I can swap a dry one for the wet one. 

The doggie wrap helps with preventing wet spots on the floor at night, but I may have to resort to actual canine diapers. I only use the wrap at night because it seems to interfere with his ability to get up from the floor and move around. I'm not sure why exactly except that he's slowly losing strength and coordination. At 15 1/2 yrs old, he's prone to leaking when he sleeps, eats or gets excited. As much as I'd like to patronize the local pet food store, they just don't carry a lot of the products I need. I bought the wrap from them, but they only carry disposable canine diapers for tiny female dogs. I already buy Weruva® canned low-fat dog food from Chewy.com (because they're cheaper) and they carry washable diapers as well. I guess I'll be putting in an order soon!

I get to the gym around noon and do my standard warm up. What I haven't done is eaten breakfast. I did have a cup of coffee, vitamins and a handful of stale almonds, but I was in too much of a rush to actually sit down and eat a yogurt. Before the gym, I stopped at the CVS because I had about $8 in coupons I wanted to use before they expired. My son's concerned about his molluscum contagiosum warts as they seem to be spreading up his thigh. I tell him that the only treatments I've seen involve either freezing or burning (chemically) the warts off and he decides that sounds too painful. I'm worried that the cream his pediatrician prescribed for the eczema behind his knee is making the molluscum worse by thinning the skin and causing it to spread. Ugh. I also read about a study that indicated boosting zinc intake helps the immune system expel the virus quicker. So just recently he's been taking zinc daily. At the CVS, I wonder why 50 mg of zinc is so expensive these days. It's actually pricier at the grocery, so I'll be back to cash in another coupon and take advantage of a buy one, get one free deal tomorrow.

Last week I only did 7 rounds Beginner Follow Me. Today I decide to add 3 rounds Intermediate. Next week I'll knock down the Beginner to just 5 rounds, but increase the Intermediate to also 5 rounds. Those are my plans anyway. I get to round 3 Beginner and realize that my lungs are burning with flat out exhaustion. I'm thoroughly disappointed and confused. WTH? Is it because I didn't eat breakfast? Lack of sleep? Out of shape? I also notice that I'm having trouble keeping my thumb out of my way when I clench my fist to throw a Cross. That's causing my knuckles to fall out of alignment when I hit, and consequently, the ring and pinky knuckles get bruised. This is probably the first time I've actually been aware of that happening. Which is weird because I don't have this issue with my left hand when I Jab. But it's been happening for such a long time that I routinely put moleskin across the knuckles of my ring and pinky fingers of the right hand only.

I grit my teeth and muscle through the remaining 4 rounds. Even though the a/c is on, the gym feels warm and humid. I'm drenched and blot myself with a towel between rounds. Finally, it's over and even though I pulled my Power Digs (because the sensor is broken), I'm still tired. Oh, WTF? I tap in 3 more rounds at Intermediate Level. The first round is a bit crazy, with the machine tossing out combos without indicating the proper sequence on the screen avatar. It's done this before. The machine doesn't register Power Sweep either. Ugh. Whatever. The second and third round go much better. I don't actually feel tired anymore. Weird. Normally I'd do pull ups afterwards, but I refrain because I'll be doing them tomorrow with my son.

I ask Gym Owner if he's replacing the big blue gymnastic mats and he says no. People can use the smaller neoprene mats, this way more people can stretch out and use the space. I tell him that those mats slide across the wood floor in the classroom if you don't quite step right. (Plus I don't even know how they get sanitized, or if they get sanitized. At the least the big blue mats had a smooth vinyl surface that could be wiped down. Not with these "personal" fitness mats. Ewwwww.)

I'm going to try and convince my son to try some different cardio equipment tomorrow. Next week he's at camp and I'll be at the gym solo. Unless something comes up...

Boxing Thursday

10 elliptical
Miles .80
Calories 89
Average Heart Rate 161!/max HR 192!!!

T, Y & I Raises
3lbs x 15
5lbs x 15

Mid Band Pulls 15
High Band Pulls 15

Nexersys FM 7r Beginner
3r Intermediate