Anyway, today I threw myself back into my regular routine after my weekend of R-and-R from this stupid back injury. And finally I started taking care of myself correctly… I took ibprofen this morning and leaned against a frozen bag of hash browns for a few 10-minute segments (best type of ice pack I own).

So today I’m not feeling awesome. I lightened my bag’s load as much as possible. And kept myself at a leisurely pace in the city today… oh and no twisting. Everyone else can twist and turn at back-injuring speeds to get out of my way for once. But after my walk through the city, my back is still sore.

I wish I could go back to the gym, or at least the core ball. But there’s no good in pushing my body when it’s already not 100%. But what really does sound good right now is to get out of this uncomfortable chair and lean on my bag of frozen hash browns again…

The last stretch: A man too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools. (Spanish Proverb)

So today, now that I’m out of the roughest part of this stupid injury, I talked to my mom. Ends up that there is no way it was pinched nerve. It was a muscle spasm. And my mistakes in taking care of myself don’t end there…

Mistake: The heat I was putting on my back thanks to my car’s seat heater was doing more damage than good. (No wonder I could barely move by time I finished my drive home Thursday night.)

Lesson learned: ICE; ice is needed after a muscle injury since it helps reduce the swelling; heat has the opposite effect.

Mistake: I did do something slightly right, I took ibuprofen when I got home Thursday night. But I messed up again when I decided I was tough enough that I didn’t really need any more ibuprofen after the first night.

Lesson learned: I should have kept taking the ibuprofen for up to 5 days after the injury. It helps speed up the healing process by continuing to reduce the inflammation of the muscles.

Mistake: I figured I would be good to go back to the gym by tomorrow. I can twist and turn my back again and I can move my shoulders again. I can even stand up without pain shooting down my back. I figured my body would want a bit of its gym routine again.

Lesson learned: NO! (But at least I got this mistake cleared up before I made it.) Back injuries can be serious business. You need to relax, rest and recoup. No exercising for a while still.

I told you I was no expert. All I ask is learn from my mistakes.

The last stretch: There are so many ways to heal. Arrogance may have a place in technology, but not in healing. I need to get out of my own way if I am to heal. (Anne Wilson Schaef)

In the meantime, let’s talk about food. There are tons of diets you could subscribe to depending on what your goal is. There are diets that are supposed to help you lose weight; gain muscle; increase your metabolism, etc.

But personally, I don’t believe in diets. I have never been on a diet. I do believe in eating in moderation. And I do believe in eating only when I’m hungry – and only until I’m full. Plus I enjoy life’s sweets too much to cut them out of my life. So in my opinion, it’s all about moderation.

The last stretch: One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well. (Virginia Woolf)

Did I mention it hurts?

So my exercising – particularly going to the gym – is on hiatus until my back feels normal again. Hopefully it’ll only take a few days. But right now I’m just irritated — all because of those certain people who can’t figure out how to walk on a crowded street — I have to put my exercising on hold… and I was doing so well.

But I guess that this just means that now is the perfect time to look into some of the other aspects of  living a healthy life.

The last stretch: We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey. (Kenji Miyazawa)

I know I haven’t discussed this recently, but yes, I am still sore. But I decided that there’s no point in complaining about my sore tight muscles. Because ultimately, it’s my own decision to have sore tight muscles. It’s my own decision to go to the gym. It’s my own decision to push myself. And I have to pay the price.

The last stretch: We cannot become what we need to be by remaining what we are. (Max DePree)

I’m actually wondering if it’s time to more up to the Intermediate level in my book – I started on the Beginner level. After some consideration, I decided it would be smarter to actually go through all the routines first before prematurely jumping up to the next level.

The last stretch: There are no shortcuts to any place worth going. (Beverly Sills)

I think what struck me the most is that fact that she was doing the same exact routine that she was telling her class to do. After the class finished up and the exhausted cyclists hobbled out of the cycling room, I saw the teacher leave. She looked surprisingly similar to her students: sweaty and tired.

I suppose I had raised the gym’s trainers and teachers to an elite uber-human level where they don’t sweat, they don’t wish they could skip a day and they don’t get tired and sore from their workouts.

It was good to see that that’s not the case. So with that in mind, I finished up my arm day with some renewed energy.

The last stretch: Some men can run the fastest, jump the highest, or lift the heaviest, but no man has the corner on ambition, desire and hustle. (Anonymous)

I’m really beginning to love my core days. Just doing some slow stretching and focusing on my core is such a nice way to begin the day. The roads will be better by tomorrow for the gym.

The last stretch: Men often become what they believe themselves to be. If I believe I cannot do something, it makes me incapable of doing it. But when I believe I can, then I acquire the ability to do it even if I didn’t have it in the beginning. (Mahatma Gandhi)

On days like this (or weeks or months) when the idea of exercise (particularly going to the gym) seems like more of a burden than an energy-boosting, health-enhancing good time, the key is to fall back on maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

I haven’t talked much about healthy living tactics beyond regular exercise because regular exercise is the one area where I struggle most. But the fact of the matter is, it all counts: the way you eat, how much you sleep, how stressed you become, how well you balance your life, how and how often you exercise… the list could go on, and yes, it all counts.

Growing up, my parents drilled my siblings and I into a life of healthy living routines – for which I am very grateful. But, as I said, the one area where I continue to struggle is in regular exercise. So we’re entering week three and I’m going to keep telling you when I succeed and when I fail.

The last stretch:

The best six doctors anywhere
And no one can deny it
Are sunshine, water, rest, and air
Exercise and diet.
These six will gladly you attend
If only you are willing
Your mind they’ll ease
Your will they’ll mend
And charge you not a shilling.
~Nursery rhyme quoted by Wayne Fields, What the River Knows, 1990

I feel like an old person who has to grunt or sigh every time I move just because of the effort that it required. Thank goodness I don’t feel sore in the morning or I am unsure if I would have the oomph to get out of bed.

The thought has occurred to me again that despite allowing myself some easy days, I may be training too hard – throwing myself into this exercise thing too quickly. But then I remember how lazy I had been for the past five months; how this same muscle-fatigue happened last time I started at the gym, how this is quite normal and how the stronger you get, the less sore you become.

Okay, I’m done whining for now.

So today was a core day. It was good to take it easy today, do some basic stretching and keep trying to strengthen my core. Tomorrow’s a gym day and I may just decide to take it easy on the cardio again if my legs don’t feel energized by then.

The last stretch: “Fear less, hope more; Eat less, chew more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Love more, and all good things will be yours.” (Swedish proverb)