So Minx, my adorable puppy, has definitely affected my sleep. Yet my body has been more run down from the changes I made to my workouts. I have been doing various workouts for a minimum of 5 days a week for a long time. As my disability worsened, my workouts were modified but never stopped. I’ve modified to a chair quite successfully. I can get my heart rate up over 130 on some chair workouts. All good but muscle burns fat. I needed to be using weights.

I used to lift weights all the time, but due to having tendinitis in my shoulder I had to finally stop doing it for six months. I needed to stop stressing the muscles to finally cure the tendinitis. That’s six months killed me. MS can be very mean to your muscles, Unfortunately, that’s what happened to me. I tried to get back into the weights but my arms just couldn’t do it, especially my shoulders.  My biceps always remain strong but no matter what I did or what I tried I couldn’t get strength back into my shoulders. This has been now years and my MS hasn’t made it better, it just got increasingly weaker. So I stuck with cardio more and more because it was just easier. I did add weighted gloves to my cardio routines but I don’t know if has made a difference. Like most things I do, I am a creature of habit, my workouts are also slightly rote. Where I may have many workouts to choose from, they are all relatively the same ones that I’ve been doing for years.

I finally made a change and made a significantly big change. I am still doing cardio but doing cardio for less time. I’ve searched on YouTube for chair cardio’s and come across a few that I liked. I’ve done some that were 20 minutes I’ve done some that were 30 minutes and that’s my workout start. My Apple Watch still keeps an eye on time and heart rate. At this point my heart rate has not been as high as I’m used to but I haven’t let it bother me. My arms are fatigued and I’m working up a sweat. After my cardio I pull up my daily MS gym workout. I joined under the one month trial and I’m doing one of the month programs. Joining the MS Gym membership. I’m definitely becoming an actual membership, I just started here. I put this down as flexibility on my Apple Watch. You do some muscle building during these exercises but it’s definitely geared towards helping you improve your MS deficits. Like strengthening your back so you don’t curve and being able to sit up tall.  There is core work to help you strengthen those muscles. These are all definitely geared to my body and things I need to work on and strengthen. Plus everyday you and massaging and waking up parts of your body that have long been used. The trainer Trevor continues to impress me with both his knowledge of the body and multiple sclerosis.

Guess what? I am not doing 45 minutes of cardio. Between the two exercises I’m probably doing 50-55 minutes of less strenuous activity and I’m 100% more tired. I feel it more. I feel like I’m doing more from my body. I feel like I’m accomplishing more than I have in a really long time. I’m moving six days a week now instead of five but it’s less intense yet harder. See you can teach old dogs new tricks. My body is definitely feeling the difference in a short time. I’m excited I made a change. I’m looking forward to continuing with the MS gym. I think this will make a tremendous difference in my strength.