Not An Entirely Unproductive Day

I washed my yoga mat with some baking soda and water and hung it out in the shade to dry. I sweated my heart out on that thing on Saturday, and my little feet are always stepping all over it so it needed a wash.

That was the most productive thing I did all day. I lay around and read for a bit. Then went and got some beef noodle soup from the Vietnamese place but I forgot that restaurant beef scares me and they put liver in my soup, so I just ate the noodles.

My arms are still sore. I didn't go see a movie. And now I'm going to bed.

Tomorrow I will wake up well and healthy and at a normal hour, and do things like walk outside and some yoga. Right? Yes.

Rest Day

I long to be able to breathe through my nose. Despite my neti pot, a hot shower with eucalyptus soap and some good old cold medication, I am still whistling through my nose with each breath. My arms are sore. My legs are sore. I am out of eggs and the people I buy them from haven't had any in a while so I don't know what to do. My house is a mess.

I want to walk or hike. I want to put a blanket on the ground and lie in the yard in the sun with the dog until it's time to go see Sex and The City 2.

I want a bowl of pho, or bi bim bap or something spicy to clear all this congestion. But instead I'll have some fresh mozzarella and pesto on potato bread because that's what I have.

And I'll take all the recycling and trash to the landfill. And I'll rest today.

There Are Few Words

There are few words to describe what yoga class was like this morning. I'll try. Hard. Arms. Side plank. Sweaty. So sweaty. Plank. More plank. Crow. Savasana. Tears. Yes, a class so transformative that tears came during savasana.

One of those classes where when you leave you feel absolutely high on life, while knowing that you pushed your body to its limits. One of those classes where in the first 15 minutes you think you are going to die. 40 minutes into it you have to leave the room for a paper towel to wipe the sweat that has been pouring off you, and somehow Sun Salutations become a place to rest and relax. Headstand is restorative and by shoulderstand you could fall asleep. And as you lie in savasana you can't believe what you've done. The poses are mostly all the same as all the other times. But the sequencing, the holding, the concentration. Lord have mercy.

Now, nursing a cold in the right side of my head. Hungry but not hungry. Hoping some ravioli with arugula and almond pesto will be helpful. Just wanting to lie down and wake up well.

I really wanted to hike tomorrow or Monday. My body (below the neck) feels fine. My head apparently thinks some resting is in order. And lots of nose blowing.

Belly Aching

I don't know what it wrong with my stomach. Ever since Friday it has felt weird. At the top part of my stomach like heartburn or a hangover, but it's not either of those things. Eating doesn't help. Not eating doesn't help. An hour long walk in the woods didn't help. I may go out in search of Tums or something after a shower.

I'm trying to figure out what to make with eggplant. I love to buy them, and they have such pretty varieties at the farm stand. Maybe a small batch of eggplant parm. The recipe from Laurel's Kitchen is good - no frying needed so it goes together quickly.

I'm having some fresh corn ravioli for lunch with some cold salmon from last night's dinner. The temptation when I feel like this is to keep eating, hoping that it will help. But since I know it won't, I'm going to track my calories and stay within my goal. And hope that tomorrow brings wellness.

Sick

Ugh. I have a summer cold. Which is hopefully on it's way out. It was terrible yesterday so I went to acupuncture which seemed to get things moving. And then I followed the doc's instructions to drink 2 cups of ginger tea to try to sweat it out of me. And I kept my wool hat on all night to protect my aching ear and increase the sweat. But I slept like crap - from 10:30 - 3, then maybe 4:30 - 8. Today was a little better, lots of psuedoephedrine kept me awake and my nose not too runny.

The result of all this is that it has not helped me exercise more, although it does make me not hungry. But I would rather be hungry and not sick.

I do think that being sick gives me the benefit of being glad and appreciative of health when I feel better.

Biking and Belly Aching

I rode for 30 minutes. It was a nice ride, but hot. I really should go earlier in the day. Since I've returned, about 2 hours ago, my stomach has felt queasy. I figured it was the heat, but it's very annoying especially since I made a point to drink water throughout the day before my ride. And some during my ride. And after my ride. I'm making some rice for lunches this week, so I'll have some of that when it's done and see if it helps.

Staving Off Slugdom

Even though I am home sick, and very thankful that I can blow my nose in peace (although that last round of Benedryl seems to be having an effect, thank heavens) I am trying not to just laze around and read blogs and emails and magazines. So, I set an alarm on my computer and every 17 minutes it makes this funny noise and scares me, and then I get up and reset it and do chores for 17 minutes (which is about how long it takes for me to get fatigued again). So far I have done laundry and hung it on the line, vacuumed, started lentil pilaf, picked up random things and put them away, put away more winter things (I think it's finally safe to do that) and tended to the dog a few times who is outside sleeping under a shrubbery.

The lentil pilaf is cooking. I had to adjust it some because I only have brown rice, so the cooking time is longer, and I didn't have fireroasted tomatoes so I just used regular diced, and I added a little butter. And I'm hoping I can taste it so I don't oversalt or something.

I'll report back when it's done.

Sick and Tired

I just ate a huge dinner. Well, huge volume wise, but not huge calorie-wise. I was rather hungry, having only had about 460 calories by the time I came home from work. Advil Sinus contain pseudoephedrine, so it makes me not very hungry. But, it clearly had worn off by dinner time, so I made some fajitas.

I figured lots of veggies would help me out. They contained: 1/2 an onion, 4 mushrooms, about a 1/2 cup of frozen red/yellow/green peppers, 2 cups of broccoli rabe (which really cooks down) and 6 oz. of shrimp. Seared all of those things with salsa, and put on a few tortillas with a dab of plain Fage 2%. The whole thing was only 712 calories, including tortillas and Fage.

According to Sparkpeople, the only nutrient I have had enough of today is protein. I am lagging under the limit of fiber, fat, calories and carbs. Gah. Whatever. I've blown my nose 1000 times today and feel like crap.

I wanted to make the lentil pilaf I posted about yesterday, but I also just want to go to bed. And I have to walk the dog. I will walk the dog and then go to bed.

I'm supposed to weigh in tomorrow, and I don't think I've lost weight. I think I've probably lost muscle since I haven't been doing my sit ups or as much strengthening for a few days. Oh well, this illness is temporary and soon I'll be feeling better and moving and able to lift my weights.

I feel like this baby panda:

OK, I'm all set with this.

Dinner: 2 crackers with almond butter. Glass of OJ. Water.

I had a nice nap for a couple of hours, then took the dog on a walk. Came home and poked around the kitchen looking for something that appealed to me. Nothing did. I didn't want to cook. I would have eaten some Barbecue Chicken Pizza from Upper Crust had it magically appeared in my house, but it didn't. So I had 2 crackers with almond butter and some OJ in water (I love diluted orange juice) and returned to my bed.

I love my bed. My bedroom is surrounded on 3 sides by windows, and all I can see of them are trees - no houses, no streets, no cars, no signs of other human life. It is lovely. And I can sit and read or listen to NPR or watch bad tv on DVD.

The Boy called and when I started talking to him I collapsed into a coughing fit and had to call him back. He is making homemade macaroni and cheese with hot dogs for dinner. That sounds mildly appealing, more so if there was some Siracha sauce added but since he is cooking it at his house and is not downstairs at my house, I won't be having it anyway. And I'm not hungry enough to go make my own macaroni and cheese.

I am hoping this was the worst of whatever strange ailment I have which seems to involve coughing up half a lung, weird inner ear feelings, lack of hunger and joint pain. Let's think healthy thoughts for tomorrow.