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Day 93: Pushing Through Pain and Tuning In

A middle-aged woman with medium-length gray hair is energetically jogging on a treadmill inside her home gym. She is wearing sporty attire and listening to music through earbuds. Next to her, a fluffy orange tabby cat is sitting and attentively watching her. The room is brightly lit by natural sunlight coming through a large window and is equipped with various gym equipment, creating a vibrant and active environment.

Hello, everyone! Today marks the 93rd day of my PN for women journey, and I want to share both the challenges and triumphs I've experienced, particularly over the last two days. Living with PCOS means dealing with unpredictable and often painful symptoms, and the past couple of nights have been particularly tough with severe pain disrupting my sleep.

Starting Despite the Odds

Despite being tired, grumpy and the the cramping and overall discomfort, today was a scheduled workout day and I managed to get it done. Honestly, I wasn't feeling up to it initially—skipping seemed like a reasonable option as I sipped my morning tea and had breakfast. But as the day went on, I decided to start with just the warm-up exercises, which are the same as the last phase and walking on the treadmill and see how it went from there. Surprisingly, I found myself completing the entire workout, including a second stint on the treadmill. I even scored over 30 minutes of Zone minutes on my Fitbit, which was not part of the planned workout but a welcomed bonus.

Building on Progress

Today's workout included some new new exercises and increased repetitions of some exercises from the previous phase. It is still using body weight and resistance bands, and it's encouraging to see the program build on previous routines, reinforcing my progress and pushing me to expand my capabilities. Despite the initial reluctance, completing the workout left me feeling accomplished and invigorated. I'm hoping that it will also help me sleep better tonight as I am pretty tired mentally and physically as I write this post.

What Does 'Listen to Your Body' Really Mean?

The theme of today's lesson in the program was about checking in with oneself: "How are we feeling?" and "What should I do?" The well-meaning advice to "listen to your body" often sounds nebulous and I have often wondered what does it really mean? Bodies communicate not through words but through more primal signals like pain, pleasure, energy levels, and mood. This lesson is really a continuation of what we have been talking about in our live sessions for weeks now, but to see it written out somehow it clicked a bit more? Plus, me reading the Intuitive Eating book talks about this a lot as well.

Some Practical Ways I'm Learning to Tune In to My Body

I've been trying to find quiet moments to focus on my body without distractions, running a quick mental scan from head to toe. Today, I purposefully planned on doing this right after my workout session. I'm paying attention to any pain, discomfort, or tension that I am feeling. 

Today, for instance, my knees felt sore, likely due to an inadequate yoga mat during my exercises where I was kneeling longer due to the increased repetitions. Even though I wasn’t hungry and felt tired from the disrupted sleep, completing the workout boosted my energy and mood.

I keep reminding myself these types of moments are for me to gather data without any judgment. It’s about collecting feedback, not labeling it as good or bad. Each signal provides information that can help adjust my actions or expectations. It's funny that good or bad is everywhere, people use these words for so many things and I have become hyper aware of the labels.

Gardening

I received a sprout kit today that I ordered that came with three types of seeds to sprout. I have eaten sprouts many times and bought them to add to salads before but I wanted to try to grow my own. I was surprised that the label says 2-4 days to grow! I am going to wait until I have a bit more energy to start them later this week as I have a conference that is starting right after I post this and am not sure where I am going to put the container as I haven't had a chance to read the instructions. 

One of the lettuces that I planted seems like it isn't going to make it, that's okay I have two kinds of lettuce growing from the store bought live lettuces this week and I am going to try and root the three romaine lettuces that came as well. Plus add my sprouts it's going to be a great salad season!

My Dog

Still working on her muzzle training today, she's doing much better. I am so glad that my son is able to help me with this because we still need one person to hold the muzzle with treats and the other to get it around her head. Today she didn't try and get it off for a few minutes - thanks to the treats I'm sure. I'm hoping that I will be able to get it onto her out of the house at the vet's office as an example on my own. 

She is loving her toy pigs! She has 4 out of the 7 and brought them all to bed with her last night. She has been moving them one by one around with her but still has her favorite one that she is attached to.

Looking Ahead

The process of tuning in is an ongoing one, and every day provides new data to learn from. Tomorrow, I plan to take this data gathering a step further, applying what I've learned in real-time situations to better manage my symptoms and enhance my wellness.

My takeaway for the day, even on the toughest days like today, small victories can lead to significant achievements. I encourage everyone to find moments to check in with yourselves, no matter where you are or what you're doing. Your body has much to tell you, and sometimes, the best action is simply to listen.

Thank you for following my journey. Remember, every step forward, no matter how small, is progress. Let’s keep moving together!

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Location: Canada

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