Week Two

Well here we are, a new week and another new start. I was afraid I had lost ground because of missing pulmonary rehab last week but fortunately, that wasn't the case. I was able to keep up with where I left off, and even add a tiny bit. Besides the 3 machines that I use now, on Thursday I plan to add another to strengthen my legs even more. My calves were burning today after walking around a store for 15 - 20 minutes after rehab today, so I want to do more to get them in shape.

I didn't struggle as hard as I did in the past walking to the rehab dept today. On arrival, my numbers were: O2=96%, Pulse=101, BP=147/81. I wasn't as short of breath as previously.

I did the treadmill first; 11 minutes at 1.0 and 0 gradient. While on the TM my sats ran between 92-93% and my pulse ran 115-118. I believe my pulse was higher the last time I did the TM. And this time I added one minute - doesn't seem like much, but felt like a small triumph. When I was done, my O2 was 94%, P106 and BP 136/79.

On to the Nu-step for 15 minutes at work level 4. Last week I was on level 2 or 3, I think. However, today I spent a few minutes really positioning myself and the machine to get maximum workout with a level of comfort. It worked out really well and I did 1500 steps, meaning I did 100 steps a minute. When finished, I was at 94% O2, P110 and BP 116/73.

Next was the UBE. I increased it to Level 4 and again did 8 minutes total. After that my BP was 130/74, P118 and O2 95%.

I felt pretty charged up after the session. There are only 6 of us in this session and there's a good camaraderie among us. I am very fortunate to live in this community where I can do this for only $30/month. I've been reading on EFFORTS that some people are paying between $80 - $100 per SESSION! And sometimes more, which is just outrageous.

Already I'm feeling better and stronger. I feel really committed to doing this on a long term basis and with feeling better so soon after starting, that's just frosting on the cake!

~Eileen