I have to admit I have not been working out that much over the last week and a half. I have been battling what seems to either be an overuse knee injury or osteoarthritis. I had decided to lay off my knee to see if it would help, while taking a heavy dosage of Ibuprofen that my doctor prescribed. Admittedly, I could have worked my upper body over the past week and a half. I didn't. I was feeling a little depressed about the whole thing. The pain in my knee has persisted over the past 3 months. It feels like the meniscus (or menisci) in my left knee is either inflamed or possibly degenerated.
I can't say that the medicine or rest is helping so far. However, today I decided to stop feeling sorry for myself. If I can't do high impact aerobics, squats, and lunges, then I will just do what I can. The past couple of days I have been counting my calories on Spark People. I'm trying to stay within a 1300 to 1500 calorie range. In addition, today I did one of Leslie Sansone's low impact walking videos for 30 minutes. Afterwards, I went to the gym in my building and did a "push" upper body workout:
Chest Press Machine (1 set)
Military Push-Ups (15 reps)
Crocodile Hold (10 seconds)
Single Leg Plank (2 sets, 30 seconds each)
Tricep Pressdown Machine (2 sets)
Tricep Chair Dips (1 set of 20)
Bicycles (2 sets of 100)
Side Plank (30 seconds on each side)
Prone Cobra (2 sets of 30)
I ended my workout with some yoga stretching, and it felt great to be moving again. It was certainly better than nothing, and my knee feels the same (no better, no worse). Tomorrow I will do some type of "pull" split-routine, and cardio as my knee allows. On Friday I will just do cardio, shoulders, and more core work. More about "push/pull" split routines...
I'm trying to eat blueberries and drink a lot of green tea each day to get more antioxidants. Studies have shown that, "antioxidants have anti-inflammatory properties." I like Trader Joe's frozen wild blueberries (wild blueberry faq's). They are grown naturally with no pesticides. One cup is only 70 calories. They are delicious, sweet, and tiny. In my opinion they taste more like the blueberries in blueberry muffins than regular blueberries. Plus they are better for you. Woohoo! I especially love them sweetened with agave nectar, served over a buttermilk pancake. If you don't have a Trader Joe's in your area, then you might check your local health food store.
Check out these low-cal recipes from some of my favorite sites & blogs:
Blueberry Lemon Bread
Heart Healthy Oatmeal with Berries
Red, White, and Blueberry Trifle
Blueberry Cheesecake
Blueberry Smoothie
