Milestones

My new swimming suit. (I don't have to shave!)

I am always amazed by my body. It seems like it is eager to exercise again and it just waits for my mind to catch up. I have been working out for a few weeks now and it has been so great to get going again.

My endurance is increasing and so is my strength. It feels good. I'm now able to swim at least half the laps freestyle, alternated with breast stroke and back stroke. Prior to the surgery, I would do one or two freestyle laps total in a 20-minute workout. Now I do two out of three laps freestyle in a 30-minute workout.

On the treadmill, I'm working on a program I found online to go from the couch to a 5K. Right now I'm alternating two minutes of walking with one minute of running for 30 minutes. The new treadmills at the rec center let me program minute by minute so it automatically changes the speed for me. Plus the treadmill has a t.v. screen. It's great. When the 30 minutes are up, I don't feel tired, which is amazing.

The weight room is interesting. For the arm weights, I just use barbells in the cardio room, but for the leg weights, I use the weight room. I am always the only woman in there. Usually it's a few muscle bound young men and me. It's a little intimidating, but they're always nice.

The best thing about the swimming is I can follow it up with the hot tub and sauna. I consider that my reward for exercising.