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Rollator walkers make you stronger!!

A great reason to get out walking if you have back pain – even if you have to suck it up and use a walker. My  pain has improved SO MUCH, that I feel I need to post in case it helps anyone else. According to my MRI, I have “severe spinal stenosis” in my lower back. I had become inactive and was getting worse when suddenly, I had an epiphany! My legs are strong. My upper back is strong. Why can’t I go further than the end of my street? Well – because my lower back pain requires me to sit and rest. Guess what? A rollator/walker would solve that problem! So, I got past the “old lady” stigma and got one. Now I can walk much longer because I can sit when I have to. I do not use it in the house or for ordinary errands. Just for my daily walk. I slowly worked up from a very short distance in 6 minutes a day, to a little over a mile in 23-25 minutes. It took about 6 weeks to get there, but it was so worth it. I go out for a half hour every day now. The extra five minutes over my walking time is my “sit and rest” time. The result? I no longer need my cortisone shots, have cut my pain level tremendously, and have reduced my daily Tylenol intake. I walked SLOWLY at first. Concentrated on my time walking only – did not think about distance at all. After I was able to walk for 20 minutes, I began increasing my speed. It truly has been life changing. You just have to think of the rollator as exercise equipment that will make you stronger every day. As for weight, I was able to lose the weight I had gained with inactivity. Here is me on an easy trail in the Adirondack Region of NY – but my daily walk is just in my neighborhood. Another plus? Getting to meet more of my neighbors, and I don’t have to waste time driving to the gym.

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Yoga Routine

Yoga stretches

NOTE:  This routine takes 5-7 minutes. I do it 4-5 times daily. It relieves my hip and knee pain and actually causes me to “grow” about an inch taller. Completing the sequence every time I use the bathroom is a good reminder!  😄

Hugging Knees

I do this pose and sway my legs slightly right and then left ten times.

 

Legs Up Pose

I circle my arms around the back of legs and sway my legs slightly right and then left ten times.

Cat and Cow Poses

Hip Circles

I circle my hips 10 times in each direction.

Back-bend Pose Facing a Wall

10 times, counting to ten each time.  I keep my feet flat to get a better hamstring stretch.

Back-bend pose against a chair back or counter

I do this pose 10 times, counting to ten each time, and alternating from leg to leg. I keep the foot of the weight bearing leg flat, and point the other foot back while arching my back into a gentle back bend. I put my hands on the sink counter for support. A chair back can also be used.  Sorry about the picture  I cannot get it to be in the right direction!

 

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Dangerous “Information” Sources

Are you getting your information from any of these sites?  You might be shocked to find out who is writing/sponsoring some of the articles showing up on your social media pages. I try to keep my Facebook page non-political – but I do have a few news sources that show up daily.  They are liberal sources, so the fact that articles from the following extreme right-leaning sources even showed up, indicates how ubiquitous they must be.  I suspect they might show up even more fequently on the pages of political conservatives.

The Epoch Times 

From Wikipedia: “The Epoch Times is a multi-language newspaper and media extension of the Falun Gong new religious movement.[4][5] The newspaper is part of the Epoch Media Group, which also operates New Tang Dynasty Television (NTD).[6] For its articles, the publication draws from a network within China, as well as staff living in the West.[7][8][9]

RT (TV Network)

From Wikipedia: RT (formerly Russia Today) is a Russian government-funded international television network.[5][6] It operates pay television channels directed to audiences outside of Russia, as well as providing Internet content in English, Spanish, French, German, Arabic, and Russian.

The Washington Times

From Wikipedia: The Washington Times was founded on May 17, 1982, by Unification movement leader Sun Myung Moon and owned until 2010 by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate founded by Moon. It is currently owned by Operations Holdings, which is owned by the Unification movement.[4][5]

OANN – One America News Network

From Wikipedia: The OAN channel originally debuted in partnership with The Washington Times.[15] (see above. The Washington Times was founded by Sun Myung Moon – founder of The Unifaction Church) ….. OAN is known for downplaying threats posed to the United States by Russia. According to a former OAN producer, on his first day at OAN he was told, “Yeah, we like Russia here.”[8][59] One of OAN’s reporters, Kristian Brunovich Rouz, simultaneously works for the Russian propaganda outlet and news agency Sputnik, which is state-owned; when Rouz runs segments on OAN that relate to Russia, OAN does not disclose that he also works for Sputnik.[11]