Starting weight:  285.2
Calories/Carbs Goals (limits):       1400  / 30.0
Yesterday’s calories & net carbs: 1395 / 30.4
Yesterday’s exercise:    none (knee pain)
Weight Yesterday:: 247.8    Today:  247.8
Change today::  -0.0 lbs.   Loss-so-far:  37.4 lbs. 

My knee’s a little better today… whew!  The kneecap area is still sore and the muscle behind my knee still feels tight, but I’m not having any of that stabbing pain anymore when I walk.  I actually felt well enough tonight to put in 30 minutes (6 miles) on the exercise bike!  I’m hoping that tomorrow it’ll be okay to get back on that elliptical!  Woohoo now that would make me happy!

My theory about my knee is this:  I went a bit too far, too fast on the elliptical, and strained a muscle group, causing swelling which messes with the proper alignment of the joint - and - which aggravated my old injury.  The miniscus in my right knee was actually the first one that I tore (about 8 years ago).  I tried to push a very heavy box with my foot (bad idea) and actually felt it rip. 

Years ago, I didn’t realize that our knees, which support nearly the entire weight of our body, are our body’s most vulnerable spot for injury. 

The joint itself and the muscles surrounding the joint are complex, leaving lots of opportunities for things to go wrong.  The most common minor injury to the knee area is a sprain or strain of the tissues (ligaments, muscles, and/or tendons) - by being stretched beyond their normal tolerance during motion.

I really wanted to work my way up to an hour straight on the elliptical and so last week I put in a couple 45-minute sessions - and face it Eileen, ya just weren’t ready for that!  Even though in past months I’d worked up some stamina and strength from my bike-riding, still it was a different motion than pedaling, a motion I certainly wasn’t accustomed to.

I’m thinking that once I’m not carrying around 240-plus pounds on those knees, I’ll have less of these kinds of problems with them.  That’s what I’m thinking.  In the meantime, I’ll just listen very carefully to what my body says to me about my exercise and exertion, with particular attention to what my knees have to say.

CARTOON OF THE DAY

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