Friday, January 23, 2009

Rediscovered Muscles

Recently I've been seeing some physical therapists at the Duke Sports Med clinic. Not because I'm going to do anything sporty, but because for the last 8.5 years I have suspected that my stomach muscles did not, in fact, survive my last pregnancy.

Not only did the fine physical therapist comfirm this self diagnosis; she also showed me (very painfully) that I also do not have any working butt muscles or inner thigh muscles. (Which are called adductors, in case you wondered.)

I got off to a slow start (I blame Aragorn and Legolas and my grandma) but I've been working diligently for the last week or so. Yesterday I had an appointment where they said I was doing a good job on my two exercises and taught me two more to add to my regimen. I left the clinic hobbling. Let me tell you, muscles that have been living the good life (i.e. not having to work) are not too happy to be rediscovered.

A few minutes ago I was grating some cheese for my lunch. Much to my surprise I noticed that the act of grating was working my heretofore non-existent stomach muscles! It was such a novel feeling that I really paid attention to it as it was happening. And before I knew it I had been thinking too much about my tummy and not enough about the cheese and a whole stack of cheese had accumulated. Far more than I need.

Maybe I can talk the little kids into nachos for lunch....

8 comments:

  1. At least you did not grate your finger!!!!!!! I did that last month, very deep, and it HURT!!!

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  2. You can freeze your grated cheese and use it for pizza and other things. Just thought this bit of information might come in handy. I LOVE having grated cheese on hand, storing it in a ziplock baggie.

    DeLynne

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  3. My sister had to have surgery to fix that. Her abdominal muscles were split down the middle. TMI alert: she could stick her fingers in the crevice and feel her aorta pumping. If she laid down on her back, the appalling amount of extra skin would fall into the hole like water falling down rocks. Now, she has a perfectly flat stomach and it looks like she had no children at all. Even though she has four. Can you tell I'm jealous?

    Keep at it!

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  4. I TOTALLY KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN!!! I'm not sure if you read my post about 'BSS' a few weeks ago, but I've just recently found out that I don't have any butt muscles either - and now that I've started to work them, it's wweeeeiiiirrrrddddd! I'll be mopping the floor and think, "Woah, my butt is flexing!" But, Cindy, if you don't have butt, stomach, or inner thigh muscles, I hope you don't end up with BBS, BSS, and BITS!!! :)

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  5. DeLynne, I used to do that a lot. I got out of the habit & started buying the big costco bags of shredded cheese. But then Cindy Lynn always complained about that. I really should shred my own again--it's much cheaper.

    InkMom, yes your mom told me about her surgery and I was so jealous too. Not that I particularly want to feel my own aorta. Really I don't. And my split isn't too bad--nothing like that. On the other hand it will be good to get my stomach muscles working again so that my back isn't so tired all of the time!

    Lindsay--yes of course I read your post, and then I laughed so much when the pt told me I had no butt muscles--I thought "I'm worse than Lindsay!" Which of course I should be, being so much older and with so many more children...

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  6. gotta say I would have been on the grading my own fingers team. Also jealous of inkmoms sisters perfect stomach team!!!! I found my muscles yesterday when I jogged in the morning and then had to race off and pick up a kid from school who had put a appleseed in his hear without cooling down or stretching. Later in the day when I was forced to sit still for two hours for a swim meet, when I stood up, I was crippled!!!!

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  7. I've found that moping the floor can give a decent ab work out too!

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  8. Ok, Natalie--you might have done what no one has been able to do before--give me enough motivation to mop my floor!

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