The Gem

As we peek around the corner at a new year coming our way, longtime client gives us the final entry for 2022:

“One thing I’m working on integrating into my exercise independence is the Four Corners: Stretch strength cardio, balance. There are days when I know I would feel better if I moved and I don’t want to. But remembering it’s just a few minutes of things like “Do 10 squats” then something for stretching, then balance, then a little side-to-side steps, and I’m done. Just remembering that using those four things as a guidepost can make a pretty big shift in my day. It doesn’t have to be this long production.”

This week’s entry on is from Paul, the heart transplant recipient who has come through several months of post-op rehab to start building back to his pre-op level of fitness.

“On my fitness bucket list is the ability – after a heart transplant and all the related rehab – to get back outside and doing some good backpacking and hiking. In the short term, that’s about doing some day hikes – I’d like to get out to Bridal Veil, or hike to the top of Multnomah Falls. The end goal for all of this is to be able to camp, hike, and do physical activities without getting exhausted.”

This week’s post and artwork about is from , contributor to the book “Fat Girls Hiking” and longtime client.

“If I’ve learned anything from working with Gem, it’s that there’s always an invitation to return to your body. You are *always going to be coming in and out of relationship – with movement, with wellness. You can always return from where it is and where you are, and be truly met and have that relationship. No matter how difficult it’s been or what you and your body have been through, The invitation will always re-present itself.”

This week's entry brings us a few thoughts on gratitude from Paul, our heart transplant recipient who has come through several months of post-op rehab to start building back to his pre-op level of fitness.

“As a heart transplant survivor, I wake up every day in a state of gratitude. I wouldn’t be here if not for a lot of really cool things happening. My feeling of wellness is I want to get as many years out of this heart as I can. The average is 12-15 but some have gone to 25 years so anything is possible. So it’s about good nutrition, exercise, and for me, lots of medications. I feel very lucky every day.

: This week we’re hearing from Paul, a heart transplant recipient who has come through several months of post-op rehab to start building back to his pre-op level of fitness.

"Sometimes you have to face the fact that a little discomfort is part of the path toward healing. “Start moving and stay moving” is a motto that I got from a great podcast, and that reminder really works for me."

: This week we’re hearing from , a resident of Portland, a contributor to the book “Fat Girls Hiking” and longtime client.
"For me, wellness requires a lot of SPACIOUSNESS and some amount of SLOWNESS. Giving myself the time and space to slow down and really get curious about what’s actually here and be with this alchemical mix of STILLNESS WITHOUT STAGNATION. I try to strike that balance of enough stillness that I am not in a state of distraction, but also not in a place of stagnation. I guess that’s what it means to be in a flow state."

My ebike did not get much of an e-workout on this fairly flat loop, but riding through the fall leaves dropping down to earth like embers is restoring something pretty deep. After years of feeling as though a bike ride only mattered if I came back sweaty and exhausted, I am finally at the point where I can say without any apology that for me, biking has nothing to do with accruing miles, or shredding a jump, or climbing hills. To me, a bike is less a form of transportation than it is an amusement park ride that ushers me into the heart of nature and lets me think about wellness and movement in a way that has nothing to do with achievement.

RIP to Angela Lansbury - a somewhat underrated visionary when it comes to wellness. It's hard to imagine a "fitness" video from this era being anything other than the typical "Feel the burn" approach, but you'll see and hear some pretty great words of wellness wisdom.

https://youtu.be/-eXdJHVf9gU

Getting Outdoors (From a contribution by to the book “Fat Girls Hiking”)
“If I haven’t been outdoors in while, a sticky clogged up feeling overtakes me. This internal reminder inspires me to reconnect with the beauty of the life and death cycles that are so apparent and visceral outdoors. Being outdoors is always, in the words of Mary Oliver, 'announcing your place in the family of things.' That inspires me – that reminder."

The transition from Summer to Fall often feels simultaneously bittersweet and joyful, as we let go of the brightness of summer and settle into the beauty and rhythm of Fall. The Solstice is a time to set intentions – it’s another chapter that, in the garden, brings a logical turning of the earth and plants to prepare them for the coming winter. Take a few minutes to think about your intention this Solstice – what’s in your wellness garden that you wish to be intentional about?

Wellness (and Molasses)
After my heart surgeries, it was a struggle to get through all the post-op rehab and all the work required to get back into life. Part of that is working out with , mainly to rehab some of the shoulder freeze that can come from being in a bed for months. It’s hard to explain how easily exhausted you get when you’ve had a heart transplant. It feels like moving through a pit of molasses. So, my wellness program is all about getting rid of that. It’s already dramatically better and hopefully by the end of this year I will be at a point where I can start doing some more strength training.

This week we’re hearing from Paul, a heart transplant recipient who has come through several months of post-op rehab to start building back to his pre-op level of fitness.
A lot can change in a year. Or 10. I had a good 10 years of being strong and healthy after losing 175 pounds before a massive heart attack in 2019 got me life-flighted to OHSU where they put in an LVAD (Left Ventricular Assistive Device), which essentially took over the heart’s job of pumping my blood until I could get a heart transplant – which I am grateful to say I did get in 2021. But the steps between me being in that hospital bed three years ago and where I was a year later – picking blueberries while I awaited my new heart – were many. The many differential modalities of healing I’ve gotten from working with has allowed me to go from being able to make it up the steps to carrying grocery and laundry. Next up: Hiking and backpacking! #