April 24 - Next Level Unlocked in These Foolish Things

Well, WOW! Thank you everyone, for the amazing notes on my last entry! Sometimes I worry a little that I might be showing ignorance with my musings and ponderings, but they are honest thoughts and they are what roll around in my brain until I get them out here. I am ever grateful for this place of actual feedback because I get so many fantastic ideas from it. And I feel safe here. I know there is always that potential for a troll here and there, but I feel like maybe they all have moved on to places like TikTok (ha!). Thank you, Prosebox!

As you know, I follow a lot of cancer patients on Instagram. I have found it useful to find a group of like-minded people who also give me food for thought and a sense of community in a pretty shitty situation.

This morning one of my cancer friends posted a reel about exercise and how when your muscles contract during exercise, they secrete anti-depressant proteins that go into your bloodstream and travel to your brain. I mean, we knew it all along just by how amazing exercise makes us feel, right? But these protein molecules are called Hope Molecules in the science world. How cool is that?!

I have exercised every single day since January 1, except for colonoscopy day, and even on that day I walked, so I guess I CAN say every single day. I am so, so grateful to be back on this routine where I’m getting up early and working out every morning before work or weekend play. It makes a world of difference to me. I can tell that I’m highly sensitive to these hope molecules.

I am also stepping on the scale every morning before the workouts. Today, April 24th, 2024 I hit my GOAL WEIGHT! This is honestly a huge milestone because, while my weight tends to fluctuate 20 lbs up and down, I haven’t purposely hit this goal since I was in my early 30s! The last two times I was here I was sick (1=after carotid injury, 2=during cancer treatment) and I wasn’t trying to be at this weight. This time, I am FULL of those hope molecules!

This time, I am working towards actual muscle growth and true body and mind maintenance.

So, while I’ve hit a milestone, that does not mean that the work stops there or I end my quest to ingest quality, healthy foods. As we’ve collectively said, growth is a lifelong undertaking!

Now, I’m off to secrete more hope…

xo,
GS