This is the first time I have written on this site. I have been a casual observer for a number of months now.
I have a question, but first, here is some background info...
I thought I had the right idea, and I figured that I was going to live a long, healthy and happy life with my wife and be the main bread-winner for the two of us.
I did as many people would do; I said my prayers, ate my vitamins, and I worked out most days of the week. I had a good full-time job at the local hospital and basically everything was going very well.
I Loved working out! I lifted weights no less than 4 days a week; most of the time, I was in the gym every day except for Sunday.
Bodybuilding was my passion. I had dealt with assorted trivial issues all my life, including a domineering and vindictive father, and I discovered that in bodybuilding I had Total Control over my life. I might mess-up small projects at home or at work, but my dedication and persistence and loyalty in the gym was rapidly reflecting positively into other areas in my life.
I was roughly 6'2" and a solid 230 pounds at my biggest. Normally, I weighed-in around 220 or so. My bodyfat was always less than 11%. I hadn't had a cold or the flu in over 4 years since I had begun 'worshiping the iron bug,' per say.
Then, the year of my 25th birthday, all at once everything got turned upside-down and the â?????stuff hit the fan,â?????? as one might say. I began to get absolutely horribly sick with symptoms of several different possible diseases and illnesses. The most prominent symptoms included extreme fatigue and narcolepsy-like drowsiness all day; dozens of open sores inside my mouth and throat; a loss of apatite; violent tremors, rigors and shaking with absolutely soaking sweats all night and day; and high-grade fevers over 103??° daily.
After about 20+ months of my Family Practice Doctor "guessing", an Oncologist Doctor finally concluded that I had developed Aggressive T-Cell Lymphoma. The diagnosis was confirmed with a liver and lymph-node biopsy at the University of Michigan hospital.
This all came to a head in the summer of 2003. I began with a brutal six-weeks-plus of chemo-therapy and finally finished with a Bone-Marrow Stem-Cell Transplant at the University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor , Michigan .
I thank God every day that both my wife and my insurance stayed with me through it all. I am still dealing with many new challenges, including a limited disability income and a New condition called Graft Versus Host Disease. (GVHD).
OK... Now I am "Cancer Free" and healthy as a horse. Alright, not exactly; I am cancer-free though.
Whenever anyone has a "transplant," called a 'Graft', they are standing the chance of acquiring or developing a "rejection" problem within their body, the 'Host'. A person's body might 'reject' a kidney transplant, or a liver transplant, etc...
In my case, I had a Bone Marrow transplant- specifically, the stem cells, more specifically, the T-cells. Anyhow, you might know more about this than most other people, but here goes anyhow... Bone marrow is a jelly-liquid material while a person/animal is alive. It is where all your immune and blood cells are produced and programmed, then they are circulated throughout your body to do their job.
In the case of T-cell lymphoma, my bone marrow was producing mutant cells. That is what is happening in any case of cancer; cellular production has been altered and malfunctions. When you have a blood cancer, your blood is being produced with cancer within it- then you get sick because your immune system is gone.
OK... In MY case of GVHD, with a bone marrow transplant, the New bone marrow is supposed to be the New Immune system. This new immune system "sees" my body as a new invading object. Obviously, my body is a "new experience" for this new bone marrow, so as in any case of discovering anything new and unrecognized, the immune system fights it; trying to disable it and kill it.
In my case, my Lungs were the weakest link, so now I have a limited lung capacity. Around 50-60%. On a good day when I don't have a cold or a snotty nose, I can get my blood up to 97% saturated with oxygen. On an average day, I am reaching only 88% unless I am using portable oxygen.
When you can't breathe, it really limits how effectively you can exercise. At first, you sit around and get fat. Next, if you are like me, you get restless and then try to do something, anything.
When you can't breathe, you can feel like you are quite literally drowning. This insane panic sensation produces all kinds of adrenaline and then I burn calories. Too many calories. Also, when you are biologically scared to death in the drowning-phase several times per day, you lose your apatite. When you do eat, you learn not to really fill up, because a full stomach presses against the lungs and diaphragm and further limits oxygen absorption.
Holy shit, right?
I apologize for the long story. I just wanted to be honest so that one of us wasn't expecting anything unreasonable.
I do want to get back into shape.
If I were to get a wish from a Genie, I would wish to have the physical health and strength that I had prior to 2002. But, I am realistic, And obsessed with trying to find an effective way to get back a portion of what I have lost.
I need to give-up on working Harder, and focus on working Smarter....that in there lies the new challenge.
My brain is still 75% hardwired into the path of working my ass off...but it only takes about 2 full minutes to be reminded that I cannot tolerate my Old way of working or working out.
I have begun going to the gym again, and it feels Great! It feels Great to be back in there sweating and lifting.
I need to make sure that I am making the most of my time.
I recent past, I have thrown caution to the wind, and hit the training as hard as I possibly can, only to be doubled-over in cramping, breathless pain for nearly a week following.
I am excited about getting back into shape, and my doctors are, too. They have been concerned with my loss of mass over the past years.
Does anyone have any suggestions for a workout schedule?
I have been wondering about the Mike Mentzer or Dorian Yates routines...
I used to see ads in magazines for a "Size Surge" program, or the "POF" programs, and of the Static Contraction training, too.
What kind of advice can anyone offer me?
Let me know what kind of advice anyone might have.
I have a question, but first, here is some background info...
I thought I had the right idea, and I figured that I was going to live a long, healthy and happy life with my wife and be the main bread-winner for the two of us.
I did as many people would do; I said my prayers, ate my vitamins, and I worked out most days of the week. I had a good full-time job at the local hospital and basically everything was going very well.
I Loved working out! I lifted weights no less than 4 days a week; most of the time, I was in the gym every day except for Sunday.
Bodybuilding was my passion. I had dealt with assorted trivial issues all my life, including a domineering and vindictive father, and I discovered that in bodybuilding I had Total Control over my life. I might mess-up small projects at home or at work, but my dedication and persistence and loyalty in the gym was rapidly reflecting positively into other areas in my life.
I was roughly 6'2" and a solid 230 pounds at my biggest. Normally, I weighed-in around 220 or so. My bodyfat was always less than 11%. I hadn't had a cold or the flu in over 4 years since I had begun 'worshiping the iron bug,' per say.
Then, the year of my 25th birthday, all at once everything got turned upside-down and the â?????stuff hit the fan,â?????? as one might say. I began to get absolutely horribly sick with symptoms of several different possible diseases and illnesses. The most prominent symptoms included extreme fatigue and narcolepsy-like drowsiness all day; dozens of open sores inside my mouth and throat; a loss of apatite; violent tremors, rigors and shaking with absolutely soaking sweats all night and day; and high-grade fevers over 103??° daily.
After about 20+ months of my Family Practice Doctor "guessing", an Oncologist Doctor finally concluded that I had developed Aggressive T-Cell Lymphoma. The diagnosis was confirmed with a liver and lymph-node biopsy at the University of Michigan hospital.
This all came to a head in the summer of 2003. I began with a brutal six-weeks-plus of chemo-therapy and finally finished with a Bone-Marrow Stem-Cell Transplant at the University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor , Michigan .
I thank God every day that both my wife and my insurance stayed with me through it all. I am still dealing with many new challenges, including a limited disability income and a New condition called Graft Versus Host Disease. (GVHD).
OK... Now I am "Cancer Free" and healthy as a horse. Alright, not exactly; I am cancer-free though.
Whenever anyone has a "transplant," called a 'Graft', they are standing the chance of acquiring or developing a "rejection" problem within their body, the 'Host'. A person's body might 'reject' a kidney transplant, or a liver transplant, etc...
In my case, I had a Bone Marrow transplant- specifically, the stem cells, more specifically, the T-cells. Anyhow, you might know more about this than most other people, but here goes anyhow... Bone marrow is a jelly-liquid material while a person/animal is alive. It is where all your immune and blood cells are produced and programmed, then they are circulated throughout your body to do their job.
In the case of T-cell lymphoma, my bone marrow was producing mutant cells. That is what is happening in any case of cancer; cellular production has been altered and malfunctions. When you have a blood cancer, your blood is being produced with cancer within it- then you get sick because your immune system is gone.
OK... In MY case of GVHD, with a bone marrow transplant, the New bone marrow is supposed to be the New Immune system. This new immune system "sees" my body as a new invading object. Obviously, my body is a "new experience" for this new bone marrow, so as in any case of discovering anything new and unrecognized, the immune system fights it; trying to disable it and kill it.
In my case, my Lungs were the weakest link, so now I have a limited lung capacity. Around 50-60%. On a good day when I don't have a cold or a snotty nose, I can get my blood up to 97% saturated with oxygen. On an average day, I am reaching only 88% unless I am using portable oxygen.
When you can't breathe, it really limits how effectively you can exercise. At first, you sit around and get fat. Next, if you are like me, you get restless and then try to do something, anything.
When you can't breathe, you can feel like you are quite literally drowning. This insane panic sensation produces all kinds of adrenaline and then I burn calories. Too many calories. Also, when you are biologically scared to death in the drowning-phase several times per day, you lose your apatite. When you do eat, you learn not to really fill up, because a full stomach presses against the lungs and diaphragm and further limits oxygen absorption.
Holy shit, right?
I apologize for the long story. I just wanted to be honest so that one of us wasn't expecting anything unreasonable.
I do want to get back into shape.
If I were to get a wish from a Genie, I would wish to have the physical health and strength that I had prior to 2002. But, I am realistic, And obsessed with trying to find an effective way to get back a portion of what I have lost.
I need to give-up on working Harder, and focus on working Smarter....that in there lies the new challenge.
My brain is still 75% hardwired into the path of working my ass off...but it only takes about 2 full minutes to be reminded that I cannot tolerate my Old way of working or working out.
I have begun going to the gym again, and it feels Great! It feels Great to be back in there sweating and lifting.
I need to make sure that I am making the most of my time.
I recent past, I have thrown caution to the wind, and hit the training as hard as I possibly can, only to be doubled-over in cramping, breathless pain for nearly a week following.
I am excited about getting back into shape, and my doctors are, too. They have been concerned with my loss of mass over the past years.
Does anyone have any suggestions for a workout schedule?
I have been wondering about the Mike Mentzer or Dorian Yates routines...
I used to see ads in magazines for a "Size Surge" program, or the "POF" programs, and of the Static Contraction training, too.
What kind of advice can anyone offer me?
Let me know what kind of advice anyone might have.
