rabbit! You rant and rave all you want! You vent as much as you need to! How thoughtless of acquaintances even to mention XH and his new arrangements. Honestly, some people! They are hopeless.

You are the person we care about, rabbit. And we want the very best for you. Have a lovely party tomorrow. Many happy, happy returns of the day! And look at your beautiful lime green wall and enjoy it.

Big hug for you

He sounds like he's feeling guilty. And you're right, if he still cared, then why all the hassle you're getting from him?

Six months is nothing to "get over" this. It will take a while more yet.

PS Can I give him a slap?

Well of course!! As long as they are white, you can also wear a veil, you'd look so loverly!!

Yea, he needs one of those across the head... MEN sheesh ... I agree, vent all you want

Ilene, you ran 8.17K in just a t-shirt? You look fabulous but you should put some pants on

rabbit, people can be insensitive and rather gossip than let you heal. You go ahead and vent, beat up some pillows, take a kick boxing class and imagine you are kicking his butt, etc.

As for me, yesterday I was exhausted for some reason and felt like I could barely lift my head let alone exercise. I thought I might be getting sick so I took it easy. Today, I feel a lot better so I anticipate cardio and shoulders.

Ilene - can we say white trash?

Absolutely .... '' WHITE TRASH '' ......

Oh YOU are quick!!

Sheesh, I'm gone just a couple of days and we have a bottomless marathoner; a tanked bride; and a berserk XH, who deserves to have the cwap kicked out of him. My my my.

Rabbit, let me add my voice of support to all of the others. Your XH is a cad and a heel. I'm so sorry, because once upon a time there was love there. So, take all of the time you need to grieve, and feel free to vent and rant and rage. If it takes a year, no problem. If it takes two years, no problem. And some day, the rage will lift. The good news is that by getting it all out, you don't push it down and harbor it inside. I have friends who have done that, it's left them very bitter. I would hate to see that happen to you and the kids. Take care and have a happy birthday.

Ilene, I'd like some of that sunshine here, please. We still have flurries and lots of overcast. More of same predicted for tomorrow. And Frus, you're going to look fabulous, no matter what you wear

Silver, I was absolutely charmed at your description of the Self Important Capitals. I've met some one them in my job, which also includes editing the academic-speak and jargon of higher education. I often encounter whole paragraphs that make absolutely no sense whatsoever. But it's nice to know there's job security in that. I'm with you on morning exercise; if I don't do it then, I don't do it.

Has anyone in the U.S. seen the Muscle and Fitness that Frus has described? I'd like to take a peek at that workout.

I have to tell you all about the wonderful thing that happened at the gym this morning. When I walked into the free weight room, there were 4 fabulous women lifting to beat the band, and one puny little guy. These women were awesome. I'd never seen three of them before, and all I could do was watch and cheer. The room was very quiet (probably because it was5:45 a.m.), and they were clearly concentrating. One woman was doing dips that I can only imagine (One of my goals is tricep dips) and one was doing a LBWO that left me breathless. I'd love to get to know them, and I can't imagine why I've never seen them before; they're obviously regulars. Truth to tell, I was afraid to interrupt any of them, which is just plain silly. I'm going to watch for one or all of them and strike up a little chat next time. But it was wonderful ... all women. All strong. All lifting pretty heavy. All awesome.

Finally, I know that Pat's in Boston, but I wanted to talk about something she said. I hope she'll catch up when she returns:

Pat, I fight this fight all the time. I go into the gym thinking I'm going to lift X weight or do XX minutes of cardio, and sometimes I just can't do it. Heck, sometimes, I'm just too tired to move. I think we just have to keep striving for that balance. As much information as is out there -- and there really is a lot, these days -- I wish there was even more for those of us in our late 50s and 60s and beyond. What I do know is this: we have to find the combination and intensity that both taxes us, and allows us to keep moving. If I really overdo it one day, I lose the next couple of days, and that is not a good thing because if I don't move every day (even if it's only a slow stroll with the dog), I really feel the difference. And I believe that exercise is the fountain of youth and optimum health.

Well, I seem to have rambled on quite enough. Hope you all have a great weekend!

Nelie wrote:

You're very sensible. When I moved to supersets the other week I was ab-so-lute-ly exhausted. All I could do was sleep. Except there was the little problem of the rest of life. And now I feel ... like a million dollars? Well, at least pretty good! Listening to our bodies, and acting on what we hear, are such good things to be able to do.

Robin wrote:

Yes, yes, yes! You'll be on pretty good terms with the 'sentence' with no verb, I expect, as well.

Robin and Pat - please keep going and let us know how things are out there in the future. We need to know about older bodies and lifting and you are our pioneers. Good luck. We want you to be able to do the very best you can.

I'm going to post separately about fat. I'm very keen to know what you all think.

For me, it was adding work back into the mix. I can do housework, weights and cardio all in the same day. I sleep well but I'm human all day. Today I worked, did some housework, ran for a few groceries, biked and did legs .... I turned into a zombie about 20 minutes ago. I'm going to go pack tomorrows lunch and get my uniform ready. I'll probably be gone by about 8 pm.

Hi LWL,

Thanks a lot for all the support ! I really needed that reality check with all of you.
Today is the day of the party. my kids sang happy birthday for me, and I got offee, juice, and a newspaper in bed (Ilene, with a sudoku to do !). I've bought cake and prepared lots of fruits & vegs, sp people can take the healthy option if they want. I know I want, and I know my DD does not like cake so'll probabely also stick with the fuit & vegs. Funny, but a lot of the kids seem to prefer plain bread and plain raw vegetables and fruit to more work intsensive options, so I have a lot of that around. Of course I'll also have icecream and pizza, that is also OK for adults & kids. In total I'll have about24 people coming around.

Susan - I know what you mean. I also find it very very difficult to add and extend the work. I need to extend my working hours to go to 20 in the week. I now barely manage 15, and I often am finished by 3 in the afternoon. That is so tired that I cannot do anything anymore.
It is progress of some sort, I started out at being finished for the day at 11 in the morning, but it is slow progress. I think a medical profession must be also difficult because of the different shifts.

However, by taking rest when I think I need it, I have managed to extend my useable hours to 3 in the adfternoon, and friday I only got tired at about n5 in the afternoon! Probabely energized by my gym morning!.

I'm going to enjoy the party. Thanks heaps again everyone.
have a great weekend,
rabbit

I did get my chest and triceps done yesterday. A pretty good session considering that's one of my weakest areas.
I work again today and then I'm off for three. I'd like to get some biking in. The weather is supposed to be warmer. That'll be nice.
I honestly (at this hour of the morning) cannot remember what comes after chest and triceps. I think back and biceps. Whatever it is, I'll do it today. But I don't know about any meaningful cardio. It might have to wait until tomorrow.

Rabbit, when my kids were small I worked 4 hour mornings five days a week. It was lovely. I could actually plan something. This isn't too bad. Unless something exciting is happening, I don't usually work more than 20 hours a week. But it is much easier to let exercise slide .... for a day ... a week ...

I did back and biceps today. A good one. But I have mixed up my four day split. Don't suppose it matters much. I thought it was too good to be true that it's legs day again tomorrow ... but I'm going with it anyhow