WTF is wrong with my muscles?

I lost my blog! Damn, it was so good,too. Very detailed information about last week's session. My brain remembers very little of it. Of course.

Hmmm, what did I want to say? This is a question that runs through my desperate brain very often.

Here's what did stick in my brain: PT explained to us that a new study indicates that Fibro patients' muscles need four to five times as long to relax as your average person (whoever that is.) She was using this study to illustrate why it is important to rest in between exercise sets because a muscle not at rest cannot fully engage, making the exercise far less effective. This study also explains a great deal about the omnipresent muscle pain and, often, the lack of muscle definition, that are some of the highlights of Fibromyalgia. She also spoke at length about the importance of doing exercises for only a few reps, maybe 5 or 6, because after that, muscles cannot hold their "grip" as well and you are not getting the benefit of the exercise, and may begin to overcompensate with other muscles that you could end up injuring. So much about which to think, but it does make me feel a bit better about the general state of disrepair into which my body has fallen.

I have tried, for decades, to stay in shape. Not to be a swimsuit model or to run a marathon, but just not to be stared at and pointed at as either too skinny or too "plump" (my five year old's word.) I have very close friends who are in absolutely incredible shape, even after having numerous babies and it is a constant self esteem battle to say, over and over, I can't go to your trainer, I can't hike three hours into Runyon with you, I can't wake up at 5 am and do Barry's Boot Camp with you (but I am so damn impressed that you guys do all that.)

I started doing yoga in the early 90s. When I started, I was very inflexible in some ways and over flexible in others. Teachers found this odd but told me I would become more flexible as I learned more. It is now 16 years later. Still exact same amount of inflexibility and flexibility.

One thing this Fibro Boot Camp has given me is more tools by which to express myself in these matters. Now I know I could hike Runyon again....if I take a 10 minute break every 20 minutes. Now let's see if I can muster the discipline to do that!