AnnieH’s blog

also very fed up following leg injury - fractured fibula following riding accident - found your blog whilst searching internet for any comments on this product - feel probably too good to be true as comparative models nearer to £600 - will keep watching to see if you get any responses from anyone who has tried it !!!

Looks interesting, even though i am now where near this stage yet.

I wonder if anyone has actually used one of these machines from the ATR blogging community?

http://www.powerplate.com/

Here is another version
It is in some health clubs to sample I hear

My anti-spam word is optimism….let’s try and have a positive day! The “markets” are closed here and foreign markets were “up”. Thank God.

Has anyone been able to loose weight during their rehab stage after Achilles surgery? I am glad I maintained at least with such a decreased level of activity, but really hope to loose in the coming weeks. Wish me luck!

I am having to watch what i eat and especially drink now. I think the odd glass of wine will have to do and the beers are definitely out of the window for a couple of months at least.

Daz,

I’m feeling guilty, just had a ’sip’ of my hubby’s lager, and a choccy bar, both just for comfort of course.!!

Had a few comments about the VibraPower but no-one appears to have tried one. Ideal World advertising one for £99 but not sure if the vibration might not be bad for achilles.

Wonder if Dr. Mark or Doc Ross is reading and if they know about the possible use.

Annie

Annie: As a trainer, I would say that there are other pieces of equiptment that would do a lot more for you. This thing may help with stability or balance but you can buy an inexpensive dura-disc to get a balance workout. Plus you can do a ton of other things on a good dura-disc. I don’t think it burns as many calories as the ads for this say. My favorite piece of easily purchased equiptment, for our predicament, is a recumbent exercise bike. Uprights are good too but I like the recumbent because it is easier on the back. Just my thoughts, coming both from my own experience and working with clients. You can get a good used exercise bike on Craigslist. That is where I found mine. I know Craigslist, at the moment, is bigger in the US than overseas but I do know they have it over there because I found some stuff for a client who relocated in the south part of France. Craigslist is where people can sell all kinds of used “things”. I even found my Roll-A-Bout (instead of crutches) on Craigslist.

Thanks Smish,

That is exactly the kind of information I was looking for. I can save myself £99 as well. I have an exercise bike but, as I am only 5′ tall I can only just reach the pedals with my toes. I might see if I can buy some blocks to put on the pedals so that I can reach better. I have to put a stool by the side of the bike at the moment just to reach the seat!! Oh for an extra few inches…

I have heard of Craigslist, like you say it is not popular site over in England but I will have a look at it.

Thanks for saving me some cash.

Annie

Annie,
It is a good idea to get an exercise bike that is set appropriately for your height. Wow, you are tiny. I am 5′9 so I don’t deal with that much. I got a barely used $600 recumbent bike for $75 on Craigslist. I would look for them used. A lot of people buy them and then don’t use them. They eventually get tired of having them at their place and sell for cheap. I got a good treadmill that way too. I just bought a huge weight bench and weights for $10. It has all of the gadgets for getting at all major muscle groups. I mostly bought it for my teenage boys who need to burn a little extra testosterone off. Keep me posted on what you find. I’ll be curious what you end up with.

-Smish

Annie: OOOH! Just checked. Your Craigslist is not so good. It is VERY different here where I live. How do people sell used stuff in Manchester?

Hi Smish,

We have ‘car boot’ sales!! My in-laws used to make a fortune at them. We also have a local paper called ‘Loot’ and free advertising papers, so lots of ways. I will look through them over the weekend.

Annie

annieh, try http://manchester.gumtree.com. I believe ebay still owns gumtree and it is a more popular choice in UK. Also consider buying a mini trampoline. It works your balance, strength and aerobic fitness and helps stretch the tendon. Done wonders for me. Cost me $40 to buy a gym quality model, http://tinyurl.com/4aj28a

Annie: How are you feeling? I just read your page on taking down the apple tree. Great description! I didn’t realize you had had some vertebrae fused together. I just wanted to amend a previous post I made. If you get an exercise bike, I would go for a recumbent one. The uprights aren’t as good for backs. I found a great recumbent for sale on our Craigslist for $50. Not sure how that translates to your money. I wish I could get it to ya somehow. One thing I have to admit to you; I am so jealous of all that awesome football you have in Manchester. I dream of getting to go to games over there. Thanks for posting the pictures of the game and keeping us updated on some scores. It’s a wonderful escape. A guy my husband works with is a die hard Liverpool fan. It’s funny listening to him trash talk. Anyway, I hope you are doing good.

Dear Annieh,
As you are well aware ths ATR lark is a real test of ones ability to keep positive and it’s v important for us to make the most of light hearted moments - So next time your at MCFC please pass on my thanks to Richard Dunne for giving me the best laugh I’ve had for ages - WHAT A FINISH, I liked the way he steadied himself before placing it past the keeper. Definitely a contender for goal of the month!!!

Come on Leeds!!!
Richard xx

Hi Richard,

Yes, but Dunnie is a lovely lad. He is married to my son’s friend Helen, so I have to like him. He doesn’t score many for or against… but when he does they are great goals.

Perhaps one day when Leeds eventually get into the Premiership (which I am sure they will do) we can take you to a proper Stadium, only went to Elland Road once, many moons ago.

Anyway, hope your going from strength to strength.

Annie

Hi Smish,

If ever you get over to England we will take you to a Manchester City game. It would be a pleasure to take you to a ‘proper’ football match.

As for the bike, we looked in our local papers last weekend but there were none advertised. I will look out for a recumbent bike instead, just ‘googled’ them and I think that would be much better for me.

Thanks for the advice

Annie

A,
He does come over as a 100% er - I wonder whether players like him will survive under the new regime at City? - In their eyes will that ‘bread and butter’ type player fit the long term plan. The January transfer window will be interesting. I bet rumour is rife isn’t it?

As for LUFC it’s a bit like the footy equivalent of an ATR a long recovery with inevitable set- backs along the way - but you know somewhere in the future you’ll be healed!!

Nice to hear you went to Elland Road - it’s an old stadium now - plans to move were well advanced before it all went t**s up

All the best
Richard

Richard,

According to local papers we will sign every man and his dog in January, just hope we hang on to our Academy players, they are the ones that give of their best. Just hope Hughes is not swayed too much by all that money, we don’t want to end up being hated like Manchester United!!!

Annie: I’ll shut up on that advice. I don’t mean to suggest too much I was just concerned about what I had told you before when I read about your neck.

I love watching the English Premier League football. It is VERY different than what we see in the US. I love how passionate everybody is about their teams over there.

-Smish

Smish,

All advice is very very welcome, even if meant just for me others may find it helpful as well. Always good to have an experts opinion.

Annie

Annie: I don’t feel much like an expert. I don’t know how a “so called” expert could let her legs get trashed like I did mine. It’s time for me to get a new job.

Annie,
Since you have been at this for a while, I have a question for you. Do you have any trouble keeping your repaired foot warm?

-Smish

Tell me about it…!!! Especially at night, it is getting quite cold here in Manchester and I have had the odd night where I have kept a sock on in bed, Hubby complains about not just my cold foot but cold leg, it still has a tendancy to be a little blue at times as well. I have a circulatory problem at the best of times.

Presumably there is still some blood flow restriction going on and until I am much more mobile then it won’t get any better.

PS My brother rang me to say he had seen a recumbent bike on ebay but by the time I checked it out it was too late.

Annie

Annie: It seems like my foot is ice cold all of the time. I have been doing a lot of hot water soaks trying to get it comfortable again. The other night my husband went to massage my foot and warm it up and my foot turned his hands cold. Most of the time my foot color is ok. I am just frustrated with it because it adds to the pain I am still having. I have those disposable toe warmers that hunters put in their boots but right now I can’t put them into the only shoes I can walk in. I am wondering if this has something to do with the surgeries or if this would have happened to me anyway.

I love my recumbent bike. A lot of times I will sit and pedal watching a show with my kids. Keeps me from being fidgety. I hope you can find one.

-Smish

Smish/Annieh.
The weather has turned much colder this last few days and for the first time I’m also suffering a bit with cold feet - I’m starting off with thick woolly socks then we’ll see. Do you find if you’re a bit chilly generally then your feet suffer more? - I do.

Richard

Richard,

I had the answer to cold feet yesterday. 3 Wonderful goals by Robhino, enough heat generated to run a small electric sub-station! All that jumping up and down.

At least Leeds did OK as well.

But the answer is yes, if I am cold then my feet are colder.

Annie

Richard: If I am cold, my feet are cold for sure. However, right now, I am sitting in my warm house with an undersock, an oversock that is wool, and a pair of shoes on, and my foot is ice cold. Color is normal but it is ice cold. It’s almost like an ice machine. Ha ha! We are starting into winter here now and I am dreading the low temps.

Hunting catalogs (here in the US) have battery-heated socks! The socks are thick, wooly, calg-high ones with thin coils of wire over the toes that gently warm up by battery power - 9 volt in a pocket up at the top.

They are heavenly when it is sub freezing out. When I stand holding horses on cold concrete for a couple of hours four our horse shoer in the winter, I don’t know how I would do without them. You might want to give them a try.

Cabelas catalog carries them - http://www.cabelas.com

Linda

Linda: Those socks look neat. That may be a Christmas request. Thanks!

A,
Ha Ha very good - You realise what a state LUFC have got themselves into when you are gripped by the draw for the FIRST round of the FA cup ( I didn’ realise it started before xmas!!!) -Who will it be? the mighty Kettering Town or a glamour trip to London to play Tooting and Mitcham!! - as it happened they got Northampton and big news they’ve just announced it’s going to be live on Setanta - Hurrah!!

Richard xx

A,
Its right on the border twixt Pembroke and Ceredigion and the boat is moored on the Teifi estuary. I can’t wait apparently there were dolphins playing in the bay today!

Richard

Annie,

Those vibrating plates don’t work. They are based on some preliminary research in the 60s, but they didn’t prove effective in later trials. See http://www.treadmill-world.com

Robert

Thanks for the great info.