Cancer Survivor, writing about Health and Fitness as you age

Fitness after stage III breast cancer Plank on ball in silhouette Why a fitness shoot? I am not a fitness model, nor am I ripped like one, but I wanted to do a fitness shoot for a few different reasons: 1. As a reminder of how far I have come At the 5-year anniversary of my diagnosis of stage III breast cancer, it seemed a good time to remind myself how far I have come since I went through the trauma of diagnosis and treatment. That no matter how low I felt at the time, I came through it. Not all my sisters made it and many are still struggling today (shout out to my IV-leagers - those living with stage IV,  EVERY DAY). 2. As a reminder of how much the body can do It is a moment for me to acknowledge that while there are things I still cannot do, there are things I could not do when I first started lifting weights, that I can do now and THAT is amazing to me. When I first started weight lifting maybe I could do shoulder presses with 7.5 lbs, now I can do more t...

Although there has been a bit of turmoil in my life the last few months, I wanted to give a quick update on my list of 50 things. My list of 50 has been derailed somewhat, and I expect to take the next few weeks to settle back down to my routine. Even so, I still do have an update. #27 on my list of 50 is "Open Kimono". What that really means is that while (I think), I am honest in my relationships, for sure there are some things I have chosen not to share. Now I've decided, well, maybe I should let my friends and family see and know a bit more about me. Hopefully you have already seen that in the posts that I've done, and in my social media presence as @AustinTrini . While I have resisted liking Facebook pages, because my FB page is me, I am loosening up on that too. Some of my blog posts include serious topics like issues of Race , my health like Chemo brain , and my latest trials   as well as what some may consider frivolous, like Strike Back and cussing...

Before I talk about food, a quick: Vitiligo Update It still pisses me off that the hyperactive immune system that attacks my own pigment cells just let cancer sail right on through. Enough rant. Since my cancer diagnosis, my vitiligo has just exploded. It's spread from knees and elbows to legs, face and neck. It bothers me more now. Picture from 2009 Hands now  2016           The growing spread of vitiligo Treatments Topical steroids weren't working and while Latisse (the eyelash drug) worked on one spot above one eye, it does not seem to be helping with the other spot above the other eye. There is a pulsed light treatment I have yet to try, but before I go that route, I want to try the food route. Food as Medicine I've blogged previously as viewing Food as Fuel , the next step is to view food as medicine with the potential to heal some ailments. I've read a couple of books, It Starts with Food and The Paleo Appr...

Funny how a simple adjustment in perspective can make all the difference. I know that when most people hear "diet" they assume "eat less" or "calorie reduction". As a cancer survivor, I've had to learn a lot more than I'd like about food, nutrients and supplements - all with the intent of reducing risk of recurrence - that is what "diet" is to me. Food to help me reduce the risk of cancer because I cannot do anything about my genetics, but I can control my diet.  I've blogged about the foods and cancer risk reduction previously here: I'd rather be eating hot wings and fries . For me, like most everyone, I try to eat healthy most of the time, but do eat more rubbish than I should. What about, instead of thinking of eating food for pleasure, perhaps I should think of food as fuel for my body. So if I was making a recipe, I'd want to get the best ingredients I could (within reason). That change in perspective, is helping...

This week is recovery week in preparation for cycle 3 next week.  So what has the week been like? Fear factor increasing. You know, now that I'm over the diagnosis and the optimism of actively working on treatment, I start wondering, "If I don't have horrible side effects, does it mean that the drugs aren't working?" What about, "I don't feel anything changing, is it making a difference?" and most recently, "I've been infection free this past month, can I make it through the remaining 4 months?"  Naturally paranoia is also on the rise.Must. Keep. It. In. Check. Generally felt ok, and I know because I don't fall asleep sitting up at 8:00pm at night - that's my gauge.  Went in to work a couple of days, and those are usually long days, but I am very happy to go in when I am able to. I get a chance to have a conversation with my colleagues about...work and not other things. That's good for me, because that's what it's ...

This is my update post on things that you may not have been hearing much about recently. First up, summer camp. First Day Science Camp (to Lucas) "So what did you do today?" "We learnt about cells" He hands me a model of  a cell - a round, clear plastic container with stuff floating around in a clear liquid. Me pointing to something in it, "So, what's this? Is this the nucleus?" "No!", looks at me, "It's a cotton ball."  My Writing I've scaled back my ambitions to writing something very small that I can complete. A book for my 2-yr old. Well, I've finished the words and I am trying very hard to get time to illustrate it (at least roughly), for my own benefit to see how it could work. And that is where I've been for a few weeks. I did a few sketches and realized that I need to do some more. An illustrator I am not. My Vitiligo It's been a while since my last post about my condition. Since then, ...

I've made about 75 posts by now over the past year, and I thought I'd share some of my favourite posts and why. I hope you enjoy them. Here goes: My adjustment. These are just a few of the posts that describe in some small way my coming-to-terms with being at home after working at a demanding job. (This adjustment is otherwise known as the scales falling from my eyes.) What is your 'bread and butter' conversation? Where are MY peeps? Left your brains in the delivery room? My husband promised me bons bons My controversial posts. These I thought would have generated some degree of discussion amongst my readers, (they didn't), but I like them nonetheless. Goal-oriented or competitive? Do you read in colour? How much 'boy' socialization do little girls need? My very personal posts . These posts are closest to my heart. Fried Plantain Khabi Khabie Mere Dil Mein What flower are you? Presenting the amazing variegated woman! The sweet and the funny. Why do pe...

That would be me. I wouldn't normally post something like this but I felt the time had come. I am entering freak zone and little girls (and they've all been girls so far), come up to me asking me what is wrong with my skin. My answer is that my skin isn't working right and it is losing its colour. I have vitiligo - yes, the thing that Michael Jackson had. So even though I like being in the top 1-2% of the population, this isn't at all what I had in mind. As far as "the doctors" can tell it's an autoimmune disease where my immune cells may be attacking my pigment cells, and the pigment cells are losing. For a dark-skinned person, the effect is striking. There is no cure and you may or may not respond to the existing treatments. (Lucas, my 7-year old, tells me that having another baby would help. I'm not buying it though I might be inclined to try ginko balboa.) It seems almost obscene, if not in poor-taste to make a fuss about something th...