Don't worry, I have not disappered. I simply have had so much going on that I have not taken the time to tell you all about it. Let me start by telling you that I witnessed one of nature's most magnificent things yesterday. My friends, Jake and Suzanne, came over to my house because I needed help planting a few perenials. I shall say that Jake is amazing at getting his hands dirty while his wife and I watched. Simply amazing! hee hee. Anyway, the plants are planted and I scooped up some bizarre looking poop in my back yard. These were definitely calculated droppings as they were dropped in one corner of my yard. I have decided to get myself a tent and proceed with a stealth stake-out in order to find the perpetrator. I am expecting one of those weiner dogs, but I shall not jump to conclusions just yet. I initially thought it was a canadian goose as I woke the other morning to a flock in my backyard. Don't ask me what the heck they were doing there. I have no standing water and don't think I am sharing my food with them! Bodybuilders can be really stingy! Just ask my buddy, Colette. I would have to be on death bed and dehydrated for her to give me a bite of her egg dish!

That is all I have for now. Workouts are good as long as I don't lift anything with my arms. Yea, my shoulders are pretty banged up. Now, my good wing is my bad wing, and my bad wing is my good wing! Confusing? No, simply stated, both my shoulders are in recovery stages! I am heading to the Olympia this weekend to cheer my buddy on. She is so jacked and I am in her corner. I am so proud of colette Nelson! Yeah!

OK, have a great day everyone.

your IronLadyDoc!

Today I received an email from my cousin. It could not have been better timing for me as I have been struggling with a lot of decisions. I thought I would share with all of you because I think we all need to realize each and every day is the "Best day of our lives." Read it and see if it does not tug at your soul like it did mine. Here goes...............

Today, when I awoke, I suddenly realized that this is the best day of my life, ever. There were times when I wondered if I would make it to today; but I did!

And because I did I'm going to celebrate!

Today, I'm going to celebrate what an unbelievable life I have had so far: the accomplishments, the many blessings, and, yes, even the hardships because they have served to make me stronger.

I will go through this day with my head held high and a happy heart.

I will marvel at God's seemingly simple gifts: the morning dew, the sun, the clouds, the trees, the flowers, the birds.

Today, none of these miraculous creations will escape my notice.

Today, I will share my excitement for life with other people.

I'll make someone smile.

I'll go out of my way to perform an unexpected act of kindness for someone I don't even know.

Today, I'll give a sincere compliment to someone who seems down.

I'll tell a child how special he is, and I'll tell someone I love just how deeply I care for them and how much they mean to me.

Today is the day I quit worrying about what I don't have and start being grateful for all the wonderful things God has already given me. I'll remember that to worry is just a waste of time because my faith in God and his Divine Plan ensures everything will be just fine.

And tonight, before I go to bed, I'll go outside and raise my eyes to the heavens. I will stand in awe at the beauty of the stars and the moon, and I will praise God for these magnificent treasures. As the day ends and I lay my head down on my pillow, I will thank the Almighty for the best day of my life. And I will sleep the sleep of a contented child, excited with expectation because I know tomorrow is going to be the best day of my life, ever!

That was awesome. Everyone sleep tight tonight because tomorrow is a new day and an opportunity to make it the best day of your life!

YOUR Ironladydoc

I was prepared to have a wonderful prayer for all the families who suffered losses during the 9/11 tagedy, but I wanted to give it some thought today. I was reading Psalm 9:11-12 and it encourages us to sing out our praises to God and tell of His unforgettable deeds. It also states in verse 12 that he who avenges murder has an open ear to those to cry to Him for justice. WE must all have faith that if we ask the Lord to handle this tragedy, He will. We should not try to do it without His help. As hard as it may seem, we need to lean on the Lord for help at all times!

I worked late last night. I was thinking that it would be slow since there were two football games on and the one was in Washington, D.C. I heard it was quite a site during the national anthem. Needless to say, I was swamped in the urgent care clinic!

It has really been cool here in Des Moines the past week or so. We have had a nice blanketing of rain to go with it. The grass is actually starting to green up again. I love it!

Three weeks till Olympia time. My buddy Colette is primed and ready to go! I am so proud of her! Yea, buddy, as Ronnie Coleman would say!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As we all know, humans are very regimented and get stuck in ruts way too often—and they usually don’t even realize it. A slight change is powerful medicine for the mind and body. It can refresh and revitalize.

Today was quadzilla day and Mark had this crazy idea to do heavy walking DB lunges and then follow that with 5 minutes of BB squats. I said, "Mark, are you serious?" He gets this look on his face and says, "uh huh!" I looked at him and said, "OK, you go first!" hee hee! Well, we got through the walking lunges. Mind you, we went heeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaVY. He made me do what he did. OK, so when we got to the 100 lb. dumbells, I said enough is enough. I took the first step and the right db banged into my quad. OUCH!!! I thought I cracked my femur, but, no, just a deep bruise.

Then, came squats. Once again, I said, "Mark, are you sure you want to do this?" Still "uh huh!" OK buddy, go get em. I will watch the clock. Well, let me just say, he tried his hardest and believe me, there was no giving up in his mind. After two minutes and 50 reps, he racked it. I was proud of him nonetheless! Don't think I did not do my 50 reps to match him, but no way was I going to try to squat for 5 minutes.

Here's my pointer of the day.............while growth and change will not occur unless you push past your comfort zone, pushing too hard and too fast may increase your liklihood of giving up. It is far better to experience success at each step of a progressive process...........all the while building confidence to fuel the persistence to pursue more challenging changes.

Change requires moving beyond your comfort zone, but it is best initiated in small and manageable increments. Next time we set out for a course uncharted in the quad department, I will suggest going 2 1/2 minutes or 60 reps.

Bye for now,
YOUR ironladydoc!

Let's talk...............Ha! Ok, I will do the talking. All you have to do is think. How many places can you go and actually be yourself? Are you a "Conformer"? Are you the type who falls into the trap of being someone you are not in order to please someone else? Are you addicted to approval? Amazingly, most of us conform and copy the behavior and customs of the world. But, where is our SELF? Where is the person the Lord made? Why not let God "Transform" you into a new person......the person He wants you to be. Why? I will tell you why.............it is Hard! It takes surrender! But once you surrender, you will know what God's will is for you. How awesome is that? No more being someone you are not! Wow, what a thought. Fortunately, it can be easy. The quick fix is follow the impulses of your heart................if something feels good to you, pursue it! Go get em'! Walk in faith, pray for wisdom, move forward with undying perseverence!

Did you know that running on a flat treadmill may actually harm your knees? Treadmills simulate running by pulling a moving belt across an immobile surface, which doesn’t replicate a perfectly level ground. This motion actually translates into running slightly downhill. As you probably know, running downhill is harder on your knees and shins than running uphill. An easy solution to this problem is to increase the incline setting on your treadmill to just a 1% incline. This small increase in the incline levels out the surface below you as you run, taking the pressure off of your knees and refocusing the workload to your glutes and hamstrings. If your knees have been bothering you because of the treadmill, experiment with the 1% incline for a few days before you decide whether the change is helping you or not.

DOMS, or delayed-onset muscle soreness, is a response to exercise in beginners or exercisers who change up their normal routine. This is common because your body is not used to the new movements you are performing. Contrary to popular belief, the delayed soreness you feel days after a particularly strenuous workout is not due to lactic acid buildup, but rather micro-tears in the muscle fibers. These microscopic muscle fiber tears are a normal response to exercise especially for beginners, and actually help the muscle adapt to the stress, making it stronger and giving it more endurance than before.

There are ways to avoid some of the intense pain of muscle soreness: Perform a longer warm-up; progress gradually as far as frequency and intensity are concerned, rather than demanding too much of your body too fast; use lighter weights when lifting; cool down completely after a workout; and don’t forget to stretch after your workout.

If you are currently experiencing DOMS, do some low-impact aerobic exercise, like walking or swimming, to work through the pain faster. You can use NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) like ibuprofen or aspirin to reduce inflammation and pain. A professional massage might also help to work out your aches and pains.

If muscle soreness lasts longer than a week after exercising, check with your doctor to make sure you don’t have a more serious injury

Well, the enemy tried to pull the rug out from under me, but my faith and trust in the Lord has prevailed. My truck is in the shop being mended by the bodyman, and I found out he is one of my patients. I thanked him so much and asked that he take special care of my truck, and you know what he said? "Doc, you have taken care of me and now it my turn to take care of you!" Wow, my angels are working overtime. I am truly blessed.

I am back on my pre-contest diet and I am feeling like a million bucks. Workouts are exellent! This morning Mark and I made "dancing pecs" and tomorrow I am doing arms........gotta blast those suckers!

I guess when things look down, all one can do is think about the positive and goodness of God. I am alive and blessed.

I hope everyone is staying cool. It is hot in Des Moines so I know it must be hot all over. Take care!

your Iron Lady Doc!