The Life You Love

Danny and I went for a hike yesterday. Although, truth be told, it was more like a walk than a hike (basically flat). It was nice walking through the trees, watching little chipmunks scurry across the path, and seeing the fat salmon hiding in the depths of the river. We even saw a little lizard. I was hoping to see a bear, but no such luck.

My hair is finally covering my scar. I have yet to take scissors to it, but I think it's about time. I'm starting to sport a mullet. I honestly never thought I'd see the day.

Sometimes you don't have to look very far to see life's signs. Literally.

Prolonging It

I know I sound crazy, with my change of diet and increased workouts, but I have to hit this brain tumor head-on (no pun intended).

So far, I've shared my medically diagnosed life expectancy to a few friends, but until now had yet to put it on the blog. Here's the story. At the University of Washington, my neurosurgeons, and my radiologist will not put a date on my death because they believe each case is individual. However, according to the John Hopkins Comprehensive Brain Tumor Center (which is the #1 neurology & neurosurgery center in the country) an adult with a stage II astrocytoma will live approximately 6-8 years from diagnosis. According to research at UCLA with stage II astrocytomas, they give me (since I'm in the 25-35 range) approximately 2563 days to live. The University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Research Center gives me about 7 years. The worst outlook I've found is from the World Health Organization which says that I have a median survival time of 4 years. Yikes. 

Now that I know my life expectancy is short, my job is to try to prolong it. And that is why I eat a billion vegetables a day, why juicing is my new hobby, why I have to get to the gym 5-6 times a week, and why I chose to make the best of this situation (because if I give up, I'll probably die sooner).

See Ya Muffin Top!

Hello world, I finally found a pair of jeans in my closet that doesn't cause a muffin top. Hallelujah!

Yep. This is epic. This is going to change my life! Seriously, it's impossible to be inspired when your waistband is cutting off your circulation.

Monday - running and legs
Tuesday - cross training and core
Wednesday - running and arms
Thursday - interval running and core
Friday - running
Saturday - cross training
Sunday - rest

I am a maniac. Soon I'll have more than one pair of pants that doesn't make me look like I have sausage legs. Things are looking good, and they're getting even brighter! One week down, and I can feel one of my abs. It's a brilliant start!