Bursitis is really slowing me down

The bursitis which reappeared about 2 weeks ago, first on the right, then the left, and now both at the same time, is not subsiding.  I’m sitting on ice gel packs, and doing my exercises, but this morning I only got 2 blocks on my walk (usually 2 miles) and had to return to the cottage.  Then I drove to the wellness center instead of walking there.
https://gethealthyu.com/best-exercises-hip-bursitis/

While I was using the exercycle at the wellness center today I noticed again how tiny and thin the ladies are who go to the yoga classes, especially when compared to the water aerobics class—there’s a lot of glass in the room, so I can see both.

 

The morning exercise routine

Until this summer, I usually walked about two miles in the morning, always choosing a flat street to accommodate my bursitis pain and getting at least a mile along Lake Erie.  Then the Wellness Center opened in 2018.  Now I walk there (about 1 mile to get there), exercise on a cycle and a treadmill (about 4 miles), then walk home, about 1 mile, and pick up 2 or 3 miles during the day walking to various programs and activities.  Returning home through the woods has been especially nice.

 

 

From a drone photo

Wellness seminar in Lakeside on nutrition

Actually, I wrote that yesterday.  This morning we’re going to the Idlewyld Bed and Breakfast www.idlewyldbb.com  owned by Dan and Joan Barris at 350 Walnut.  Best breakfast in town.  First I walked 2 miles along the Lakefront in the glorious sunshine.  Life is tough.

Today’s programing is on sustainability.  I’ve been hearing that, or a version of it, for 40 years, but I might stop in to hear the one on Lake Erie.  Tomorrow there is a seminar on Listening and the art of paying attention by a “geriatric life enhancement consultant.”  I could do that—I’m old and I don’t pay attention!

Also tomorrow afternoon is a book review by my friend Nancy Long on “Dreamland: the true tale of America’s Opioid Epidemic (Sam Quinones) at the Lakeside Women’s Club. Her birthday was this week and we went out for lunch at the Bluebird restaurant. www.bluebirdatlakeside.com I had the “Italian Lover” panini, which is fresh pesto, tender chicken, tomato, and provolone cheese with a side of fresh veggies.  Nancy had the “Rockin’ Robin” salad which was strawberries, crimbld goat cheese, roasted sweet potatoes, toasted nut-medley on baby spinach with maple-balsamic reduction.
Sometimes on Friday afternoon I attend the World Affairs program (it’s call dialogue, but you know how Lakesiders are).

Wellness—word bloat

"Health and Wellness" programs, websites, books, TV shows, etc.  It's word bloat, and although "wellness" had bounced around in the 50s and 60s, it really took off in the 1990s. "In 1988, a survey of the Usage Panel for the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language found that a whopping 68 percent of panelists disapproved of the word when used to refer to employee benefit plans." (Language column, NYT magazine) But that's the beautiful thing about the English language, you're free to invent words or bloat your sentences. I see someplace in California they want to remove the words "husband" and "wife," so I guess it swings both ways (no pun intended).

http://definitionofwellness.com/

http://www.seekwellness.com/wellness/reports/2000-12-29.htm

http://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wellness

Benefits of implementing a wellness program

Wellness care and healthy lifestyle haven't been subjected to close scrutiny to see if they really do bring down health costs for businesses.  Yes, it's in every health/business bottom line article you see, but where is the research? "Free" preventive services aren't free and aren't preventive--those costs are built into the insurance.  Besides, if something is found during prevention, then it becomes diagnostic and treatment follows, and that isn’t free.  Someone has to pay.  Health costs keep going up, and I've been hearing this for at least 25 years. 

When they got people to stop smoking, the obesity rate went up. Where's the savings? And if  enough people live longer because of exercise and normalized weight, they just cost more in their 80s and 90s because they didn't die in their 70s.

Whether or not they reduce costs—which I doubt--these programs are becoming very intrusive and often are not optional.  The “choice” to participate now may mean that the employee is charged higher premiums for NOT participating.  Some choice, right?  And the spouse who doesn’t work at the company has to also submit.  I hate tobacco in all forms, but I don’t like it that an employee can’t smoke in his own home because of the company’s “wellness” plan.

Title inflation at The Ohio State University

From recent announcements at The Ohio State University:

On April 29, 2011, Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee and Executive Vice President and Provost Joseph A. Alutto recommended the appointment of Bernadette M. Melnyk, PhD, RN, CPNP/PMHNP, FNAP, FANN, (Dean and Distinguished Foundation Professor in Nursing at Arizona State University's College of Nursing Health Innovation) as Dean of the College of Nursing and Associate Vice President for Health Promotion and Chief Wellness Officer. Subject to approval by the Board of Trustees, her appointment will be effective on September 15, 2011.

"Dr. Melnyk's role as Ohio State's chief wellness officer is, I believe, the first such position at a university and sends a strong signal about our commitment and proactive approach to ensuring a healthy workforce and student body," Provost Alutto said.

But not to be outdone, the OSU Medical Center then had to have a VP of Care Coordination and Health Promotion.

On February 4, Ohio State announced that Larry Lewellen, current Vice President for Human Resources, will be joining The Ohio State University Medical Center as Vice President of Care Coordination and Health Promotion. Subject to approval by the Board of Trustees, his new appointment will be effective March 1.

Hard to know how the salaries inflate with the number and complexity of the titles.

Wellness Programs

This is going to sound petty, but I’ll write it anyway. Do highly educated people with fabulous health benefits need to be enticed into using both their brains and their benefits with “wellness” forums, freebies and football cheerleaders? What ever happened to common sense and self-interest? These people actually do pay for all their benefits--their salaries are reduced to compensate, but I think if they received the money in their paychecks then had to purchase the benefits from a list and see the money decrease, they’d be less likely to have a need to be cajoled and bribed into using them.

“Sponsored by the [Ohio State University] Faculty and Staff Wellness Program, the University Staff Advisory Committee, Your Plan for Health and the Department of Recreation Sports, you can visit more than 100 exhibitors and health care professionionals [sic]; grab a free lunch; obtain various health screenings; and cheer with the Buckeye players, band, cheerleaders and Brutus Buckeye. Be sure to get your free biometric screening to complete your Personal Health Assessment (visit http://yourplanforhealth.com/pha.html to reserve a time). You also can purchase fresh produce from a farmer's market, learn how to "go green," and sample goodies from a healthy cooking demonstration.”

Excuse my appearance!

Today's temps are predicted for the mid-90s, which next to a large body of water like Lake Erie means way-too-high humidity, so I walked along the lakefront early (ca. 8 a.m.). Two miles with my Guitar audiobook. I'm wearning my stretchy what-evers pants, and my t-shirt that says, "Try to keep up, I'm walking." There's something in small print too, but when I look down, it's upside down and I'm wearing tri-focals, so it makes me dizzy. My sister gave me this years ago along with a walking tape. Jenny Craig possibly. It's from the days when huge t-shirts were popular and you weren't expected to wear skinny midriff thingies with your muffin top lopping over topped with the icing of cleavage. This could fit a woman 8-mo pregnant or an Amish woman with plenty of fabric leftover for the bonnet.
Purple Martin house at the end of our street. It is designed to look like our movie theater, Orchestra Hall.
I think this is "Wellness Week," and there are Yoginess classes in the Upper Room. I can't figure out the 9 a.m. lecture which is supposed to provide "tools and strategies to enhance and enrich lives." I've got a lifetime bushel basket of new leaves I've turned over, so I think I'll skip whatever this psychologist from Canton is offering. There's an herb garden lecture this afternoon, but I have a brown thumb, and won't even attempt this one. The closest I get to an herb is a can of black pepper on the stove. At 10:30 there's a seminar on WWII. This afternoon the Women's Club is going to have someone portraying Amelia Earhart, but I'm not a member. The Wooden Boat Society is having classes and restoring a 1952 13' Lyman, so I'll probably pass on that too. I see Lakeside has an Environmental Stewardship Society that is selling compact flourescent bulbs, but I'll pass on that until someone determines the unintended consequences of outsourcing all our energy needs to China and how to dispose of the mercury both we and the Chinese factories are going to be putting out.