Average Monday

I arrived at Cardiac Rehab this morning 20 minutes ahead of the session, so that I could weigh and then relax for a few minutes before my blood pressure was checked. But I no sooner sat down than an exercise physiologist rushed over with the BP monitor.


"I haven't rested very long," I said, "so my pressure will probably be up."


"You're our star athlete," he said, "so your pressure will be fine." It was 130/62, when it is usually less than 120/80 after a few minutes sitting still. By the end of the workout, however, it was down to 109/52.


After I got home from Cardiac Rehab, Hubbie and I went to the worldwide discount chain store for groceries to satisfy our menu for the week. We stopped by the farmer's market first to pick up fresh vegetables, but the only thing available this morning other than green beans and cucumbers was tomatoes. We selected a small box of those.


By the time we got back from shopping, it was lunchtime. Since we are having a veggie supper, I indulged in a sandwich for lunch made on toasted wheat bread spread with yellow mustard, and topped with a thin slice of hickory smoked turkey, a thin slice of baby Swiss cheese, and slices of tomato and Vidalia onion, sprinkled with black pepper and sodium-free seasoning. Hubbie opted for wheat bread spread with salad dressing and topped with deli turkey and pepper Jack cheese. He had corn chips with his and I had a couple of tablespoons of cottage cheese. We both had low fat fudgsicles for dessert.


After lunch, Mother and I went for a walk at the college lake. The temp climbed toward 80, but a warm wind made the walk pleasant. Today, we were the only ones on the path. The ducks were inactive, hunkered down in pairs or clusters here and there around the lake. They quack-quaked at us as we made our rounds, but otherwise didn't bestir themselves. The large turtle sunned on its favorite log, and a small cottonmouth quickly swam for cover under a rock near the bank.


The rest of the day was quiet, with each of us going about our own household or yard business until suppertime. Our veggie supper consisted of boiled new potatoes, corn on the cob, sliced tomatoes, English peas leftover from yesterday, and yellow and zucchini squash, with onions, bell peppers, and seasonings, sauteed in butter Pam. We added no salt to the veggies, but at the table, we added a little light margarine, plus seasoning blend and pepper to the potatoes and corn. It took several weeks, but we are now accustomed to a low-sodium diet.