MSI Press Blog

  Yesterday, the water softener tank needed potassium. Four 40-pound bags. The tank’s top sits at my chin—awkward height for a short woman with aging shoulders and a healthy respect for gravity. So, I asked my visiting son, who’s eight inches taller, to help. Chest-level for him. Easy. We picked up the bags at Ace Hardware. He carried one into the basement. I carried two—one in each hand. Easier to balance 80 pounds split between two hands than carry 40 in one hand and nothing in the other. My son dumped his bag into the tank, then turned to me and said, “Can you go grab the last one?” Sure. I trotted off and brought it down. No big deal. But I wonder how many adult children expect their 75-year-old mother to carry 80 pounds of potassium and then go fetch more. I’m not sure he even noticed.  It wasn’t ninja in the leaping-through-shadows sense. It was ninja in the unquestioned competence sense. The kind that doesn’t announce itself. The kind that just lifts, balances, an...

  The treadmill starts. My heart rate leaps—108 bpm almost instantly. I run. It climbs. 183 bpm at peak. Then the machine stops. I step off. And in the time it takes my feet to hit the floor, my heart rate drops like a ninja smoke bomb—50 bpm in 30 seconds. It’s fast. It’s dramatic. And it’s mine . 🧠 What’s Going On? Rapid heart rate rise : My body doesn’t ease into exertion—it launches . That’s not uncommon in highly responsive cardiovascular systems. Instant recovery : My parasympathetic nervous system (the “rest and digest” branch) kicks in fast. It’s like flipping a switch from battle mode to tea ceremony. Brief dizziness : I feel it for 5–10 seconds. Not alarming. Likely tied to sensory mismatch —my vision says “still moving,” my body says “we’ve stopped.” (I get carsick too. So yes, it’s probably a vestibular-visual disconnect .) 🧬 What My Doctors Say Postural hypotension (a sudden drop in blood pressure) can cause dizziness after exertion, but my heart’s structur...

Diary of a Grandma Ninja: The Art of the Cooldown 🌙🧘‍♀️ After 90 minutes of cardio—dancing, lunging, shadow boxing, and swinging weights—I don’t collapse. I cool down . Because the end of class isn’t the end of training. It’s the beginning of recovery. 🧘‍♀️ What My Cooldown Should Look Like (But Doesn't) I walk it off : I should take a slow stroll around the room, arms loose, breath steady putting away balls and weights. I should let my heart rate drop like a feather, not a stone. Instead, I dash off to put the weights and balls away and gather up my waiting son. I am pretty sure, anyway, that my heart rate dropped to 50 with my last cardio step. It always does. I stretch with intention : I should do this -- calves, hamstrings, shoulders, hips, and hold each stretch for 20–30 seconds, breathing into the tight spots. Golly gee, I don't. If I paid a price for not doing it, you bet I would. But I don't pay a price, either, and my next task in my rather full life is alwa...

  I don’t sweat. Not a drop. My skin stays dry even when my heart’s pounding and my face turns cherry red. People envy it. Brittany, my trainer, does not . “No fluid exchange,” she says. “You’re heating up, not cooling down.” So hydration? It’s not optional. It’s strategy . 🧬 Why Hydration Matters More When You Don’t Sweat Sweat cools the body . Without it, heat builds up faster. Fluid exchange regulates blood pressure and heart rate —especially important with a heart murmur and LBBB. Hydration supports endurance . Muscles need water to contract efficiently. Lungs need it to stay elastic. The brain needs it to stay sharp. 🥤 Grandma Ninja’s Hydration Rituals Pre-workout : I drink 8–12 oz of water 30–60 minutes before training. It’s like priming the pump. During training : I sip every 15–20 minutes, even if I don’t feel thirsty. Brittany watches my color, and I listen to her. Post-workout : I drink slowly over the next hour. Not a chug, but a steady refill. Daily baseli...