Found this on the web today:

"To maintain normal, adequate hydration, a simple calculation of bodyweight, multiplied by 0.55 will equal the amount of water a woman should drink in ounces on a daily basic. For example, a women who weighed 110 lbs, should drink 60.50 oz. (110 x .55) of water every day. If you are indulging in  strenuous activities which involve more sweating, such as long-distance running or exercising in extreme heat, the water amount should be increased by multiplying the body weight by 0.66.

At the same time it is important to note that a more than 1 1/2 gallons of water ingested within an hour of activity can be dangerous! For optimum health, the National Research Council recommends an intake of  9 cups a day for women."

The example works perfectly for me, since I weigh 110 pounds. This means that I need to drink about 60 ounces each day, or 7.5 glasses of water. Obviously, I'm not quite there yet unless I can count my coffee and wine intake as water. Then I'm golden.

And when I go hiking with the boyfriend on the weekends, I'm supposed to drink about 73 ounces of water, or 9 glasses.

As for the warning, I don't think I've ever drank 1.5 gallons of water in a day, let alone within an hour. So I should be fine there.

Water Consumption Tracker

Until recently I barely drank any water. I would drink my two cups of coffee in the morning, followed by a Diet Coke in the afternoon, and maybe a cup of tea at night. Water just had no appeal.

My boyfriend harasses me all the time about not drinking enough water. I also started to get these charley horses in my feet, legs, and shoulders that were killing me...waking me up in the middle of the night screaming in pain. Dehydration is a cause of this.

Now I have a 1-liter Sigg bottle on my desk. Once I finish my coffee, I start drinking the Sigg bottle. My goal is to finish the bottle by the end of the day. Sometimes I make it, sometimes I don't.

I also have a smaller 0.6 liter Sigg bottle at home. I'll carry this in my purse or in the car. It's pretty, which makes me want to have it with me. Vain, I know.

Water Consumption Tracker

We decided it was a city weekend, so no hiking or biking. I protest about the hiking and how hard it is, but I've actually come to like it. I like the exercise and being outside and having something fun to do on the weekends. It's what I look forward to. But we didn't get to go this weekend.

Instead, I practiced some of my old kung fu forms. Just the most simple two forms, along with some roundhouse, side, front, and crescent kicks. Compared to what I used to do at like a level 12 workout, this was a level 2 workout. But I'm old and out of shape now. And I'm sooooo sore...again!

At least this is a quick workout I can do in my living room. Will have to do this more.

Weight Tracker

Today I found out that one of the professors at my alma mater has a daughter, Jenny, who is battling for her life right now. After reading her blog (http://jenjensfamily.blogspot.com), I thought I would post her family's plea here in the hope that someone would come forward with information that may be of help.

Here is a message from her family:

"Jenny, a 14-year old girl, was stricken suddenly with a debilitating illness a little over one year ago.

If you click through to the blog (http://jenjensfamily.blogspot.com/), you’ll see that some doctors suspect she has a rare form of ALS. There is also a possible link to the HPV vaccine, given that her third Gardasil injection occurred not long before her family began noticing the first symptoms of her illness, but doctors are not sure whether Gardasil played any role in Jenny’s illness.

We are desperately looking for two things:

1) Other cases that might be comparable to Jenny’s. Please read the sidebar in blue (“Am I a Comparable?” http://jenjensfamily.blogspot.com/) or read the section on Comparables below. Do you know of anyone who might fit the description?

2) Any doctors you know who might have come across cases like Jenny’s in their practice. Can you help get the word to doctors around the world?

The cause of Jenny’s illness remains a medical mystery. Finding relevant comparables – fast – could help to solve that mystery and thus provide a crucial clue to finding the treatment that could save Jenny’s life.

Time is of the essence because Jenny is now a quadriplegic and is losing the struggle to breathe. Therefore, Jenny’s family appeals to you to bring any potential comparables to their notice by sending an e-mail to jenjensfamily @ gmail.com."

Am I a Comparable?
The desperate need is to identify any “strong comparables” to Jenny’s case, where a comparable is defined as someone:

(1) who has experienced rapidly progressive weakening and loss of the use of his/her limbs,
(2) for whom the onset of the condition began before adulthood, and
(3) for whom treatments such as immunoglobulin (IVIG), plasmapheresis, steroids and immunosuppressants such as Cytoxan have failed to halt the progression of disease. The comparable would be even stronger if
(4) the individual were female rather than male (apparently, neurodegenerative diseases such as juvenile-onset ALS are much less common in females, which is part of what makes the nature of Jenny’s disease so mysterious). And, it would certainly be of interest if
(5) the potential comparable had received the Gardasil vaccine (or perhaps some other vaccine with key similarities, such as an aluminum adjuvant) prior to the onset of symptoms.
(6) It would also be of interest if the patient had both muscle weakness and pityriasis lichenoides (a rare skin condition thought to be auto-immune in nature). But, the family would like to hear about
(7) Anyone diagnosed with juvenile-onset ALS or motor neuron disease, especially females with rapidly progressive weakening.

It is not necessary for a potential comparable to have each and every one of these attributes. But, when communicating about a possible comparable patient, please let us know which attributes that patient has in common with Jenny and any other potentially relevant information about the patient’s case history, family medical history, etc. Contact information for a physician familiar with the patient’s case would be especially helpful.

Send comparable info to jenjensfamily @ gmail.com