Abby Kavner

 

I have spent the last many years [as a faculty member in the Department of Earth & Space Sciences] juggling adventures in research, teaching, service, lab work, writing, reading, my family -- spouse, child and extended -- and even some personal life in between. Slowly but surely, my body’s aspect ratio has been changing, apparently to minimize my surface area/volume ratio. The current state is not too bad, but I was disturbed by the trajectory towards oblateness.   ...

 

Day 1   Today, after 200-plus squats, a series of “The World’s Greatest Stretch” and several minutes supporting myself in “plank” position, my wobbly legs almost sent me toppling down the John Wooden Center steps. This evening, I sat in the kitchen with my 11-year-old son eating a simple dinner of pasta (small bowl for me, big bowl for him) and spinach (thick-leaf variety, sautéed with shallots and olive oil, flavored with soy, rice vinegar, sesame oil and shaved bonito).  He asked me, “How long is this exercise program you’re doing?” “Twelve weeks” I answered. Cool silence during his assessment and then, a prophesy: “You’re not going to last.”  Read the complete post....

 

Day 6: Despite a big breakfast, I felt very hungry after my workout, and was glad to have a granola bar waiting for me in my office. Then I was hungry for a banana an hour later. Then I was ready for lunch at 10:15 a.m. And again at 11:30, 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. Note to self: Keep wholesome snacks at hand and in gym bag.

 

Nutrition Wednesday: My simple, inexpensive, wholesome recipe for Baked Stuffed Potatoes.

 

Day 10: Jumping rope and assorted tortures to the body. Read the complete post here.

 

 

Somehow I end up on the floor of the gym quite often, sometimes on purpose, and occasionally by accident. I am surprised to find that we are developing a very close and lovely relationship. ...  During our dance warm-ups, I recollect how much I hated gym class as a child, and how I was always the last-picked for every team (except math team). ...  I am having fun, but I’ve been tired and draggy all week, and had a second migraine.  Perhaps I am allergic to exercise?

 

This week’s recipe: Sugar Snap Canoes Read Abby's complete post here.

 

 

Do not be fooled by my youthful demeanor and immature behavior. My body is past its biological prime and has begun its decline. While I can’t prevent this, one of my goals for BHIP has been to slow the process as much as possible. Still, it seems that for every new skill I learn, my body retaliates by unlearning something else — usually something that it has known how to do for…uh…over 40 years.   But thankfully the exercises (aka “skills”) that we learn in BHIP are designed to be functional— to maintain and even enhance our day-to-day capabilities. ... Read Abby's complete post here.

 

At the BHIP Halfway Point:  I am as dedicated as ever to BHIP; my energy is overabundant; my pants are perhaps a teeny bit looser; and for the first time in years I am able to run for a whole mile — maybe even more. ... On the other hand, throughout the last few weeks I have been smitten by The Ten Plagues of June 2010. A surprising number of them coincide with the actual biblical versions. Read Abby's complete post here.

 

My busy summer has started, and unfortunately it pulls me away from UCLA for a series of conferences, workshops and experiments, ending with a month-long stint on the East Coast.  Therefore, I must withdraw from the BHIP program. It is a fact of this professor’s life that there is no consecutive 12-week period in which I am in residence at UCLA uninterrupted by experiments on the road, research trips, seminars, conferences. ... I am sad to be leaving BHIP. I will especially miss the coaches and the camaraderie. I enjoyed exploring my physical limits. My fitness has improved, and I am becoming stronger physically and mentally. While the scale has not budged much, I have taken off an inch each on my waist and hips. I ran a 5K on the 4th of July. Read Abby's complete post here.