Physio 6

I had my 6th physiotheray the other day.

Again, it was so painful... Proves how much my body isn't in "proper" shape... 

This time it was bad since I had a "busy" month.

At the beginning of May, I went to Akita prefecture and Aomori prefecture in northern Japan. I went there by the midnight highway bus and came back on the bullet train but the round trip was stressful on the body. Then the weather fluctuated greatly between hot and cold. Finally, the air conditioner at the office was turned on full blast and I sat under it for a few days making me cold and sick to the core.

So, my body wasn't in "good condition" this entire month. On top of that, I had started to take the enzyme paste and drink which shocked my system and it had gone into a cycle of loose to almost no bowel movements...

After explaining all of this to my therapist, she deduced that my physical ability to flush out impurities and water is very poor. That's why, even with introducing the enzymes to clean out my intestines, I don't have the proper ability to egest anything so I go through cycles of sudden to almost no egestion.

She also measured my pulse and it is sometimes erratic, meaning I miss a beat... I've never been told this before so I was quite shocked... But as proof, my feet and ankles are very cold and my legs easily get bloated. In other words, I'm not able to pump the blood or water in my legs properly so that they circulate properly to send nutrients, fluid, and warmth to the tips, then back to the heart and finally excreted out of the body.

The best way to resolve this for me is to stay out of direct exposure of the cold air conditioning wind and to keep certain parts of the body warm. In my case, the ankles,lower abdomen area and the area between my shoulder blades.

Plus, drink warm fluids and incorporate ginger into my daily diet to help me keep a warm body from within.

As for the treatment, she worked on my legs and hips mostly this time. Oh and was it ever painful!! She was amazed how tight my muscles were!! I can't express with words how much muscle pain I have today after that treatment!! I feel like I went on a hike up an enormous mountain and then ran a marathon!! My legs feel like unbending logs... Yes, heavy too...

She also worked on my arms but she said it wasn't bad as before and my chest area wasn't so stiff either. So that was a bit of an improvement that I was able to maintain.

But we decided that coming once a month wasn't enough right now. I have made progress and my body most likely won't feel as much shock from the treatments if I got them within a shorter time span. So, from now on I plan to go once every 3 weeks. This way, I'll be able to get the next treatment before the effects of the last one completely wear off.

Plus, I'm keep track of my body temperature everyday and again I'm keeping track of what I eat that day. I need to get a weight scale too... 

Little steps at a time to change my body from this "unhealthy blob" to a "healthier human body"!! Lol!! 

Enzymes

As I said at the beginning of the year, I want to take better care of myself and of my health.
How to do this is by going to get physiotherapy treatments and cooking more and eating less of the food from the convenient stores.
The physiotherapy is great for the body and it's working wonders for me. But that's the "outside" of my body...
What can I do for the "inside" of my body...?
Cooking proper meals is one thing and eating less of the food from the convenience stores that are packed with preservatives is another... But that's not enough to improve the condition of my body on the inside.
So, I was looking around to find something to help me.
By chance, a friend of mine on Facebook had started to add enzymes to her daily diet. She talked about enzyme fasts (giving your intestines a break for a few days from digesting solids) and how it has given her a lot of energy and has helped to improve her health as well as sharpness and motivation to do things. I was very curious about this and had asked her for more information.
Instead of just giving me information, she took me to a private seminar to introduce the products to me and to have an explanation of what it is and what it does.
Basically, all humans have enzymes to help break down food in their intestinal tracts but with age, the number decreases. Also, depending on what we eat, our intestinal tracts can become layered with substances which the body cannot normally absorb (such as preservatives and other chemicals) and was not able to defecate. This prevents our body from absorbing the proper nutrients we need and also lowers our immune system and metabolism rate. That is how illnesses and obesity occurs.
So, the best type of enzymes are found in fermented foods. The Japanese diet actually has a lot of fermented foods incorporated into their daily menus compared to a Western diet. Some examples are miso soup and natto (both made from fermenting soy beans). But it's not that easy to eat everyday.
That is why my friend recommends incorporating this enzyme drink and paste into my daily diet.
The first is a concentrated enzyme drink. This is made by fermenting vegetables, fruits, and grains for a period of .... I pour about 10 to 20ml into a 500ml water bottle and drink about two bottles per day. I drink it before I eat anything.
Next,I eat a packet of enzyme paste before eating a regular meal. Eating before a meal helps the enzymes reach the intestinal tract before the food reaches so the enzymes are ready to help the intestine absorb the necessary nutrients and to defecate the unnecessary by-products.
Basically, it has a detoxing effect from within the body. It is supposed to help flush out impurities that have accumulated within the intestinal tracts and then help improve metabolism and the immune system. A healthy intestinal tract means a healthy body!! 
I've only started a few days ago and I don't see any real changes yet but I'll update you all after I've finished one bottle and all those packets. Keeping my fingers crossed that it'll work for me!!

First time in Northern Japan (part 5)

Lastly, we went to the Hirosaki nebuta exhibition.
Very different from that of Gojyogawara's Tachi-neputa.

The Hirosaki ones depict scenes from the Chinese story of "Suikoden", "The Three Kingdoms (Sangokushi)" and from the old Japanese "Kojiki".  Whereas the Tachi-neputa depicted only Japanese historical or fictional characters.

a scene from "The Three Kingdoms (Sangokushi)"

a scene from "Suikoden"

We were told that the word "neputa" or "nebuta", depending on the location, means "I'm sleepy".  As for why this word was chosen is due to the timing of these festivals.  They all take place in August, just before it starts to become colder and just before harvest season and the days are getting shorter. Basically, it's a festival to celebrate the end of summer and preparing for the long and harsh winter ahead.

First time in Northern Japan (part 4)

On my last full day in Hirosaki city, we went to visit Hirosaki Castle and to view the cherry blossoms. Unfortunately, it was chilly and wet at times...

The cherry blossoms were about 70% in full bloom but since it wasn't sunny, they hadn't fully bloomed yet.

But I was still able to get some nice shots of the castle and cherry blossoms!!

I was so excited to go inside too!!  I really like Japanese castles and how they're built.

Finally, we walked to the other end of the castle grounds to see the other cherry blossoms blooming along the inner moat and outer most moat.

First time in Northern Japan (part 3)

So we went to the Tachi-neputa exhibition in Gojyogawara and it was amazing and breathtaking!!

This is the building the main 3 are housed

first of the 3 large ones

second of the 3 large ones

third of the 3 large ones

There are 10 in total but only the largest three are housed here. Each one is only used for 3 years and then torn down and recycled.

There are 4 Nebuta festivals in Aomori prefecture. The most famous is the one in Aomori city, then Hirosaki city, then this one in Gojyogawara and finally in Kurobe city.

Tachi-neputa in Gojyogawara

Nebuta in Aomori and Kurobe

Hirosaki nebuta

It was a very impressive exhibition and I hope I can go back to see the festival for myself!!

First time in Northern Japan (part 2)

The second day we were in Hirosaki city but we made our way out to an area called Gojyogawara.

Here we transferred from the JR line to a local and very retro line...

A stove on board to keep the car warm!!  

Wooden armrests...

Drafty connections

It was like going back into time... There was a stove on the train!! The seats were all wooden...

We went to Ashinoko Lake to take a quick look around and then went to the author Osamu Dazai's home.

Thought I had some of the lake shots but I don't... Oh well.
But what I can say is that it was quite chilly and that it rained off and on...
It was an interesting trip but the best part was when we went to the Tachi-neputa exhibition.

That, I shall enter a totally separate blog entry!!

First time to Northern Japan (part 1)

My friend from Vancouver has come for a visit to Japan and invited me to visit her hometown of Hirosaki city in Aomori prefecture.

So from May 4th to May 7th, I visited Kakunodate city in Akita prefecture and Hirosaki city and its surroundings in Aomori prefecture.

On May 4th, we took the midnight highway bus to Kakunodate. We left Tokyo at 10 PM and arrived the next day at about 7 AM....

On the bus at the very rear

We got on from Hamamatsucho Bus Terminal (4th stop from the right)

Honestly speaking, I don't know if I'd ever do this kind of trip again.... But it was a good experience!!

When we got there it was raining and quite chilly...

Kakunodate station

The main purpose for this trip was to visit the old homes that have been preserved since the late Edo to Meiji period. Also, to see the cherry blossoms.

Here are some shots of the old homes and some cherry blossoms.

Kitchen area

Living room

well

warehouse

After walking around for a few hours we headed back to the station to the take the local train to Hirosaki city in Aomori prefecture.

I'm glad I went but just wished it was warmer...