Month: August 2026

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Maintaining Weight with Chronic Kidney Disease: Every Pound Matters

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Yesterday, I stepped on the scale and discovered that I had lost nearly three pounds.

For many people, that might sound like good news. Maintaining weight with chronic kidney disease can be challenging.

For me, it is exactly the opposite.

Maintaining a healthy weight has become one of the more challenging parts of living with chronic kidney disease. The difficulty is not simply eating more. It is eating more without eating the wrong things.

If I had no dietary restrictions, the solution would be fairly straightforward. After running, strength training, and mowing our steep backyard, I could simply increase my protein intake to help my body recover.

Unfortunately, protein is one of the nutrients my kidneys struggle to process.

That means every meal requires a balancing act.

Last year, after struggling to maintain my weight for quite some time, my nephrologist gave me permission to increase my daily protein intake slightly. Before then, I ate only about 36 grams of protein each day.

It was a welcome adjustment.

Even so, moderation remains essential.

Protein is only one part of the equation. Potassium, phosphorus, and sodium also require close attention. Foods that many people think of as healthy—such as bananas or melon—can become foods that I have to enjoy only occasionally.

Living with kidney disease often means making decisions that seem backward to everyone else.

Our current approach comes from years of careful adjustments.

When I suffered my brain hemorrhage, doctors also discovered that my kidneys had already deteriorated to Stage 5 chronic kidney disease—the point where dialysis or a kidney transplant often becomes necessary. No one could fully explain why my kidneys had declined so severely. I had always exercised regularly and paid close attention to my diet.

My wife and I refused to give up.

Working closely with my doctors, we gradually adjusted medications, refined my diet, and monitored my health as carefully as possible. Over time, my kidney function improved enough that I moved into Stage 3. Today, I generally fluctuate between Stage 3 and Stage 4.

That may not sound dramatic, but to us, it represents years of consistent effort.

My long-term goal is simple.

I hope to preserve my kidney function for as long as possible. Medical research continues to advance, and every year brings new possibilities. If I can keep my kidneys functioning well enough for long enough, future treatments may offer options that don’t exist today.

That thought gives me hope.

This morning brought some encouraging news.

I had regained nearly two of the three pounds I had lost yesterday, putting me right at the lower edge of my target weight range.

I would still like to gain a little more, but I no longer feel as though I am drifting into unhealthy territory.

Sometimes progress isn’t dramatic.

Sometimes it is simply watching the scale move in the right direction while knowing that you protected your health along the way.

Tomorrow morning, I’ll step on the scale again.

Hopefully, it decides to continue cooperating.

After all, the scale and I have been negotiating for quite a few years now, and I would appreciate it if it finally became a little more reasonable.

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A Quiet Independence Day: The Joy of Taking Care of Things

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

We successfully survived both the Independence Day holiday and a week-long heat wave.

Looking ahead, next week’s forecast promises temperatures nearly ten degrees cooler. That may not sound dramatic on paper, but after several days of running through Nashville’s summer heat, it feels almost luxurious.

I’m looking forward to seeing whether my morning runs become a little more enjoyable.

Interestingly, my wife mentioned that one of her colleagues in New York had temperatures even higher than ours. It seems this year’s summer has decided not to limit itself to the South.

While many people celebrated Independence Day with fireworks and large gatherings, we took a much quieter approach.

Crowds have never really been our favorite way to celebrate, and neither of us has ever felt a strong desire to launch fireworks into the sky.

Instead, we raised our American flag.

For us, that small tradition carries meaning.

We try to treat the flag with respect by following the proper customs for displaying and caring for it. In many ways, that reflects how we approach most of the things we own.

We believe that if something serves us well, it deserves to be cared for.

Our computers often remain with us for well over a decade. My wife’s car recently celebrated its twentieth birthday, and it still runs beautifully because she faithfully changes the oil, takes it in for regular maintenance, and keeps it clean.

Taking care of things is usually less exciting than buying new ones.

It is also much less expensive.

After putting up the flag, we moved on to another holiday tradition of our own.

Cooking.

My wife prepared another batch of Nashville hot chicken, a recipe she learned after we moved here. It has become one of our favorite ways to enjoy a little local flavor without standing in long restaurant lines.

Meanwhile, I conducted another small kitchen experiment.

This week, I increased the baking temperature for both our pizza and our pastry bites.

The results were noticeably better.

That success actually began with an entirely different hobby.

My wife had purchased an oven thermometer while experimenting with polymer clay because she wanted to know the oven’s true temperature rather than relying solely on the control dial.

What we discovered was surprisingly simple.

Our oven wasn’t running too cool.

It was simply taking much longer to reach the target temperature than we had assumed.

For years, we had trusted the oven’s suggested five-minute preheat time. Once we began waiting until the thermometer confirmed the correct temperature, everything improved.

The pastry bites puffed beautifully.

The pizza developed a much better crust.

Sometimes the solution isn’t changing the recipe.

It’s simply giving the oven enough time to do its job.

Tomorrow’s weather looks cooler, which means I am already looking forward to my morning run.

After this week’s heat, ten fewer degrees almost sounds like nature’s way of saying, “You’re welcome.”

I’ll happily take it.

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Making the Most of a Day Filled with Doctor Appointments

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Today was one of those days when my calendar seemed determined to outwork me.

I had not one, but two medical appointments: my annual eye examination and my hematology follow-up.

The hematology visits are relatively new. I began treatment in February, and thankfully the results have been encouraging. My energy has improved noticeably, and my running has benefited as well. Even so, my doctor believes I should continue treatment, so the appointments remain a regular part of my schedule.

The good news is that they are no longer every two weeks.

Now I only need to go every three weeks, which feels like meaningful progress.

Unfortunately, the appointments almost always land on Thursdays.

Thursday also happens to be lawn-mowing day.

Add an eye examination, a dental visit, or any other appointment, and my carefully organized schedule suddenly starts resembling an overbooked airport.

Last time, things became even more interesting because I had a nephrology appointment scheduled on the same day.

Those visits happen only once every quarter, but they were arranged back-to-back with another specialist. Since my wife couldn’t leave work during quarter-end closing, I took an Uber between appointments.

As an accountant, July is one of her busiest times of the year. Quarter-end waits for no one.

Originally, I thought I might go directly from today’s eye appointment to my hematologist.

Instead, I discovered there was a several-hour gap between the two.

At first, I considered simply waiting somewhere nearby, but my wife had a much better suggestion.

“Go home.”

She was absolutely right.

Rather than spending several hours sitting in a waiting room or a coffee shop, I was able to return home and actually accomplish something.

I bottled a batch of kombucha, worked through several household tasks, and crossed a number of items off my to-do list before it was time to leave again.

Having only a limited amount of time created an interesting sense of urgency.

Sometimes Parkinson’s Law—that work expands to fill the time available—works in reverse. Give yourself only a couple of hours, and suddenly every minute has a purpose.

By the time I headed to my second appointment, I felt surprisingly satisfied with how much I had managed to accomplish.

By the time I returned home afterward…

I was exhausted.

Running back and forth between appointments, errands, and chores may not qualify as an official endurance sport, but by the end of the day it certainly felt like one.

Still, I can’t complain too much. The appointments are helping. My health continues to improve, and that’s worth a few busy Thursdays.

Besides, next Thursday’s challenge will probably be waiting for me in the backyard.

The lawn never seems to schedule around my calendar.

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Our New Air Conditioner Passes Its First Nashville Summer Test

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Every household has its own definition of the perfect indoor climate.

According to my wife, ours has officially reached “ideal resin temperature.”

She enjoys working with UV resin, and apparently our new air conditioner has created nearly perfect conditions for her projects. She did point out one small drawback, though. While it is excellent for resin, it may be a little warm for polymer clay.

Apparently, crafting has its own weather forecast.

This week has become the first real test for our new air conditioning system, and so far it has passed with flying colors.

Summer in Nashville is rarely subtle. Hot temperatures are expected, but the humidity is what truly makes the season memorable. Once the thermometer climbs above 90°F, simply walking outside can feel like stepping into a warm cloud that has no intention of letting go.

Our house presents an interesting challenge.

Because the lower floor is partially underground. That naturally keeps it cooler than the upstairs, although even it begins to warm noticeably once outdoor temperatures climb well into the 90s.

We normally keep the upstairs thermostat set around 77°F.

Lower than that, and the downstairs—where both of our home offices are located—becomes uncomfortably cold.

For me, temperature is more than a matter of preference.

Since my brain stroke, my body has struggled to regulate temperature properly. It often feels as though my internal thermostat cannot quite decide what “comfortable” is supposed to feel like. Air-conditioned buildings that others find pleasantly cool can leave me feeling surprisingly cold.

Our current setup has turned out to be an excellent compromise.

The upstairs stays around 77°F, while the humidity remains close to 43%. Downstairs, the temperature settles into the low 70s, cool enough that both of us often wear long sleeves while working.

Our cat, however, has reached a different conclusion.

She generally prefers the upstairs.

Apparently, she has decided that warmer temperatures are better suited to important feline activities.

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Running in Nashville Humidity: When Finishing Is the Real Victory

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Nashville’s famous humidity has returned. It arrived with all the subtlety of an uninvited guest who not only stays for dinner but also adjusts your thermostat. Let’s tell you that running in Nashville humidity is hard.

This year, the rainy season seemed to arrive later than usual, which means we are now enjoying the unique experience of combining heavy humidity with even higher summer temperatures. It is an impressive achievement by the weather, if not a particularly enjoyable one.

Running in these conditions is… memorable.

Every breath feels as though I am inhaling warm steam from an oven. The air is so thick that it almost seems to have texture. Instead of cutting through the atmosphere, it feels as though I am negotiating with it.

By the time I had run a short distance, my shirt was completely soaked.

At one point I honestly wondered whether I was sweating that much or whether the humidity had simply decided to wear my clothes for me.

Running through a Nashville summer can sometimes feel remarkably similar to jogging inside a sauna, except the scenery is better.

Not surprisingly, I finished more than a minute behind my target pace.

That was disappointing.

I have spent a long time gradually improving my running speed, and I always hope to inch a little closer to my next goal. Lately, however, the weather has been making that progress considerably more difficult.

On mornings like this, I remind myself of something that is easy to forget.

The most important part is showing up.

Speed matters.

Improvement matters.

But neither of those things happens without consistency.

When I think back a few years, I realize just how much progress I have already made. I have improved my pace by more than a minute per kilometer. That is not the kind of improvement that happens overnight. It is built one ordinary run at a time, including the frustrating ones.

Sometimes training is about setting a personal best.

Other times, it is simply refusing to let miserable weather decide whether you will run at all.

Today’s run belonged firmly in the second category.

There was one final piece of good news.

The 10-kilometer run did not take off much weight this time. I lost only a fraction of a pound compared to yesterday, which means my carefully negotiated relationship with the bathroom scale remains intact.

Even better…

Cake is still on the menu after our weekly grocery trip.

Sometimes the greatest reward for surviving a humid summer run is not a faster pace.

Sometimes it’s dessert.

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Home Repairs Continue: Dehumidifiers, Tripped Breakers, and One Unimpressed Cat

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Our bathroom renovation has entered its next chapter.

Unfortunately, it is not yet the chapter titled Finished.

The restoration crew returned this morning to check the moisture level in the floor joists. The good news is that the wood is steadily drying. The less encouraging news is that it is not quite dry enough for the repairs to continue.

That is summer in Nashville for you.

This time of year, the combination of heat and humidity seems determined to slow down anything that needs to dry. Fortunately, the restoration crew brought in a second dehumidifier to speed things along.

With a little luck, tomorrow will finally be dry enough to move forward.

Of course, every improvement project seems determined to introduce at least one new surprise.

Not long after the second dehumidifier was installed, I noticed that our water dispenser had mysteriously stopped working.

After talking with my wife, we discovered that the refrigerator downstairs had also lost power.

Apparently, two industrial dehumidifiers, a large fan, and our home’s electrical circuits were having a disagreement.

Fortunately, the explanation turned out to be much less dramatic than I first imagined.

One of the breakers had tripped.

After resetting it, everything came back to life. Water dispensers were working again, and the downstairs refrigerator resumed its normal duties as though nothing had happened.

The electrical system, it seems, was simply reminding us that every circuit has its limits.

The restoration crew also closed the bathroom door to keep humid air from entering while the machines worked.

It is a sensible idea.

The only downside is the noise.

Those dehumidifiers are astonishingly loud. Even with the bathroom door firmly closed, they produce a steady mechanical roar that can be heard throughout the house.

Now that there are two of them, the soundtrack has become considerably more enthusiastic.

Oddly enough, the loudest machines in the house have solved another problem entirely.

Normally, a closed door is an irresistible invitation for our cat to investigate.

Not this time.

One brief listen to the dehumidifiers was apparently enough to convince him that whatever mysteries lay beyond that door were someone else’s responsibility.

For perhaps the first time in history, loud industrial equipment has successfully defeated feline curiosity.

Home renovation continues to teach the same lesson.

Rarely does one problem travel alone.

Fortunately, neither do good solutions, nor patient contractors.

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Every Project Has Another Layer: Unexpected Home Renovation Problems

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

Today was one of those days that seemed determined to test both my patience and my problem-solving skills, especially when it comes to unexpected home renovation problems.

The adventure began before I had even put on my running shoes; I came back because a tile installer was visiting.

To his credit, he arrived right in the middle of the scheduled arrival window, a small victory that I appreciated after watching the weather ruin my running plans.

Unfortunately, that was where the easy part ended due to an unexpected home renovation problems.

After inspecting the materials, he discovered that two of our three boxes of tile had arrived broken. Even better, we were also missing a backer board that, interestingly enough, had never appeared on any of the supply lists we had received.

Fortunately, he quickly contacted the supplier and arranged for the missing materials to be delivered.

Then demolition began.

As anyone who has renovated an older house already knows, demolition is less about removing old materials and more about discovering what previous homeowners have been hiding from you.

Once the old tile was removed, we discovered that a leaking toilet had rotted part of the subfloor.

The tile installation immediately came to a halt.

The installer explained that the damaged flooring would need to be replaced before any new tile could be installed. Unfortunately, that repair fell outside his scope of work, and he couldn’t recommend anyone who handled it.

So the phone calls began.

I contacted Home Depot to find someone to perform the repair, but I am still waiting to hear back.

Meanwhile, my wife suggested an excellent temporary solution. Since we had already planned to install a new toilet downstairs after the flooring was complete, why not simply install it upstairs instead?

That solved one problem.

I called our plumber, and, remarkably, they were able to come out almost immediately.

While the plumber was here, I asked whether their company handled subfloor repairs, since the damaged area was directly related to the plumbing leak.

They didn’t.

However, they did have someone they trusted.

One referral later, another contractor arrived to inspect the damage and prepare an estimate. Hopefully, the quote will arrive this evening.

Hopefully.

The project has already become more expensive than expected, and I suspect our renovation budget quietly sighed when nobody was looking. At this point, I can only hope we have reached the final surprise.

Home renovation projects have an unfortunate habit of behaving like onions. Every layer you peel away reveals another one waiting underneath. With a little luck, today’s subfloor will be the last layer we uncover.

Of course, every homeowner knows that saying those words out loud is probably tempting fate.

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Why Scheduling Time for Fun Can Make You More Productive

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

One thing my wife and I have been working on lately is balancing our schedules. Scheduling time for hobbies isn’t wasted time

Like many people, we enjoy staying productive. The challenge is remembering that productivity is not simply about filling every available minute with work.

For example, I regularly play online games with friends two or three evenings a week. Those sessions give me a chance to relax, laugh, and mentally step away from everything else for a little while.

My wife is a different story.

She always has a project in progress. If she isn’t working, she is planning the next thing to work on. For a long time, she found it difficult to justify spending time on activities that were simply enjoyable. Reading, drawing, and crafting often felt like luxuries rather than worthwhile uses of her time.

This weekend, however, we managed to accomplish everything we had planned.

Even better, my wife found time to work on several crafting projects.

I was especially happy to see that because she has been carrying a heavy workload recently. Between reconciling recent IEEPA government refunds, working through JSOX responsibilities, and preparing for the quarterly financial close, her mind has been occupied almost constantly.

Weekends can disappear surprisingly quickly when every hour already has an assignment.

One challenge she faced was guilt.

She felt that every moment should be spent doing something productive or meaningful. Ironically, that way of thinking made it difficult to relax, even when relaxation was exactly what she needed, which was scheduling time for hobbies.

Her solution was wonderfully practical.

Instead of waiting until she “earned” free time, she scheduled it.

Art time.

Crafting time.

Reading time.

They all became appointments on her calendar, just as legitimate as meetings or work projects.

What surprised her was the result.

Once she gave herself permission to enjoy those activities, she discovered that she actually worked better afterward. By the end of the weekend, she felt refreshed, focused, and ready to return to work with renewed energy.

Sometimes the most productive hour of the week is the one spent doing something that produces absolutely nothing except joy.

That realization has changed the way we think about our schedules.

We still plan our time carefully, but now we recognize that rest, creativity, and hobbies are not interruptions to productivity. They are part of the system that sustains productivity.

Next weekend will look quite different.

After a long wait, workers are finally scheduled to reinstall the tile in our downstairs bathroom. Their calendar has been packed for quite some time, so we have been eagerly anticipating their visit.

Fortunately, we have already checked every delivery and confirmed that all the necessary materials have arrived.

Everything is ready.

Now all that’s left is to let the professionals do their work while we try not to add any “helpful suggestions” from the sidelines.

Sometimes planning ahead is the hardest part.

Sometimes it’s remembering to leave room on the calendar for life itself.

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Maintaining Weight with Kidney Disease: The Unexpected Challenge of Summer Exercise

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

When you have kidney disease, you will face the unexpected challenge of summer exercise. This evening, you’ll find me doing something many people would probably envy.

I’m deliberately snacking.

A bowl of dry cereal now sits beside me, and I keep reaching into it every few minutes in an ongoing effort to replace the calories that disappeared during today’s exercise. It may not be the most glamorous recovery meal, but it is crunchy, convenient, and currently working overtime.

Every summer, I face the same struggle: the challenge of summer exercise.

Keeping my weight up.

Our backyard isn’t especially large, but it is built on a steep hill. Mowing it is far more demanding than people usually imagine. It feels less like ordinary yard work and more like a long endurance workout that just happens to leave the grass looking nicer afterward.

The physical activity itself isn’t the real problem.

Replacing the calories is.

Because of my kidney disease, I have to be careful about almost everything I eat. Protein, sodium, potassium, and phosphate all require close attention. Those restrictions eliminate more than just large steaks and salty snacks. Even foods that most people think of as healthy, certain colorful vegetables, dairy products, and many fruits, have to be eaten thoughtfully and in moderation.

Rather than relying on one “perfect” food, my wife and I constantly rotate what I eat so that no single nutrient becomes excessive.

Managing my diet has become something of a long-term strategy game.

Protein and sodium are the nutrients I monitor most carefully. I also take medication for high blood pressure, another condition closely tied to my kidney health. Every meal becomes a balancing act between providing enough energy and avoiding foods that could make my lab results less than ideal.

Last summer, I thought I had found the perfect solution.

Melon.

It seemed refreshing, easy to eat, and ideal for helping maintain my weight.

Unfortunately, blood tests revealed that it contained far more potassium than I could safely consume on a regular basis. So my brilliant nutritional discovery quietly retired after one season.

Sometimes your laboratory results become your least forgiving food critic.

Of course, exercising is not optional.

Running, strength training, and even mowing the lawn are all important parts of maintaining my health. If I burn more calories, however, I also have to replace them.

Hence the cereal.

Tomorrow offers another opportunity to replenish those calories. After our grocery trip, I’ll finally get to enjoy a slice of cake and finish the leftover pizza from last weekend.

Before anyone concludes that I have discovered the world’s greatest fitness program, there is one small detail.

Tomorrow is also my regular 10-kilometer run.

So those extra calories already have a job waiting for them.

Such is life.

Most people spend the summer trying to lose weight.

I spend mine trying to convince the scale to stay exactly where it is.

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Maintaining Weight with Kidney Disease: A Small Victory After Lawn Mowing

Brian’s fitness journal after a brain stroke

After finishing today’s lawn mowing, I stepped onto the scale and was greeted by a pleasant surprise. I had finally climbed back into my target weight range. Maintaining weight in kidney disease can be challenging.

Admittedly, I am still hovering near the lower end of that range, but after several weeks of watching the numbers drift downward, I’ll gladly celebrate a small victory.

Summer has a way of turning my weight into a moving target.

Our backyard is built on steep hills, so mowing the lawn is far more demanding than simply walking behind a mower on level ground. If I attempted to finish the entire yard in one session, it would take somewhere between five and six hours.

That is less “yard work” and more “accidental endurance event.”

Before I took over the mowing, my wife managed it herself using a hand-push mower. Looking back, I honestly wonder how she did it while working full-time. She often had to divide the job over several days simply because there weren’t enough hours or enough energy in a single evening.

As my own endurance gradually improved, I began taking over the mowing.

My schedule is considerably more flexible than hers. Although my wife also works from home, her workdays leave little opportunity for yard work except on weekends and holidays. In fact, she used to spend much of her vacation time catching up on outdoor chores.

Now that I handle the mowing, she finally has more time to devote to other projects, and perhaps even enjoy a weekend once in a while.

Of course, mowing the lawn introduces another challenge for me.

Because of my kidney condition, I have to limit my protein intake, making it much harder to replace the calories burned during strenuous activity. At the same time, years of regular exercise have gradually increased my muscle mass. I now carry more than 120 pounds of muscle while my total body weight stays between about 145 and 148 pounds.

Muscle, unfortunately, is wonderfully demanding.

It happily burns calories all day long while politely ignoring the fact that I cannot simply eat everything in sight.

Managing my diet requires constant adjustment. Last year, I even discovered that eating too much melon negatively affected my lab results. Since then, I have become much more careful about rotating foods instead of relying too heavily on any single item. Living with kidney disease often means thinking several steps ahead of every meal.

For quite some time, maintaining my weight has felt like trying to fill a bucket with a tiny leak.

Progress comes slowly.

Sometimes very slowly.

That is why today’s number on the scale felt so satisfying.

It may seem like only a few pounds, but those pounds represent careful planning, disciplined eating, regular exercise, and learning how to work with my body instead of against it.

Now I have one small hope.

That tomorrow’s morning run doesn’t immediately erase all of today’s hard-earned progress.

If it does, I will proceed with the scale and continue our ongoing negotiations.

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