Allergic to Exercise?!

I love physical activity! I love to run, workout, and kickbox! My favorite of all these, though, is probably running! Last summer I got involved in 5K races. Throughout the months of June, July, August, and September, I ran 12 5K races, all in which I placed in my age group. Running, along with any cardio workout, is very vigorous, and when I run, my legs seem to breakout in a horrible itchy rash, which sometimes hinders me from completing  my workout! I didn't know what the cause of this could be, so I decided to Google it! :)

My research on itchy legs while running was very surprising to me! The reason for my itchy legs during intense running is due to my body's allergic reaction to the release of histamines that are released during vigorous activity! The medical name for the condition is urticaria, also another name for hives. Although red bumps do not always appear, my skin always looks very red and blotchy. This condition is very frustrating and annoying, because I love to run and a lot of times I have to stop because the itching is so bothersome. During my research, I found that an easy prevention is doing a ten minute warm up and cool down. A more expensive way to prevent it is taking an allergy tablet before I run, such as a Claritin or Zyrtec.

To learn more on this strange symptom you can visit the following websites:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/211298-why-do-my-legs-itch-when-i-run/

http://www.wisegeek.com/why-do-my-legs-get-itchy-when-i-walk.htm

Cold Feet!

I am sure you have all known someone at one point who suffers from cold feet! Maybe you yourself suffer from the condition, and have been wondering why for quite some time. My boyfriend, no matter how hot or cold, if it is snowing or the sun is out, rain or shine, his feet always feel like ice. I decided to get to the bottom of his crazy chronic cold feet syndrome!

During my research, just as we had both suspected, his cold feet are linked to poor circulation. Although that is the underlying cause, there are many different medical disorders which they could be directly linked to. One reason for his chronic cold feet could be peripheral vascular disease, which narrows blood vessels and restricts blood flow to certain areas of the body, such as the feet. It also could be atherosclerosis, which results in fatty materials adhering to artery walls. Another possibility is anemia, which is the lack of red blood cells accompanied by cold limbs!

Whatever the reason for his icy cold feet throughout all temps of the year, my advice was for him to go to the doctor and get his condition checked out. With him being a hard-headed guy, he surely will not listen to my instruction! I suppose he will continue to ignore his chronic cold feet, in hopes they will someday warm up! :)

The following links offer more advice on freezy feet!
http://www.ehow.com/facts_5301072_do-feet-cold.html

http://www.medicinenet.com/cold_feet/symptoms.htm

Big Questions!

The article "Big Questions" by John Hodgman really got me thinking about how the endless amount of huge questions we have each and every day! The article includes question such as "why do we sleep" and "what is the universe made of". It compares how much we know today versus how much we knew 100 years ago. The amount of progress we have made is unbelievable, and it is mainly due to technology! 

A "big" question I have once wondered about is how McDonalds got started. Perhaps the biggest and most well-known fast food chain, according to the McDonalds corporation website, they operate over 30,000 restaurants in 100 countries on six continents. I pondered on this question during my middle school years when a McDouble and chicken nuggets were among my favorite meals. Of course, to find the answer, I was able to type it in to the search engine Google, and tons of sites spit out answers for me to review. 

As an uninformed 15 year old, I did not yet know about the importance of "credible sources", so I am sure I believed anything I read online. Now, as I go back to research the history of this enormous fast-food chain, I have learned that it was started by a man named Ray Kroc, who, in 1954, turned a run down car-hop business into a small fast-food restaurant which served a basic menu of hamburgers, cheeseburgers, fried, soft drinks, and apple pies. From that moment, this tiny business turned into what is possibly the largest chain in the world! The link provided is the McDonalds corporation website, which provides many more interesting facts and statistics! http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/McDonalds-Corporation-Company-History.html

Thesis Statements

The class discussion on generating thesis statements proved to be very interesting, and quite helpful to me! I am a communication disorders major, and will be entering the graduate program within the next couple of semesters. With that being said, I am sure I will have to come up with many thesis statements throughout my educational career. 

One of the most difficult times I had with formulating a thesis statement was during my sophomore semester in English 2, which I took at West Kentucky Community and Technical College. During this course, I was required to write a research paper over conspiracy theories and the attacks of 911. Writing over something you care nothing about proved to be a very difficult task in this situation. After weeks of gathering what I thought was pointless information, I finally neared the end of my research. My entire paper broke down and attempted to disprove the conspiracy theories about the attacks that happened on September 11, 2001. I used many books, youtube videos, and government documents to do so. This was the most difficult time I have had with formulating a thesis statement, mainly because I was not interested in the topic.

The class discussion directed towards formulating thesis statements was helpful, because now I know how to break down certain topics from general to more specific, use key words for research, and pick a side based on the direction of my paper. The following link to the Purdue Owl website also includes more detailed information on basing your thesis on what kind of paper you are writing, whether it be expository, analytical, argumentative, etc... http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/545/1/

Crazy Cat Facts!

So you may be entirely confused/bored by the topic of this post! But hey-this is my first go-around, so I am getting used to this "blogging" thing.  We wonder about different things every day-and I have decided to start finding some of the answers to my wondering questions! Throughout my life I have always been a "cat person". Not only do I prefer cats over any other animal and own a sweet little kitten, but I also have the personality that follows suit of a cat! I do not require great amounts of attention, and I like to be left alone for the most part! I do not like people touching me and close interaction with others. Perhaps the most apparent similarity is my LOVE for naps! :) So my question for this week is: How much to cats actually sleep?
While doing a little research I found out some interesting info! Mature healthy cats engage in deep sleep nearly 15% of their lives. They spend 50% in light sleep, leaving only 30 % awake time! This amounts to about 6-8 hours a day that they actually spend awake. This awake time is spent 30% grooming and the rest playing or eating! In my opinion, cats are the luckiest animals ever! Eating and sleeping all day- that is any college student's dream! The link is full of other amazing cat facts! http://www.xmission.com/~emailbox/trivia.htm