Belated November Stats

 Late but here are the rather random November stats…. I didn’t get back to the pool because of that shoulder problem I manifested when during/ after Covid. Despite a visit to the osteo then chiro neither helped, my clavicle was oddly feeling in the wrong place. So I tried a yoga session I’ve done before years ago and despite the pain I actually felt a nice glide and thunk and what felt like my clavicle back in the right place. But it took a while then I kind of lost the desire I dunno.

Sport	Count	KM	Minutes
Swim	0	0	0
Bike	5	218	550
Run	5	30.6	215
Strength	5	-	166
Yoga	5	-	169
Walk	10	28.97	416

Longest bike was a tidy 83.9k, longest run not so tidy but ok 8.8k

I did get back on the strength bus in November which kind of made up for lack of swimming (cough maybe)… overall time was pretty much the same as October just spread differently.

December thus far has been a really, I don’t know what the best word is, I’ll settle for “weird” month. Somethings have gone great but my heart has been heavy as well…. At the start of the month the sudden death of my Uncle Pete, a family stalwart, a protector and my Godfather who not only stood in for my Dad a few times but also taught me so much in my formative years…. I was blessed in my 1970s / 80s childhood to have had Uncle Pete and Auntie Penny so influential in my life. Rest in peace both of you now you are back together. I still can’t quite believe you are not both up the road and I often hear your voices in my head calling me Kaz …. 

The same week Uncle Pete died a neighbour also sadly passed away suddenly overnight. Whilst I didn’t know her terribly well, we mainly only exchanged messages about our lunatic cats, it was a really shock. She was only in her early 40s and such a brilliant mum, lovely neighbour and overall good ‘un. There is no sense to life and death sometimes. 

In a weird way I think grief is a blessing for a life lived well, I don’t know if that makes sense.

Sigh

Anyway Christmas season is now upon us and already next week we will be greeting the new year 2025 seems a nice number (both 20 and 25 being divisible by 5 just feels nice)…. So I’ve got some days to get my December stats in slightly better order as they are quite shocking at the moment barely been on the bike, not swam yet  …. But I do have a cunning plan brewing… well at least a rough “training plan” to get me to the start line of my first triathlon in 8 years! Onwards!

October Stats

Here we go… so I ended up losing about 10 training days to covid and wanted to come back cautiously .. so basically my training plan of what it was went to kaput half way through the month.

Still having got my excuses in I am at least happy to have got swim, bike, run, strength and yoga in during the month so did kind of get a more balanced portfolio… ok i know I’m reaching!

Sport	Count	KM	Minutes
Swim	1	2	58
Bike	7	171.14	420
Run	4	31.75	227
Strength	1	-	31
Yoga	10	-	261
Walk	15	37.56	519

I did get a club ride in which was great and I did manage one strength training but boy oh boy could tell I’ve not done any in too long - despite backing off the weights my glutes were on fire for days after with severe doms!! Given I didn’t then do anymore I think I’m just going to reset and start the program again tomorrow (it’s a monday) and this time take all the weights out for leg day - at least for the first time out.

I’ve not swam since the start of the month either…. Somehow managed to mash my shoulder either from coughing or being up on a pillow sleeping when I had the bug - I think it’s on the mend and actually weirdly 3.5hrs on the bike on Saturday seems to have helped it (oddly)

So… still playing it all a bit by ear but do have a plan ish of sorts for November - so will see what happens this month … I have already walloped my biking out of the park Saturday with an 83km club bike ride … I was a tad knackered from that but if the weather holds and I can get a few more 60k rides in this month it’ll be great. If I can swim once a week, shoulder permitting, and run up to say 12k for long runs I think that will be trucking on well enough. .. it’s all about getting in harmony with my new body that doesn’t recover the way it did 10 years ago which was already a lot slower to recover to 10 years before that!! Everything is relative and the aim is simply to be happily active and strong!! Of course strength and yoga absolutely will feature! I’m happy with my October yoga ing so will try and keep consistent with that (injury prevention is better then cure!)

So all in all October was ok and I feel recovered well from the virus … let’s go November let’s go!!

Training and Autumn bugs

 Nothing like calling a complete halt to training when you get a bug - be that the common cold, flu or covid virus… last year we managed to get one virus swiftly followed by another vicious beast… hopefully that won’t repeat itself because both of us were pretty rotten for the best part of 8 weeks!!…. This year was a quick dose of covid - for me it went like this

Thurs evening …  tickly throat -> streaming nose (I’ve never ever woken up with one leaking nostril before - it was gross) -> temperature -> full on cold like symptoms -> sore throat -> productive cough (this was now Sunday) -> all the above plus upset tummy (this was Monday when I decided to do a covid test)…and I felt absolutely exhausted… by the next weekend feeling much more spritely. All the cold symptoms more or less gone just a feeling of queasiness and quite a bit of dizziness and ears remained stuffed up. Also pretty tired out.. I definitely couldn’t even think of exercise last week. Although did attempt some yoga come the end of the week but literally ended up on my arse as I tipped over in downward dog 🤣 🐶 … how I managed that I don’t know but as I said still a bit dizzy! At least I was close to the ground and bounced into the soft side of the sofa bed.

So I’m now on a return to exercise protocol - mindful that I don’t want a repeat of last autumn!! I also need to start dosing myself up on asthma preventer as typically post any kind of virus my asthma flares up and so getting ahead of that is a good prevention measure!

All of this has meant it’s been 2 weeks since I ran or biked and I don’t even remember if or when I last swam… getting my October stats excuse in early 👀😂

At least October was more or less prep month - although I have been kind of following my plan from 2014, whilst not being rigorously sticking to it, it’s provided a schedule of sorts so taken the thinking out of the equation. It’s much easier training when you have a plan (even if it’s an outline one) to follow.

Having said that my plan for this week involves easy bike and a run walk to see how my body reacts. I can hear my Mum and Dad’s advice in my brain telling me to take it easy - and this time I will heed their advice… only because it’s the right advice post virus (not because “you’re not getting any younger” which is also true although part of me refuses to believe it). 

Onwards!!