How to Lose a Belly When You're 42 (part 5)

Monday
Blood Pressure: 134/91
Resting Heart Rate: 54
I cycled in to work on the Specialized and agonised over the creaking/ticking noise it's been making ever since I had the bottom bracket replaced last month.
At lunch time, I dropped it back to Scotts Cycles. Pete was on duty and he did his best to assure me that there was nothing wrong with the BB that he himself put in. I tried to convince him to check the BB because that was where the noise was coming from.
We spent over an hour fettling with the bike on the shop floor! We tightened the cones on the front wheel, and tightened the bolts that hold the chainrings on. He tightened the headset. He took the left crank off and put it back on again. We even swapped the pedals for some standard plastic flat ones in the hope of finding the cause of the noise.
Each time we changed/adjusted something I went for a ride and listened carefully for the creaky ticking noise. Each time, the noise was still there. Eventually, after more than an hour, he agreed to check his work on the BB. I had to leave the bike there overnight. I offered him beer or biscuits for his efforts but he didn't want either.
I look forward to hearing what he finds when he checks the bearings...
I cycled home on the Raleigh which had been stored at work since last week.
At home, I checked my blood pressure which gave some rather worrying results (but after last week, perhaps it's understandable.)
I went for a 30 minute sweaty run. My quadriceps were protesting mightily but I kept going.
I made a super-healthy dinner.
I sipped red wine in the quiet of the evening when everyone was in bed.
No junkfood today.

Exercise
Cycled to work and back (9 miles)
Run: 30 mins 6 seconds

Booze:
2 glasses of red wine

Food:
2 slices of wholemeal toast with peanut butter
2 cups of tea
Glass of  grapefruit juice
Banana
Apple
Two mouthfuls of cold chicken breast
Mexican Scrambled Eggs: eggs with peppers, mushrooms, onions, wholemeal tortilla, and homegrown tomatoes served with potatoes from Mom's allotment.


Tuesday
I cycled in to to work. Today was a much better day with all students working hard and behaving themselves. It made me glad to be a teacher again. I tried hard at the healthy eating and my lunch consisted of fruit and nuts.
I cycled home and then headed off to dojo with Martha.
Tonight, Sensei Mark drilled us hard a for an hour - basics, kumite and kata were all covered at break-neck speed. He expected us to be giving 100% and he really let us know it!
I finished the session, sweaty, aching, hoarse and feeling a lot better than I have done recently.
Lucy made a marvellous healthy dinner - and lots of it! I actually ate all of my massive dinner and then helped myself to some leftovers.
In the evening, I prepared for tomorrow's lessons while sipping a stout and then some red wine.
No junkfood today.

Exercise
Cycled to work and back
An hour of intense karate training.

Booze
1 bottle of stout
2 glasses of red wine.

Food
2 wholemeal toast with peanut butter
Cup of redbush tea
Glass of apple and raspberry juice
1 banana
Cup of Earl Grey tea
Apple
Handful of pistachio nuts
2 plaice fillets with homegrown green beans, homegrown tomatoes, and savoury rice
1 chicken breast with more savoury rice.

Wednesday
After a disastrous day at work I was very glad to get home. I couldn't even commute on the bike today because I had to teach over at Handsworth which meant transporting bagfuls of workbooks and pens.
No time for lunch.
When I finally got home, I immediately got changed and went for a 30 minute run.
Lucy fed me Italian food and I drank a beer while we watched Bake Off.
My legs ache.
No junkfood today.


Exercise:
Run: 30 minutes 8 seconds

Booze:
1 bottle of stout
1 bottle of ale

Food:
2 slices of burnt wholemeal toast with Marmite
Apple and Raspberry juice
Cup of redbush tea
Lucy's homemade bolognese served with wholewheat spaghetti.

Thursday
Cycled in to work on the Raleigh. Another splendid day's teaching! For the last hour of the afternoon, I took the sports group to the hall and we did an intense circuit training session. The lads were shouting encouragement to each other and the energy was really high!
After the students had gone, I walked round to Scott's cycles to see about the Specialized. Pete explained that he had removed, regreased and replaced the bottom bracket and he said it was perfect. He also said that he had ridden my bike in quiet roads and he couldn't get a creak out of it! I eagerly jumped on the bike and...the creaking noise was still there.
I took it back and described the sound and how I'd noticed that when I stood up on the pedals, the sound went away. At this information, Pete suddenly brightened up. He explained that he had ridden my bike while standing up on the pedals - the seat was too low for him and he didn't want to adjust it!
It turned out to be a completely dry seat post. Pete greased the post and reset it. I rode the bike around and heard nothing more than the whirring of the chain. Bliss!
I tried to pay Pete for his time but he wouldn't have anything. I managed to force a tenner on him which he said he would put in his children's money box. What a nice chap.
Whatever I've written about Scott's Cycles before, I take it all back!
I cycled home on the Raleigh; the precious Specialized in the back of Lucy's car.
At home, it was Dungeons and Dragons night with the kids and Tilly. After I'd dropped them all home, I set up for a weight-training session. An hour later, just after 11pm, I'd finished. I'd managed to lift heavier than last week. I retired to the couch with three Weetabix because I was terribly hungry!
No junkfood, no alcohol.


Exercise:
Cycled to work and back
100 press ups
100 triceps dips
100 leg raises
Over Head Press (29kg): 5 sets of 5 repetitions
Side raises(6.5kg): 5x5
Barbell curls (33kg): 5x5
Squats (33kg): 5x5
Deadlift (54kg): 5x5
Shrugs (48kg): 5x5

Booze:
None

Food:
Cornflakes with semi-skimmed milk
Cup of redbush tea
Banana
Nectarine
2 chicken kiev with noodles and cucumber
3 weetabix with semi skimmed milk
Cup of Earl Grey tea


Friday
Cycled in to work and back.
A fighting based karate session tonight with lots of kumite techniques but also lots of standing around and listening to instructions. Didn't work up a sweat.
Home for beer and loads of unhealthy food!

Exercise
Cycled to work and back
Karate training

Booze
2 bottles of ale

Food
Cornflakes with semi-skimmed milk
Apple juice
Cup of red bush tea
2 cups of Earl Grey tea
1 chocolate biscuit
1 flapjack
2 digestives
2 x Bananas
Nectarine
Pasta with tuna, homegrown tomatoes and cucumber
Spicy pork belly with potatoes and salad with homegrown tomatoes
Ice cream


Saturday
Resting Heart Rate: 41
This morning I had to go to the funeral directors to arrange things and make the final choices. After that, I went to the bank to close Mom's bank account. I then joined Lucy at Mom's allotment where we met with some of her wonderful friends to organise the wake.
When I finally got home, I went for a run but it didn't make me feel any better.
In the evening, a fantastic mate from school and university came over for dinner. We ended up going to the pub and then sitting up way too late sipping single malt Scotch.

Exercise
Run: 30 minutes 0 seconds

Booze
4 bottles of ale
Several pints of ale (5 or 6?)
Several measures of Scotch whisky

Food
Bacon, eggs and homegrown tomatoes on wholemeal toast
Cup of tea
2 Snickers bars
Lucy's homemade chicken curry with mushrooms, green beans, poppadoms and white rice.
2 Scotch eggs


Sunday
Woke up with the hangover from Hell.

Hair of the dog...

Didn't do any exercise. Had some aspirin. Got out of bed at about midday. Drank some beers to try to feel better. Picked at some food.


Weekly Summary:
I exercised for 6 of the 7 days
I stayed sober for 1 day
I ate healthily for 4 days
Again, a small improvement. The week could have been a lot better if the weekend wasn't so boozy. I'll give my liver a break over the next few days!

How to Lose a Belly When You're 42 (part 4)

My mother has passed away. I found her at her home on Monday morning.
I don't think my blog is the correct forum to try describe what a wonderful woman she was or how her passing has affected me.
Let's just say I wasn't in the mood for training.

With the help of many fantastic family member and friends, I've got through this week.

I even took part in a karate lesson on Friday. Martial arts is a very welcome relief from whatever is going on in your life - you have to concentrate 100% on what you're doing or you could get get injured or others may be hurt. So an hour of sweaty concentration when I didn't think about Mom for an hour was just what I needed.

On Saturday, I ran 2.3 miles, but this just gave me too much time to think.
I did some weight training in the afternoon and after a good session I was aching, sore and somehow calmer.
Sunday, I rode through the country lanes with friends in the beautiful sunshine. Again, lots of time to think and reflect, but also a time to be reminded of  the good things that life still offers.
On Sunday afternoon, Martha took part in a very strong grading and we were all very proud of her - she now outranks me by two belts.

Next week I'll start training properly again - I need focus. I need routine.

How to Lose a Belly When You're 42 (part 3)

Monday 29th August
I met Nigel and Noel at 8:45. Noel turned out to be a tall, wiry 52 year old riding a sort of cyclocross bike. The bike was a Cannondale and had mechanical disc brakes and 35mm knobbly tyres! The less than ideal tyres didn't seem to slow him down in any way...

I took them out on my original Snitterfield 36mile  route with a cake stop at 23 miles. By the time we got to Wilmcote at 15.0mph we were all sweating and I even peeled off my Buff and base layer! After I sampled both types of cake on offer we set off for the remaining 15 miles of steady climbing back home.

Noel and his knobbly tyres

Nigel attacking 'The Farm'

So far, I'd ridden a fair bit of the ride at the front but now Noel was kind enough to head into the wind for us. Unfortunately, just trying to stay on his wheel up the inclines was a challenge and one, after the 28 mile mark, I couldn't do anymore. Nigel and I watched Noel ride of into the distance, probably unaware that he'd dropped the pair of us!
When he did realise what had happened, he let himself be caught and we finished the ride together, with Nigel coming back for a cup of tea in the backgarden at my place.

A little later, after attaching some bathroom cupboard doors and a bit of shopping, I jumped back on the bike to travel to the Coach and Horses on Weatheroak Hill. It was Deadly Dan's birthday and it was great to see him along with Russ, Fast Ant and Mat. The Coach and Horses have their own brewery and I sampled two of their products tonight: the Best Bitter and IPA. Both were topnotch with the Best Bitter being particularly good with a full flavour.
I cycled back (up the 15% Weatheroak Hill!) in time for a our dinner party with Lucy's parents and our next door neighbours.

Exercise:
Road bike: 38.6 miles at 14.6mph
Cycled to pub and back (about 15 miles in total)

Booze
1 pint of IPA
1 pint of bitter
1 bottle of ale

Food
2 x peanut butter on wholemeal toast
Cup of redbush tea
Slice of coffee cake and slice of lemon cake
Cup of tea
Banana
5 fish fingers with noodles and homegrown cucumber
Lucy's homemade lasagna
Lemon chicken thigh with potatoes
Lucy's homemade fruit crumble with chocolate ice cream
Lucy's homemade cheesecake
Cup of tea


Tuesday
Back at work!
I cycled in to college and was aware of a bit of a 'click' which I felt at the back of my left knee...
I starved myself for most of the day in an effort not to eat any junkfood. I had two pieces of fruit. I cycled home.
On the way to karate, the car broke down! We got a taxi home and then Martha, Mouse and I went for a fast walk/slow jog.
In the evening, I continued to eat healthily but couldn't resist a beer.
No junkfood

Exercise:
Walk for 14 minutes.
Run for 20 minutes
Cycled to work and back (9 miles total)

Booze
1 bottle of ale

Food
2 x Peanut butter on wholemeal toast
Cup of redbush tea
Banana
Apple
Banana
2 massive salmon fishcakes with wholewheat pasta, new potatoes, homegrown green beans and homegrown tomatoes.
Cup of tea


Wednesday
Today was the first day of my new commute. Once a week, for the next 9 months, I'll have to travel to Handsworth to teach English. I chose the Specialized for the ride today: the Raleigh is a beautiful bike but not very comfortable! The ride in was faster than I'd expected - not too much traffic at 7:30am. We were moving all the time. An old fart in a Range Rover tried to overtake me when we were going 20mph on the A34, failed, and then gradually moved over forcing me to the gutter. Eventually I had to brake and let him move in front of me. I honestly don't think he thought he'd done anything wrong.
I arrived at work, 12 hectic miles later, a sweaty mess.

The less said about my day at work the better...

It was a lot slower on the way home. Miles and miles of hot angry people sitting in queues of cars. And they do this five days a week. Madness.
Once I got back to Solihull and the traffic eased a little, I extended the ride by about three miles so I could cruise through the park and enjoy the weather. I did my good deed for the day and caught a dog running away from his mistress. She almost thanked me.
At home, Lucy created a wonderful dinner and I stretched out in front of the TV! I watched the highlights of the cycling with a wedge of homemade cheesecake and promptly fell asleep on the couch.
No alcohol.

Exercise
Cycled to work and back (28 miles)

Booze
None 

Food
2 x peanut butter on wholemeal toast
Orange and coconut juice drink
Cup of redbush tea
Coffee
Yogurt flapjack
Banana
Cup of Earl Grey
Huge slice of homemade cake
Two thick slices of gammon with rice, homegrown green beans, homegrown tomatoes and pickled beetroot.
Wedge of homemade cheesecake


Thursday
I was on the late enrolment shift at college so I had some time on my hands this morning. I did a light weight-training session for an hour which left me feeling energised and ready for the day. I made sure the left knee was heavily strapped and it seemed to be fine. After a shower I jumped on the Raleigh and rode to work via the post office.
At work I did my best to eat healthily but Lucy presented me with a Strawberry Rice pot: it contained 12% sugar so in future I'll be counting it as junkfood!
Cycled home with my lights on!
For dinner, Lucy had made a wonderful selection of salad, noodles, veggies and chicken. I washed it down with a couple of bottles of stout and we watched the British Bake Off followed by some cycling!

Exercise
100 press-ups
100 triceps-dips
100 leg raises

Deadlift (54kg): 5 sets of 5
Squats (31kg): 5 x 5
Bar Curls (31kg): 5 x 5
Shrugs (48kg): 5 x 5
Dumb bell curls (17kg): 5 x 5
Side raises (6.5kg): 5 x 5

Cycled to work and back (about 10 miles via post office)

Booze
2 bottles of Mud City stout

Food
2 x peanut butter on wholemeal toast
Cup of redbush tea
3 Weetabix with semi skimmed milk
2 bananas
2 handfuls of pistachio nuts
Strawberry Rice pot (will count as junkfood in future)
Cup of Earl Grey
3 spicy chicken thighs with noodles, salad, stir fry mushrooms, peppers and onions


Friday
I cycled in to work with three layers on. The cold mornings are starting! The knee was a little bit painful so I concentrated on a smooth pedalling action in an easy gear.
At work, I ate chocolate biccies because I am weak.
I cycled home and then Martha and I set off for some Friday night Karate training. It was a splendid session with kata, kumite and basics all mixed in ready for the grading. I even got to teach for a little while. The knee was fine.
At home: beers, burgers, Peaky Blinders and pudding!

Exercise
Cycled to work and back (9 miles)
One hour of martial arts training

Booze
2 bottles of ale

Food
2 x wholemeal toast with peanut butter
3 x Cup of Earl Grey
Orange and coconut juice drink
5 chocolate digestives
Tuna mayo salad white baguette
Pistachio nuts
2 burgers with salad, roasted new potatoes, homegrown tomatoes. and homegrown green beans
Homemade cheesecake with chocolate ice cream


Saturday
Up at 7:30 for a run. It was a two-layer morning. The left knee started acting up again as soon as I started running and it only got worse. Eventually, the pain moved from the back of the knee to the front and that's when I stopped. I managed to cover 2.3 miles before I quit.

After the run and breakfast, Lucy and I went in to work. There were no cakes or biscuits on offer so I behaved myself for 3 hours. After we finished at 1pm, we took the girls into Solihull for some back-to-school shopping. By now, I was very, very hungry! While shopping, there was a cycling emergency: Jonnie called to explain that he had a frayed gear cable and the bike wasn't shifting gears! As soon as I got home, I picked up my tool box and bike repair manuals and headed over.
Jonnie has a big home. I found him in a fantastic man-garage full of tools, his mountain bike, motoring posters and a classic Jensen! The Trek was up on the workbench.
It took us about an hour to figure out how to get a cable out and then another one back in to a Shimano 105 shifter as well as force a frayed, rusty cable out of the outer casing and then adjust the gears.
I still expect there to be some gear-based frustration on the ride on Sunday...
I shared a few bottles of ale with Jonnie and then headed home for lunch - a chunk of cake! I was so hungry!
The rest of the evening was spent sipping beer, eating a huge dinner and playing some classic albums: Yes followed by Pink Floyd.

Exercise: 
Run: 23 minutes 26 seconds

Booze:
1.5 bottles of ale
1 bottle of stout
1 large whisky

Food:
Glass of orange and coconut juice drink
3 Weetabix with semi skimmed milk
A small slice of homemade brownie
Homemade apricot cake
Cup of tea
2 plaice fillets with potatoes and tomatoes

Sunday
Rode out with Jonnie and Nigel. We did a 52 mile route through Ullenhall, Binton, Luddington, Wilmcote, Snitterfield and Hatton. Surprisingly, Jonnie's gears didn't need adjusting and they worked really well from the off! It was a fairly fast circuit and Jonnie managed a 15mph average. I don't undertand why my Strava showed a 14.7mph average when Jonnie and I started and finished together...
I'd strapped the left knee for the ride and I was glad it didn't cause me any problems today.
Back to Jonnie's for a lager and then home to drink tea with Nigel. This afternoon's karate lesson was a great one with lots of variation. We did some basics, a kata competition and plenty of kumite training.
Back at home, Mouse and I went for a fast walk/slow jog for 1.5 miles. she's getting fitter!

Exercise:
Bike: 52 miles at 14.8mph (bike computer)
One hour of karate training.
Slow jog for 1.5 miles

Booze:
1 small bottle of lager (330ml)
2 bottles of bitter

Food:
2 x peanut butter on wholemeal toast
3 x cups of tea
Homemade coffee cake
Banana
Brunch bar
Homemade shepherd's pie with Yorkshire pudding, homegrown green beans, peas, chips, parsnips and gravy.
2 x small choc ices
Carrot cake


Weekly Summary:
I exercised for 7 of the 7 days
I stayed sober for 1 day
I ate healthily for 2 days
Again, only a tiny improvement on the previous week as far as junkfood and booze is concerned, but at least I'm going in the right direction.
I lifted slightly heavier than last week. I ran slightly farther than last week.