How to Lose a Belly When You're 43 (part 5)

Monday
Half term holiday!
In the morning, I took some parcels to the Post Office and then bought a new latch for the bedroom door from B&Q. When I got home, I discovered that I'd bought the wrong size so I took it back. B&Q were very good and gave me my money back straight away even though I'd opened the package. The woman doing the refund was, however, very miserable and hardly spoke to or looked at me.
I bought the correct size and then went home and fitted the new latch (while feeling very manly with my tools out.)
Next, I did some weight training. I used very light weights again, only slightly heavier than last week.
After this, the dogs and I enjoyed a very pleasant walk in Hillfield park. Freddie chased squirrels and I chased Pokemon.
Eric and the Cakemaker visited for dinner and we indulged in apple pie and ice cream: my favourite ever dessert!
Tonight, was Martha's first ever shift in paid employment! She is the latest member of bar staff at Solihull Arden Club. I propped up the bar with Nigel for half an hour but didn't get to see her pour a drink. Nigel was there later and he witnessed her serve her first ale! I picked her up at 11:15 and she seemed very happy.
Bed at midnight with a Lemsip because I have the beginnings of a cold.
No alcohol

Tuesday
Blood Pressure: 120/73
We got up late (almost 9am!)
After a healthy breakfast, I walked the dogs around the park. Back home, after giving Freddie a shower, I checked my blood pressure and was pleased to find that it was lower than it has been for a long time, possibly since I started monitoring it. However, the NHS website says it is still too high.
I then popped in to college for three hours to get my lessons ready for next week.
In the evening, I went along to the Cocks Moor Woods Dojo for an hour of training with Sensei Ronnie Christopher. Tonight, as well as telling me where I was going wrong, he also complimented me on my stance during Basai Dai. A positive comment like that from a former World Champion goes a long way. I went home with a smile on my face.
A healthy dinner and then bed before midnight.

Wednesday
We had to get up at 6am to get ready for the delivery of the new bed. By 7:20 I had dismantled the old bed, photographed it ready for eBay, and then put the mattress in the car ready for the tip!
In the afternoon, the girls had a Halloween Party with their friends. The junkfood was too much for me to resist!
Fuelled by sugar, I did a quick, light weights session (6 exercises, 5 sets of 5 reps on each, with 300 reps of bodyweight exercises) in just 34 minutes which left me feeling good. At that speed and at light weights it feels more like a cardio workout than resistance training.
In the evening, we watched the last episode of series 3 of Luther (highly recommended although rather implausible!) before going up to our new bed at 10pm. The bed makes our bedroom feel like a luxury hotel. I just hope we don't fall out of it - it's so high off the floor!

Thursday
Resting heart rate: 42
It was great to wake up without back ache or bed springs digging into me!
While lying in bed, I measured my resting heart rate using my usual phone app. During the measurement, I had one of the heart fluttering sensations I've been experiencing recently. I wasn't quick enough to screen-shot it, but the waveform looked like this on my phone:

The 'flutter' is the shorter wave in the middle.

It's all very worrying really, but then worrying never solved anything. I'll have to carry on as I am and wait for cardiologist to have a look at me.
About two hours after breakfast, I set off on my weekly 10K run. I immediately suffered stitch in my left side, which then moved up into my chest, and then across into my right side. I had aches and pains nearly all the way round. It wasn't until I got to the five mile mark that I realised I was warm and comfortable and bouncing along nicely. I got home in a slow 65 minutes, 46 seconds.
Lucy had been shopping and had brought back cake. I tried to be good and ate a banana instead but it wasn't long before I was eating walnut cake and drinking tea!
Nigel popped in for a visit (which meant we polished off the rest of the cake) and then Harry came round so we could work on our bikes together.
After the tool box had been put away, I did some more selling on eBay and then had some dinner. I had another heart 'flutter' after dinner while watching a film on TV.
Bed early to read with a Lemsip.
No alcohol

Friday
Weight: 10st 2lbs
Resting Heart Rate: 39
I'm aware of the weight starting to creep back up...It's obviously because of the sweet things I'm distracting myself with.
This morning, Lucy suggested I go for a bike ride because it was a glorious day. I headed off into the lanes after breakfast and found myself staring into the sun for the first hour of the ride! There wasn't a cloud in the sky and the sun was low and bright. It made some cornering and descending a little sketchy but it was still a beautiful experience.

Set the controls for the heart of the sun.

I arrived in Wilmcote and had a chat with Eric and Jane along with Laura and Carl who were visiting from London. After homemade cake and tea I headed back.
I covered 31 miles in a steady 14.1mph.
This afternoon, Lucy, Carl, Martha, Mouse, Lily, Mabel and I went to Tudor Grange Leisure Centre to play some indoor tennis! I hadn't played tennis since Aberdovey a couple of summers ago. And before that, the last time I'd played had been at school. I still enjoyed myself thoroughly and was happy to learn from Carl and Lucy who are very talented players.
Lily and Mabel decided to have a rest after a little while but the rest of us carried on, got sweaty and had a lot of fun.
After two and half hours, we headed home.
I was so hungry, I had stomach ache! A bowl of cereal and another slice of cake was needed.
Two hours later and we headed off to a local curry house with Jonnie and Sally. I watched the rest of them get slowly drunk on cava, white wine, red wine and some of my favourite ales. I wasn't desperate to join in but I was questioning WHY I was doing Sober for October. So then I'd think about the money I've raised so far and I'd take another sip of water.

Temptation!

After the dinner, I drove the five of them back to Jonnie and Sally's place and I carried on home to watch the first episode of season 2 of Stranger Things with Mouse, Tilly and her current boyfriend Jack.
The episode was great - fun, nostalgic, mysterious, moving and creepy. All in 45 minutes. Genius.
Then I got the call to play taxi again and I went to fetch the revellers and drop them home (about 34 miles of driving in total.) I got home at just after midnight and collapsed into bed with some Preacher comics.
No alcohol.

Saturday
Up early to drive Mouse, Harry and their mate Jake to Cannock Chase for a camping weekend with school. I got back, had a bit of lunch, and then headed off to dojo. Today's lesson was run by my friend Tony. He did a great job of warming the class up and then running them through their basics.
He put me in charge of teaching Heian Godan to a pair of purple belts. I enjoyed myself thoroughly. Teaching certainly helps me to think about my own kata as I try to show others how to do it properly. A good experience.
In the evening, I indulged in some homemade brownie baked by Martha. I watched two episodes of Luther with Lucy and went to bed at 10 to read Preacher.
No alcohol.

Sunday
Up at 7:20 to go cycling. It was miserable and windy outside, but a lot lighter because of the clocks going back an hour. Jonnie and I set off at 9am. Nigel wasn't riding because he was going to watch the local football derby on the big screen at the Arden Club.
The lanes were busy with traffic. I'm not sure where everyone was driving to on a Sunday morning. Also of note: we didn't see a single peleton today, compared to the five or six we counted last Sunday. We chose to test ourselves on the full Purity Route. Going out was easy - with the wind behind us, we clocked up a 15.2 mph average by the time we reached 18.5 miles, turned north into the wind and were faced with the Binton climb. The climb destroyed our average and we arrived at the cake stop with a speed of 14.6 mph.

My audience while I was having a wee in Binton. Sorry ladies.

After refuelling (I had double cake helpings) and a rest, we headed north into the wind. The air was cold and the legs were tired. Jonnie did a lot of work on the front, I did my bit when I could, but we were both drained by the time we got back. The average had dissolved to 14.1 mph. To be honest, we were pleased that we'd kept it above 14!
It does make me wonder what I have to do to improve my performance on the bike. More miles? More rest? More protein? I don't think I've seen any improvement in my own fitness/speed/strength in the last four years! Maybe I came to the sport too late?
Anyway. We enjoyed a cup of tea with Sally, Cali and her daughter Lyndsey and then I headed home for some soup. I checked my heart rate an hour after I finished the ride: it was 75bpm which is rather elevated (my usual daytime HR is about 55bpm.) I drove to Cannock Chase and back to pick up Mouse, Harry and Jake. When I arrived home, I checked my HR again. This time it was a much more usual 44bpm.
The family sat down to homemade shepherd's pie and I couldn't resist some homemade brownie when everyone was in bed!
No alcohol.