Weight: 10st 5lbs
Blood Pressure: 136/70
Resting Heart Rate: 56
I still haven't lost the belly...
This week will see me get a little more serious in my training. I've worked hard over the last 6 weeks and haven't seen any improvements in my fitness measurements. It's time to change that.
Today, I cycled into work and back and then did a good weights session which lasted just under an hour. I followed this up with a bit of stretching and then a high-protein dinner made with free-range eggs from Jonnie's chickens!
Weight training, no junkfood, no alcohol.
Tuesday
Weight: 10st 4lbs
Blood Pressure: 146/70
Resting Heart Rate: 56
I cycled in to work and back on the ten-ton mountain bike. I'm sure that thing is getting heavier, or maybe it's the effect of the squats and deadlifts last night...?
Tonight's Karate session was another fighting one! I got sweaty, I got hit, and I got to hit some other blokes too! I'm still hopeless at fighting but I know that if Tuesdays become a regular kumite night, I'm bound to improve.
In the car on the way back, Martha expressed a desire to fight some more serious opposition. She's had enough of fighting people who are younger or a lower grade than she is. The obvious answer is to enter some competitions!
At home, I indulged in two small cans of beer after dinner before getting an early night.
Karate, no junkfood, 2 beers
Wednesday
Weight: 10st 4lbs
Blood Pressure: 134/63
Resting Heart: 55
This morning's measurements are the best fitness results I've had in 2019. It's about time the was a sign of progress! It's made me even more determined to continue with my training plan.
I cycled in to work and back on the heavy bike.
I did a full weights session (making sure to increase something as I always do - tonight I increased the number of repetitions of barbell curls) in under an hour and then made dinner for the family.
I had cereal later on because I was still hungry, and was in bed before 11.
Weight training, no junkfood, no alcohol
Thursday
Weight: 10st 5lbs
Blood Pressure: 131/70
Resting Heart Rate: 43 in bed, 49 after breakfast
The blood pressure and resting heart results are getting better. I just need to lose some flab now. And maybe get the systolic reading under 120.
I cycled to work. Lucy had prepared homemade frittata for lunch! I wolfed this down between meetings with parents, and then cycled home in an easy gear.
Tonight's run was just an ordeal to get through. A couple of times I felt myself starting slow down to a walk but I managed to keep going! I kept running for the whole 45 minutes and was very, very glad to get home. I really hate running.
Running, no junkfood, no alcohol.
Friday
Weight: 10st 5lbs
Blood Pressure: 152/66
Resting Heart Rate: 55
I tried to go for a ride before work this morning. It was a disaster! The sun was very low on the ride and shone directly into my eyes when I was heading south. It was bitterly cold and my fingers quickly went numb. Worst of all, there was ice on the road and I still only had one brake. I'd got as far as the Bull's Head in Earlswood when I was struggling to see on the lanes because of the sun and, at the same time, my back wheel span out on the ice. I gave up and headed carefully into work. I rode a pathetic total of 8 miles!
A lovely lady at work had brought hot samosas in for the staff so that was the end of healthy eating for the day!
After work, I made another attempt at a ride. This time, the only problem was that I was far too hot! It was a lovely sunny evening and I was cooking in four layers! I managed to ride just over 15 miles at 13.7 mph (which isn't too slow when you consider all the traffic and traffic lights on my route home.)
Tonight, Lucy and I celebrated Valentine's Day by heading out for dinner in a country pub.
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| I may not be losing any weight this weekend... |
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| Yes, I have. |
Cycling, junkfood, 6 beers!
Saturday
The pain in my belly woke me up at about 3:30. I got up at around 4am. My stomach was in turmoil after all the rich food and alcohol. I ate lots of Rennie, lay on the couch and watched cycling on the TV until the sun came up.
I set the bike up on the stand and tried to fix the back brake. It looks like I've managed to damage the inside of the outer cable that runs from the lever. Today, the inner cable wouldn't travel through it. To replace it means that I'd have to strip off the handlebar tape and put new stuff on. And there's still no guarantee that I'd get the brake working in time for tomorrow. I decided to leave it until half term next week.
I moped around in my man cave and then walked the dogs. It was a lovely sunny day.
This afternoon's Karate session saw me try to take charge of the young ADHD student. Today, he was Spiderman and therefore didn't have to train because he was stronger than all of us. I got him to engage every now and then. Later, I got to work with some orange belts and we worked on Heian Nidan. The Saturday session is like an instructor's course for me now. It provides some invaluable experience in case I am ever fortunate enough to end up teaching a class myself!
I had three beers in the evening along with two huge helpings of Lucy's homemade curry!
Karate, no junkfood, 3 beers
Sunday
Weight: 10st 4lbs
Blood Pressure: 155/80
Resting Heart Rate: 59
Another cycling morning with Jonnie. Today's target was 44 miles at 13.6mph.
It was a lovely sunny morning and, most importantly, it was dry with the wind heading in the right direction! We put our shades on and headed off towards Ullenhall. With no back brake, I was taking it easy on the downhill sections. It got warmer as we went along and Jonnie soon stopped to take off his jacket. We worked hard along the Full Purity route. Not much chat today, we were aiming for our target - this was serious Mad March Hare training!
There was an organised ride in the lanes today: the Starley Sportive is totally new to me. I only found out about it when I got on Google at home. It seems a very worthy cause but in February it would put a lot of people off (including me!) I'm glad they had a nice day for it. Unfortunately, these rides seem to annoy a lot of the drivers in the lanes. We had two road rage incidents on the route today - both of which involved Land Rover drivers. At first, I'm furious and would like nothing better than to get my hands on them and pull them out of their ridiculous cars. However, when my blood cools, I actually feel sorry for them. They obviously have a lot more money than I do, but it doesn't seem to have made them happy. Imagine being so insecure and miserable that, on a sunny Sunday afternoon, being held up by some cyclists raising money for charity can send you into a rage. I actually pity them.
We arrived at the cakestop after 23 miles with an average of 13.7mph. After some fantastic cake we headed north for the remaining 21 miles. The big difference was that we had the wind behind us!
This made things a lot easier and we set a good pace, rolling along and chatting out of Snitterfield. When we got to the steep descent out of High Cross, Jonnie streaked ahead and launched himself up the climb from Lowsonford. I gave chase and, in doing so, set a new PR on Strava! I've ridden this section 39 times before (since I've been using Strava) so it shows how much effort I was putting in today to set a PR! I didn't manage to catch him, however...
Towards the end of the ride, Jonnie remarked on how strong he was feeling. When we got back to base after 44 miles, I discovered I'd achieved a total of 16 trophies on Strava and the bike computer gave my average speed as 13.9 mph. All this positivity is very encouraging as we get closer to the Mad March Hare.
I spent the rest of the day recovering, doing some housework, playing records and, of course, drinking beers and eating pudding! I love Sundays.
Cycling, junkfood, beers
The weight is still the same, the blood pressure is still worrying me, but I do feel stronger on the bike. I'm feeling motivated to stick to my training and I'm looking forward to the Mad March Hare instead of dreading it!
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