How to Achieve a Black Belt in Your Forties (23 weeks to go)

Monday
One of my favourite days of the year: the annual Supported Learning trip to Drayton Manor! We take all of our students out of the classroom, let them eat and drink what they want, and let them loose in a theme park! The students relate to each other differently, they see a different side to us, and the emphasis is on fun! Of course, there are many benefits for a lot of our students - some of them don't get the opportunity to travel outside of Birmingham, some of them have rarely ever been on a day trip. It allows them to build new friendships and reinforce existing ones,. It also gives them a degree of responsibility as we trust them to behave appropriately and safely in a new environment.
Three of my own students handed their phones to me to keep for the whole of the trip. These are people I normally see bent over the little flickering screen every spare moment they get. On the bus on the way back, another student asked me if I was happy because everyone had got some fresh air and had been active! He knows me well!
Of course, in between roller coasters, dodgems and the Drunken Barrels, I also found time for chocolate, sweets and chips!
At home, I tried to undo some of the damage by cooking a healthy dinner and then lifting some weights.
Weight training, junkfood, no alcohol.

Tuesday
Eric's birthday!
I cycled in to work and back. Then the family went over to see Jane and Eric and, of course, to have a huge dinner and eat birthday cake! I even had a couple of beers. So much for my Karate training...
No exercise, junkfood, 2 beers

Wednesday
I cycled in to work and back. In the evening, I made a chicken and mushroom stir fry for the family and then, about 90 minutes later, did a fast and light weights session. I was rather worn out by the end of it so I went straight to bed.
Weight training, no junkfood, no alcohol

Thursday
I cycled in to work and back and then went for my weekly 10K run. It was a huge effort to get motivated today and I suffered for most of the run. I got round in 64m and 30s. My legs ached terribly for the rest of the evening.
10K run, no junkfood, no alcohol.

Friday
I got up at 6:10am to lift some weights!
I was aching from yesterday's run, but by the time I got to the end of the session I was feeling good and full of endorphins!
I had to lift early today because I'm going to the pub straight after work so couldn't fit in my hour of exercise anytime else. I cycled in to work and then Debbie was kind enough to drive my group and me down to the park to play football in the sunshine. After a couple of meetings in the afternoon, I cycled up to the pub to drink beers with Trev, Clive, Dodgy Debbie and Lucy. I found a fantastic local beer called North Star which is brewed by Silhill Brewery. It was on at £2.15 a pint! I dispatched four of those while talking nonsense with my good mates. I then cycled carefully home!
Weight training, no junkfood, 4 pints

Saturday
A slow start to the day. I got up when I was ready and then made bacon and eggs for Lucy and myself. We watched Gardener's World on TV.
Debbie and the Cakemaker arrived at 10:30 and they took Lucy off to look at some old house and gardens. I don't know where it was but it involved driving up and down motorways. Rather them than me...
It was a glorious day. Beautiful sunshine and hardly any wind. I got a lot of washing done and soon had it dry. I did some ironing, tidied the man cave, vacuumed the stairs and did the washing up. Phew.
One of the things I love about the Saturday Karate session is that everyone gets there early and we have a bit of kata seminar when the higher grades help the lower grades to develop their technique. I worked on the heian kata and then tekki shodan. Before the lesson started I was already dripping with sweat!
This afternoon's Karate session was run by Sensei Tony and Sensei Gary. We did nothing but kata for the whole hour (well, after a big stretch to start with.) I got hotter and hotter and more and more tired as the hour crept by. It was excellent grading practice! At the end, Sensei Gary had a look at my Basai Dai. I was hoping he would sign off some of my kata in my black belt syllabus. He was kind enough to sign off my heian kata along with basai dai. I went home feeling chuffed!
It feels strange that my black belt journey could come to an end this year (with a new journey starting at exactly the same moment!) It seems that I've been working towards this goal for almost half of my life. To have the first signatures in the syllabus makes it more real for me.

It's really happening!

Back at home, Lucy was watering the back garden with a hose. I was in the back garden without my shirt on. It suddenly occurred to me that she was getting closer to me with the hose and I was convinced she was going to spray me! So I legged it up the garden and leapt through the open sliding doors and into the dining room. Tilly was in the dining room at the time and heard the crack when I landed on my bad ankle. I went down like I'd been shot. The pain flared up through me and I was convinced it worse than before. My next thought was that my black belt journey was over for at least a year.
Lucy and I discussed a trip to the hospital. The fact that Tilly had heard the crack when I landed convinced us that it must be broken. However, it didn't swell up much -  nowhere near as much as last time.
After a few minutes, I was helped to my feet and I discovered that I could walk! Wow! What a lucky escape!
I still don't know what that crack noise was. I was convinced it was a broken bone.
I ended the evening by cooking a chicken and mushroom curry and then enjoying a few beers watching the end of the day's cricket.
Karate, no junkfood, 3 beers

Sunday
The ankle was sore and still a little swollen when I woke up. It hurt to walk downstairs.
However, when Crazy Ed called for me at 8:30, my bike and I were ready to head off into the lanes! We met up with Jonnie and Rog and then blasted off to Wilmcote. I'm not sure what happened or why, but we set off at a tremendous pace! We sped along and I managed, without trying, to collect three Strava PRs including the downhill section at Tom Hill!
Ed, returning from a serious back condition that first affected him in October, had no trouble keeping up. He's obviously fit and was quite happy to roll along and have a chat at a 15.4mph average speed to the cakestop. We arrived at Wilmcote earlier than anyone expected. We enjoyed lovely homemade cake and terrible tea in the sunshine. I stripped off to one layer (Jonnie and Rog had started in one layer - hard men!) before setting off again. We convinced Ed that he was fit enough to add some miles to our planned route so we went back via the Temple Purity route: through Temple Grafton and then past the Purity brewery.
We had more chats, didn't worry about the average, and everyone got back safely. What a splendid morning's cycling! And the ankle hardly hurt at all.

Back at Jonnie's, we had some proper tea (thanks Harry!) and watched the cricket for a little while. Sally got back from her successful ride with Dynamic Rides. What a fit lot we are!
I got home, had a Scotch egg, a banana and glass of milk, and then took the dogs out to the park. It was a lovely day so I strolled around in shorts and t shirt.
This evening's Karate session was awesome. Sensei Ronnie took us through a black belt mock grading. I got incredibly hot and sweaty in the first hour (kihon and kata) but then things thankfully slowed down when we got to kumite because I was partnered with children. The mock grading served two purposes: firstly, it showed me that I'm nowhere near ready to take the grading. Secondly, and crucially, it showed exactly where I need to improve. Essentially, my kihon is failing. Sensei Ronnie told me that I usually have "really good form" but as soon as I'm asked to move quickly, my technique suffers. I have to be fast and accurate!
After two hours of top-drawer Karate, I went home to man a barbecue in the backgarden, eat loads of food, drink some beers and listen to loads of 70s albums on vinyl! 
What a fantastic day.
Cycling, Karate, junkfood, 3 beers