I cycled to work and back and then did some weight lifting. My back was a little tender but nothing to worry about.
Weight training, no junkfood, no alcohol.
Tuesday
I cycled to work and back.
The first half of tonight's Karate session was all about speed. We were blasted through basics up and down the hall and we were expected to be lightning fast. In the second half, we did some more work on Kanku Dai. I had to slow it down because I just didn't have the energy to keep up with Sensei Kai and the brown belt kids. (Cool name for a band: Sensei Kai and Brown Belt Kids. A laid back jazz band?)
I had a bit of a sort throat when I got home so I had a Lemsip in bed.
Karate, no junkfood, no alcohol
Wednesday
I woke up with a sore throat. I cycled in to work. At work, my sore throat got worse to the point where I started to worry about losing my voice.
In the morning, I took the sports group out for a 2 mile run. Although some of the lads are not as fit as they should be, they all put in a decent effort and all but two of them completed the course.
My back was stinging at times, particularly when I was running uphill.
After lessons, I went along to Mr Roger's interval training session. Tonight we had to complete ten different exercises including work with medicine balls, kettlebells and dumbbells. We had to spend 60 seconds on each exercise and we went round 3 times. With only 15 seconds rest between each set, it was an intense, sweaty experience.
I was exhausted! At the end of the second circuit I could hardly believe that Mr Roger was telling us to go round again!
I made sure I had a lifting belt on as tight as it would go in order to protect my back.
I led the group through a warm down and then cycled slowly home!
Another Lemsip let me sleep but I woke up several times because my throat was so sore.
2 mile run, interval training, no junkfood, no alcohol.
Thursday
I'm sick. Sore throat, headache and runny nose.
I cycled into work and back but couldn't face the 10K run in the evening. I ate healthy stuff and sipped Lemsip in bed.
No exercise, no junkfood, no alcohol
Friday
I felt even worse after a terrible night's sleep when I kept waking up between vivid dreams. My throat was raw and it was hard to swallow.
I wasn't up to cycling so I drove to work.
Today, Jonnie, Russ, James, Roger and I signed up for the Mad March Hare sportive for next year.
This evening, I took Martha to the dojo but I felt too ill to train. I was a spectator. I couldn't help offering little bits of advice here and there to those in earshot. Sensei kindly involved me towards the end of the session when he asked my opinion of the class's kata performances.
In the evening, after a healthy dinner, I started to feel a little better. I hope I can ride on Sunday.
I was up until midnight after picking up Lucy and Dodgy from a dinner party.
No exercise, no junkfood, no alcohol
Saturday
I woke up feeling a lot better. Jonnie came round to watch England's convincing victory over Australia in the World Cup Rugby. Lucy made a wonderful breakfast for us including my favourite tomato sausages! After Jonnie had left to tend his garden, I cleaned the man cave and took the dogs for a walk before heading off to the dojo.
Today, Sensei Gary had us working hard on our kihon with some kumite mixed in. We finished off with a chudan punches only kumite competition. My team lost!
Back at home, I did some ironing before enjoying Lucy's fantastic homemade curry and tonight's episode of Strictly!
Karate, no junkfood, no alcohol.
Sunday
Weight: 10st 5lbs
Up early for cycling. I was pleased that I'd managed to sleep through the whole night uninterrupted. I still had a sore throat and a runny nose, however.
James called for me and then we cycled up and called for Jonnie.
We decided to ride Jonnie's Route which is something he cobbled together after being on an organised ride with Sally in the summer. It's a nice route apart from 1.2 miles on a very busy A road.
We set off at a chatty pace which was okay for a while but Jonnie was on a charge! He spent the first half of the ride off the front leaving myself and James to work hard behind. My sore throat was becoming a sore chest and to make matters worse I had left my drinks bottle containing water, fruit juice and aspirin at home!
We cycled along some lovely lanes and watched the grey sky become blue. We really do live in a beautiful part of the world. Even in October.
Suddenly, as my thoughts were turning to hot tea and cake, Jonnie suggested we ride up the Average Destroyer - the steep hill in Haselor! When we got there, Jonnie and I struggled up the climb and watched James disappear over the top.
We cruised through Temple Grafton, over the A road and then bombed it up the Billesley Wall climb to claim our cake. We arrived after 23 miles at 14.3mph.
We were very pleased to find two cakes waiting for us - carrot cake and coffee cake. My favourites!
 |
| Would you like carrot cake or coffee cake? Yes. |
On the way back home, we were riding into a headwind and heading uphill. Hard work. Jonnie wasn't as sprightly as he was earlier in the day but James was feeling good. He did most of the work on the front to get us home which I'm very grateful for.
Surprisingly, even though Jonnie seemed to be having a hard time, he suggested that we make the route even harder by riding up The Farm on the way home! We obliged and wobbled our way up the steep climb into Tanworth in Arden.
As well as having some loose spokes on his back wheel, Jonnie was also struggling with his front derailleur. It was resisting going up onto the big ring and required some coaxing. Each time, it took him several seconds to get it to jump on. Seems that the Trek is in need of some TLC.
On the descent to Tom Hill I noticed that I was having to brake to stay behind James. The reason for this is that we both weigh the same - we are both 65kg. The difference is that I'm 5 foot 6 whereas James is over 6ft tall! I offer a much smaller profile into the wind so have to touch the brakes to stay behind him when descending. Obviously, he left me for dead going up Tom Hill!
We got back to Jonnie's and we all decided to drink water. Very healthy - training like athletes. We watched some actual athletes play rugby for a while and then called it a day.
Back at home: lunch, hang the washing out, walk the dogs, do some ironing, bring the washing in.
When Lucy returned from Nottingham, she reminded me that I didn't have to teach in the morning. So I had a beer! Cheers!
38 miles of cycling at 14.1mph, junkfood, alcohol
No comments:
Post a Comment