Indian Adventures

I have just returned from a vacation in India, Kerala to be precise. It is a tropical paradise but it is also India so there are many people, lots of color and lots of chaos, especially on the roads where everybody uses every inch of road, and adjoining surfaces, to pass everybody else. As a result, running has some added spice. Fortunately I was able to avoid this human version of the Pamplona run as I injured myself early in the trip. Indeed I am only now advancing from a hobble to a walk - a relief, both for now and because the injury meant I did not have to suffer the angst of deciding whether or not to exercise while on holiday.
within the next couple of days though, I should be well enough to start to need excuses for not exercising.

advise on how to run

...yourself into the ground.

This is exactly what it was like except
 imagine her awake and running

The weekend was bright and sunny, there was no snow and the parks and streets were full of people. In my current mode of regular exercise I knew I must be a part of the "happening"- I decided to take a bike ride but, though sunny, it was also 10F (aka  -12C), not including the wind! Had I found my balaclava I would've braved it and pedaled off in search of polar bears. Instead the thought of riding without hat and face covering was too much. I'm not a native New Englander so there is nothing hardy about me. However, I remained intrepid and so donned my running shoes and made ready for my first outdoor run in about a year. As I was about to leave, the house husky intervened and demanded to join in. She had already had a long walk earlier but it seemed churlish to deny a winter runner a rare chance. So, leashed up we set off. I thought my problem would be stopping her from sniffing but I had forgotten, she is a husky, once she got going there was no stopping. Everytime I slowed down she pulled. 3.5 miles and near death I arrived home (now I realize 3.5 miles is no big distance but remember, the most running I have done in the last few years is 2.5 miles on the treadmill at a max of 5mph. The route we took, averaged just under 6mph, involved trail, hills, soft turf and everything else, - a lot of fun if one is ready for the challenge but increasingly onerous to the unfit jogger.
I think the biggest problem was that, unlike biking, where there are frequent coasting moments, running  is 100% slog BUT, if you want to run and to be pushed (or perhaps I mean pulled), there is no better running partner than a husky. Otherwise, I advise Basset hounds for a more sedate pace more consistent with rare running ventures.

after the long silence

I am back and exercising but, I admit it - i fell off the wagon, so much so that I couldn't even be bothered to make a new year's resolution to exercise or self improve in any manner whatsoever. It wasn't that I had any really good reason, simply that I had a complete loss of motivation, at all levels. It wasn't depression, more of an ennui with perhaps a soupçon of despair at ever developing a lifestyle change that really was. One couldn't help but consider how many years (and they are many) of struggle and travail have gone into exercising without truly embracing daily exercise and healthy eating as a part of who I am.  This despite the fact that there really are times I enjoy exercise and feel on top of the world during and after BUT, it is not a core element that defines me. Maybe I must accept that.
Perhaps it is the struggle itself that is of most value and the physical elements actually pale by comparison with the spiritual aspects of the "journey". I don't know. The point though is that I simply stopped doing anything active for a few weeks, perhaps I needed a real break. Now I am back on the treadmill - literally, not metaphorically. I am not sure that my motivation has really come back but for some reason I have picked myself up and started to work out again. Yesterday a fair weights session, today a decent jog indoors and I'm pretty sure there will be more tomorrow and beyond.

Perhaps, this return reflects that the lifestyle has become more innate within me after all, hmmm, with that hopeful thought I wish all good struggles.

p.s. I know there are a load of cliches - they are on purpose - honest, consider it part of my dissipating ennui if you must, I just thought they were apropos for this post.

self motivation

My trainer has had to cancel. As a result no session this week - woohoo - a holiday. But, I should do it, or am I free, after all, this doesn't happen often, shouldn't I enjoy the break. Of course it is not work and it is for my own good, so, with  good attitude I should view this as an opportunity to enjoy the exercise process myself, hmmmmm - what is the right thing to do.........

When a good deed is an excuse

I have to work hard this week and I have some sort of debilitating illness - it is either a virus infection or cancer, I'm not sure which. Anyways I also feel a bit sorry for myself because everybody else left work early and is off till Monday (well everybody except for the many of us who are not that is). So, I got home and took advantage of the exercise that really isn't one - unless the alternative is clicking the remote control- I walked the dog - in fairness to me, it was dark, cold, wet and windy and I walked as far uphill as i could in my city neighbourhood. I know I must be ill though because after about 30 minutes of this i was totally played out. To my amazement mapmyride includes dog walking in it's exercise repertoire - side by side with ultramarathoning, double ironmans, tour de France stages and other kindred workouts - cool. With that, I registered my session and sat down to watch the tellie full of self satisfaction, albeit the nagging thought of being terminally ill hasn't completely gone away even if the symptoms are gradually improving.

no holiday this holiday week

My trainer is going to enjoy thanksgiving so we arranged for my session to move from my usual thursday to today (tuesday). This is good because it means I don't have it ahead of me but of course, i did have my session tonight. I think my trainer is great but I never look forward to the session. At least I now recognize a common pattern, I'm tired and dreading the foray into hard exercise but as quickly wake and always feel better - even when my muscles feel sore. I wish I could afford more than one day a week, then I could buy my way into fitness but I as I noted previously, I know that I am fortunate even to have this. I am working long hours on both wednesday and friday so will need to ensure I replace my thursday training session with a self induced workout. Right now though, my work is done for the night and honestly, I am tired again and so will worry about that on thursday. For those of you living in the United States, may your Thanksgiving be much to be thankful for and for those of you who don't, christmas turkey is not too far away (again assuming you have a christmas celebration - if not, turkeys are plentiful and every non-vegetarian should have to endure them, instead of tasty meat, at least once a year. So, go out and buy one).

It's thanksgiving so it must be summer

Hard to believe that I'm wearing shorts and T shirt today, especially after the snow a couple of weeks ago. Could it be more perfect, I woke at 7am walked the dog and was ready for action. No wind, quiet roads, perfect weather and the virtue of having worked all day saturday - surely a bike ride was in order. Well it would've been but for one problem, my gutters were direly in need of cleaning out and, the weather was also perfect for that. My last foray in the spring was during a quite cold day and putting my fingers into icy sludge for hours was not to be repeated. So I thought to myself, this'll take an hour and then I'm off for a ride. It did take me an hour - to get my 24 foot ladder up the side of the house that is. After having fallen back onto me once and generally fought against it's destiny every step of the way I won, it only took another 3 hours to do the work - I still can't figure out how - I worked hard and diligently - I know because all my bones. joints and muscles ache. My fingers smell swampy form the decayed leaves I had to clear out. And, after all that I was starving so lunch intervened, then daily tasks and now, alas, the sun is setting (4:05pm) I guess it isn't summer after all. Well though I am sore, the question of whether or not my labors count as exercise is perplexing me - and the reason - I have sworn to myself to do at least 30 minutes everyday, so I need to ascertain if I can honestly claim my time or not. right now I am trying to convince myself that 30 minutes of light aerobics would resolve the issue without really causing more pain, hmmmmm.....