Almost immediately after I started getting into this keeping healthy lark I ended up with a work related (badly) screwed back, which I used Nordic Walking to recover from… only to then get hit by a severe infection (leaving me asthmatic on top of the lung problems I already have) and the feral cat attack (through which I met John Devaney…. bloody cat).
Each set back just makes me want to come back harder, but each time I find it physically tougher, although that won’t stop me trying… Next step, KICKBOXING!!!!
I already go to a boxing class run by SMA, where the positive attitude of everyone really helps push me. I’ve never been good at fast, hard training (lungs again…), but if I am to fix that problem (and the dodgy wrist left over from the feral attack), then this class is really a kill or cure. It’s a tough class, no word of a lie!
I’m now going to go to the kickboxing class that SMA run. This should help me with stability, coordination and even more fitness/health issues… Kill or Cure, Kill or Cure!
I will be ready to take on that Arctic Survival for my 40th….
For the first time since I was released from hospital (FOR THIS) I went for a walk with Chris, her Mum and Alex. The last few walks I had been on I noticed about 21 Swans on the lake – by the looks of it 3 generations.
I had to keep my arm elevated still, but that didn’t stop me getting into the thick of the action with the birds. Yes, they aren’t the tamest and friendliest of creatures, but I’ve known them for a few generations now (likewise, they know me). I wouldn’t suggest you go up to swans in this way…
These swans were happy enough feeding around me – even the various geese breeds that showed up were in good spirits. The younger ones were a bit over zealous, but in a gentle way.
One young swan wanted my attention from behind where I was crouched down, and to do this it stretched around me and gently pecked my cheek – very gently…. I turned around and he just stood there expectantly for some bread. He came over as I put bread down and let me stoke his back and wings… then a few others came over for more of the same.
Even after I ran out of food, these birds were quite content to just hang out around where I sat…. so I got my iPhone out and recorded them. You can see how close they were – even the Canadian goose pecking around my feet…
As for the cat bite – I shaved my arm so I could keep check on what is happening. The tendons still ache and the swell is still very painful. The redness of the infection has reduced, but the reduction has slowed – If it doesn’t keep reducing, then I’m still likely to have my arm cut open and flushed.
So regulars will know I am looking into taking my Nordic Walking to the next level.
Nordic skiing on snow in the UK is a bit tricky, mainly due to the general lack of snow, but you can buy roller-ski’s that emulate the same characteristics of the various types of skiing.
Now, before I go off and buy a set I want to make sure I can get on with roller ski’s, so I contacted a UK based Nordic/Cross Country ski organisation: Rollerski, where I spoke to Iain Ballentine, who in turn pointed me to the London Region Nordic Ski Club and a chap called Paddy Fields (the Chairman).
It turns that Paddy Fields lives in the next toen to me, they practice weekly in my town, and they used to practice around the lake where I do my Nordic walking, so he knows exactly the terrain I’ll be skiing on.
Funny how these things work out.
I’ll be meeting up with him soon to give roller skiing a go, and then seeing where that leads (to more skiing I hope… or hospital!).
TWA2LB.CO.UK is back – and this time it’s all about the health and fitness baby!
Yup, for those who follow me for the action, health and fitness things I do (ha!) I will be splitting off certain blog entries and putting them on TWA2LB without all the other stuff I talk about.
It’ll ALL still be here, but TWA2LB will just focus certain aspects.
Is there a demand…. well, I wouldn’t do it if there wasn’t.
Okay, a while back Chris brought me a free fall parachute jump experience as a birthday present.
I didn’t ever want to bungee jump – I see no point.. sure it’s a rush, but you don’t do anything yourself… You jump, bungy stops you. With a free fall parachute jump you jump, you free fall, you pull the cord, you fly the chute. With bungee jumping you just jump… that thrills me as much as a roller coaster… too tame, too controlled. If you’re going to do something, do it properly.
It was one of those life affirming things… at 15 odd thousand feet you look down and it’s all down to you to step out of that doorway… and you do it… one of the most phenomenal experiences ever, and one I shall never forget.
I felt so alive – and yes, it was in controlled conditions, but things can (and did) go wrong.
Well, since I have been hit with this lung problem I am determined to not take the hit – I want to go and do something amazing. I want it to be something I could share later with Alex – I want it to be an experience and a lesson.
I’ve always been pretty good when situations get ropey. When people lose their heads in dire situations I tend to cement into a calmer person. Odd that – situations I would think I’d panic in and I actually become very focused.
So, I’m taking the step and will be booking on on a survival week. I’m looking at some course run by ex-SAS instructors. After all, the two Para’s who instructed my freefall learnt all they knew as a matter of life and death – and the same with the SAS guys. If anyone can put on a good course, it’ll be those that have had to survive in extreme conditions themselves.
These are good skills to learn, and something I can pass down to Alex.
I see 2 and 3 day courses available, but I want to go as long as I can in one go. No point in just messing about, so I’m going to go for a weeks survival – Instructor, a small tobacco tin box of essentials and me… something like that anyway.
Once I’ve done this course (hopefully mid 2010… maybe even do it as a fund raiser), there are other course available as you become more experienced. The one I am aiming for after the woodland survival week, is the Arctic Survival course. Yup… off to the Arctic to rough it…. build your own shelter, make fire, find food… no gas stoves or tents… proper survival.
It’s my way of kicking back at the set backs that my health has caused me… I get knocked down and I’ll fight back twice as hard.
I’m not one for holidays. Sure they are relaxing, but at the end of it, you’ve just been away, la de da… I’d rather go and do something – have an adventure… learn a skill and see things few other people have seen.
Who’s up for joining me? Next time it snows we’ll just point and laugh at the people who think it’s “really cold…..”
Not a great deal to blog about at the moment…well, lots of “bitsy” stuff.
Firstly, I shall take this blogatunity to wish Jon Kane a very happy birthday. A great chap who among other things has opened up a few more computing and net options to me – all giddyingly exciting stuff! (honest!). His blog can be found in my links to the left (his blog is called “Writersbloc”).
Why is there not much going on? Well it’s my back. Getting better in leaps and bounds (not actual leaps and bounds, as that would really hurt still!). The main problem is sitting and twisting. I have reduced upper mobility and am not able to drive – even if I could sit long enough! As it is, I can passenger in a car (with only slight pain) for about the same distance I can easily walk… so I walk (much better for me and Mother Earth!).
The Leki “Speed Pacer Vario” Nordic poles are getting a fair bit of mileage, and it’s getting me in shape. If ever I get a serious injury or illness, I do my best during and post recovery to make sure it doesn’t happen again. In the case of my back, as it gets better I shall do all I can to make it better than before because I don’t want to be in this situation again.
The side effects of the bad back have been benefical – although the same results would have been obtained without a bad back! The physio and Nordic Walking are giving me cardio and fat burning exercise which has resulted in me reducing my waist line by an easy 5 inches! Yup, that much!
Over 10kg lighter and getting trimmer to go along with that weight loss – at least that’s a good thing! It’s also less weight for my back to carry – hurrah! That’s what I mean about being better than before: I am strengthening my back, but also reducing load on it. I’m not going to have this injury happen again.
I’m glad the lake is so near though, as a good view really helps with making a long walk that bit more enjoyable.
It may have been a blog entry of bits and pieces, but it does come around on itself…. You see Jon introduced me to WordPress as a blog host, and also pointed me at Twitter. He also gave Will King some internettery ideas (www.shaveforum.com), of which I play a part (I admin and/or moderate a few web spaces in my spare time). I met Will through sharing feedback about his Azor – which in turn lead to me being introduced to Jon. The King of Shaves site and my new blog home, along with my need for a new phone, lead me to the iPhone (good for web admin and blogging on the go). The iPhone in turn has kept me relativly sane during my recovery as I can use it without having to sit at a computer (I am horizontal as I write this!).. General surfing lead me to Green Tea which has been very benefical, and it also lead me to Nordic Walking and more sanity saving freedom with the ability to go for a walk…and in turn getting my blog followers 10% discount at “The Tortoise and the Hare” sports store (see top left for details).
So it’s all interlinked in a gumbo of bits and bobs. All things that if they hadn’t of happened would have me not blogging, not walking, and going insane with lack of mobility and some form of mental and physical respite from my bad back!
It’s a strange wave we surf when the butterfly flaps its wings…
We went out for a family walk today. I was on my Nordic Poles and Chris had the push chair for Alex.
We took in Starve Hill airstrip (Hawley airstrip), the car bin and exercise house out the back end of Gibraltar barracks. It was a slow walk, but we covered 10km, and Alex walked a great deal of that.
As usual, puddles were top priority for Alex. Some puddles caught him off guard as they were deeper than he was expecting! Boots and waterproof trousers held up well for him though… Luckily!
As we passed the lake on the way back home, we saw the Army out on the water practicing with pontoon boats, or at least that’s what they looked like. Whatever they were, they sounded like they had powerful motors.
Lots of it. The lake was close to flooding in places.
Finally a break in the weather and a chance to get my LEKI poles out and get some freedom from my back. I’m still suffering from the sneeze the other day – so Nordic Walking is freeing it all up…again.
A new route took me past some army training grounds and rifle range. All very busy around the area with gun fire and explosions. I found an area of derelict houses and tied up old cars – very odd, but an interesting site.
Along the way I also found an old concrete bridge. Strange to find something like this in the middle of nowhere, but that’s what makes walks around MOD land interesting!
Carrying on I came across an interesting tree root (well, I thought it looked cool!), and a track that opened out onto a huge open area of marsh/ferns. Each walk opens up new areas to head off to – which really helps in keeping my sanity at the moment!
Back home Alex proves a point from a previous blog post! (Picky, but easy post) He loves his real looking toy cars!
It’ll be a Christmas for kids this year. Credit crunch and reduced sick pay (Grrrrr) means things are a bit tight. It also means I’m pretty upset – but I leave that for now, as I’m angry too.
Luckily Alex has very simple, but specific tastes. He loves his toy cars, and I mean loves them! He doesn’t care if he has two or three the same, as long as they are realistic. Yup, he’s picky too! He isn’t keen on toy cars that look like toys. Matchbox type cars are top billing for him – and as the supermarkets have own brand cars for low prices, I can’t grumble!
Today after Physio we did a little shopping – Sainsbury’s are doing toys 1/2 price at the moment, so we picked up a half price “Little Tykes” car mechanics set, with bench, tools and engine/car to work on – but don’t tell Alex, as it’s his Christmas present!
Alex was treated to a couple of car sets – under £3 the lot! They kept him occupied whilst Chris did the heavy work and loaded up the trolley with the work bench! Usually on a shopping trip Alex will get one toy car as a treat, and that keeps him happy for the duration – and these two box sets did their job perfectly…. maybe too perfectly, as he held them all the time, even in the car on the way home…where he fell asleep still holding them tightly!
As for my back, I can feel things getting better – or at least changing for the better – so many thanks to Judith. A trained finger pressed in “just the right place” can be a very, very painful thing – so always keep your phsyiotherapist on side! Annoyingly though I hit a set back the other day as I sat up to eat. Whilst upright I sneezed, which has left my lower back aching constantly again, but also tightened up my shoulders and neck. Where I’ve been holding myself a bit taut to avoid hurting my back, the sneeze jarred me a bit harder than the usual relaxed sneeze. A sneeze!!! Damn it!
If it wasn’t for a few things I’d be going mad! Chris and Alex keep me going (Alex is a real star as he keeps me smiling with his intensity as he plays!). The Nordic Walking gives me a bit of freedom, and physio from Judith keeps my recovery progressing (progressing is the thing here – if nothing was happening I’d be more than a bit worried). The iPhone just keeps me in touch with the World (cyber speaking, that is), with twitterings, textings, Facebook and blogging.
The Tortoise and the Hare running specialists (see link in top of left hand column) have come up with a great deal for followers of my blog!
Expert advice comes as standard from these people that have just celebrated ten years of being in business. But besides the free advice you can now print any blog page from my blog – Sometimespace – and present that to the staff, and you’ll get 10% discount.
Yes, just print off a page from my blog and present it to The Tortoise and the Hare staff to get your discount. Don’t say I don’t do good things for the readers of this blog!
Besides having a great range of quality sports products, the team will make sure that the gear you buy specifically suits your needs.
Running shoes and Nordic poles etc, aren’t just things that fit all people perfectly, and the expert help at Tortoise and the Hare will ensure you get the right gear for you. Many sports shops are only concerned with a shoe being roughly the right size – but Tortoise and the Hare make sure it suits the way you physically walk and the shape of your foot – and unlike many main stream “sports shops” they actually get you the correct size (half sizes too), rather than trying to sell you whatever they still have in stock.
Proper gear doesn’t cost the earth either. I found that the correct running shoes for me were a lot cheaper than the “fashion” trainers that the high street sports super stores sell.
So, expert advice, great quality products (from major named manufacturers), and now 10% off. Can’t grumble at that!
