What I said I'd do and what I did....
The very first blog post is copied below, with my updated info in between...
1000km in 365 days
1714 km in 365 days
Sounds simple, its only 3km a day.... Yup, only...
4.7km a day so over an extra 50% a day!
My rules:
Walking to the shops won't count, this is walks and runs that I consider training for something or doing something.
So over the course of the year you'll share my training runs (all weathers, I don't stop apart from the heat), my walks (often with the GUCH Walking Club) and events (and I will let you know which ones so you can come and join me).
I've stuck to the plan, trips to the shops haven't counted. The Walking Club have walked, not as much as we'd have liked but life for GUCHs can be complicated...
I've run a full marathon, done a overnight walking marathon, 2 half marathons & 2 10k's as well as all of the pounding of the pavements in training runs. I've been to the top of England and Wales, walked 13% of the TransPennine trail in a day...
I've walked around on the plinth in Trafalgar Square, around an outlet village and up to the Queen.
As crosstraining I'll be climbing (ropes, harnesses, scary rock faces) and doing some gym work which I'll let you know about as well.
I still hate the gym, but my climbing is improving step by step... I've climbed more than 1 6a, and have started to play with leading routes.
Joining me:
I don't mind if its for a metre, 100 metres or further, what's important is that people join in and realise that all GUCHs and youngsters with CoHD can do some form of exercise.
Thank you all who've joined me in person or in spirit, the CHD community is a small one and one where there is a lot of love and passion, we as a group need to build on those passions and remember that at the core we really do agree on a whole lot more than we disagree on.
First target:
My first event is the hour I've got on the 4th Plinth in Trafalgar Square as part of the Gormley installation - its 5-6am on a Sunday morning so I'm not expecting anyone to get up and cheer me as I try and see how far I can walk around a 4m by 2 m rectangle....
http://www.oneandother.co.uk/participants/PaulWillgoss
Yup, that's me... That seems like a lifetime ago...
About me:
This is also a motivator to me, my training tends to be episodic I'll train hard for an half marathon and then revert to my normal levels of walking and recreational jogging. Doing that will get me to about 800km in a year... To keep the effort up I need the drive that this challenge will give me.
Seems to have worked...
For those who've not met me I'm 6ft, and am described as having a chunky, or cuddly, body shape... Technically I think that's an endomorph - think overgrown dwark from Lord of the Rings and you're not far wrong.
As well as my Fallots I'm type II diabetic, so the exercise is vital for me to help manage that condition.
In fact its been the diabetes that has given me more angst than the heart, ho hum, control is being re-asserted!
Other bits - I have a dodgy ankle, which puffs up like a ballon if I aggreviate it... which can make running a little interesting!
Puff!
Word of warning:
I am a GUCH and I have a lot of GUCH friends and by the law of probabilities some will get ill and need surgery over the next year, this means as times I may go quiet and at times you may end up sharing some of the unfortunate news I get.
I've lost very good friends this last year, people whose sage counsel and love of life I will miss forever and a day. I've also read about heart kids that have died and share the grief of the community...
Other friends have had surgery, transplants, valves each time I've worried. Each time I've waited until the small hours of the night hoping for news that I knew wouldn't come until the morning.
These times of stress bring out the best and worst in people, and I'm not immune to that, just unfortunately more experienced than most...
So what next.... My training plan is that I run on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday and climb Monday and Wednesday. So I'll let you know what I get up tomorrow!
So what next... exercise ways I've a 10k on Sunday in London for CHF, and then training for the Great North Run starts in earnest.
This blog was only meant to be for a year, but I'm assured that more people read it than comment on it - so I'll keep it going, it won't be as regular or as exercise orientated, but I hope it'll give people an insight into the life of a GUCH, well this GUCH
So its thanks from me, especially to those who never wanted to be mentioned on this blog, my mojo supplier for when my mojo-meter has been low, the walkers and runners who've joined me, those who watched from afar with car engines running in case of problems.
TTFN
Paul
1000km in 365 days
1714 km in 365 days
Sounds simple, its only 3km a day.... Yup, only...
4.7km a day so over an extra 50% a day!
My rules:
Walking to the shops won't count, this is walks and runs that I consider training for something or doing something.
So over the course of the year you'll share my training runs (all weathers, I don't stop apart from the heat), my walks (often with the GUCH Walking Club) and events (and I will let you know which ones so you can come and join me).
I've stuck to the plan, trips to the shops haven't counted. The Walking Club have walked, not as much as we'd have liked but life for GUCHs can be complicated...
I've run a full marathon, done a overnight walking marathon, 2 half marathons & 2 10k's as well as all of the pounding of the pavements in training runs. I've been to the top of England and Wales, walked 13% of the TransPennine trail in a day...
I've walked around on the plinth in Trafalgar Square, around an outlet village and up to the Queen.
As crosstraining I'll be climbing (ropes, harnesses, scary rock faces) and doing some gym work which I'll let you know about as well.
I still hate the gym, but my climbing is improving step by step... I've climbed more than 1 6a, and have started to play with leading routes.
Joining me:
I don't mind if its for a metre, 100 metres or further, what's important is that people join in and realise that all GUCHs and youngsters with CoHD can do some form of exercise.
Thank you all who've joined me in person or in spirit, the CHD community is a small one and one where there is a lot of love and passion, we as a group need to build on those passions and remember that at the core we really do agree on a whole lot more than we disagree on.
First target:
My first event is the hour I've got on the 4th Plinth in Trafalgar Square as part of the Gormley installation - its 5-6am on a Sunday morning so I'm not expecting anyone to get up and cheer me as I try and see how far I can walk around a 4m by 2 m rectangle....
http://www.oneandother.co.uk/participants/PaulWillgoss
Yup, that's me... That seems like a lifetime ago...
About me:
This is also a motivator to me, my training tends to be episodic I'll train hard for an half marathon and then revert to my normal levels of walking and recreational jogging. Doing that will get me to about 800km in a year... To keep the effort up I need the drive that this challenge will give me.
Seems to have worked...
For those who've not met me I'm 6ft, and am described as having a chunky, or cuddly, body shape... Technically I think that's an endomorph - think overgrown dwark from Lord of the Rings and you're not far wrong.
As well as my Fallots I'm type II diabetic, so the exercise is vital for me to help manage that condition.
In fact its been the diabetes that has given me more angst than the heart, ho hum, control is being re-asserted!
Other bits - I have a dodgy ankle, which puffs up like a ballon if I aggreviate it... which can make running a little interesting!
Puff!
Word of warning:
I am a GUCH and I have a lot of GUCH friends and by the law of probabilities some will get ill and need surgery over the next year, this means as times I may go quiet and at times you may end up sharing some of the unfortunate news I get.
I've lost very good friends this last year, people whose sage counsel and love of life I will miss forever and a day. I've also read about heart kids that have died and share the grief of the community...
Other friends have had surgery, transplants, valves each time I've worried. Each time I've waited until the small hours of the night hoping for news that I knew wouldn't come until the morning.
These times of stress bring out the best and worst in people, and I'm not immune to that, just unfortunately more experienced than most...
So what next.... My training plan is that I run on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday and climb Monday and Wednesday. So I'll let you know what I get up tomorrow!
So what next... exercise ways I've a 10k on Sunday in London for CHF, and then training for the Great North Run starts in earnest.
This blog was only meant to be for a year, but I'm assured that more people read it than comment on it - so I'll keep it going, it won't be as regular or as exercise orientated, but I hope it'll give people an insight into the life of a GUCH, well this GUCH
So its thanks from me, especially to those who never wanted to be mentioned on this blog, my mojo supplier for when my mojo-meter has been low, the walkers and runners who've joined me, those who watched from afar with car engines running in case of problems.
TTFN
Paul
Comments
Post a Comment