I don't like New Year, I normally hate it - and tend to spend the evening with friends of similar views having a few too many and eating too much (so not that different from the traditional!)...
Last year was the exception, and I imagine that around the country there are plenty who are almost exploding with not being able to tell anyone that they're going to the Palace...
What I do is look forward and plan my exercising year in some detail... Partly cos I have to, and partly because I am driven by targets (and as a good friend would say by the pat on the head I get occasionally for doing things)...
So...
Jan - Begin to learn how to lead climb, pick up the running again, do section 4 of the Leeds to Liverpool Canal
Feb - Southport Mad Dog 10k, GUCH PA Awareness Walk in Leeds, Section 3 of the L2L
Mar - Liverpool Half Marathon, start the resistance training for the big walk - inc a weighted (that's a full backpack inc tent, clothing and food and water) Section 4 L2L, start doing long walks (20mile plus)
April - carry on with the big walks, find some big hills, revise my night navigation and do a proper gear check... The L2L continues through the year, I'm leading the gang from work the whole 127 miles...
May - start the taper, before the Fellsman - 62 miles over the Yorkshire Dales http://www.fellsman.org.uk/doku.php?id=event:route
End May - June - The big one - The Coast 2 Coast - Wainwright's Classic - 190 miles, and the main awareness raising event of the year - http://walkingforheartkids.blogspot.com/2010/11/not-so-much-blog-post-as-call-to-arms.html
July - Normally a quiet month... I don't tolerate heat well... Unfortunately, its when my Marathon training should start.... Yup another one, I must be mad!
August - More training...
September - Great North Run - one of my favourite runs, 50,000 people going out and having fun:-)
October - The Liverpool Marathon - its new incarnation, don't know the route yet...
November - I'm 40... I will find something suitable to celebrate...
December - Santa Dash... It's only 5km, but its a lot of fun...
On top of this there'll be 3 outings for the GUCH Walking Club (www.guchwalkingclub.org.uk), the full time job and anything else that crops up... Good job I like being busy!
Time to hit the sales for my favourite running shoes I think:-)
TTFN
Paul
Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Friday, 10 December 2010
Congenital Heart Disease leads to Paranoia!
A apple a day keeps the doctor away, but means you spend a day at the dental hospital...
Its been a crap week...
No, that's not fair... The course was useful, Change Management has lots of facets and being reminded of them is useful, newer techniques can be assimilated into projects and insights can be woven in the matrix that is my slightly odd way of looking at life:-)
However, a heavy cold meant I didn't spend too long chatting with the others and when that mutated into a migraine... so I headed home early, grabbing a couple of apples as I went for the train. So far so good...
However, just outside Stafford I bit into the apple and screamed as part of my 1st lower molar right side disintegrated... Getting an NHS dentist in Liverpool for the last 5 or 6 years has been almost impossible, and private dentists normally listened as far as "congenital heart defect" and said thanks but no thanks... Being awkward is not always a good thing.
So to the dental hospital I went, unfortunately on the afternoon the Liverpool students were protesting... Oh well, what's 17h of pain between and my mouth??
Absolute agony...
But, the next morning was bright... and the SHO (a dentist whose trained but not specialised) was a bright spark who having looked at my medical history went and found a consultant, who suggested another consultant... Meanwhile I was X-rayed and yup, there was a bloody great big hole in my tooth... and the beginnings of an abscess.
My paranoia about endocarditis isn't too bad, but the thought of leaving a infection source in my mouth while trying to find a dentist who'd touch me and undergoing a series of treatments didn't sound a good idea... So out the tooth was coming...
At this point I was passed on to the real newbe students, and they found the smallest dental student the worlds has ever seen - who looked at me, looked at her pliers and looked at the consultant who'd popped in for askance... He smiled and said "Just give it some wellie"...
A few figure of 8's later, a bit of a grunt - from her, not me, and it popped out...
The cheery chap of a consultant gave me his name, and with a mock glower told me to find a dentist and if I got any crap from anyone to let him know as he'd trained most of the dentists in the area...
Which came in useful, as I now have a dentist... who has taken me on as a "special needs" case, on the NHS.
Its good to be back in the system, and I'm sure it will hurt in the short term but be good for me in the long term...
Though that paranoia still lurks a little, and every cold I get for the next couple of weeks I will be just a little worried. Endocarditis isn't nice, I've seen too many friends get it and require long stays in hospital or valve replacements...
So apologies for the paranoia, I'll try to keep it under control
TTFN
Paul
Its been a crap week...
No, that's not fair... The course was useful, Change Management has lots of facets and being reminded of them is useful, newer techniques can be assimilated into projects and insights can be woven in the matrix that is my slightly odd way of looking at life:-)
However, a heavy cold meant I didn't spend too long chatting with the others and when that mutated into a migraine... so I headed home early, grabbing a couple of apples as I went for the train. So far so good...
However, just outside Stafford I bit into the apple and screamed as part of my 1st lower molar right side disintegrated... Getting an NHS dentist in Liverpool for the last 5 or 6 years has been almost impossible, and private dentists normally listened as far as "congenital heart defect" and said thanks but no thanks... Being awkward is not always a good thing.
So to the dental hospital I went, unfortunately on the afternoon the Liverpool students were protesting... Oh well, what's 17h of pain between and my mouth??
Absolute agony...
But, the next morning was bright... and the SHO (a dentist whose trained but not specialised) was a bright spark who having looked at my medical history went and found a consultant, who suggested another consultant... Meanwhile I was X-rayed and yup, there was a bloody great big hole in my tooth... and the beginnings of an abscess.
My paranoia about endocarditis isn't too bad, but the thought of leaving a infection source in my mouth while trying to find a dentist who'd touch me and undergoing a series of treatments didn't sound a good idea... So out the tooth was coming...
At this point I was passed on to the real newbe students, and they found the smallest dental student the worlds has ever seen - who looked at me, looked at her pliers and looked at the consultant who'd popped in for askance... He smiled and said "Just give it some wellie"...
A few figure of 8's later, a bit of a grunt - from her, not me, and it popped out...
The cheery chap of a consultant gave me his name, and with a mock glower told me to find a dentist and if I got any crap from anyone to let him know as he'd trained most of the dentists in the area...
Which came in useful, as I now have a dentist... who has taken me on as a "special needs" case, on the NHS.
Its good to be back in the system, and I'm sure it will hurt in the short term but be good for me in the long term...
Though that paranoia still lurks a little, and every cold I get for the next couple of weeks I will be just a little worried. Endocarditis isn't nice, I've seen too many friends get it and require long stays in hospital or valve replacements...
So apologies for the paranoia, I'll try to keep it under control
TTFN
Paul
Wednesday, 1 December 2010
Dear Santa... Or any kindly sponsors of walkers!
Ah, the scent of my sweat in my nasal passages, the scrawled on spreadsheet of a training plan, the desperate search of a matching pair of running socks (or at least a left and right one)...
Phase 1 of the training has begun... As its icy out I'm in the gym (see posts from last winter for how much I hate the bloody gym)... But I'm pounding through the miles, yes I've lost a bit of fitness but not as much as I feared.
However, I've now run a fair bit, and walked many many miles so I now know what I need for next years exploits... I'm also a champion bargain hunter, so I hunt down cheaper stuff... I say cheaper, as the tent and jacket between them are north of £300.
Ultralight tent - bought:-) @38% off - Laser Competition Light (my dream tent for many a year)
Fell Running Association compliant smock - just won on Ebay:-) @40% off Paramo Velez Adventure
New hydration sack - spotted the probable one, an Osprey talon 11 want to try one more (North Face Boa Enduro) before I commit... Should get a minimum of 15% off
Amazon Kindle - ok, a bit of a luxury, but I travel a fair bit for work and with a fortnight planned in a tent a light way of carrying lots of books could be a sanity saver (oh and a waterproof case for one). Now this will be my treat to myself in the new year.
Odds and sods - running sunglasses, running socks (multiple pairs), walking socks (multiple pairs), probably new trainers after the March Half Marathon, new walking boots at some point, tent shoes, camping pillow... oh and food for the walk, hydration fluids, gloves (I lose at east 2 pairs a year), new compass (memo to self never leave compass next to work pass!)...
As for now, I'm looking for my kit for tomorrow, 5 miles before work... Ugh... However, it will be run, as it needs to be done!
TTFN
Paul
Phase 1 of the training has begun... As its icy out I'm in the gym (see posts from last winter for how much I hate the bloody gym)... But I'm pounding through the miles, yes I've lost a bit of fitness but not as much as I feared.
However, I've now run a fair bit, and walked many many miles so I now know what I need for next years exploits... I'm also a champion bargain hunter, so I hunt down cheaper stuff... I say cheaper, as the tent and jacket between them are north of £300.
Ultralight tent - bought:-) @38% off - Laser Competition Light (my dream tent for many a year)
Fell Running Association compliant smock - just won on Ebay:-) @40% off Paramo Velez Adventure
New hydration sack - spotted the probable one, an Osprey talon 11 want to try one more (North Face Boa Enduro) before I commit... Should get a minimum of 15% off
Amazon Kindle - ok, a bit of a luxury, but I travel a fair bit for work and with a fortnight planned in a tent a light way of carrying lots of books could be a sanity saver (oh and a waterproof case for one). Now this will be my treat to myself in the new year.
Odds and sods - running sunglasses, running socks (multiple pairs), walking socks (multiple pairs), probably new trainers after the March Half Marathon, new walking boots at some point, tent shoes, camping pillow... oh and food for the walk, hydration fluids, gloves (I lose at east 2 pairs a year), new compass (memo to self never leave compass next to work pass!)...
As for now, I'm looking for my kit for tomorrow, 5 miles before work... Ugh... However, it will be run, as it needs to be done!
TTFN
Paul
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
