Sadly the bluebells are past their best, but good to remember them
It’s dawned on me that with my challenges postponed to next year, I’m not ‘training’ for anything – I’m just ‘exercising’. The absence of any sort of training plan should have been a clue …
It feels like there is a real difference between the two: training has a more specific purpose and so comes with a greater obligation and urgency. Exercise has a less specific aim and the ability to be more flexible – I’m going to try to embrace the difference.
I gave the difference an introductory hug on Monday by gardening, scrubbing a crazy-paving path and seating area – but not exercising beyond that. We ran through the village together on Tuesday morning before I miscounted the laps around the old hill fort and pushed hard in getting a PB on a very nasty local hill which is a Strava segment. Nearly 7 miles in all (over 11km) and really enjoyable (except for the big effort up the hill).
I decided that two days of quite hard manual work in the garden exempted me from other exercise on Wednesday but back to it on Thursday running with my wife – 7.5km (4.7 miles). I ran with her so she could record a time for the local hill Strava segment on my Garmin – and what a good time it was (in the top half out of nearly 70, and just two seconds behind a running friend of mine … should I tell him?).
Quizzing for charity
I’m part of a group of about a dozen old work mates who go on a ‘gentleman’s sporting weekend’ each year. We’ve been far and wide in the UK, mainland Europe (from Lisbon in Portugal to Budapest in Hungary) and North America (including Boston, New York and Toronto).
On Thursday we had a Zoom-based quiz for charity – the winner to decide where the money went. Modesty forbids mentioning who won, but I chose a local Young Carers group helping children who find themselves in the role of main carer for parents or other family members. It’s a great cause.
Interesting stuff so far this week
1. The authorities in Nigeria’s southern Rivers state have demolished two hotels for allegedly violating lockdown rules introduced to curb the spread of coronavirus.
Beats a small fine or a police warning as a disincentive to breaking the law
2. Even if you dance in the water, your enemies will accuse you of causing dust.
Love these African proverbs
3. Coronavirus: Tui urges opening up tourism to safer countries
Tui is a travel company, based in Germany. The idea is that safer countries are identified and opened up as holiday destinations (so they soon stop being safer countries??)
4. Coronavirus: New Zealand reopens with midnight barbers queues
I admit to not being a style icon when it comes to grooming (or indeed anything else) but I can’t image any circumstances that would have me queueing for a haircut at midnight.
(an Old Man in Lycra) 
Will you tell your friend about the run? Yes. You are a runner. That’s what we do. (See following paragraph re: charity). 😉
But as regards having an event to train towards; I fully agree. It’s like that scene in Gravity where Sandra Bullock’s character becomes untethered from the space craft and spins wildly off into the void. Okay, I may have exaggerated here for dramatic effect. But my humble proposal for a solution to this dilemma is to create your own event. There won’t be T shirts or medals (unless you really want to mark the occasion but I feel they would be as much of a surprise as buying your own birthday present and trying to forget what you bought).
And so, in the light of the current theme of ‘all runners tell you about their runs (regardless of whether you want to hear it or not)’, I submit this post for your consideration. I appreciate the current lockdown is not helpful, but by the time you have trained for your bespoke personalised event, we should be back to normal(ish):
https://unironedman.com/2018/05/26/the-great-barrow-run/
(P.S. I shave my own head, so you won’t find me queueing for the barbers either. One of the benefits of going bald).
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The only trouble is that he’ll then run it again to set a better time and that will disappoint my wife – and I tend to think that a disappointed wife is not a good thing (beyond the normal daily disappointments of course).
That’s a great post. My current thinking is perhaps a twist on the normal ‘ride your age’ challenge. Although it’s not the longest of rides, ’65 years, 65 miles, 65 year old bike’ has a ring to it – and by using my bike with rod brakes, 3 of Sturmey Archer’s best gears and weighing well over 40 lbs, it just might be a proper challenge.
Gravity gets 96% on Rotten Tomatoes – I must have been watching a different film.
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That’s a nice idea. I did a 50 at 50 challenge a few years back, which is to say, 50k run at 50 years of age. And there ya; talking about my own runs again. Good grief. It’s insufferable!
But I hear ya on the time and the potential for disappointment. You’re probably right.
(https://unironedman.com/2017/02/12/the-5050/). There’s a superb picture of a fry-up in there that will make you drool, guaranteed 😉
As for Gravity, you didn’t like it, then? I wouldn’t take Rotten Tomatoes too seriously, though generally it’s a good pointer. I suspect part of the problem is overcoming both Bullock and Clooney as lead actors. But fun facts: just about all the film was shot in the UK in both Pinewood and Shepperton. And pretty much all the special effects were done there too. Cuarón thought the film would take a year to shoot; in the end, it took four and half years… And it was the highest-grossing film for both principal actors (which is hard to believe). It seems to capture (not that I know, of course) what real space would be like, as opposed to the ridiculous space shenanigans of, say, Ad Astra, or even The Martian (which is very endearing). Shucks, even Buzz Aldrin reckoned it looked real!
And there is the Kessler Syndrome to consider, which explains low earth orbit debris (and also empty gel packets at a triathlon event). What’s not to love?
And finally, I leave you with this:
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/gravity-spinoff-watch-side-sandra-657919
It’s the short spin-off film made by the director’s son.
I look forward to reading about your cycle. Down-tube shifters is as old as I go.
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I liked the video better than the film! I think it was George Clooney reappearing that finished off the real thing for me but I have to admit that the effects were terrific.
Your ultra reminds me why I’m going to really miss the one I should have been doing in July (I’d probably opt for the pasta and regret missing out on the fry-up).
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The return of Clooney did make me groan for a second until I realised he wasn’t there.
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FIFTY k???? Wow…
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My ultra next year will be 50k at 66 – what a wimp not to be aiming for 66k!
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Lol. I can’t yet do 5k… you can instead aim for 67k next year.
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Having never actually trained for anything before, having it taken away and going back to just exercising has been dispiriting. I have managed to keep the good habits though so should be ready to start again.
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I’m lucky that I’ve been running and cycling for long enough that it’s (almost) a habit to keep it going – but I certainly believe that the focus of a challenge to aim for makes all the difference. If you’ve managed to make it a habit already, you’re well ahead of the game.
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