Day 1 of the 100 push-up challenge. Five sets – 10, 12, 7, 7, and 9+ (minute rests). I managed them – for the the final ‘9+’ I did 20. Of course, the quality is probably not high.
The programme starts with an ‘all you can do’ test which determines how it unfolds. I managed 25 but, in deference to my age, decided not to join in at week 3 as it said I could. There are now three sessions a week for six weeks so let’s see how it goes.
No swimming on Monday (a meeting to have a proper look at the new bike shop premises) but I ran on Tuesday morning. It was the first properly chilly run of the winter and the first appearance of gloves, hat and jacket for many months. A bit over 7km (4.45 miles) at 5.43/km.
Back to the push-ups on Wednesday, this time 10, 12, 8, 8, 12+ (all OK and again I did 20 for the ’12+’). About midday I went to the gym – I’m usually there in the mornings, it was much the same but the music seemed to be different (no better, just different). Not surprisingly, the morning’s push-ups didn’t help with the chest press machine.
The evening’s World Cup games saw my fantasy football team climb to the heady heights of 2nd place in the charity league. I thought I’d mention it now as that’s as good as it’s going to get.
After a very mild autumn, it has turned colder (and foggier) here but at least I am being consistent in my wimpish tendencies in ducking out of a run on Thursday. Later we drove to London to drop off our younger son’s ski kit (he’s off to Italy with his girlfriend just before Christmas) and to put up a large and heavy picture that needed more than just a picture hook.
We went for an excellent Lebanese supper near to the flat – we’ve lived in a village with pretty much no facilities (no shop, school, pub, post office etc) for nearly 30 years and love it – but perhaps it’s the contrast that makes going to the flat so special, where we can walk to shops and a wide choice of restaurants.
I drove back on Thursday night, leaving my wife to meet friends in London. Friday morning saw the end of the first week of the 100 push-up challenge. The third session required sets of 11, 15, 9, 9 and 13+. It’s getting a bit harder but I managed to do it all, including 25 for the final set, for a week 1 total of 183 push-ups (plus a random 20 on Saturday, just for fun).
Gym again on Friday afternoon. The last time I increased the weights I use I went down to 3 sets of 8 reps but I’m now up to 4 sets of 10 on everything, so I guess it’s time to increase the weights again – assuming I’m trying to get bigger/stronger. However, I’m wondering if that’s what I really want from the gym, or whether it should just be a contribution to overall fitness.
Not as important as the ending of the first week of the push-up challenge, but the third round of the World Cup ended on Friday. I won that round of the fantasy football competition and held on to second place.
I got on the turbo on Saturday – just 30 minutes @28kph (17.4mph). The much more important news was that our older son and his girlfriend arrived safely in Cusco (Peru), a mere 30 hours after they set off.
Sunday was cold and soon after I set off for a run it started to rain and a biting wind got up. Luckily they didn’t last too long and I ran for 7.8km (4.85 miles) at a steady pace. Later, off to friends for lunch and this evening, no doubt, the usual angst watching England play football.
Interesting stuff this week
1. African wise words: Wisdom is like fire. People take it from others
2. BBC News website: Football is nothing without … censorship
‘Football is nothing without fans’ is a cliché but Chinese state TV has been testing that assumption throughout the World Cup.
On Tuesday, as Ghana beat South Korea, China’s coverage of the match ensured viewers were not exposed to images of maskless supporters – and to a world moving on from Covid restrictions.
3. BBC News website: Fashion, it’s a matter of (no) taste
Fashion house Balenciaga has been heavily criticised over a photoshoot showing child models posing with fetish-themed teddy bears.
Critics then looked at an image from an earlier campaign promoting the brand’s collaboration with Adidas. One of the pictures showed a handbag sitting on top of some documents – zooming in on the text showed the papers were from a US Supreme Court ruling related to indecent images of children.
4. BBC News website: A virus by any other name would be as contagious
Monkeypox will now be known as mpox, the World Health Organization (WHO) has announced, after complaints over racist and stigmatising language linked to the virus’s name.
Mpox was decided on after lengthy discussions between experts, countries and the general public and can easily be used in English as well as other languages.
5. BBC News website: It was probably just the incense
A small Buddhist temple in Thailand has been left without any monks after they were all dismissed for failing drug tests. Four monks, including the abbot, tested positive for methamphetamine in the northern province of Phetchabun.
6. On Monday, someone in France read 109 of my posts. It’s very flattering but I do feel bad that anyone should suffer so much.
(an Old Man in Lycra) 
Impressive stuff with the press ups. And good luck this evening in the footie 👍
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Thank you on both counts. My issue with the football (international football in general and England in particular) is that it tends to be a bit tedious and doesn’t always compensate for the angst.
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I did a push-up challenge once. Never again!
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If only you’d have warned me …
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