Teamwork, Targets and Cycling Treats

I have recently taken up running again. Nothing too crazy just a few kilometers after work with the girls in the office. We run twice a week and as well as laps of the beautiful russell square we do drills. Lunges, high knees bum flicks its way more fun looking like a ninny with friends than on your own. As well as my new office habit I also have my eye on a couple of beauties.  A mix of flat fast roads, rolling hills fresh water and men in lycra...

Image from Exeter Express and Echo by Martin Whitham

The Great West run and the Cambridge triathlon. I haven't even booked these yet, I don't have a proper suit or a decent bike. But just having a target even if it is not fixed has done a lot to get me up and moving again.

While it is great to have a big dream, it will remain unachieved if you cant turn that into small manageable steps. I was hoping to run harder and longer, but the fact that I am up and moving I think is a plus. The last 2 weeks I have been moving around. Walking a mile a day in the evening, it is a great way to decompress and get home after a long day sitting on my behind. It may not be 400x5 splits in  but walking that mile a day is better than just hoping from tube to bus or bus to bus.

I have also been making other smaller changes. Diet; I am still shovelling cookies, fizzy drinks and chocolate down my gob, small changes remember, but I have started making my own lunch or getting the salad option with plenty of protein and healthy fats of course. While I am still eating more refined carbs than I would like I am also definitely eating more than my 5 a day of veggies. I also move in the office. Given all my previous work was bar and on my feet it is quite a change to work somewhere static, and currently swelteringly warm as the AC has broken.

I have also taken the plunge with a personal trainer. Given the improvements I want in the time I want I know I have to really seize the bull by the horns. While I am working full time, this is still expensive, but I have chosen an expensive sport. During these sessions I have one rule I can mumble, sweat rant and say what I like but I will never say No, and I will never not try.

The personal trainer is a good friend and cutting me a good deal, but he is still expensive, I am hoping some mental discipline will rub off and stick with me. There are still some aspects I am worried about overall. My swimming still leaves something to be desired. Being scared of open water doesn't really help either, luckily the tri I have chosen uses the river cam. This may seem strange but I think knowing it is a river that people use all the time will ease my fears more than a large lake.

So forwards and faster,