Once more working out

I went to the gym today, and my wife/ chief photographer came along. She is brilliant. 

Warm up

The seated leg press was not being used, so 30 reps using 150lbs was the warm up. As the photo demonstrates, I had already warmed up inside. 

The rowing machine was great, me pushing and straightening my legs and pulling back with the arms. 

10 minutes was a good workout, especially as the person next to me did the same distance as me in 16 minutes. 

A great touch of the runs

A gentle start, walking for two laps, then the overjoy came along for 11 laps of running.

It was manifested by pointing at the shirt, and frankly, grinning.

I even practiced breaking an imaginary finish line tape:

I even limited the temptation to yell "I'm back!" According to my watch, I ran 1.3 miles/ 2.09 kilometres in 7 minutes, 20 seconds. That makes 3 minutes, 47 seconds per kilometre. 

Keep it up!

Lots of friends have been encouraging to me, hence the selfies. Non-friends are now notorious for their misgivings, so the images in this post are dedicated to my friends, solely and exclusively.

Recovery Update

Hello friends, you all know who you are. Non-friends shall remain nameless.

Refuelling before workout

The morning started with rice balls.

Then for lunch, I went to Chinatown with my wife, her Mum and cousin. I had my favourite food to celebrate Lantern Festival: Xiaolongbao, hence the beaming look on my face. 

Rowing Time

That kind of rowing, of course. A good way to get fit and healthy, one month after getting home after 6 months in hospital.

I managed 2,100 metres in 10 minutes and 10 seconds. If I may say so,  good technique, endurance and strength.

Running again!

Then back to the run yet again. 

All my concentration was on technique: both arms swinging, feet straight and long stride.

3 minutes, 29 seconds per kilometre, about half marathon PB pace. 

2 weeks before, according to Strava, I ran 3.8 km in 13 minutes, 0 seconds. Using a calculator, that would mean 5k in 17 minutes, 0 seconds, a PB of 2.5 minutes. Hopefully that will happen at the end of May, my first comeback race if I get Doctor's approval for running again. 

 

Hopeful expression

Good time for a selfie? More recovery is coming for my head and body daily. I aim to get back to working, driving and running in the next few months.

Confidence has returned of late, all due to my lovely wife's care and planning for our future. I am giving my upmost to recover well in workouts and therapy visits to home. I said so during the subsequent dinner:

Therefore, it is time to raise a glass to my recovery and comeback to life!

7 years healthy, 5 years running

I run for both of these guys. Running has set me free.

Running wasn't part of my weight loss, but it was a natural  progression which followed it. 
The morphing of the old me to into the new me began in January 2007. Most who have gone through weight loss can likely remember some kind of lecture-to-self, a resolution not to continue as before. For me, it was something like: "you're about to turn 30 and you shouldn't be like this."
3 times a week in the gym, and the key was to keep in mind that to start with I would feel worse before fitness caught up with the exhaustion. Persistence, no excuses.

Concentrating the mind months later was the news that my cholesterol was double what it should be. There followed a very disciplined approach to my diet. None of the nasties (such as all the non-turkey stuff at Christmas), smaller portions of meat, bigger lunch than dinner, etc.

From that point on I was losing one pound or more per week. The lighter I got, the more I could work out, the fitter I got, the quicker the weight came off. 

 

Losing and having lost weight, there were many reactions I laughed about then and still do:

The doctor's delayed reaction to moving the slider when the scales showed under 200 lbs;

Drilling an emergency hole in my belt after my trousers fell down at work;

Drilling 2 more holes over the following month;

Not being recognized by people I hadn't seen in a couple of months followed by looks of pure astonishment;

Being asked "where's the rest of you?" by someone I hadn't seen in a year.

I started running in summer 2008, mostly to get outside when the weather was nice (a basement gym feels like a dungeon in summer).

I had the idea to enter the half marathon distance at the Calgary Marathon in early 2009. This was my first ever running race at the age of 32. It was intended as a "victory lap" more than an ongoing hobby. 

However, the sense of occasion, the atmosphere and the feeling of crossing the finish line (starts in the stomach and lifts up through the heart and the arms go up) made it clear to me that this should become a way of life. I was pleased to finish in 1:46:15, what could I do if I really worked at it? What was the new me capable of?

Since then, I have been able to break 90 minutes in a half marathon, 40 in the 10k, and 20 in the 5k. 3 hours 10 minutes has so far eluded me over the full marathon distance, and this is my aim on June 1. A new training plan (the Hanson Method), and more focused weight training are how I am hoping to get there. My PB is currently 3:20:47, so improving on that is my "silver" aim.

Unlike the elites however, it's not always about the time or placing, and while I may envy their perfomances, they face heartbreak when things don't go their way. For the rest of us, there is the ideal of savouring the experience of every race, and finishing with your head held high. 

Myself, I grin like a Cheshire Cat smile every time I run. My health benefits, I am sharper and an infinitely better human being than before I started. Running sets me free.