Missed you Surfermom…After 42 years, 3 months and four days running came to an almost ‘Dead’ Stop…I could chatter on for hours, but you sound like you’ve had a few problems of your own…So welcome back…xx
Missed you too, OGF! There were a few times that I too thought he party was over. Let’s tempt those fates a little longer, shall we! Easy going, of course 
!
Alrighty. After a dull and chilly four-hour drive long before the sun came up, my running shoes were itching to do something. It’s cold and blustery today, so I put on a long-sleeve top, running vest, running jacket, head band, winter leggings, warm socks, and the complaining New Balance shoes to brave the cloudy, windy, 50 degrees.
It’s fun to run on a day like this because of the empty roads, but I seem to be feeling the temperatures more in the form of tight muscles and achy knees. I put on several pounds while I was down and I can feel every one of them. They won’t be around long if I can stick with this new program.
The new program is designed around a committment to stretch and sustain running for as long as I can. This is real challenge, being guilty of running from the moment my feet hit the ground. I am now walking to warm up, running a short distance, and walking again. I confess to having a lot of psychological suffering over this, but I remind myself that after six decades of living - it’s ok.
I am still walking way more than running, but I still managed five miles. For this tortoise, slow and steady wins the race 
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We must be inextricably linked Surfermom…
Wearing the shorts was a good decision as I ventured out into a very sunny but cool late morning. It was about 5*C and now I’m doing more walking than running, it just seems better to go out a bit later once it’s warmed up a little (nesh or what) I walked the mile through the village and past the church, there were plenty of cars parked close by, something was going off…
As soon as I hit the open country road I was up on my toes and jogging, keeping an eye on my heart rate monitor. My heart rate was climbing steadily and the legs were good, it soon levelled out at 163 bpm, a bit high, but the legs were still feeling good so I kept going a bit longer. I was surprised by the distance I had covered as I stopped to walk. My heart rate immediately returned to normal, so after a couple of hundred yards, I went again. I walked past the church in the next village and was gladdened to see the snowdrops in bud, they adorn the verges and churchyard each year and attract lots of visitors.
Each time I jogged now my heart rate kept to reasonable limits, and as I jogged the half mile or so to another village, it barely rose above 140 bpm. A walk and a phone call to Mrs Fox that I was still in the land of the living. I was approaching mile number four now and decided to have one last jog, I surprised myself…
I must have jogged almost a mile with a heart rate of less than 100 bpm, I must admit that I was jogging as slow as I could without actually walking, but not once in all that distance were the legs asking to stop…Last week I considered myself back to where I had been before having the ICD fitted, but this morning was feeling more like the good old days…A nice 6 miles while Mrs Fox prepares the beef bourguignon and a bottle of beaujolais to wash it down with…
Happy Days!
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So, so heartening (ha, pun intended) to read of such a satisfying outing! 
You always make it sound so idyllic there - quiet country roads, village churches…
While I know it’s a pain (ha, another bad pun), but I think you are exceptionally wise to watch your heart rate and adjust accordingly. It’s also brilliant that you are checking in with Mrs. OGF. I have an app on my phone that allows whomever I want to track my location in real time. I wonder if anyone in my family has ever actually looked? 
You understand that I am too much in my zone to be distracted with a phone call, but I think it is very, very smart on your part, and will take that as sound advice. I am sure Mrs. OGF is most appreciative.
We had a crisp, iridescent blanket frost on the ground to greet us this morning. We haven’t seen frost here in four or five years 
! Last night I covered the tropicals with Christmas lights and sheets over that to save them. As you might guess, I am too wimpy to run yet. The warmest time of day here (well, anywhere for that matter) is about 2PM, so I am planning my walk/run for about that time.
Six miles is outstanding! I am trying to add a tenth of a mile every few days. Expect a report - or a confession 
- tomorrow. Enjoy dinner!
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The sun is out after two bleak days, though the wind is brisk and the surf quite high. It’s been an hideous week having lost another friend (to cancer 
), so in need of some head clearing I ventured out for a walk/run.
It is interesting how your body really does retain memory when it comes to exercise and though I am severely out of shape, my legs are feeling strong. I started out walking a full square mile, stopping to stretch (loathe it but know it’s the right thing to do) and then breaking into a nice clip of a run.
Today’s adventure included being chased by two large puppies who had escaped their fence and mistook my running for an invitation to play. Once I managed to get them out from under my feet, I jogged with them towards what I believed was their home. In no time, I could see the owner making a beeline towards me shouting mea culpas and scrambling to corral the four-legged hooligans. No harm no foul, I was back on the trail in no time, but walking, running, walking the rest of the five mile course.
I feel great, but my knees are not happy 
. Cheers!
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Well done Surfermom, five miles is a long way however you tackle it, and I think we are allowed a bit of a walk occasionally after the year we both seem to have had.
I know what you mean about the dogs, most of the dogs I come across are friendly and just want to run alongside me. It can be a bit frustrating on a rainy day when they jump up and smear mud all over my legs or bottoms. On the rare occasion that the dogs turn out to be aggressive I have been known to take issue with the irresponsible owner, and there is nothing as annoying as arriving home with dog doings all over my trainers. Not every owner cleans up after their animal…
I was thinking that when I was a child in the fifties I only knew one family who owned a dog, perhaps because it was a struggle just to put food on the table for the humans.
Nowadays where I live just about everyone owns at least one dog, with some people having three or four. Surely it can’t be good for the planet, apart from the love and friendship they bestow, they eat lots of food, mainly meat products, produce as much CO2 and methane as cattle, and don’t actually do anything (you can’t eat them! not here anyway) to contribute to our fight to save the planet…
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Well, OGF, this walking is a bit of a frustration, but I am adapting - just happy to be in the world right now. It’s pouring cold buckets, but it looks like it will clear for a run soon enough.
Yes, the adventures of running with dogs! I am sure we could all write a book. My favorite was a dog who followed me, veered off to the house of a stranger to steal a garden glove, and then caught up with me to follow another mile or two, glove between teeth .
If the world was better about spaying, neutering, and caring for their animals, I might agree to a degree with you about the justification about having so many, but I am guilty of having had as many as five at one time - all former strays, all once horribly mistreated. While I understand your ethics in regards to the planet, mine have more than offset that cost by creating jobs and putting food in other people’s mouths. It might even surprise you that given the choice between having one more child versus having all the sweet dog souls I have had in my life, I would have chosen the dogs 
. They are just that special, IMHO. As ever the problem is not the dogs, but the irresponsible people! Perhaps a few less of them is the answer ?
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Ha! Funny you should say that Surfermom…I was doing a twenty mile training run with Mrs Fox riding shotgun (following me on her bike with the water) after five miles we passed through a small town, deserted at seven in the morning except for a mingy looking hound sniffing around empty chip papers. He locked onto me and proceeded to follow while looking up and smiling with his happy doggy face. He ran alongside through the town and out into the country, I reasoned that he would not sustain this pace for long and return to his home (if he had a permanent home)
I passed the ten mile mark and so did the dog, not only that, he was examining various items of interest on the verges, and still managed to catch me up. By fifteen miles he looked fresher than I did. If ever I could have taken a dog to my heart and give it a good home it would have been him. Unfortunately a cat with attitude already resided at the Fox residence, and I knew she would not accept a friend at this late stage of her life.
What to do with this impressive long distance hound, then at eighteen miles a farmer on a bicycle passed in the opposite direction and the dog took a shine to him and continued his journey alongside the old gentleman. I would like to think that this story had a happy ending and the farmer gave that friendly little hound a good home. Me, I legged it and never saw the dog again. But his memory will stay with me forever…Amazing animal…
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I don’t really like to exercise, but I feel better after exercising, so I keep doing it. A mandatory item is walking on a treadmill for at least 5 kilometers. I have congestion in my legs, so I need to walk a lot every day. I also have an exercise bike in my room, but I prefer to walk on a treadmill, it is better for me to use. I also try to avoid bending over because it’s bad for my lower back. I love doing push-ups, light dumbbell presses, and trying out ring pull-ups.
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This is another exercise machine I bought this year…Cross Trainer…can’t live without my exercise…
…
90 pull ups on the FMP…not all in one go…once a day. 6 days a week.
Jogging every two to three days.
Cross trainer every day…at least 30 minutes…6 days a week.
I ride my bike almost every day. Sometimes it can be difficult, but the main thing is to make stops on time. Moreover, my bike looks cool and teenage, it’s pink 
I work part-time, always on my feet, walking quickly, and also take care of a very energetic 4-year-old one afternoon/evening a week. But that doesn’t feel like enough, so I go to the gym for circuit training 3-4 times a week, moving at a fast pace! I’ve been doing this for 15 years, and it’s just part of my routine now. I enjoy it and plan to keep going as long as I can.
I follow a healthy diet, counting calories daily—obsessive? Maybe, but it works for me. I allow myself treats, but only occasionally, and once a week, I have a ‘light’ day with no cooked food except a bowl of soup—my detox day!
I’m a healthy 9st 7lbs, with no sign of osteoporosis—at over 60, I’m pretty pleased with that!
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Welcome Charles.You would put a lot of us to shame with that healthy lifestyle. 
Still Swimming most days but added in pool walking with my lengths after my bad fall that shattered my leg for me. When I returned to the pool 5 months later the surgeon had advised pool walking rather than swimming to heal. So now I start with 10 lengths walking and 40 swimming, followed by a welcome hot soak in a jacuzzi. Just heading there shortly.
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Sorry about your fall Rox.
I have a friend recovering after successful cancer treatment who really rates pool walking. Anyone who doesn’t like swimming can benefit from this.
I’ve been going swimming regularly since Feb this year. I was always a swimmer but gave up the health club membership for about ten years when the dog was more energetic and would tire me out.
I can’t believe what a difference it makes to just do the 20 lengths again. Takes me less than half an hour to complete now I’m much faster, but totally worth it if I can make the effort to get myself there. Some weeks I go almost every day.
I have read that swimming is the one sports activity that almost everyone can do well into their later years. Water is so healing.
It’s funny but if you have a swim cap and goggles many people use a different lane because they think you’re a serious swimmer.
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One up, two down
I don’t wear a cap or goggles as these days I only do breast stroke. I pile my hair up and clamp it with a big clasp.
I’ve been swimming since I was 3 years old, my mum worked at the swimming baths.
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Having a confident connection with the water so early must have been wonderful and you’re so lucky that your mum worked there too. I didn’t really learn until I was 11 because my brother dunked my head under when I was about 7 and I was very wary of the pool after that!
I’ve only started using a cap and goggles this year as I have become more adventurous in my styles and even watched a few you tube videos to see how I can improve speeds and technique. I spend half the time underwater which is a great way to de-stress and just lose yourself in the movements.
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