Mid-Year Review

Halfway through the year so I suppose I should have a look at progress. 

After the ITU Champs in Almere were bumped by a year and the ETU Champs in Walchsee were postponed and relocated to Bled in Slovenia. The rescheduled ETU champs in Slovenia have also now been cancelled. So, no International racing at all this year. 

The chances of any real local races coming back is looking pretty slim as well. Some little internal Club races may happen before the season ends, but there is no guarantee of that, and I don't care about them even if they do happen. 

I am now on a 204 day exercise streak. 

Swimming is impossible to measure. Without the pool anything I do is randomly paced. I "think" I am swimming well from the times I am doing in the river, but without knowing what the current and tidal effects are, everything is just a guess. The 6 weeks where I did no swimming at all means I am way behind target miles, but the amount of time I am doing in the river is starting to make that back. Cranking out my whole week of mileage in a single swim probably isn't very smart either, and the paddling pool has turned out to be expensive per swim now that I am doing most of my swimming in open water. 

Biking took a similar hit at the start of lockdown, and the turbo was some compensation for the miles. My targets on the bike were small this year, so I am above them. As long as I am unemployed there is no good reason that I shouldn't be putting in plenty of bike miles to fill in my days. I am considering doing a 44-miler for my 44th birthday, and then maybe a 70-miler for my Dad's 70th birthday. That would be my first 100-mile week since I was doing my daily alphabet streak in September last year. I haven't been out on the TT bike for a real pace judgement. My training pace for most rides is about 15mph, which is faster than previous years. But I am only riding an hour or so at a time, and every ride is a training ride, there are no commutes or easy days, or long scenic days so it is difficult to tell if that really means anything. I am planning a few longer days soon to see what happens. 

I am also on a 190-day run streak, easily the longest of my life. And I have run over 750 miles this year. Considering my target for the full year is only 800 miles that number is actually stupid. And it isn't really doing anything in terms of improving. Again without a real race to measure my pace it isn't really possible to tell how I am going. Virtual races suggest I am fairly close to decent form, but they aren't a fair gauge. I need a real race to test out my form. 

As with every year I have been patchy about my other sessions. I am doing better this year than previous years at the core and weights and stretching. But worse at the yoga.  

I have stuck to just training and fitness things so far. Back when I started this blog, 8 years ago this week, it was to try and help me deal with my mental health at a time in my life when I couldn't cope with the combination of bad things that were all compounded at the time. If I was to compare that time to now and given the option to choose which set of circumstances to be under it wouldn't take me a fraction of a second to choose the 2011 set. 

Covid-19 and the associated lockdown is obviously affecting everyone at the minute, being alone through it all has been very hard. Losing my job at BP didn't help but at least I still have my Asda driving job and some consulting work. I am going to be 44 next week, and am single, with no kids, and no prospects of meeting someone. Even post-lockdown I don't really have any ways to meet someone. My divorce should finalise the week after having had a year since I last had any word from Tamarah. I haven't seen my Granny in months, and last time was just through a window for her 100th birthday. I actually find that missing her is more important than people my own age. My dad's cancer was one of the major issues in my 2011 mental health problems and that is now reaching a conclusion. Having almost beaten it in 2016 he now has only a couple of months left. His pain medication now consists of so much morphine that any further increase will need to be administered in a care home and will likely consist of ketamine. 

I am better prepared to deal with my mental health this time and it hasn't spiralled out of control like last time, but I would be lying if I claimed I was doing well, or even coping, with the current circumstances.