MY RUNNING

Well as this year from hell limps and staggers to a dismal close there is a ray of hope that us struggling battlers here in Melbourne may at long last have hit the evil virus for six. Double donuts ( zero cases zero deaths ) for the last 24 days. The world is looking a little brighter.Well done us.

Talk is that when the virus is finally crushed all citizens will receive a giant pink donut.

Although Harry Hard Hat and Mary House wife may well be dancing in the streets and throwing their masks into the Bonfire of the Restrictions I can’t say I am kicking many goals in the old running fitness world.

Here is a summary....a short summary of my rather dull adventures since I last popped an entry into The Running Blog.

GENERAL RUNNING

About 40 kms a week. As I have gone on and on before I am finding it hard to get out the door. I have increased the duration of my morning runs by a little and managed a 4 km time trial on one occasion. Did some sprinting with Rob which was ok I suppose...in a rather slow way.

Afternoon runs apart from short trots are a distant memory.

I have my eye on a couple of interstate Marathons next year....but who knows if they will even take place.

GOLF

played a round of this ‘ sport ‘with Tamami . Hurt the left side of my body swinging too hard. I must play more golf...maybe again next year or maybe the year after. I don’t think this is really a sport. Gets you out of the pub I suppose but that’s about it. I wear my rather cool Greg Norman hat...that’s fun...the only fun really.

WALKING

Started my usual early morning boring solo run the other day. Met friend Joan who was half way through her massively long morning walk. We walked and talked for a long 90 minutes before I left her and ran the last 5 kms home. I must say walking , whilst on this occasion was enjoyable and far better than spending most of the day alone, is not really my thing. Fun times true but I actually felt a bit sick afterwards. Still my weight was down so that was a big plus.

GROUP RUNS

A couple of group runs and one coming up on Sunday. I am still way off the pace but it’s really nice to get out of the house and talk with some one.

WEIGHT

shocking....I want to run at 69 kilos and was approaching that. Now I seem to have gone in the opposite direction. Only today I saw I have put on 400 grams since yesterday. How can this be ??!! I am still eating three meals a day. Maybe cut one out.

GYM

You have to book a session in advance for the local gym but I believe this will be scrapped soon. I go everyday and work on my stomach and upper body...both of which quite obviously need one hell of a lot of work. Yesterday I increased the weight on all my exercises. My chest is hurting but only when I breath out. I may have hurt my shoulder a little too. No pain no gain I suppose. I have also started( well started yesterday ) on some leg exercises.....I seem to have strained my quads which were damn sore running the hills this morning. Maybe I should increase the weight for my leg exercises in this afternoon’s session.

PUSH UPS / CRUNCHES

I read some where that you can do too many. I am doing daily 100 push ups and 200-400 stomach crunches. I think I will leave at this number. I have been feeling sick if I do 400 crunches although that is probably what I have to put up with. On Instagram everyone has fabulous six packs....I haven’t even got One pack. Oh I should add that I do my push ups in sets of 20 rather than 100 straight off the bat. I need to be stronger.

At the gym I use the Swiss ball and do two sets of 100. Hurts my stomach which must be a sign that it’s doing me some good.

Well the Lockdown has been eased somewhat for us poor suffering shut in Melbourne folk. We can now travel up to 25 km from our homes without running the risk of being zapped into dust by Government drones. Soon even this restriction will be removed. Beach House here I come. Good by Ring Of Steel.

I am still trying to get some semblance of fitness even if I am not looking particularly fit and healthy and not really doing all that much.

Did I mention I got a hair cut? .... $15 well spent ....now that hair cutters open again.

RUNNING: I run every day of course and occasionally twice a day. Nothing flash. I have run home from Tamami’s Golf course twice in the last week. 8 km. I try to hammer the last 2.5 kms. Two big hills which I attack although I am the world’s worst down hill runner. It’s really not much of a run as I have to stop for road crossings before I can kick the last two and half kms to home. No stopping in races. Very easy to stop at a red light for an unearned breather. Not for me.

A little hard getting out the door when there are no runs on the calendar. I need stronger will power. Tamami says my poor running is all in my mind. She is probably correct...going up the steep hill at the start of my morning run just makes me feel less than happy.

I did try something slightly new recently . After my morning run I waited 20 minutes and then repeated it. I was 27 seconds per km faster in my second run. Probably just in my mind. Still it was an ok session. Eh, I haven’t done it again...not yet....

Tamami is running well. Makes me want to really get back into running.

This week I am trying to run for duration. A solid run yesterday and a longer one today. A longer run planned for tomorrow. Today was 25 degrees. Not really killer heat but I certainly found it hard enough. At this stage a hot weather marathon is not on the table. Actually it’s not even in the house.

I have put the Garmin aside. I always push myself too hard up the early hills just so I can get a good pace to put in my diary. Not smart. I time the run but don’t have a record of pace.

WEIGHT ETC: Sad to say I am still over weight. Last few days a bit of improvement. Does not sound so hard but I would like to be 69 kgms by Christmas. As to my Blood pressure and Heart Rate I am generally going very well. I do take my BP after running...not sure if that effects it much. Today 124 over 81. That’s a tick. HR still in mid 40s...nothing special but stops me worrying.

I am using my dumbbells a lot. I sit on the deck over looking the golf course and read. I have a dumbbell either side which I pick up and use now and then.

Also hitting the punching bag. This should help my reflexes. So far I have won every bout. Call me Iron Jon if you will.

PUSH UPS AND CRUNCHES

I have been a bit slack lately in this regard....but no longer. I am doing sets of 20 push ups and 200

Crunches at a time. Not really sure of the benefit here but passes the time I suppose.

Robert looks great here.....unfortunately in contrast I just look a fair bit over weight and very unfit. ( my hair looks good though)

Still I am not dead yet...the battles continues.

Lots of talk about Lockdown restrictions being eased somewhat in Melbourne come this week end. But talk is cheap. Hopefully a few business’ can open and the prohibition of travelling a distance of less than 5 km from home be extended or even scrapped entirely.

RUNNING: A bit slack as of late. Still lacking the motivation when there is no race scheduled. Managed to get out and run the streets 9 times in the last week which I suppose is better than nothing.

In addition I did a series of short sprints between 100 and 160m on four occasions. Quite fun to do. A lot better than endlessly plodding around the neighbourhood alone covering routes I have trod a thousand times before.

Certainly I will do more of this sort of thing and perhaps not be so slow.

Tamami and Robert took some videos of my style. I have a long way to go in this regard. But I have to start some where.

Had a good solid run this Monday morning with Tamami. Only 6 km but over some testing hills with a hard km to finish. Tamami took my photo un be known to me.

WEIGHT: Still a little high although it’s moving in the correct direction. I have cut down to one piece of bread and half a banana for breakfast. I have been eating a small tub of yogurt for desert for a while now. Does it ever taste good. Perhaps the highlight of my day in this lockdown world. Anyway I have...at Tamami’s suggestion...cut down to eating only half a tub. TAmami makes me a cup of green tea as well so it’s not all Spartan life style. Tamami ( kindly ) also gives me a glass of water after I finish running...no Kcals there , so no danger.

BLOOD PRESSURE: way to go me. Pretty damn low these days.

WEIGHTS: I am using my dumbbells a number of times a day. I don’t do massive sessions but they sit next to my chair on the outside deck. So whenever I am sitting outside staring into the distance I can do a set. All counts.

So the battle continues. One day all this will be over and I will be able to travel back to my apartment in Tokyo and retrieve my ultra super cool running shoes which I left in the shoe cupboard. Ah, we will all rejoice.

The Lockdown in my town of Melbourne continues with endless dreariness and pain for all. Nothing much is open. Can not travel more than 5 km from home and exercise limited to a paltry two miserable hours a day.

Whilst the good folk of Melbourne suffer my own situation is none too good either. My Super delux highly expensive Nike Racing shoes ...my fast and ultra modern shoes....are sitting unused in my Tokyo apartment. Told you there was pain.

My running is just terrible and there needs to be changes made. And made they will be.

First off my running week....I decided to show a little more determination and get out the door and run twice a day every day....so far 13 training runs plus three or four short jogs from one place to another.

ALTHOUGH I am racking up the Kms I am not really going very well. In fact a few days ago when I staggered in from my second run of the day ( my ninth in four days ) my current wife Tamami suggested that perhaps I should give up completely and never run again.....I had not ever given that a thought....in fact I used to say that on the day I die I will run in the morning and pass on to the great Nike factory in the sky in the afternoon. True I did look like some sort of dead barn yard animal as I limped into the bath room to take my weight prior of taking my blood pressure and writing up my running diary as I have done every day since 1978. But quit !! Not likely. I will just modify my training.Read on.

SO TO THE CHANGES THAT ARE TO BE MADE....

Some changes already implemented. Here they are...on the record.

1. Eat less at breakfast. ( this morning I declined my usual compote of fruit with a dab of low fat yogurt and stuck just to my usual two pieces of home made bread dipped in a drop of fine virgin Australian Olive oil).

2. Drop some weight....I am over 71 kilos....slim and mean that’s me....well it will be...so far just porky and mean.

3.Get back to Meditation. Friend in UK helped me setting up a system breathing in the good vibrations and expelling those evil negative thoughts. I have not done this for a while and maybe that’s why I awake screaming and crying in the middle of the night and wonder if I will see the dawn. BUT....done. Well done once.....what is well begun is well done...or something like that. More tomorrow.

4. Start doing some flat out sprints.....after my run this morning I did four sprints....well it’s a start. I just can not gather my dwindling will power and just plonk around the streets to the jeers and sneers of the gutter urchins. Fast hurts but slow hurts the soul ( just made that up then...pretty clever what ? )

5. Set up Strava. Done and dusted. My Garmin is now in a close personal relationship with my phone. OK...truth....I did nothing...it was all set up by Rob for me. Thanks a bundle...it works a dandy treat. And you get little maps of your route...how cool is that. Modern tech....where will it end ?!!

6. Now here is one from outta left field...do people still say ‘ Left Field’ or did that expression die out with hoopla hoops? Anyway I am going to try and watch ( perhaps not follow)....what this American Masters runner does....he is 73 years old and has run a world record age group for the Marathon of 2-56 ( or maybe faster). Gene Dykes is his name ( from memory). I don’t expect anything like this but anything is better than finishing a race so far behind that everyone else has packed up and gone to the pub....well no pubs now of course...they are not open.i can perhaps learn something from him.

FINALLY.....Blood pressure...usually everyday ( after running )115 over 80....plus one for me. Heart Rate...haven’t been paying too much attention but probably mid 40s. Weight...not something that a gentleman talks of in polite society....but if you have been paying any attention so far you will see my earlier reference to this sad state of affairs earlier in the blog and what I intend to do.

GIVE UP ? Only when I am face down in the dirt, stone cold dead will I quit. In fact I will probably revive and jog home so I can add that day’s activity to my running diary.

And so it goes on. The Saga of Misery continues.

As September limps and staggers to its inevitably dreary conclusion my Australian home city of Melbourne remains bogged in what seems to be an endless state of Mind Numbing Lockdown. Only two hours a day of exercise permitted and that within 5 Kms of home. The Curfew has been scrapped which is all well and good but really with everything closed there is really little to do at midnight here in Melbourne.I suppose one can walk the streets in the dark if that is your thing.Wearing your mask of course.

Sad to report my own so called running training is really struggling. I run everyday of course but last week apart from one day I have not managed to drag myself out the door for a second run.

I did manage an afternoon session of hills sprints on one occasion. An excellent thing to do although it certainly brings home to you how woefully unfit you are. Great fun at the bottom of each hill pumping your arms and moving at a good pace.” Hey it’s 1974 again “ , you chortle happily. However about half way up the reality sets in and you wonder about your heart. “ serves him right, trying to sprint up such a steep hill ten times in the rain. At least he will leave a rich widow.”.

My blood pressure is perhaps the best it’s ever been and my Reasting Heart Rate whilst not setting any records still is in the mid 40s. But we can’t hide from the wombat in the room.My weight is up. Well I am down one kilo from what it was four weeks ago. But dropping a kilo in a month is nothing to blog home about. In that wonderful TV reality show which we all knew and loved The Biggest Loser, some porky hippo waved farewell to 8 kilos of lard in just one week.

I am lifting weights daily and punching the bag. I want to try to keep some vague resemblemence of muscle and have reasonable reflexes into my 89s and 90s...which are frightenly closer than I would like. Maybe when gyms open again....but when....?

I want to get my running weight back to 68 kilos which I think is an ok weight for me and will stop the village children laughing at me...”Mummy, look at the fat man “. Maybe if I could just improve my poor running , get one hell of a lot fitter, get off the sofa for once ( call me Couch tomato Jon if you will ), I could sweat off my spare tyre with a few dozen two hour runs ( two hours is of course is all that is allowed....see earlier).

Yesterday.....the start of the week...what better time to turn over a new branch and move from being a horrendous 70 kilo beached whale sitting on the couch drinking endless green tea and turn myself into a lean mean jogging machine ?

I dragged myself out of bed at the unbelievable early time of 7 AM ( ah, those office days of old ) and limped out in the early morning gloom and did my first run of the day....first run of the week...first run of my journey to a new me.

Felt bad most of the way. It was not a run of welcoming the early dawn. No waving at trees and sparrows whilst humming Kylie’s latest mega pop song. Just a painful plod.

With about a km and the last hill to run I did feel a little more human and actually increased the pace to the finish. Maybe like a cow senses water and runs to the barn for some milk , or whatever cows do, I realised it was almost over so I started to feel a tad better. Not ‘ good ‘ but better.

Afternoon run was better. Ran with Rob on my old Bath Road route. Called thus because it starts with a pretty much downhill one km on Bath Road. Sure it was only 5 km and I did walk across a main road to avoid the traffic( call me Mister Excuse). But it was an ok run ...a lot faster than the morning’s pain filled plod....with wife Tamami taking an ok photo of us finishing. Actually she took a dozen photos but the ones of me looking like a dead fish did not make the publication cut. Tamami was there with the car to drive me home...Rob ran on. One day I too will run on. One day this Lockdown will end. One day the Demons will win the premiership. One day.

This Lockdown is really the pits. I am trying to stay healthy but I have to say it’s not easy. I need an aim. But I suppose all will be well eventually even if it takes a few years. I struggle on.

RUNNING : I am getting out everyday.Sometimes twice a day although I am getting a little slack here. I ran for an hour the other day and that used up my allotted permitted time outside......so no second run was available. Some days I do my push ups ( 30 x 4), go for a run, push my weights and hit my punching bag. And that is it, apart from stomach crunches. I know I should go running again in the afternoon but sometimes I just don’t have the mental powers to take the first step out the door....especially if it’s raining hard.

WEIGHTS: I am moving my dumbbells everyday and have also attended out home made gym.

BLOOD PRESSURE...HEART RATE...WEIGHT

MY BP is excellent and my resting Heart Rate sits at 43. My weight is pretty much the same. I have cut out a bit of food but my weight remains constant. TAmami says that I don’t train hard enough and she is probably correct. But with the two hours permitted from tomorrow I can extend my running time and hopefully drops some kilograms.

I also think that once the weather gets a bit warmer it will be easier to shed some fat. Running is the rain has done little for my weight loss journey.

I am using my punching bag everyday. Hopefully my reflexes will sharpen doing this. My left jab is becoming very deadly.

Despite the hardships I will battle on.

The Lockdown in my State continues on in Level 4 Mode. September 13 th is meant to be the day where restrictions are to be eased somewhat. For me I hope I will be allowed to exercise for more than hour a day and also get together with more than one person for a group training run. The idea of races seems to me a bridge too far this year. But you can live in hope I suppose.

RUNNING SO FAR

With only 60 minutes per day it is of course obvious that no decent runs are going to take place. I run about 4 km in the morning and about 6 kms in the afternoon. It’s great to be able to get out of the house but certainly this restriction of one hour of exercise per day pretty much puts an end to anything approaching decent training. I suppose one could hammer one’s self into oblivion with a run to the death 60 minutes but at this stage this is not something I am capable of.

With Sunday remaining in my week I have racked up 10 runs so far this week. I can’t say I have set the world on fire but yesterday my run had some decent hills which I handled vaguely well. A beginning. I just need a target....but what.

I have been having some ok runs in hard conditions. I know heavy rain,strong wind and biting cold is really no excuse. So come what may I run. Today’s run was in 15 degree heat (!) which certainly made life one hell of a lot more enjoyable.

Running in the rain.

Yesterday’s run...came together over the hills for once.

Bike: ok I have to say I hate the exercise bike. I started with 15 minutes and have been trying to add an extra 5 minutes per day.I have been playing the hits of the 60s whilst I ride. But really it’s mind numbing despite rocking on to some rad tunes.

OTHER STUFF

Push ups...crunching....punching ball. I do it all. Push ups are sets of 30 done four times. But if the truth be told I am finding my chest is almost constantly sore. Boxing is great....I am so good against something that does not hit back. Hopefully the speed of my deadly left jab will improve my over all reflexes. Pretty cool font what ?

Using my dumbbells outside these days.

WEIGHT... I have managed to drop 1.5 Kgms. BUT IT HAS BEEN FAR FROM EASY. I GO TO BED HUNGRY AND GET UP HUNGRY. SMALL BREAKFASTS AND SMALL LUNCHES ARE NOT THAT EXCITING. NO MORE DESERT ( actually a small low fat yogurt ) no morning tea and no afternoon tea. For lunch in addition to my low fat biscuits I have a glass of water. I am still too fat but am working on it.

THIS LOCKDOWN WILL END. ITS THERE TO TEST US. EVENTUALLY IT WILL BE OVER AND PEOPLE WILL LOOK BACK ON 2020 ( and the following years ) and however many years it takes to overcome we will sit back and laugh about it , in the same way as we look back these days and laugh at the Black Death.

Under the terms of the Lockdown we are only permitted here in Victoria to exercise for 60 minutes a day. Things are not too good in the State of Victoria.

I have been reasonably good at getting out for a run every morning and then again in the afternoon. So far this week I have managed 11 runs. Took one day off and another day did a solid gym session in the newly renovated home gym. Trying to run a little faster.Really push the last km although I don’t time.Not interested in knowing just how slow I really am.

Weight : I have decided to make a really solid effort to get my weight down. Back to say 69 kilos is the immediate aim. No more morning or afternoon tea and no more supper. Plus have given up coffee.At least for now. So far just shy of a kilo lost which I know is not much but it’s a start.

I have cut the size of my lunch by 25%. I am not very good at this sort of thing and am hungry for a lot of the time. Going to bed hungry is not really my thing but it has to be done if I want to get my weight down.

Couple of Runs with Rob.

Push ups and crunches: I aim for 120 push ups and 200 crunches a day. I don’t always achieve this goal but I always do something. I am also back to using my dumbbells for arm curls. I leave them under the breakfast table so I will have a constant reminder.

This Lockdown is far from an exciting time. Hopefully the restrictions can be eased in the next month and longer exercise time will be permitted. Running for an hour a day is pretty miserable but has to be done to defeat this damned virus.

Tamami is training hard.

As far as exercise is concerned the current rules are for no more than 60 minutes a day and travel no more than 5 km from home.

Added to this State of Disaster we are entering into some bitterly cold weather.

MY RUNNING....

I am pretty much running twice a day.About a dozen runs a week.

I timed my last Km in a couple of runs to get some idea of how fast ( or slow ) I am moving. Without pushing it I am moving at 5-17 pace. Not super great but let me add there is a hill in there.

Had a couple of decent runs width Tamami san which I have enjoyed.

Weather has been cold with a capital COLD.... I know 5,6,7 degrees is not killer cold but I still feel it especially if there is a strong wind blowing or it’s raining.

PUSH UPS, CRUNCHES

I am a bit weak here. I aim for 4 sets of 30 pushups a day and sets of 100 crunches. Sometimes I only do 90 push ups a day.

I have not been in the gym this week.

WEIGHT,BLOOD PRESSURE.....my weight is Lockdown Virus weight...I am up to 71 kilos....I suppose I can really drop the fat when I run long..Ah, but when will that be ? My Blood pressure is excellent so that is at least one good thing.

TRAVEL....well this is off the table that’s for sure. Can not go to the Ang,essayist BeCh house or my Unit in Surfers Paradise. As Ford our lovely Apartment is Tokyo....when shall we ever go again.

No races of course.

You have to think that some day all this will be over...But I suppose someone said the same thing in 1365 about the Black Death !!

It seems my State of Victoria is the worst state in Australia in terms of people testing positive to the virus. Other states have closed their borders to us.

Although many things are closed to me I continue on with my running, daily pushups, stomach crunches and home gym workouts.

I have managed to get back on track with two runs per day. This week I have already run 9 times with Sunday to come. For the morning run it’s just getting myself out the door. No matter how bad I feel I always feel one hell of a lot better in the afternoon. Whilst my first run of the day is often uncomfortable especially if it is raining and/or very cold, my second run is a reasonably fun experience.

I only did it once this week but after running with Tamami I left her and met up with a Robert for some hill sprints. I was pretty woeful and had no chance of matching Robert. Certainly look forward to doing more of these.

I have been going to our Home Gym but today was the first real full session. A great experience. Used everything there as well as doing crunches on the mat. I will try to get into the gym more often from now on.

My weight is up to 70 kilos which is way more than I would like. In fact I have not been under 70 for a week or so. I am eating three meals everyday so I will have to wait till I can do some long runs before I can shed the fat.

My push ups are going well...I now do sets of 30. I try for 4 sets. I combine with sets of 100 crunches...I have no set number but manage about 2 or 3 sets a day. 30 push ups at a time is pretty much my limit atm. I need to do more I know.

SO.... with no races and no trips on the cards it’s a little hard to get super motivated. I plan to just plug on until this virus can be over come.

Stay safe. Wear your mask , wash your hands and stay clear of sick people.

Back in Lockdown. No restaurants, no attending Football Matches,no running races,no travel and the gym is closed. Six weeks and it could easily be longer. Life certainly was not meant to be easy. But we soldier on.

RUNNING: For a few months I was running twice a day. Not particularly long distances but I did make it out the door regardless of how I felt or how the weather was. Both usually bad.

But I have to say I am becoming rather slack. I still run and occasionally with Tamami but generally I find it hard to get motivated with no real goal ahead. The idea of getting up at a stupidly early time in the dark and going running by myself in the rain has never thrilled me. But now I simply don’t do it.

GROUP RUNS

I really enjoy the group runs. I am the slowest but to get out with other runners makes the effort worthwhile. I would be organising more group runs...ah, but no....this Lockdown has put the stoppage on this.

I have been running at my Beach House at Anglesea. But even that simple pleasure has been cruelly ripped from me.

GYM : You had to book your session at my gym. Only 50 minutes and limited numbers allowed. I have been going twice every day. 9 AM and 4 PM...except on Sundays when the gym remains closed. It’s warm and there is music....very nice....

But no more. Closed. But....but I have an alternative...

HOME GYM: After about a zillon years and almost beyond human understanding the garage at number 49 has been cleaned of massive amounts of Stuff and a home gym created. Well done Rob and Megan and Janet.

This Lock down is hard for all. Normally at this time of year I would be at my Unit in Surfers Paradise. Sun,sea,sand,surf......ah difficult times.

Be safe...wear a mask.

These days I am finding that if I run early in the morning and then run in the afternoon,I inevitably feel a great deal better in my second daily run.

This week I have been trying to get myself out the door first thing in the morning. I don’t have the will power to get out every morning but this week I started well with two decent outings on Monday and Tuesday. However although I ran reasonably well for me the temperatures were 5 and 2 degrees.

Both my fingers and toes really suffered resulting in swelling and pain. I did try some old bike gloves on the Tuesday run but the tops of my fingers were left bare and if anything that made it worse.

ANGLSEA

Down to the beach house at Anglesea on the Great ocean road for a couple of nights this week. First run was a real shocker and I felt weak on the hills despite TAmami urging me on. Some days good some days you feel like you are about to die. Well I do. Hard to breath and legs felt heavy. The hills were very steep and they would be great for training. Unfortunately I only staggered up looking no doubt like some asthmatic having a heart attack.

Next days run.....yes, it was better but also shorter. Tried to run the last hill a bit faster to make up for the day before’s pathetic effort. It didn’t .

Saturday.....decent enough run with Mi Chan. Started with some decent hills and finished strongly. Felt pretty average upon finishing but I suppose that’s becoming par for the course.

Today’s run again proved hard. Early hills and I felt terrible. I wanted to do a little more so pushed myself. Towards the half way point I had convinced myself I would have a rest at the turn. However I over came this moment of weakness. Legs again felt heavy and my toes were so numb I could really feel them. Generally an awful run. I tell myself that my morning run is often poor...however that does not make me feel any better when I am actually out there.

PUSH UPS....these are going well. I have changed program slightly and sets of 25. Four sets equally 100 per day.

BLOOD PRESSURE....yesterday 133/87...today 128/89. Aim is to go 140 or better.

Weight.....don’t talk to me about....however today down a little. Certainly not where I want to be....but I can work on that. I am still eating three meals a day so can’t really expect much of an improvement at this stage.

I will try harder....run more....laugh at the cold.

It’s true that restrictions have eased somewhat in Victoria. Now runners can gather in groups of ten. But...but still no races....no Marathons to aim for...no Cross Country Season...no Park Runs....aaahhhh....and the Gyms are still closed. I am not one to complain but....if I was, I would complain.

AS TO MY OWN RUNNING....well it’s not exactly booming. I was for a while running twice a day every day of the week...say 13,14 or 15 times a week. Then I slipped back to mostly running twice a day. Now...now...now I have to say I occasionally run twice a day. This week I have run 9 times with Sunday afternoon yet to come. I can see my will power draining away.

I manage to push myself out the door every morning. But perhaps it’s just a perverse pleasure to be able to say i ran in the cold early morning dark when it was raining hard and others were warm and snug in bed. I still run a few hills in the early morning dawn but I don’t really sprint up them....haha...to say the least. If I am running into the wind or the rain is hitting me in the face I must look rather odd trying to push myself a suburban hill.

I run occasionally with wife Tamami....helps a lot as I am mentally very weak at the moment and just dread going out alone,especially if it is cold and dark and it’s raining hard.

Group run...loads of hills and banana bread for afters.

Blood pressure is still very good but my latest fit bit does not give me heart rates so I don’t know how I am going there. Likewise my weight is around 69 kilos but I don’t concern myself too much.

I am doing 700 push ups a week...sounds good doesn’t it but really it’s not much. I do 100 a day in sets of 20. No big deal. Sometimes if I do them really fast I feel kind of dizzy but that probably means little. Bring back the gym I say.

The battle continues.

We still have restrictions here in Victoria but we can at last gather in groups of up to 10. ( Keeping up the Social distancing and washing our hands of course).In the absence of Park Runs I have started a running group who meet at 10 AM on a Saturday morning. This Saturday will be run number two. Coffee served from the car boot on finishing.

My own running is just staggering along with no particular aim in mind. I pretty much run twice a day every day. Sounds ok but really apart from going out early in the morning when it’s cold and dark or running in the rain the whole exercise is not too taxing. I certainly don’t have any long runs at this stage.

I have had the occasional run with Rob and Tamami which is nice. Both running well whilst I just kind of tag along. Of course if it is raining hard I find myself alone.

In the mornings I run about 4 km which whilst short does have some solid hills. I used to do my early morning running on the Golf Course. But now of course with the restrictions lifted to some extent golfers are back cluttering up the course.

Here is a painting of the Golf Course when the rain is coming down.

Speaking of golf I did go out on Monday morning ( missing my first run of the day I point out) and play with a couple of friends and Tamami. Only 9 holes which is my absolute limit. I am far from being a natural although I did have a chance to Birdie the last hole ( par 3) but missed. I have never got a birdie...well I have only played about ten times in my life. What I enjoy most in golf is a relaxing social cup of coffee or two after finishing ( coupled with a chat about my running with friends).....But...but cafe is still closed. Aaahh life was not meant to be easy.

I have a Shark golfing hat. Wearing that is as much fun or more than clonking the ball around the soggy greenery.

My blood pressure is now perfect so no hassle there. My Resting Heart Rate was 42 but then my Fitbit wrist monitor died....so no HR figures. As to my weight I have pretty much given up. I hope to get to 67kilos or less but am not there now....but that will come.

I think I am getting better running wise.I am not worrying so much about falling although that is still in the back of my mind somewhere. If only there was a race target I could direct my energies towards. But for now I just plonk around the streets.

I am still doing my 100 push ups a day. No real stress. Something to do I suppose.....ah, when...when are the gyms to reopen ?