On the run again - yahoo!

It's happened.
Yesterday I ran and oh, how good it felt.
We were on the Te Henui walkway and heading back down a gentle slope, when I felt the urge to stride out a little.
"I'll run to that seat," I said out loud to Warren, my husband.
But it was so easy I kept going.
And going.
I ran for about five minutes, which may not seem a lot, but it's just the start.
In fact, that's how everything starts - just one step, one stride, one rotation, one stroke at a time.
If I do five minutes of running during each long walk this week, I can up it to 10 next week, then 15, 20, 25, 30... you get the idea.
However, I won't be pounding the walkway because that's concrete, so it'll be streets and Pukekura Park. Even writing this, I feel the desire to get out there again.
When I was younger, running and skateboarding were the two activities that made me feel like I was flying.
For years now I have had vivid dreams of skateboarding and flying.
I also had these nightmares about not being able to run away from something or someone chasing me. My legs simply wouldn't work.
Other times I'd have horrible dreams about being in a race on sand and not being able to lift my feet.
It's only five minutes, I know, but my living nightmare is over.
A few hours later I went for a swim, but only managed 30 lengths. Not because I was tired, but because I ran out of time!
Several years ago a dear friend died of breast cancer and this weekend would have been her 50th birthday. We had dinner with her parents and friends, lit 50 candles all over the garden and remembered this beautiful woman with love and tears.
She's one of the reasons why I've got a fundraising page for breast cancer research as part of my misison to complete the Tri-Woman race on January 29.
I always wanted to be running that race and now I think I will be. My aim was to be down to 100kg by the end of November and I'm on target. I also wanted to be running by then and I am - just.
As this journey has continued I have realised that more and more, my aim is to be an athlete again.
Another friend of mine says she's having a midlife crisis, so has returned to her love of speed - the fast pace not the drug.
When I was young, sport was everything.
So yes, triathlon training is the result of my own midlife crisis.
One that also aims for balance in work and life.
On Friday and Saturday I was totally out of balance.
After a lovely lunch with a friend (a healthy salad), I felt out of kilter and realised it was my ears.
When I got home, I put my head down and the world tilted - confirmation that swimming without earplugs for a week, days of walking in strong winds and nights of being plugged into audio books had affected my inner ear. I've had it before you see.
That's why Friday and Saturday ended up as rest days - hence no blogs.
My big aim this week is to get on my bike!

Yesterday, I:
Walked for 1 hour 40
Ran for 5 minutes
Swam 30 lengths of 50m pool
This wasn't a wonderful food day - I grazed, mostly wisely, and then ate home-made sponge with cream at a potluck dinner. Mmm it was good though.
Drank lots of water
Drank 3 cups of coffee
Drank 1 cup of tea

Exercise, friendship and hugs chase blues away

By Virginia Winder
Swimming didn't hurt my left shoulder tonight.
Did my 60 lengths, slowly, but concentrated on the style points that Ayla Dunlop-Barrett gave me and it wasn't painful.
She says that when you swim with a straight arm you put a lot of pressure on your rotator cuff, which is group of muscles and tendons that stabilize the shoulder.
I've got friends with stuffed cuffs, but it's possible she's saved mine in time.
Also, the exercises I do at the gym for my lower arms now make sense. "This is good for swimming," the instructor told me.
Now that I bend my arms after reaching out in front, I can feel those muscles working. Goodness knows what I was doing before.
Exercise is a great tonic if you're feeling down.
On Thursday and yesterday, I felt those niggles of depression start to worm their way into my gut and mind.
To be honest, yesterday was a terrible day. Faced some shorter deadlines because of Labour Weekend, slept badly, had stress chest pains again, and had to sleep for 30 minutes between writing stories.
Never got out of my PJs all day, just wrote, slept, wrote slept and felt myself spiralling down. Still felt yucky today, but after getting random hugs from my beautiful husband and talking to an understanding workmate and then a dear friend, I felt better.
Then I had the energy to knock off another story, spend time in the artroom, care for my son who's been feeling sick and then go for a swim.
After my session in the pool the endorphins kicked in and I feel great now.
This has made me rethink the rest day idea. Perhaps, for my own sanity, I need to do something physical, but it could be something a bit more low-key, like a stroll with my husband or a friend (and the dog of course!).
When I was a teenager and feeling a bit blue, my mother would send me off for a run and I'd always come back my bright, chirpy self.
Mum was wise, wasn't she?

Yesterday, I:
Worked for 12 hours
Did no exercise
Slept off and on during the day
Drank 3 cups of coffee
Drank hardly any water
Ate extremely well thanks to my attentive husband

Today, I:
Worked for 6 hours
Swam 60 lengths of a 25-metre pool
Slept deeply for 10 hours
Dranks 3 cups of coffee
Drank some water
Ate fantastically well, including lots of salmon and seasonal veggies

Meadsville, war and more - a journey

By Virginia Winder
Today has been about love and war, totara and Pinetree, nerves and shocks.
Drove to Cambridge for a nerve-conductor test to find out why some of the fingers on my left hand and my forearm are numb.
On the way Warren and I listened to Darkness, Be My Friend, the fourth book of the Tomorrow When The War Began series by John Marsden. It's gripping, scary and too possible. Made me look out at the landscape and imagine where we could hide from enemy invaders.
Had the tests and I can confirm that I don't have carpal tunnel syndrome. That's all I will say on this matter, except I found the shocks given to stimulate my nerves quite fascinating in an "I'm not scared of that electric fence" sort of way.
Afterwards, we met an old school friend for lunch and shared feelings, ideas and laughter. We also caught up on news of mutual friends and I left feeling reconnected and happy.
Driving home we noticed something pretty special at the crash site in Otorohanga - a second golden totara has been planted next the one we dug in for Dad. The pohutukawa we put in for Mum didn't survive, so it's wonderful to see a second totara placed there. Brought tears to my eyes.
Also heading home, we couldn't resist the tantalising signs heading into Te Kuiti or should I say Meadsville. I'm not certain what Colin and Stan Meads think, but some bright spark has come up with the idea of turning the whole town into a shrine for the Meads men.
Have to say though, that it's Sir Colin who's more in the spotlight.
Businesses around the town have changed their names to reflect the Meads mania and there's an outdoor gallery featuring extremely large pictures of the rugby legend/s. Beneath these are, fittingly, mass plantings of baby pinetrees.
It's wonderful to see an entire town get behind a living treasure for the Rugby World Cup. Well, I presume it's just for the Cup or has there been a minor coup in Te Kuiti?
As for exercise, spent most of the day in the car (or perusing Meadsville), so came home and went for a quick trot around the block.
Also returned to bad news about a friend's health, which made me realise that in the scheme of things my numbness is nothing. When someone is sick, you need to focus on their needs, send endless love and positivity, and not let your own grief be a burden on them. Damn hard sometimes, but not as tough as facing a life-threatening disease.
When you finish reading this, go and give someone you love a big hug.
Off you go...

Today, I:
Worked for 5.5 hours (OK, so I got up at 2am)
Walked around the block (in the dark and rain)
Connected with an old and dear friend
Shared positive thoughts with another friend
Ate a healthy breakfast, a bitsy lunch in two parts (mostly salad) and a delicious smoked salmon salad for dinner
Drank way too much coffee (5 cups!)