Sunday 15 September 2013

September 2013 - Man (and woman) vs. Hedge part 2

So this weekend I wanted to a) finish off the conifer hedge and b) see if last weeks physical prowess was just a one-off. I can happily report that it was not a one-off....

I finished off the side of the hedge yesterday whilst Deb started on the top. We did quite a lot yesterday and left a bit to do for today. We were in a rush to finish off the hedge today because the weather forecast suggested that rain was coming in and we wouldn't have too long, bearing in mind we do like our lie-in's on a Sunday.

I don't think we have breezed through a hedge-cut this easily for years, from my point of view the physical side of shearing through about 4 rubbish bags of conifer hedge was just so much easier than it has been in previous years. It makes me wonder just how much better I am really feeling now, it isn't really something scientific you could measure, it is all very subjective. But my arms just didn't tire like the did before. Someone said to me recently "don't overdo it", but in a way I kind of want to overdo it, I want to see how long my body takes before it is 'overdone'. I know that is a silly thing to say, but it is kind of how I feel.

As I think I have said before, I have taken to early morning walking before I start work, I have come to really quite enjoy my strolling around the area. Although strolling has become more "how fast can I go according to the App on my phone". The App in question is RunKeeper and when I started my early morning walks I was doing about a 19 to 20 minute mile. I hit a 13:57 minute average on Friday and duly got an email from RunKeeper telling me I had set my personal best for walking speed. A previous RunKeeper email had told me I did just over 25 miles during August, I don't think I have ever walked so far. I'm pretty chuffed with myself to be honest, particularly when I read back through this blog and see how poor my health was not so long ago. It makes you want to appreciated feeling good, we don't do it enough and take 'good' for granted.

The other thing is I am finally back driving. I rang the DVLA and their advice was "follow the advice of your doctor". So I emailed Dr. Kar at the QA Hospital who had seen my positive eye field test results and basically said "go for it". So I am now driving my car for the first time in over 3 months, but I still await the official letter from the DVLA once their medical experts have made a judgement. I wish I had rung them a few weeks earlier to receive this advice, I had obviously misunderstood the position and was waiting for their letter, it seems I could have just asked my doctor. Never mind, it is great to be back behind the wheel.

So I am well happy to be feeling fitter and be driving. More positive news to finish off this week, although as I sit here it is raining and looking distinctly like the summer has ended. A shame really, the best summer we've had in ages I've spent quite a lot of it feeling rough....now I'm feeling better it's raining. But you know what, I don't care :-)

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