Late Nights Watch The Tour de France
The late nights are the order of the day again as the Tour de France once again swings into action. There’s even more reason to get excited as an Australian this year with 12 Australians starting the race. Of course the Orica Greenedge team is getting stronger and, after 5 stages, we are on top of the world with Simon Gerrans winning stage 3 and then the Teams Time Trial victory in Stage 4 giving him the yellow jersey.
Anyway, this looks as though it’s going to be a very exciting Tour and I’m going to settle in again for the duration. Sleep is going to be the number two priority. That being said, I did nod off last night with around 60km to go and woke up with 30km to go. Decided that Cavendish was likely going to be the winner and took myself off to bed.
It was a good assumption to make.
Running Every Day Progress
2013 has been the year in which I have participated in a little challenge of attempting to run every day for a year. We've immaginatively titled the challenge the REDFAY challenge which stands for Run Every Day For A Year. I actually started the challenge unofficially midway through December 2012 but am really only counting the calendar year for this year.
It’s the halfway point of the year and that means it’s the halfway point of the challenge. I thought it would be a good idea to check in with a few thoughts about my experience.
Firstly, a few stats about the year so far.
Today is day 185 and I have indeed run every day bringing the tally to…185 runs.
Total number of kilometres covered is 1,807 km which averages out to around 9.77km per run. I’m hoping to get the average up to an even 10km per day to make it 3,650km for the year.
Now for my thoughts about the year of running so far. I am absolutely amazed at how strong my body feels. I went into this challenge fully expecting it to be a massive drag on my health. The most number of days I had run before doing this was around 7 days in a row. The idea that I could run 185 days in succession, be injury free and not feel completely worn down seemed like an unrealistic fantasy at the start of the year.
I’m still looking forward to my run every day, my body feels far stronger rather than weaker and I’m actually enjoying the experience.
I’m logging my runs on Strava.com as proof that I am actually getting out every day. Actually, the fact that I am using a GPS watch (Garmin 610) certainly enhances the experience. Tracking exactly how many kilometres I’m running, being aware of my running pace and plotting the courses online has kept it fresh and given me goals to try and achieve as the year has gone by.
I’m running quicker than I have for the past 10 years, nearly down to 4 minute k’s again.
Good News!
Beer drinkers of the world...rejoice!
It’s not every day that you read news to really warm the heart but today was the day that many a beer drinker is going to appreciate. The idea that drinking a beer a day can improve the health of your heart prompts me to hope that there is more funding for further research.
Apparently, scientists have figured out that blood flow to the heart improved within a couple of hours after drinking two-thirds of a pint. The better new to this is that the effect was far better than if you were to drink a non-alcoholic equivalent.
The study was done at Harokopio University in Athens. Good on them for their hard work and commitment to a worthy cause. The full story can be read at: http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health-fitness/beer-could-improve-your-heart-health/story-fneuzkvr-1226674119877
