Run, Forest, run!

Last post was back in August, right before I went off for my vacation. A lot of things happened in the between time and I’ll try to give you a short report about the recent events.

The vacation itself was for one week only and I tried to used it to focus a lot on sports and improving certain disciplines – running, for instance. Back in the days of August I was still suffering from some minor injuries in my right foot, mainly fibre related, that were causing some trouble to correctly balance my right foot while running. As a result of this, I had some serious problem to normally walk after a running session, because I wasn’t able put my foot on the ground without any pain. Pain also occurs while resting the foot.

Whatever the case, I continued to run no matter what kind of injury I was suffering from and it became better and better. I ran around 45 km on my vacation and it seemed to have some sort of curing effect. I was very happy about these circumstances and I was now able to take the whole running thing to a new level.

I still have to admit, I’ve chosen running, because it was one of these kind of sports that I liked least and it would take a lot of willpower to get through this. And another aspect, I didn’t want to leave my running team for the relay run high and dry.

A couple of training sessions were left until the big day – the relay run. I finished them smoothly and without any interruptions or any other disturbances. The day of the relay run itself was very exciting, because I’ve never been to such an event as an athlete. Actually, I’ve never been to any sports event.

I couldn’t ever image that there will be so many runners in my hometown appearing on such an event. I was so excited that very day, that I even forgot where the meeting point for my team was, but we finally found each other and we were ready to run. I was the third of five runners in my mixed team. The whole starting area was very crowded and I did not realize how this whole this would work in the first place, but after a couple of minutes and after the first round was finished I’ve finally found out, how this relay run does work.

I’ve finished my lap in 11:59 min for a 2.5 km distance, which was more than two minutes faster than the time I was running at the very beginning of my training. I was happy with this result and it’s something I can build on. I’m not a Usain Bolt but on the other hand even no fatty with a short breath after 100 meters of running.

After this run I’ve tasted blood for these kind of events and I instantly registered for another in mid October, which I will tell you about in my next post.

Vacation is near! Vacation is near! Vacation is near!

My vacation is just around the corner and I’m so excited about it, you can’t even imagine. I’m not traveling far away, I’m just going to stay in the forest, in a bungalow, near a lake.

My plans for this week are mainly – relax, relax, relax and relax. And I’ve also got some photography “projects” that I want to try out. I’m planning to do some time lapse capturing with my good old Canon EOS 500D. Aside from this I want to spent my free time to get a little bit more into strobe photography, since I haven’t really found the time to dig deeper into this, since I’ve got my new Yongnuo flash lights.

I’m also sticking to my sports activities. I want to do some cross running through the forest, as well as some swimming in the three lakes nearby and finally do some trips with my new bicycle. Swimming’s going to be the most interesting one because I’ve got this sort of phobia in lakes that usually makes me swim like a pregnant duck and not like a technically oriented swimmer. I want to work on my technique and want to conquer my fears of the unknown depths of the lake.

I’m sure that there’s no monstrosity on the ground, but I’ve to teach this my blooming fantasy.

Behind the mask

I’m wearing a large mask these days. I’m not quite sure if this mask hits its purpose, but I’m stuck. Since I got away from my old company, where I was hired for almost five years and wanted to explore new territories I actually feel like walking in circles. It is even more frightening that I feel as if I walk backwards.

It’s hard to describe. After all these years I finally made it to the company I always wanted to work for and I feel so unsatisfied. I felt unsatisfied in my previous company as well, but one of the main reasons there was the commuting issue which has exhausted me.

The problem keeps growing an growing. Every time I start something new which excites me for a while I suddenly feel bored, in certain situation annoyed, and I want to leave it. The long breath I need to keep connected with something is gone. And it’s not even the long breath, I currently question everything and everything bothers me.

As you may know, I’m back into sports. After a long period with several small and bigger issues that did not allow me to train how I would actually have liked it I’m back to gym and the natatorium. I’m pretty good and fast when it comes to water sports but in the gym I’ve to struggle a longer period of time to get back to the point where I want to be.

But even there do I suffer the problem that it does not really catch me and it feels more like an automated process and not a thing that people usually do to have fun and enjoy. That’s in fact the core problem – the fun is gone.

With this core problem right in front of my eyes I’m watching out for a solution that is not to be seen yet. I’m tired of this and I really want it to go away.

SE 3.0 – Interim Report – #10

My personal challenge, formerly known as “Straight Edge 3.0” was interrupted by a back injury. Well, injury may be the wrong word, it’s more an issue. The cause for my back issue was found after several sessions at the physiotherapy. It’s my bloody furniture at work.

I demanded new furniture that will fit much better to my height and habits how I usually sit at a desk. Nothing happened actually and the pain in my back gets a chronic characteristic. I personally think, that this is not fun anymore, that I’ve to suffer by sitting at a fucking desk that is much too low for me and by sitting on a chair that was already outdated twenty sodding years ago. Trust me, I’m really furious about this.

A few weeks ago, it started getting serious by Thursdays or Fridays but these days I already suffer on Mondays. I’m not quite sure for how long I’m willing to take this. I never had problems with my back, because of one simple fact, I always cared about it. And by that I do not mean, that I always trained it or made special exercises. I just mean, I simply cared in daily life and especially at work, which is the major part of my day. The ignorance I currently experience is far beyond any description.

Looking back at the first weeks of SE 3.0 I made a lot of progress. My endurance increased, I lost weight and I was able to improve my strength as well. All this progress is now lost. I’m still able to run on the treadmill for quite some time and I also do not drown in the pool after swimming a couple of lanes, but it could have been much, much better than it is right now.

I’m a little bit confused about what I should do with this whole situation. I want to stick to my project, without a single glimpse of a doubt. And I’m not willing to give the whole thing up, just because my furniture is not correct. My therapist said it very clear, ‘If it hurts and your employer doesn’t change anything, then you’ve to quit your job’

That sounds rude and pretty cynical, but she’s right to a certain degree.

You might have noticed it, swimming is now included in my sports scheduled. One time a week me and a friend of mine make it to the natatorium and swim a few lanes. Well, something about 1,500m or so. Currently it’s more about endurance than technique. But we’ll change the training focus in the future.

I cut down the gym sessions to one or two per week and I plan to include one mountain bike session per week or every second week, depending on the spare time I’ve got left for this. Due to the fact that I’m “slightly handicapped” I avoid doing any sessions at the gym that only consist of strength training. I’ve to see how it all develops in the future and if everything is getting better.