Stout is Good for You!

I am mid way through week 6 of my program and must admit that I am feeling rather tired. Not only do my legs feel weary (no aches or strains, thankfully) but today I just want to sleep. That is even after today’s, later than normal, alarm call at 6:30!

Obviously, the combination of early mornings, aerobic exercise and not going to bed early enough is catching up! Oh! And I suppose spending Sunday evening at Pom’s sinking a number of pints and enjoying a big roast didn’t really help! Nevermind, it was good to sit, chat and drink with friends. Considering Pom’s has the last keg of the seasonal Three Boys Oyster Stout, it would have been rude not to have had a couple of pints before it runs out.

I think I will be having a few more pints over the weekend as I will be part of the support crew for Chantal’s Spring Challenge team, up in Nelson Lakes. The crew and Chantal’s team will be exactly the same people that I spent Sunday afternoon with! Obviously, my training will take a backseat this weekend as Chantal’s event will be the focus but I will be aiming to squeeze a run and bike ride in. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to fit in a paddle though.

Practising a ferry glide on the Waimakiriri River

On a final note though, I do need to make sure that I get enough sleep and listen to my body so that I don’t become run down and susceptible to injury and illness. Alternatively, I could keep drinking stout as I'm sure my mum said that she used to drink Mackeson's Stout to keep her strength up when pregnant!

How to Cook a Frog?

The good weather continues and so does the training. Over the last four weeks, the duration of each training session has increased gradually. The focus has been and continues to be building up strength and endurance.

Last week, time spent training totalled 10 ½ hours and this week’s total will be 12 ¼ hours. Next week (week 6), my total training time reaches 12 ½ hours before dropping down to 6 ½ in week 8. Why the drop? The body needs a chance to rest and recover (or in my case catch up with some gardening!) so it is important to have easier weeks. Week 8 will bring stage one of my program to a close. I’m not sure how Stage 2 looks as I have not received it yet.

So can I feel my strength and endurance building up? Stopping to think about it right now, the answer has to be yes. In just one month, regular kayaking and cycling has improved my endurance (and hopefully technique). I reckon that because the progress is gradual, one does not notice it. It’s not really an ‘Eureka’ moment but more of a ‘cooking a frog in slowly heated water’ process. Strangely enough though, cycling 2 ½ km to work seems harder than going out for a 40 km ride in the hills! Any ideas why?

The last couple of weekends have been dry, sunny and warm. In particular, the last one was gorgeous and was certainly not a weekend for being indoors. Ange and I had a really enjoyable paddle, on the Waimakariri on Sunday afternoon. To lengthen the trip, we put the kayaks in 4 or 5 km further upstream. The river had a good strong flow (Spring is here so this is partly due to snow melt from the mountains) so I was slightly concerned that Ange may have a few moments! As it turned out she was fine and enjoyed the stronger flows, choppy water and wave chains. It was so much more enjoyable than my experience out on the estuary during low tide, the weekend before. Having to climb out of the kayak to drag it over mud bars to a deeper channel is not fun when you are almost knee deep in stinking mud!

Here’s to another good weather of weather.

Springing Into Action (sorry!)

Springtime has arrived! Today, is the 1st September and that means the season of fresh growth and new beginnings is here. As I sit, looking out of my office window, the sun is shining, daffs’ cheery faces are beaming, blossom is blooming and the birds are singing. (Well, I presume they are as all I can actually hear is traffic and The Jets on the radio!)

The last couple of weeks have been unseasonably mild. Luckily, we missed the coldest and rainiest spell whilst being away for a month seeing family and friends. Anyway, last Saturday was a stunning day as there was just a light wind and the sun was shining. It was one of those days to be out in the great outdoors. In my case running in the Port Hills and paddling on the estuary.

Running up the Rapaki Track to Mt Vernon was my first hill run for a few months so a minutes’ breather at the top was required! Pausing to look down at Christchurch, the shimmering estuary and the snowcapped Southern Alps in the distance, I felt lucky to be living in Christchurch. There can’t be too many places that have what we have on our doorstep!

Running back down to the car park I was looking forward to my paddle on the estuary. It was the first time I had been out there. Normally, I paddle on the Avon’s millpond surface or on the ‘moving water’ of the Waimakiriri. However, the Waimak, due to the heavy rain in its headwaters, had been in flood during the week and was still running high at 300-400 cumecs at the weekend. In fact, I read in the paper that some kayaking wally had already been washed out to sea from the Waimak’s mouth (he survived). I didn’t want to make the headlines either so the estuary it was! I really enjoyed my paddle on the estuary and felt that my kayak (a Barracuda Beachcomber) was in its element and so it should be …it is a sea kayak! The only downside was that I had to hose down the kayak and rinse out my PFD, once I got home. Not because I had a ‘swim’ but because I want my equipment to last. Salt water and all that…

I hope next weekend’s weather is just as good!