A couple of weeks into 2020, so it is a bit overdue that I review last year.
One thing that stands out is just how high I seem to have set my personal bar for "success",
Last year, I turned 55, and "only" jogged several 13 milers ("half marathon" distance), and "only" rode one 100 mile (160 km) and one 125 mile (200 km) distance.
Taking a step back, and viewing this from the perspective of my workmates, of the 120-ish of us, I am the ONLY one to have cycled anywhere near those distances in one day!
A few of my work colleagues are occasional runners, including a little guy that runs 3 hr marathons (!), even though he is in his late 50's, so my running performance at work is merely "better than most" rather than "exceptional"!
Twenty years ago, I couldn't jog 5 miles. Although I used to run a bit back in the early 90s, After 1998 I was doing heavy overtime at work, and didn't really have time for much else. Sleep Eat Work Repeat. Often seven days a week.
By 2001, I was on permanent night shift, and that alone screws up many folks in the long term.
Then in 2009, I was a bit ill (week in hospital, 3 months off work) - at 44, it was time for some lifestyle changes ;-)
Then more recently, if I cast my mind back a few years, I remember how pleased I was that I could run 5 km (just over 3 miles). How pleased I was the first time I ran 13 miles. How pleased I was when I cycled from London to Brighton with a dozen or so of my work colleagues (it is 56 miles / 89 km). How pleased I was when I cycled from home to Oxford for the first time (only about 23 miles / 38 km each way).
I remember how I couldn't stand up after I rode my "Randonneur" 200 km (125 miles) a few years ago - actual mileage was 232 km/145 miles!
So 2019 had a slower 200 km/125 mile ride. But better food :-) And with the short cranks I have been using for a while (I swapped down from 175 mm cranks a while back to 145 mm cranks, and my knees are very glad of it).
I suppose that I should give myself a "pat on the back" as in many ways I have done very well, especially for someone who is 55.
But I get these lingering moments of self-doubt.
The same obsession that allows me to ride 100+ miles also nags that I am a failure every week when I don't.
Guess I need to stop "thinking" so much, and go out on one of those rides where I get cold, get lost, and still come back with a big grin on my face ;-)
Because it isn't about the "numbers", it is about the fun!
One thing that stands out is just how high I seem to have set my personal bar for "success",
Last year, I turned 55, and "only" jogged several 13 milers ("half marathon" distance), and "only" rode one 100 mile (160 km) and one 125 mile (200 km) distance.
Taking a step back, and viewing this from the perspective of my workmates, of the 120-ish of us, I am the ONLY one to have cycled anywhere near those distances in one day!
A few of my work colleagues are occasional runners, including a little guy that runs 3 hr marathons (!), even though he is in his late 50's, so my running performance at work is merely "better than most" rather than "exceptional"!
Twenty years ago, I couldn't jog 5 miles. Although I used to run a bit back in the early 90s, After 1998 I was doing heavy overtime at work, and didn't really have time for much else. Sleep Eat Work Repeat. Often seven days a week.
By 2001, I was on permanent night shift, and that alone screws up many folks in the long term.
Then in 2009, I was a bit ill (week in hospital, 3 months off work) - at 44, it was time for some lifestyle changes ;-)
Then more recently, if I cast my mind back a few years, I remember how pleased I was that I could run 5 km (just over 3 miles). How pleased I was the first time I ran 13 miles. How pleased I was when I cycled from London to Brighton with a dozen or so of my work colleagues (it is 56 miles / 89 km). How pleased I was when I cycled from home to Oxford for the first time (only about 23 miles / 38 km each way).
I remember how I couldn't stand up after I rode my "Randonneur" 200 km (125 miles) a few years ago - actual mileage was 232 km/145 miles!
So 2019 had a slower 200 km/125 mile ride. But better food :-) And with the short cranks I have been using for a while (I swapped down from 175 mm cranks a while back to 145 mm cranks, and my knees are very glad of it).
I suppose that I should give myself a "pat on the back" as in many ways I have done very well, especially for someone who is 55.
But I get these lingering moments of self-doubt.
The same obsession that allows me to ride 100+ miles also nags that I am a failure every week when I don't.
Guess I need to stop "thinking" so much, and go out on one of those rides where I get cold, get lost, and still come back with a big grin on my face ;-)
Because it isn't about the "numbers", it is about the fun!
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