NO LOVE HANDLES ALLOWED!

'It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.' Theodore Roosevelt 23 April 1910

Thursday, 14 July 2011

16 Days and Counting



It's now 16 days since I sustained my knee injury and I am still unable to walk properly. The physio is convinced I have damaged my hamstring at the knee end but the only way to confirm this would be invasive surgery that I am, at the moment, unwilling to put myself through. Mobility is restricted and the joint is very sensitive to any twisting; I have a thorough stretch and flex routine that really helps but it only takes a few minutes for the severe stiffness to return. It is very frustrating and I have cancelled all my remaining events for 2011.

Looking ahead, this weekend will see me dust off the turbo trainer to start my rehabilitation. Easy cycling, walking, squats, stretch and flex are the order of the day for the foreseeable future. Until I can do this without pain then there is nothing else on the agenda. Fingers crossed that things start to improve soon because this is beginning to really get me down.

But there is the Tour de France to cheer me up. I have been a fan of Mark Cavendish for many years but this year he seems to have taken it to another level; always recognising the support from his team, recognising when he hasn't got it quite right, acknowledging when his rivals have performed really well, being genuinely upset when his mates get injured and have to withdraw. Yes, I really am a Cav fan. The race for GC is absolutely fascinating, with no-one having made a play for the No 1 spot. I reckon Frank Schleck or Cadel Evans will be No 1 come the finish in Paris, after Cav has, once again, led them home of course!

And finally, Mrs T and I were back in Yorkshire on Tuesday for our daughters Junior School Prize Giving and to bring her home for the Summer Holiday. I am delighted to say that our daughter collected the following awards: Best Violinist, Academic of the Year (Year 5), Star of the Year (Year 5), Star of the year (Junior School). To say we are proud parents is probably the understatement of the year - we are glowing!

:-)

4 comments:

Cavegirl said...

Well done daughter! Again, yawn, yawn LOL! Enjoy.

Knee - I wouldn't be squatting ... I think this may be a case where swimming would be very useful to keep up the aerobic side of things? Use a pull buoy, paddles and get a good upper body workout without involving the legs (not that you involved the legs swimming without an injury!).

TdF - watched from the base of Tourmalet yesterday, my first stage this year - my money's on Cadel, Frank S, but watch for Basso too. Was a fascinating last 10 k with attack and counter attack, poor Geriant though, the almost man!

Aubisque next. my favourite climb of the Pyrenean Raid just hope they go up it the right way, unlike yesterday's Tourmalet!

Daz Sharpe said...

Sorry to hear about the knee probs mate, hope it fixes soon. Well done to your daughter as well on some outstanding achievements.

Sags said...

Guess your young'un falls into the skip a generation inheritence . . . . . . 8-)

Cavegirl said...

That made me snigger Sags!