Jarric

You absolutely shouldn't feel any shame at your performance. Consistency is 90% of the battle with running, just keep hitting those runs on your day off Glad to hear you've finally got a day off btw, an 8 day streak sounds tough.

Thank you! To be fair you've been on holiday, and I've been sat at home, so it'd be worrying if I wasn't updating more than you! I'm glad things sound chill. They don't feel very chill at the moment, I always feel like there's a million things I need to do. I prefer your perspective though; maybe I'm not as busy as I think I am. Well you did tell me not to fall over

Looks like an amazing trip! Glad to see you're getting your pullups in out there too

Week 2 Roundup Running: 3/4 Hangboarding: 0/2 Splitting: 1/1 Rolling: 2/3 Brushing: 7/7 Drawing: 4/4 Running last week was good. I should have done my last run after our D&D game on Sunday, but instead I decided to do some game prep and got sucked down a rabbit hole of planning meta-plot stuff for 2 hours. So that was fun, but really I should have run and found another time to do it. Hangboarding wasn't done because my fingers were hurting most of the week - I think it'll take me a while to get accustomed to bouldering again - and also because of my coughing fit on Friday. Split stretches were done Monday, so that was an easy win. Foam rolling should have been an easy win, but I just didn't get to it. This week I'm focusing on the idea that if I'm in front of the TV I should either be drawing or stretching Brushing was spot on, as was drawing. And over the weekend I also finished my avatar for Urah (in the style of the Order of the Stick comics): WW's asked me to do an avatar for her character next . * * * The weekend was really good. On Saturday I got my long run in (about 15.5 miles in the end), and then had D&D run by @jonfirestar with @Mr_Willes, @Red1263 and @WhiteGhost. We killed a troll, took on a quest to collect a unicorn from the underdark, and fought some undead. For a better appraisal of that game see WhiteGhost's thread. On Sunday I went bouldering, and had a good time hitting some fairly hard climbs (by my standard). In the afternoon I ran my D&D game, which started with the party fighting a flameskull and some zombies. Once they had finished that off and taken a rest to recover from the battle I got to reveal the best thing about flameskulls - they regenerate every hour. So then they got to fight the thing all over again *evil laugh*. They've now locked the remains of the skull in a furnace for the time being ...we'll see how long that holds *extra evil laugh* * * * So far so good this week. I got a few double unders in sets of singles at Crossfit yesterday, and I got to do some handwalking practice today. Teeth brushing and drawing is on point, and I've done my split stretches already and a foam rolling session too. I skipped hangboarding yesterday as my finger still hurts, hopefully it'll be better for tomorrow morning. I also ran to Crossfit this morning and completely failed to fall over and hurt myself, so things are looking up!

That sounds pretty normal to me, everyone needs some time to themselves, regardless of how much they care about the other person. Some people need that more than others (I can't imagine being the kind of couple that live together /and/ work together for example, whereas other people get on just fine like that). Sounds like you've got a keeper there! Really excited to hear about your new romance Sky, and really happy for you

No, I don't think I'm likely to be heading north anytime soon either. A year to practice sounds good though! I'll try! I'm literally about to leave for bouldering, so not falling sounds like good advice!

More than happy to be blamed for that! Good job on planning your time - I tend to just add more and more commitments until I go mad with stress; but your strategy sounds better.

That's great news, excited to hear you'll be getting back to it! Also good to have a goal to work towards for your PT/rehab. On another note, I had a thought on the smoking. What I used to do when I was cutting down was have a cigarette case, and fill it with the number of cigarettes I had allowed for the day (I was smoking rollies at the time, so I'd make a batch whilst sat in front of the TV). That way you never have to worry about keeping count, and you've got a clear visual representation of how many you've had and how many you have left.

Week 2 Day 4 stats Running: 1/4 Hangboarding: 0/2 Splitting: 1/1 Rolling: 1/3 Brushing: 4/7 Drawing: 2/4 WW cooked my favourite for dinner last night, Swedish meatballs from scratch. It was bloody lovely. D&D last night was fun. Details spoilered for size: I had a couple of beers whilst playing D&D, then did my teeth and went to bed. * * * This morning I got up early to make up for my missed run. I got out on time, went running, and about two-thirds of the way to Crossfit I tripped and fell, grazing my hand and knee on a stony path. Not really feeling like walking into the gym dripping blood I walked home instead and got myself cleaned up. Not the best start to the day, but after a short pity party this morning I took a painkiller, got stuck into work, and I'm now very much over it. At lunchtime I did some more work on my cartoon avatar for Urah, and I'm hoping that I'll only need one more draft to be finished now. * * * Tonight I have no plans, so I'll make sure to do some foam rolling and I might finish Urah off. Tomorrow morning it'll be a long run, and then I want to get some stuff out of my house and to a charity shop before I play D&D in the afternoon (run wonderfully by @jonfirestar). Sunday will be bouldering in the morning, D&D in the afternoon, and I must get my final run done after that. There's also a load of live streams on for Comic Con, and the snooker world championship is on, so I'll have plenty to watch between doing other stuff. On top of my usual watching of Questing Time D&D on Saturday night and High Rollers D&D on Sunday afternoon!

I saw you saying "hips are tricky" on your thread, and I thought then you were absolutely right! I hope you get yours sorted, and can get back to BJJ soon! Thanks! The weather has cooled down a bit now, apparently it's 22°c (~72°F) today which is much better. It's still humid and there's still no breeze, but I can manage that at this temperature. It was 33°C (~91°F) and like that a couple of days ago. Definitely! I'll get working on that. Unfortunately I missed snatch practice this morning, more on that shortly...

It sounds like you need to have a frank conversation with your boss about how you can make the job work with your life rather than be in conflict with it. If he wanted to know why they can't keep hold of female engineers then hopefully he'll take it seriously, and might be able to make changes that are good for the department as a whole?

Week 2 Day 3 stats Running: 1/4 Hangboarding: 0/2 Splitting: 1/1 Rolling: 0/3 Brushing: 3/7 Drawing: 2/4 Snooker was fun, though I was far to mentally exhausted to play with any degree of proficiency for most of it. The air con was amazing. When I got home WW made cheesy and beans on toast, and we watched Critical Role. Then it was time for bed. Teeth were done. * * * This morning I decided not to run to Crossfit. Not sure if it was a good call or not, but I'm just tired at the moment from the weather and not sleeping properly. It was a decent Crossfit session, did squats at 82.5kg x 6, 75kg x 8, 67.5kg x 10 and 60kg x 12 (~182#, ~165#, ~149# and ~132# respectively). Then it was 100ft yoke carries - I kept these fairly light as my hip was really tight all session, with 3 working sets at 115kg (~253#). Not running did mean I had a little time to do some foam rolling when I got home, so I did that. Went out to buy beer at lunchtime, which meant no time for drawing or anything else. A walk in the rain was still really nice though, even though it's still bloody hot when it's raining. * * * Tonight is D&D (hence the beer), where I suspect we will be engaged in some more hardcore research. Just what my bloodrager is good at, looking through books! Last session the GM let me use an acrobatics check to assist the researchers by climbing tall ladders and retrieving things for them, so lets hope something like that works again! Tomorrow morning I think I'll make up my missed run to Crossfit. That probably means no handboarding this week, but my fingers feel a little bruised so I'm ok with that.

I'm sure you'll get back to it at some point - the race is long Oo, that sounds nasty. I'm not surprised though with the weather we've been having. Hope you're ok now? I still have no idea what caused the coughing, but the throat feels better at least. The trick will be getting you up there! I can carry you over my head, but I probably can't clean and jerk you (yet)!

Week 2 Day 1 stats Running: 1/4 Hangboarding: 0/2 Splitting: 1/1 Rolling: 0/3 Brushing: 2/7 Drawing: 2/4 Firstly I need to say, it's too damned hot at the moment! Getting a bit fed up of it to be honest. * * * Last night I threw together a pesto pasta for dinner, and then did a bit of stretching quickly before D&D. I possibly should have done foam rolling instead, but that seemed like more effort and as mentioned it is currently hot as balls here. D&D was good fun. A couple of sessions ago two of the characters got forcibly planeshifted to the First World (think the Feywild, the Wildwood, or the place where weird fey shit goes down), so this session we negotiated the release of a satyr, whose major crimes were being a terrible storyteller and refusing to sleep with the king's daughter. The solution was for my character to sleep with the king's daughter instead, which given that he worships a goddess of lust made total sense. Even if the king's daughter is made of poison ivy. And we had to give him a bit of the satyr's soul too, but we got some other bits of souls in return. We also briefly fought a bandersnatch, before we persuaded it's owner to call it off (with the help of a suggestion spell). I think I've found the right number of beers for a D&D night, so that was good, and teeth were done before bed. * * * I slept poorly last night, almost certainly because of the heat. Despite having all the windows open and the fan on we just couldn't get cool. So I already wasn't particularly up for Crossfit. The WOD was 3 rounds for time - 6 alternating d-ball over shoulder, 9 calorie air bike. I went for a 50kg (~110#) ball, which I found pretty heavy, and after waiting round for my turn went through 6 and a bit minutes of being the slowest person to finish. Almost as soon as I finished I felt like something was stuck in my throat, and spent the next half hour coughing profusely. I don't really have any idea what that was about, but it really sucked, and even now my throat isn't 100% better. I missed the rest of the workout (bench press), and spent too long when I got back trying to google what had happened. Nothing done at lunch, as I decided to have a nap instead. That made me feel a little better, but I'm still really struggling for energy and focus. Hopefully finishing on time and going to play snooker in a nice air-conditioned snooker room will help a bit.

It was really good actually, I was quite impressed. I will try, it's being stubborn! Thank you! ? Well next time I see you we might have to test that theory

This is hilarious, but also it's really bloody good! Love how you've made the lighting work. Have a good trip!

Week 2 Day 1 stats Running: 0/4 Hangboarding: 0/2 Splitting: 1/1 Rolling: 0/3 Brushing: 1/7 Drawing: 1/4 Forgot to mention that yesterday morning I skipped hangboarding as one of my fingers were hurting. I did splits practice instead, so still got to check off a goal. Yesterday evening we went to the supermarket, which was actually quite nice because they have air conditioning! When we got back WW cooked a Vietnamese pork thing, and we chilled in front of Critical Role. I also did some more work on drawing Urah, though I'm not counting it twice for one day. Teeth were done before bed. * * * Ran to Crossfit this morning. At Crossfit I got 4 muscle ups! So that's a new personal best. Then we did some overhead yoke carry, which I worked up to 80kg (~176#) and some landmine rows. Lunch was leftover pork thing, and I spent some time drawing - this time a Draw a Box exercise. Work is mega busy, but the system's crashed on me so I have time to write this! Think I'm going to walk up the shop just to stretch my legs while I have the chance.

I'm gonna have to try that with people. Thanks!

Week 1 Roundup Running: 3/4 Hangboarding: 2/2 Splitting: 1/1 Rolling: 3/3 Brushing: 6/7 Drawing: 3/4 The next couple of weeks are going to be mental again it appears (a colleague is on holiday, and I'm looking after his stuff for 2 weeks. He's got a very demanding book of clients, so whilst I'm kind of honoured to be asked to look after a lot of big, complex stuff, it's also going to be really full on). Ironically, this is my way of saying that I'll be keeping updates short and sweet! Last week went pretty well all round. I skipped my Sunday run because the temperature where I live at the moment is roughly the same as it is on the surface of the sun, and also because I went bouldering in the morning and ran D&D from 12-3. D&D session was great, the part are going into a massive dungeon and I left them on a cliff hanger having just encountered this thing: The teeth brushing I missed was on Friday, as I got pretty drunk around Hopalong's house, fell asleep on my living room floor for a while, and then forgot to do it when I went to bed at half 2 in the morning. Still, a seriously fun night, amazing to see people and just socialise all night, and as the old saying does not goes, "6 out of 7 ain't bad". Bit disappointed that I didn't get my 4th drawing session in. I don't want drawing to feel like work, but I want a bit of a push to keep doing it because it does make me feel good when I start. * * * Crossfit this morning was fun. 8 rounds, every 2 minutes of: 1 squat clean, 1 front squat, 1 push jerk. I started at 45kg (~99#) and worked up to 57.5kg (~123#) over the workout. Then an 8 minute AMRAP: 4 chest to bar, 5 front squats, 6 burpee over bar. I worked at 50kg (~110#) and pretty sure I was 1 rep short of 5 rounds. Also did a tiny bit of drawing at lunch. For one of the D&D games I play in the GM uses character tokens from Order of the Stick (great D&D comic, if you've not seen it), so I want to create my own token that represents my character a bit better but is still in that style.

Thanks man! I know what you mean, it always more tempting to push through than take it easy, especially fun stuff like squats.

I might have to write that down somewhere, I'm expecting a crazy week but stressing certainly won't help. Are there a lot more designs then? Any hints at what?

This is a great attitude, when life throws things at you sometimes your priorities for the day/week have to change, and that's ok. As you say, all we can do is our best. I absolutely love your tattoo, so damned cool! ❤️ And the symbolism of that and the vegvisr are really interesting too.

Week 1 Day 4 stats Running: 2/4 Hangboarding: 1/2 Splitting: 1/1 Rolling: 1/3 Brushing: 4/7 Drawing: 3/4 Dinner last night was good. I'll try and channel @Tanktimus the Encourager for a description... I took 4 frozen chicken thighs (bone in, skin on), and rubbed them in vegetable oil, oregano, salt, and pepper. The thighs went on a baking tray and in the oven on 200°c for 55 minutes. Next I realised that I had run out of potatoes, so dashed up to the shops to buy some. When I got back the chicken had been in about 20 minutes, so I cut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces, tossed them in vegetable oil, rosemary, salt, and pepper, and placed them on a separate baking tray in the oven. While the chicken and potatoes were cooking I realised that I had fewer peppers than the recipe called for, and that I'd run out of tomato paste. I sliced 3 peppers and 2 red onions into thin strips, and fried the peppers in a little olive oil on a medium heat for around 7 minutes before adding the onions for another 5 minutes. While they were cooking I made up 450ml of stock with two chicken stock cubes and a pinch of sugar. I added 2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar to the onions and peppers and stirred it through for one minute, then added the stock and a tin of tomatoes. I turned up the heat to medium-high and left the resulting peperonata to reduce. By this point the chicken was about done, so I removed it from the oven and set it to one side. Next I grated 100g of cheddar cheese and crushed 4 garlic cloves in a garlic press. I mixed the cheese and garlic together, and then sprinkled it on top of my rosemary potatoes before returning them to the oven for another 10 minutes or so. I shredded the chicken thighs and removed the bones, and then added the shredded chicken to the peperonata to warm through. When that was suitably reduced I served it with the cheesy garlic rosemary potatoes on the side, two portions for WW and I and a further two leftover for our lunches today. * * * D&D was fun last night. We'd just got to a new town, and spent a really chilled out session shopping, drinking pomegranate liqueur, enjoying the public baths, and visiting the local entertainment. We also did a lot of library research, and failed to book an appointment with the governor of the city and high priestess of Nethys. It was nice to have a chilled session. I also had a fair few beers and chilled out generally. Teeth were done before stumbling into bed. * * * Crossfit this morning was squats, and it's the first time I've done them in months. Worked up to 80kg (~176#) for 6 reps then 72.5kg (~160#) x 8, 65kg (~143#) x 10 and 57.5kg (~127#) x 12. My hip felt really tight after that so I did some stretching. We also had 100ft (~30m) yoke carries, which I kept relatively light at 125kg (~275#). When I got home I just barely remembered to do my hangboarding, and with WW's encouragement I got it done. Also did some foam rolling at lunchtime as my hip has been killing me all day. Work today has been good, not least because I've discovered that I can watch the snooker whilst working now that I'm working from home . Tonight is homemade pizza at Hopalong and MG's house, complete with a fair few beers, which combined with the hip and the ridiculous hot weather should make tomorrow's long run interesting!

If the heat there is anything like it is here in the UK it's probably a good call to hold off on the exercise; it's brutal here! That or try and do it very early or very late. Rather than aiming for 1 glass per day would it be easier to aim for 7 glasses per week? That way you can have a couple of glasses with friends and offset that with a day off on a different day.

Yeah, I don't really watch anime but I feel like the slightly magical fighter archetype is pretty common. Thanks man!