Determined-Lee, Creative-Lee, Wise-Lee

Well what a week it's been. We had a crisis, a birthday, some tough stuff, some good stuff and a lot of activity! I'll start with Lee and end with all my cycling nonsense.

Lee's hair continues to be affected by her beta blockers. However with help from Brad at Queens and a new colour she did herself, she's got a nice short style which looks great. 

My plan to get loads done at work before 11 days leave came to a grinding halt on Tuesday. I was out for a run before work when my phone went crackers. Lee was calling me to tell me that our daughter Níamh was in Leicester Royal A&E. She had been out clubbing with friends and ended up being picked up by an ambulance in a confused state. It's likely that she had her drink spiked. Níamh was in A&E for about 10 hours, after initially being treated as if she was just a drunk silly girl, they realised there had to be more to it. Tests were inconclusive so we'll never know the truth. However the thought that someone tried to deliberately harm my daughter fills me with dread! Niamh after some shaky days is doing better now but I think this will affect her for a long time. 

Wednesday was a better day as it was Joe's 24th birthday. We had a lovely evening with a Thai Garden take away (locals will KNOW!) A good time was had by all and I got to make fire in the garden!

Our youngest, Sam, is very pleased his Mum can drive now. He'd been getting a lift to his girlfriend's house in Geddington with me before work. Now Lee can take him he can have a lie in! That's good for Lee too so she can build her driving confidence.

In other Lee news, we have picked up her new inhalers and are waiting to see what difference they make. Apart from that it's continued daily walks and recovery exercises. She's had a couple of days without an afternoon sleep and we've discovered this is NOT a good idea. Lee still needs that extra rest  or she pays for it the next day!

Yesterday was a good example. I returned from my ride insisting we needed to head out to Scotch Farm, where I had stopped for coffee with the group. The kind lady running a hand made card stall, had given me a mask and I wanted to go back to repay her kindness. More on that in the cycling section...

Lee picked a few cards and then noticed these lovely pictures. With a generous discount that mask ended up costing me £214 with an order for Christmas cards at a later date! I don't begrudge a penny of that, the stall holder and artist Katy Dynes is a lovely lady. She had even sketched a picture of me whilst I was waiting for my phone to sort itself out (also more on that later!)

We went from Scotch Farm to Tescos and it was clear that Lee was exhausted. It's just so easy to do too much! 

Onto the next section. It's "what the Lindsleys ate." You know we had that Thai Gardens on Wednesday. On Monday I arrived home from coaching to the nicest fish dish.

This is a lovely grilled Salmon with a delicious rice. 

As well as the Thai food, Lee made this salted caramel cheesecake with toffee popcorn and pretzels. Just wow!

Sam is a lucky boy because I make these sausage rolls for him every week. Lee and I get one each for quality control. This week I added marmite to ours. Delicious! On Saturday night I made a pie with slow cooked beef in a red wine sauce. That worked well too, I didn't take a picture!

Lee and I have a few plans for next week. I think it will be a great week together. For now...it's time for cycling stuff!

On Monday we held a family ride for the cyclones. It was a lovely evening having a gentle spin around Stanwick Lakes.

I didn't get a ride in at all for the rest of the week but I did get all my walking and running goals ticked off with the dogs. My furry friends bring me so much joy. No matter how bad my mood is, it's always improved after a dogwalk/run!

On Friday I helped out at a Mountain Bike race. Here in Northants/Leicestershire we have the oldest MTB Cross country race series in the world - The Friday Night Summer Series. This week was at East Carlton Park - hosted by Rockingham Forest Wheelers. This was a superb evening with great racing and a lovely sociable barbecue afterwards. Well done to all involved. 

 

On Saturday morning I woke up in one of those stupid moods which put me off cycling. However "Wise-Lee," knows better. She told me to go out, that I'd feel better for it and that I'd enjoy myself once I'd got going. Lee was absolutely right. I met up with The Cyclasylum for a 42 mile trip to the south of the county, taking in Bozeat at it's furthest point.

It took me a few miles to find my legs but once they warmed up I was having a lovely time. As ever the banter flowed as did a number of enlightening chats. 

As previously mentioned we stopped for coffee and food at Scotch Farm near Earls Barton. Firstly I didn't have a mask and sensibly they're still insisting on those. As you know Katy came to my rescue. Then my Barclays app decided not to work. That's when I was being sketched. Finally I sorted that out only for the shop's card reader to stop working. Eventually I paid for a latte and piece of carrot cake with PayPal! Thankfully everyone else was having cooked food so mine was ready at the same time! What a ridiculous drama!!! 

We had our usual race to Harrowden before splitting up. Four of us cycled on to Broughton before I ended up solo. Making light(ish) work of series of hills through to Loddington I decided I might as well keep going for another 100km fondo. On the way back I passed the Triangular Lodge at Rushton so I stopped to take a picture of this piece of history. It's a fascinating building...find out more on the Triangular Lodge here

Sunday morning as usual was junior Parkrun duties. Myself and Matthew, the event director were on time keeping. So what could go wrong? Quite a lot actually, Matthew double hit start meaning we had an early time recorded. Then I hit the wrong button meaning I lost all my times after just two runners! What a pair of clowns!!! Luckily Matthew fixed it and we move on! I won't make that mistake again...

 

Needing just 27 miles to complete my 100 miles for the week I set off on my favourite route around the Welland valley. I took this 30 mile loop at a very relaxed pace. A bit of a recovery ride really! 

As well as beautiful rolling hills there's lots of interesting features. I'd love to know the story behind this clock tower in Baston.

The bridge to the church has always fascinated me in Medbourne. I hadn't seen the plaque before but it explains that the structure is a medieval pack horse bridge.

Then just round the corner I saw this steam engine!

For me this is all part of the cycling experience. You see way more stuff on a bike!

Okay I think that is enough!

Happy Pedalling 

Another positive week

You know the drill. Update on Lee and then into my cycling blog. Lots to talk about this week so let's get to it!

Some big appointments happened for Lee this week. On Monday it was checking in with the GP on a gazillion things. Lee had a list prepared so pity the poor doctor! First up was cardiology and we've been told to go back to them! Next up was the long covid service and our GP has agreed to refer. Then Lee told him she needed her potassium checking, so we got a blood test form. Finally she asked about her assessment for driving. The answer was: "as long as you feel okay there's no reason not to drive!" The GP also said he felt that respiratory was key to Lee's treatment.

So Lee has driven. Not my car...sorry this is a bit of a staged photo! She has been out in her mini though! I guess that means I don't have to take it for a spin to work once a week now! A real shame I love that car in sports mode!!!

In mahoosive news our son Sam got his GCSE results. 

The clever chap got everything he needed and will start A levels in the 6th form in September. It's been tough for all the kids but I'm especially proud of Sam. Whilst Lee was fighting for her life, Sam got his head down and worked hard! As a reward we have bought him an Apple watch! I got quite emotional about all this and after we got the results I was good for nothing for the rest of the day!

On Saturday Lee had her long awaited Respiratory appointment. The news is good. Her lungs are recovering! The consultant has prescribed new inhalers and this will aid her recovery further. It's still going to take months but the consultant believes Lee will make a full recovery. This has given us so much hope!

Today Lee has been out with her most splendid friends from FORJS (friends of Rothwell Junior School.) The lovely ladies have long since left that committee. As you know our youngest kids are in their GCSE year! However this lot have stayed the best of friends and took Lee out for lunch today. It is what she needs and I'm very grateful to them all! 

After her ladies lunch Lee needed a jolly good sleep! I'd say that was a good way to get tired!

That's the Lee bit done...it's time for the cycling stuff.

On Monday we tried to do a structured coaching session with cyclones. However the pesky weather had other ideas. We did somehow make it work though. It's weird but we worked something out, had a lot of fun and it just felt great! 

On my return Lee had prepared yet another superb fish dish.

This was hake with Orzo. Another highlight in this week's "What the Lindsleys ate," was our seafood paella last night! This beauty has chorizo, prawns, scallops and mussels. 

My cycling didn't work quite as I expected this week. I went out on Tuesday for a standard 17 miler and then didn't make it out again until Saturday. I also didn't manage a run all week! So by Saturday I had the tall order of cycling 80 miles and running 7 miles to reach my weekly goals!

I did consider joining the early birds on Saturday and then running parkrun. However my cycling friends at cyclasylum decided that early birds started at 6am this week so they could get 35 miles in before the main group ride! So I ditched that idea!!! Instead I decided to forget parkrun and go for the 47 mile cyclasylum ride. I'm not sure what's wrong with us! We used to be happy with a 30-40 mile ride on a Saturday morning. Now it's 45-50 and if that's not enough go to early birds first! 100 mile rides are now commonplace among my cycling friends. It's like we just want more and more! Please don't think that's a criticism, I think as a bunch of MAMILs we are pretty impressive. We love riding our bikes so why shouldn't we go for long rides?

This long ride was titled "gentle Neville," as it supposedly climbs the Neville Holt hill the "easy," way! For me this was a weird ride. My legs went exactly like they did at the Dartmoor Classic. One minute I had tonnes of energy the next I was totally exhausted. This meant I was arse end Charlie for much of the ride.

Along the way we had a lot of fun. One highlight was discovering this quiet cycling route that ended up in Great Bowden. The banter flowed as did some great conversations and the odd sing song!

We had a cafe stop in Geddington near the end of the planned ride. By compete accident we bumped into Old friend Nathan Gallon with his beautiful dog Dexter. It was great to see the big man. 

I was knackered by this point but having done 50 miles of a possible 62 mile 100km fondo I decided to push on. Those last few miles were a struggle!

Today I came up with a clear but ever so slightly mad plan: walk the dogs, junior parkrun duties, cycle 20 miles, run 7 miles, hoover the house, mow the lawn and do the ironing. 

My furry friends were fabulous company as usual before I headed off to Desborough. At junior Parkrun I was the volunteer coordinator for the first time and I have to say it feels more pressured than being the run director! However it was yet another great run for the kids and a sense of satisfaction for the adult volunteers! 

My 20 miles cycling turned out to be 19 but that was still enough. This route is a firm favourite of mine and with the wind behind me on the return journey it was a lot of fun!

Once home I got the Dyson out and whizzed round the house before getting my running kit on. 

The run was not my fastest at all. I was quite tired at this point and decided a slow steady plod was the only way!

I ran back to Desborough and round the greenspace so I couldn't resist a go on the outdoor gym equipment. Let's face it I needed a sit down!

I got home feeling pleased that I'd completed my exercise goals for the week and then sat still for a good hour. I did get going again though, the lawn has been mowed and the ironing is done too! I think I'll sleep well tonight. I also decided I deserved a beer!

In other news I got a muc off clean and lube pack this week. The oil comes with a uv light to show where you have oiled your chain. I love this sort of thing!!!

So I discovered some even closer to home Olympic connections this week. The bike that Charlotte Worthington rode to victory got its paint job at Precious Metals on Telford Way, Kettering. This company is owned and ran by the husband of my Lee's cousin! The name of the company is also very important to our family but that's another story for another time! Anyway here's their fine work!

Okay that's it for this week. 

Happy Pedalling 

Positive Pants Back On!

After my little wobble last week it's back to a more positive frame of mind. The blog will as usual, start with Lee's update and then switch to my cycling stuff.

For Lee some stuff is coming back. She's called the Queen of cakes because she's good at cakes. Her baking interest has been largely missing in her recovery but this week it has definitely returned. On Wednesday she made a lovely Lime & Coconut cake. This was for the visit of Ali who is a friend and close colleague.

Ali has been through a similar rough ride to Lee although not Covid19 related. We are really missing her at work. I know she enjoyed this cuddle with Charity and by all accounts I'm lucky our black goldador wasn't smuggled back to Ali's house. I think this visit was good for both Lee and Ali.

I had planned to go out on my bike that evening but Lee hadn't been for a walk so we took the dogs out together. A steady stroll of just under a mile had no effect on my heart rate. For Lee it involves taking a drink, having a sit down and by the time we get back she's exhausted. I know it frustrates her that she can't do more. For me, I was happy to go for a walk with Lee. I miss out on that whilst I'm at work. 

Lee has also been creative. This beer bottle top table is covered in clear expoxy resin for a really nice finish. Obviously my contribution was to provide a good variety of bottle tops, some great beers represented, a few 13s because it's our lucky number and I want to make it clear, I did not supply the corona tops!

A good summary of the week would be: no dramas, no hospital appointments, some good times along the way.

To cycling. On Monday I ran a hill training session for the cyclones assisted by Charlie Stockham. Also joining us was fellow coach John Taylor-Burt and parent Gary Carter. The kids were all competent riders (a word here which means: "way better than I ever was!") So we went on a bit of a 'ride out hill hunt!' It was a good session where we all got a good workout. My goodness those kids were quick on the hills!!!

I returned home to a fantastic dinner of Californian lime grilled fish (it was hake but you can use a variety of white fish.) Lee has really got stuck into making fish dishes having craved fish during her recovery. We have a lot of interesting  food because we both enjoy cooking. I've almost considered starting another blog: "what the Lindsleys ate!" I like finding new recipes and this week I discovered Sweet potato and courgette Spanish tortilla. On Saturday I made my usual sausage rolls, baked foccacia and we had some teamwork to make a nice lasagne. Why can't I lose weight again?

It's "active August," for the #wenurses community. So in my usual way I've upped my activity. Some of you will wonder how? Others will say it's about time! I've made sure I do pilates and strength work, done more rollers sessions and added a lunch time walk at work. All of this is to encourage others to be more active and most importantly to make sure that the nurses beat all of the other health professionals! With all that in mind the arrival of my NHS cycling Jersey was well timed!

On Saturday I couldn't decide whether to go to parkrun or go for a group ride. Eventually I decided I needed to see my cycling mates in the Cyclasylum.

This was a good decision because it was a great ride. I opted not to join them for an entire 100km fondo based on time. Lee and I do the weekly shop together on a Saturday afternoon. I would never have agreed to this pre Covid19 but now its another part of her recovery. So I wanted to be back in time to get Tescos done, do a bit around the house and then settle down to watch a bit of sport!

This was a nice route heading out of K Town to Geddington, then onto Great Oakley, Pipewell, Desborough and Braybrooke. At Braybrooke we went up one of the hills from the Monday night hill training and then onto the only one the kids didn't do into Harrington. We then headed to Lamport, onto Old and the Walgrave before I said my goodbyes and turned for home. 

Today I checked Strava and realised that for the first week this year I could achieve my 3 weekly goals: 15 miles walking, 7 miles running and 100 miles cycling. So I hatched a plan to start with a dog walk. 

I was down to be a Marshall at Parkrun so I knew I'd get my last mile walking in on the course...then I arrived and Will the RD asked me to scan so I had to pace around a bit to get the steps in!

After parkrun I changed out of my wet kit,  put cycling kit in and went for a ride. I didn't really care about speed or my average I just wanted at least 12 enjoyable miles. It was windy, the rain lashed down and I cycled on with a broad grin! 

Wonky helmet and glasses, stupid big grin!!!

Yeah it was soggy out!

So I got home, changed out of my wet kit, got my running kit on and went for a run! It was just a plod really but I loved this too!

selfies are in reverse!!!

Mission accomplished. I'm going to try to keep this up throughout August to see what difference it makes!

How good was the Olympics? This week it's been all about the track cycling. At this point I have say how pleased I am for my great cycling mate Andy Pendred and his son Sam. Sam is part of the design team for the Hope Lotus British Cycling track bike. How great must it be to say you've designed a Gold medal 🏅 winning bike? I've never tried track cycling but every time I watch I want to have a go. Great racing, great results, I love it. Now I'm looking forward to the paralympics!!!

For Sam and Andy here's a reminder from Christmas 2019 and 2018.

2019 Andy persuades Sam to fall over in lots of puddles! This ride included the greatest video that never was. I thought I was videoing Sam as he fell over in a puddle only to press start when it was all over. Oh well at least we can remember how much we laughed!!!

2018 terrible photo but here Andy tricked Sam into riding in full winter kit plus a santa suit! He was boiling!!!

On youtube this week I've been watching  The Vegan Cyclist Don't be put off by the name, it's not all about cycling on a vegan diet. It started with the impossible route. A really good watch and due to that I watched a few more. I like his style of cycling and how he describes the mental side of the sport. Definitely my sort of thing!

If you read this far, thank you! I can't imagine I'll have this much to write about this week. I've loved all the things I've done and I've enjoyed writing about it too.

Happy Pedalling 

A week of real reflection

It’s the format I’ve been using since March, firstly I’ll do an update on Lee and her lengthy COVID-19 recovery and then I’ll switch to my cycling blog. 

We’ve kind of had a quiet week that got a bit stressy towards the end. Lee hasn’t really changed much. She’s still really tired and after a bit of activity her whole body gets sore. It’s fair to say she’s fed up of it all! During the week, our daughter Níamh, had a few days away in Brighton with friends. On the way back they all did a lateral flow test and one of her friends was positive. A further PCR test confirmed the lateral flow result. Níamh was naturally very worried and went for a PCR herself. After a nervy 24 hours this came back negative. For me this brought my own well-being into sharp focus. Mostly I’m okay but it only takes a little pressure either at work or at home to derail me. In short I’m not coping as well as I think I am. On Friday before we got the result back I was really struggling. It's difficult to explain,  just everything was winding me up! Tomorrow I’m speaking to occupational health at work because it would be foolish not to get some help. I’m sharing this in my blog because I firmly believe: “it’s okay to not be okay!” I hope it might also help someone else seek help. So in a week where sportstars such as Simone Biles and Ben Stokes have announced they are prioritising their mental health…so am I. Bringing this back to Lee, who remains the priority, she’s worried about me and that really can’t help her recovery. We were also hoping to get some progress from the respiratory team this week, however the appointment didn't happen and has been rearranged for a few weeks time. This is one of the most frustrating aspects as we're waiting for a medical opinion!!!

Changing to my activity, I've had a quiet week. On Monday I coached the Cyclones but didn't ride in. We had a good session with the kids involving tight cornering on a grass oval.

In the week I tried to do a rollers session on Wednesday but frustratingly my speed sensor needed a new battery and as ever you can't find a C2032 when you need one. Lee was super helpful though and amazon delivered 4 the next day. On Thursday I did the toad in a hole rollers session and then my wahoo got confused, lost my 10 miles and uploaded the 0.2 miles from the day before! All cyclists hate upload fails!!!

I decided not to ride with Cyclasylum on Saturday morning based purely on time. I love the long group rides but with time feeling pressured I didn't want to be out all morning. Its now part of the routine to do the big shop with Lee on a Saturday afternoon. That helps her a bit because a wander round Tescos is a bit of a workout in her long covid/post ICU condition. So much as I hate shopping on a Saturday afternoon, it's good for the Queen of Cakes! Instead of a group ride, I took Charity to Market Harborough parkrun which we both enjoyed. She's a special dog and despite having 18 months off she slipped straight back into the Parkrun routine.

This morning I awoke to the news that the Desborough Greenspace Junior Parkrun needed a Run Director at short notice and I jumped at the chance. So at 7.30am I was walking the course as my first duty. Because the core team is so great, everything just went to plan and 53 kids enjoyed a good run. They're lucky I got the timing right because on the course walk I was very distracted by this cute bunny!

So this afternoon I finally got a bike ride in!

This route is one of my favourite training rides. It's got good fast sections and a decent hill. The other thing is that this route is stuffed full of history due to starting in Rothwell, passing through Kelmarsh and having Naesby as a turning point!

Next week I'm determined to do as much as possible. The #WeActiveChallenge has started and #NursesActive need to beat #AHPsactive again!

I hope everyone is enjoying the Olympics as much as I am. Tom Pidcock's gold medal in the MTB XC was phenomenal. You could argue that MVDP's crash meant he lost his main rival but as Gino D'Campo once said: If my grandma had wheels she'd be a bike. In the women's event the Swiss ladies dominated but who cares? Evie Richards in 7th just embodies the spirit of cycling. Ride - smile - eat - sleep - repeat! One discipline of cycling I'm not into is BMX...seeing the fantastic results makes me feel like I've missed out. The racing and the freestyle results were brilliant. Even better the BMX team trained at Corby's Adrenaline Alley, just a few miles from my house. It's great to know that there's a world class facility near by where inspired youngsters could go and try the sport!

If you haven't seen the BMX freestyle check out this link. BMX 360 backflip: The trick that secured Charlotte Worthington Team GB gold BBC SPORT

Happy Pedalling!