This site hasn’t had a post since May of 2018; not a single post in 2019. What happened?
Short answer, this blog has generally been about the things I do for fun and exercise, and it feels like there hasn’t been as much of that to write about. Of course, the short answer leaves a fair bit out of the story.
I guess the long answer would have to be broken down a little. Let’s move from the outside in: We moved in August, and we love our new house (and pool!) and the neighbourhood seems to present all kinds of new adventures. I even wrote a list of things I want to try in the new neighbourhood.
My wife has launched her career as a mental health professional, and it’s one of the biggest joys in my life to see how she’s really in her element helping others. Mental health is becoming something we are starting to pay more and more attention to in our society, and I hope to use this blog platform to be part of that increased awareness and education… more on that in a bit.
One of the things I used to brag about in this space was how I would balance parenting and exercise/training, but I confess that had gotten harder. I used to find ways to train with the kids (perhaps by pushing/pulling them in the Chariot – we have since handed that down to family with younger children than ours). I found my time being monopolized by chauffeuring the kids to their own hobbies and activities. Mind you, I couldn’t be prouder of them – Shark Boy is a competitive gymnast with a top ten ranking in the province, and the Lightning Kid is currently participating in Hip Hop Dance and a ‘Ninjaz’ class that combines gymnastics, obstacle course work and martial arts. Earlier this year he played soccer and was a Beaver Scout while I was the ‘contact Scouter’ of that Beaver Colony.
My old injury, the herniated disc flared up in a really terrible way, probably due at least in part to my declining strength and fitness. It got so that I couldn’t ride a bike or even sleep on my side without painkillers, and when I finally started physio after trying chiropractic and massage for relief, I did start to see improvement in the pain, though I experience intermittent tingling in my left arm still. My exercise efforts are mostly about rehab, and those exercises aren’t terribly exciting. I’m reluctant to add much load to my upper body until I know things are stable and solid.
I haven’t mentioned my struggles with depression on the blog, but as I mentioned the increased awareness about mental health issues is something I want to take part in. The way depression robs you of motivation (both to exercise or create blog posts) has been a contributing factor in the decline of the Iron Rogue – lately, “lying down is my favourite” is practically a catch-phrase for me.
What is to come?
Moving forward, there will be some changes around here. The first thing will be less triathlon content – I haven’t lost the love of it, but I think my more immediate goals in endurance will be simpler – more running, possibly some trail running.
I’m going to look at that list of neighbourhood adventures I wrote and start ticking things off the list. I have already had some classes at Free Run Inc. (an obstacle course racing fitness club) including Boxing!
Family travel reviews will be a part of the blog; we have an upcoming cruise to Hawaii and I will post an incomplete memoir of our Disney Cruise from 2 years ago for contrast and comparison (last year’s vacation was a trip to Jay Peak Ski Resort – I doubt I have enough material recorded to do it justice, but we’ll see).
On the mental health front, I hope to discuss some treatments I have used to manage stress and depression, even if they are just productivity/motivation hacks and self-care methods.
I hope to have you as a reader of my next chapters.