Reasons to be cheerful

It is a Bank Holiday weekend, and while the weather for the most part has been pretty miserable, I've found plenty of reasons to be cheerful.

Yesterday morning I got back into the running groove and brought up a new personal best for the 5k, clocking 26:20, beating my course record by 31 seconds and taking 15 seconds from my overall PB that I ran in Bradford two weeks ago. Armed with a new set of clip-on headphones, this was the first time I've run with music in my ears and it helped with the trudge around the damp Black Park. Also for the first time I adorned a running vest which wasn't incredibly flattering. I think I'll have to find myself some biceps from somewhere if I'm going to wear it more often.

Headphones good, vest displaying untoned flabby arms bad

Later in the morning I attended my eldest son's graduation ceremony. He's not some child genius, but his nursery like many others run a nice little event to mark the end of his time there before the transition to school. With my boy dressed smartly for the occasion I had to peer into my wardrobe to find something decent to wear (the vest was a definite non-starter!) To my great surprise, I found myself comfortably getting into my jeans and so smugly wore those along with a M-sized short sleeve shirt. Happy days! The graduation was very sweet and all the kids looked fab in their gowns. Regrettably I missed most of it as the little one was a bit on the grumpy side, but there was a nice little family picnic afterwards, admittedly sheltered from the rain.

One man and his boy - can't quite believe he starts school in a few days time

Saturday evening I had a rare night away from the boys and went to visit my best man and his baby daughter. I purposefully drove to avoid making it a boozy trip and ate beforehand despite the knowledge that my pal would be ordering himself a curry. I was pretty proud of myself at declining leftovers, despite the veggie samosa looking so good. When I got home I didn't have a drink either, so rare brownie points for me on a Saturday night.

Today has been a pretty quiet affair, with my lovely wife letting me catch up on lost sleep by sending me back to bed mid-morning. It is always good to recharge the batteries once in a while and I very much appreciate the opportunity. When I woke up, news filtered through on the phone that my friend James had done really rather well in his Triathlon, completing the course in under three hours. A few weeks back he was trying to encourage me to do one with him, though as I pointed out, I'm still learning the ropes with running, and felt trying to cope with three disciplines would be a bit much. Still, I'm full of admiration for him, not least as he opted to raise money for the Shine Charity who were such a great help to my family. So may I very publicly say well done mate, and thanks to everybody who sponsored you.

Looking at the clock, in five weeks time, all being well I will have completed my first 10k race. It is coming around quickly now so will have to up my game in my preparation. I know my colleagues are doing the same and collectively we're looking forward to it, albeit with a touch of apprehension. Please support us if you can as we bid to raise money for the Lynda Jackson Macmillan Centre http://www.justgiving.com/teampcc

And if I needed further reason to be cheerful, there is no work on Monday because of the bank holiday. In fact, with time creeping forward to the end of August, I won't be facing Monday Morning Blues again until November, as I'm due to start my period of Additional Paternity Leave. It will be a shame to lose the gym as a result, but I'm very much looking forward to spending quality time with my little one and getting his big brother settled into the school routine.

Whatever you're up to for the rest of the long weekend, enjoy!

Seeing is believing

This evening when I sat down to eat dinner, my jeans started sliding down. My wife enquired if I was showing off because my waist has got smaller, which I laughed off. That hadn't been my intention - I'd simply forgotten to transfer a belt from my work trousers. However, thinking back now on that comment, I'm raising a bit of a smile. A few weeks ago I would have struggled to wear these jeans at all. Tonight, I need a belt to stop me flashing a builders bum around the house.

My 4 month old then celebrated with me by sharing a little bit of milky vomit on my jeans, which was most generous of him.

It does make me wonder though. I know that running is great for weightloss, but how will a prolonged period of running over the next few months (assuming I maintain current enthusiasm) affect my body shape? I'm not expecting miracles - having scaled down to 14 1/2 stone in the past I know that my tummy resembled a saggy Tesco carrier bag rather than a well chiselled six pack, courtesy of retaining the body skin of a 24st bloke. However, in the course of dieting back then, I rarely hit the treadmill, preferring instead to use a cross-trainer or exercise bike for cardio work, mixed with fixed weight resistance training.

Starting from a smaller waistline this time around, coupled with several years of not being as big as I once was, maybe the results of my anticipated weightloss will produce something more aesthetically pleasing than just happy bathroom scales. Time will tell I guess, and seeing will be believing. In the meantime, I won't complain if my jeans occasionally slide down - beats the hell out of busting your trousers down the seam!

My trousers last December - split at a petrol station

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