10 Freds suddenly became MORE of a focus

Running isn't that important in the greater scheme of things.

Well?? It isn't. We no longer need to run to catch food or survive, or escape our tribes dreaded enemies (who would have been as far away as, perhaps, Slade Road in days of auld)

So it's a hobby.

Something that we do outside of our everyday lives, for the vast majority of us. In a way it is an unnecessary and frivolous escape activity. And there are PLENTY of those we could choose to do

We could waste our lives 'liking' things on Facebook or spend all day Twittering to anyone that will listen.
There are loads of things to do to fill the time until we die!

Now I've never been one of those people who HAD to run or else I become suicidal or impossible to live with. I LIKE it, and I DO think it's important to keep our bodies in decent condition. 
Use it or lose it, I say. And I fully intend to be active until I draw my last breath.

So I have my Slightly Perturbed face on today - because one of the things that I like doing looks like it is going to have to be changed a little.
To be fair, I have got completely out of the habit of running since my knee went pop 16 months ago. And yet I'm fitter and stronger than I have been for a long time.
I have discovered that I'm still a pretty decent climber, and although I'm a real beginner of a cyclist, I'm getting better at that too.
And I DO like what it's doing to my leg shape!!

I had my 6 week appointment with the surgeon who tidied up my knee today. And what he said had the effect of making me think - so what else can I do regularly and consistently to keep active?
He told me that Justine my physio had already been in to see him to report on my progress (and, so she told me, to prompt him to tell me that I really should do more stretching - thanks Justine :-p ) and we had a good chat about what he'd found and what I could realistically continue doing.

Torn cartilage was tidied up and not a problem - and recovery was good
50% tear to ACL was "at least" 10 years old so the best option was to keep my legs strong and fit to give the knee stability - and skiing would be fine as long as I was strong etc
Climbing is fine - it's not a dynamic activity.
Cycling - he didn't bat an eyelid at the reports of 80 and 90 mile rides this week - in fact he said that was probably the best thing that I could do for my knee, and to do more of it!

As for running - there is a long crack in the articular surface of the tibia, and dynamic impact is only going to worsen it. He said that playing squash was a bad idea - the face I made told him that *that* wouldn't be a problem
He also said that most runners would not take kindly to being told that running could accelerate the onset of an arthritic knee.

I 'hmmm'd' a bit.

He knew what kind of volumes of running I had previously been doing, and the fact that running marathon distance and more was relatively 'normal' for me - so these things are all relative. And at the moment I'm focused on getting fit enough to survive 10 Fred Whittons
(please sponsor me - this is going to be REALLY tough - much tougher than 10 marathons was :o/)

So I'm not even thinking about running at the moment. I'll see how I feel about it, and if any useful advice comes my way in the interim, once I have done the 10 Freds. Because there is no point in running before that anyway. And I have some coaching sessions coming up that will show me how well my knee responds to doing 'a bit' of running.

And it may be that I just need to change my running focus away from the longer stuff!

So a few things to think about over the next few months!

But more immediately, there is the small matter of the Lakeland Loop Sportive on Sunday!
REALLY loking forward to that :o)

Today has been a slightly impromptu 'rest' day. I had planned to get out for a 40 mile leg turner, but I had way too much stuff to get done in the house. And tomorrow is going to be busy too - So it'll have to be an early one while the dawn chorus is still chirping!