Men and Medical

Men and medical. Two words that both start with the same two letters so should have something in common and yet are diametrically opposed! What is it about men that makes them loathe to seek medical advice and then, when they get it, ignore it completely. It's as though taking the advice is like signing a contract of emasculation!

Last week I went to see the physio at work (coz it's FREE!) and after a good pull, twist, poke and prod along with a number of searching questions, Andy decided that I have collateral ligament stress with possibly a slight meniscal tear, which should be able to repair itself. He gave me some exercises to do and advised (there's the get out clause) not to run for a week or two and then build up slowly again. With the Beacons Ultra looming on the horizon this was a hard agreement to make but, looking at the long term, made a lot of sense.

The day after I set off down to Brecon and the delights of Sennybridge Training Area (SENTA) for a week to prepare some young bucks for the trials and tribulations of Exercise Cambrian Patrol . In line with my discussions with Andy, I left my running kit at home, packed my Swiss ball and set of for God's country...

SENTA - God's Country

...and then it all fell apart!! I did my ball exercises, heel lifts, back arches an the like as promised. I didn't run as promised. What I did do was spend the week tabbing all over the area with daysack and webbing following the blokes, conducting recces and generally doing what people do on SENTA culminating in a 12 mile self-induced thrashing trying to make it to a pick up point on time after a solo recce.

Scarpa Terra GTX - COMFY!

During the training the team commander, a chap half my age, managed to sprain his ankle. His age and fitness should hopefully see him recover in time to lead the patrol in 2 weeks time. If not then Plans B - Z are yours truly!! Potentially I could be the oldest person ever to lead a Cambrian Patrol team! Gulp! This gave me the excuse to nip into Cotswold and buy some new boots but I can't really see Andy being too impressed when I have my next appointment on the day we travel down for the exercise!!

Men, eh?