December

Back from three weeks in the US today. The respective mileage for each week was twenty-nine, fifty-one and thirty-nine, with a tempo session in each week and a marathon pace session in the second week. I am reasonably happy with this considering the first week involved work and a sore left knee, which seems to have largely sorted itself out.
Similar to Ireland the weather was really cold but drier. Additionally, in America they have encountered the revelation that pre-treating roads with salt and taking the necessary modest steps to prevent ice build up on pavements ensures people can go about their daily business without fear of injury or worse.
Last Tuesday was especially brutal. The air temperature was -5 heading out the door and the strong wind chill must have taken it down to double digits. It was so cold I completed the last two miles of the scheduled ten at marathon pace so I could be done quicker and warm up a little in the meantime. Chastened by this experience, and following enquiries concerning my sanity, I elected to stay indoors the following day when less extreme but not entirely dissimilar conditions prevailed.
To prepare myself for the vagaries of Irish 'ah, sure it's grand' syndrome when water begins to freeze, I got the devices below from the in-laws as a Christmas present. I think I will be using them sooner rather than later.



In other news I have managed to put on nine pounds in three weeks in the US! This was quite a shock as I did not feel as though I had put any weight on and do not look as though I have. However, multiple weighing scales all tell the same story; and this all before Christmas!! I will have to watch my diet for a while to ensure I get back down towards the more usual 160-163lbs.