Him

Him is my husband.  So I thought I would write a post about him as it is pretty much him that got me here today.

A few years back he ended up in hospital with a very bad leg.  When I say very bad I mean very very bad.  It was bright red, boiling hot, extremely painful and they didn’t know what had caused it or why.  It was similar to one of those doner chunks of meat you see rotating on a spit in a kebab shop – I would try and lighten the mood by asking him if he wanted chilli sauce and salad with that?  It was also similar to the leg of a lady in a town near us who hands out lucky heather – we avoid eye contact with her and the leg I am referring to has elephantiasis – again I would joke and ask lucky heather?

Anyway my point is whilst they did not know what was wrong they said that exercise would help to regulate the blood flow – I won’t go into details but basically the blood was going down to the foot (or hoof) and not back up again – hence the kebab leg or lucky heather leg jokes.  So he started to exercise.  And pretty much became addicted – my husband without being able to train is one moody little madam!

The help he is giving me he also had when he began from one of his best friends Darren who really helped him getting started with the running!  This shows them at a couple of events and you can see his progress made and he is still going strong.

His passion is cycling but it has developed into duathlons and triathlons and he has lost over a whopping four stone!  His start weight was 17 stone 4 pounds and he is now at 13 stone.  I will share his before and after picture – it is like that episode of Friends where “someone ate Monica”!  I have never met someone with his will power it makes me sick!

He has inspired me to get into it with the running and cycling!  He started out just like me – overweight and not that good at any of it and with hard work has completely changed and taken to it!  I’m so proud of him (and not one bit jealous – ok maybe a little bit)! He is training to be a cycle coach and I know he will be great at it!

He is the one when I say I feel like everyone is looking at me that says so what, let that spur you on and prove them wrong!  When we first ran together I wouldn’t run past a pub we pass on our park loop as I felt like everyone was probably laughing at me and he would, very poetically, say f*ck them you are doing more than they are!  This was totally me and now I run past that pub (I still avoid eye contact – I am not quite there yet)!

I am always at the finish line for his events and he mine and it makes a huge difference having the support!  We’ve done quite a few events together now as well!  Between us we have quite a medal collection.  Anyone that knows him knows he loves a medal!  They are hanging on our dining room chairs and every time his get knocked they make a noise and he says what’s that noise?  One day I will wrap them in bubble wrap, cut the medals off or just hide them maybe!  He’s never vain when it comes to the medals though – always subtle ha ha!

Don’t get me wrong he was never a cheap date and it is now more expensive as it is twice the cost for kit, equipment and event fees – I have everything pink and don’t need all the best stuff and he is a pampered princess and a spoiled brat – he will happily admit it too!

I don’t want to go on too much about him as he will get a huge head and I won’t hear the bloody end of it!

I will say though that a lot of people say it is not the best idea to train with your partner but I haven’t found that – he has helped me hugely though he does push me and I swear a lot at him.  But during cycle events I have never once visioned wrapping my bike around his head as he pushes me to go faster or tackle a horrible hill – no never once!  Nor have I ever wanted to trip him up and run away during a running event when he tells me to keep going and that I am doing great when I feel like I might puke – nope not at all!