Health update

Struggling to get back into the swing of teaching even after only a 5 day break, but really not much left of it now! I’ve planned out my time for the rest of the time I’m here and if I show the kids a film next week, then another one the next month I should only have 3 proper weeks of lessons left to teach, not including a final ‘Goodbye’ type lesson in the last week. This isn’t that reassuring though, because I’m 100% out of ideas for lesson plans. It also just makes it sink in just how little time I have left in China!

Apparently it’s now naptime – the lights have just been turned off in the office and curtains closed for a 12:00 nap. Will be stealth typing from hereon.

I’ve really been enjoying life recently, having got into a number of nice little weekly routines. The gym’s been going really well – been training with (slightly) smaller weights but pushing myself a lot harder and doing 15 minutes hard work on the punch bag at the end of almost every session. My Tuesday routine is this: I get to the gym about 16:30, do my normal workout with plenty of time for extra sets, and then do my 15 mins boxing to keep warm while I wait for yoga class to start. It’s the 3rd week in a row I’ve been now and I can safely say I’m definitely not getting any better, although I almost didn’t fall over at all in last night’s class. The teacher’s a nice Chinese guy with a very calming voice, and he always makes a point of coming over to help me with the positions so that I can really feel the stretch. I can’t stand the man.

I’ve also realised the need to not wear my normal gym shorts for yoga – in some of the bendy positions they can get a little… snug… around certain parts, not leaving a lot to the imagination for those poor Chinese women who probably just wanted a nice relaxing class. It’s all about baggy tracksuits for yoga.

I’ve also got back into the habit of running every week again. I’ve only been making it out once a week, but I’m doing a 10k run every Wednesday night, timing myself. I’m getting times solidly under 45 minutes, which I pretty pleased with, but would like to get a time under 40 one of these weeks coming – I thought last week was the week, but it turned out at just over 41 minutes.

I’ve also been eating a bit (a very little bit) more healthily than I was doing, spurred on mostly by Em’s refusal to eat anything but pak choi at the moment. Still, it’s nice to not be eating so much greasy food, although my ‘healthy’ diet regularly includes dumplings, cheese on toast, beer (important to be well-hydrated) and dumplings.