I’ve been asked a few times since the last post about how it’s possible for me to have put on six kilos in as many weeks. It’s not hard when you’re eating and drinking a lot more than usual. And this year I had the calf injury which prevented me from doing much running for a few weeks. The combination of those two things leads to easy weight gain.

And now that I’m a bit heavier (though it won’t be for long), I’m finding I have to be careful with my calves. Over the years I’ve observed, both with myself and others, that when you’re heavier than normal, the first thing to go is the calves. It’s something I’ll have to be vigilant about for the next few weeks.

Something a little different for a photo today. This is from the 2004 Tour de Bois. I’m on the left in the white shirt. This was another occasion when I was heavier than usual – in this case, about 10 kg heavier. It was a good tour regardless.

On This Day

Jan 22, 2012

Distance today = 30.16 km; Total distance = 1112.11 km; Location = Mana, NZ –  41 05.669′ S, 174 52.137′ E; Start time = 0903, Finish time = 1301

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/143563329

Another planned short day, with a run of 30 km out of Wellington. I started the North Island stage on Mount Victoria, a high hill in the centre of the city, with 360 degree views. On a clear day you can see the South Island, so it seemed an appropriate link to what I’ve just done.

I gave the support crew the day off, and caught a bus back to Wellington, where we are staying. I’ll start tomorrow’s leg at the Mana train station where I finished today.

We are staying two nights at the lovely home of John and Liz Huckerby, for which we are, once again, greatly appreciative. It’s a beautiful place, with some great views of Wellington.