Run,Ride,Roam .. Repeat

I realised very quickly ,that following diagnosis, the only way I was going to meet my half of the bargain to get me well again was to start looking after myself properly.

All the treatments were very much out of my control. Tablets  , injections, infusions and being bolted to a Radiotherapy table were things that were done to and for my benefit but often I’d feel like a casual observer in someone else’s drama. 

The main recovery tool at my disposal was exercise. Now that was within my control and ability to get going with. 

The option of being inactive when I was back in my home environment wasn’t one I was prepared to settle for. 

Before getting ill I had neglected exercise to a shocking degree , the work pattern I was engaged in pretty much excluded any meaningful activity in the exercise arena. 

Ironically prior to my early thirties the opposite was true, from the age of fourteen I was obsessed with the gym and was found most evenings and weekends working out and generally building myself up. 

I had a good working knowledge of how to set up a training plan and how to set short , medium and long term goals. 

Knowing what I wanted to do wasn’t an issue. 

My sport of choice, since getting reacquainted with road riding after a hiatus of thirty years was cycling. 

Having the fitness and strength to tackle a proper bike ride , clad I might add in bright Lycra, was a different proposition all together. 

The key was to start, not riding at all, but doing what I refer to as roaming.. just basically walking from my door until my legs and lungs started to object to the point where I had to turn for home. In the early days that point arrived within a few minutes and often in less time than that. 

Over a number of diaried weeks those roams became rides which eventually started to morph into training rides. 

The summer of 2017 was spent building strength in the saddle . Following a relapse in February 2018, I was readmitted for long periods of time into the care of my local haematology department .

Only being allowed home for occasional weekends meant my training activity was much reduced. However I was able to work on fitness even just using my hospital room as a makeshift gym. The static bike in with me helped to keep the pedals turning.  

My main recovery goal was to be able to ride at a local event called the Great Nottinghamshire bike ride, scheduled for the last Sunday in June 2018. 

“Remember you can keep going long after you think you can’t “ was a quote I taped to the handlebars of my trusty bike. 

It was my proudest moment up to that point, when I collected my finishers medal after a long fifty mile ride. I had been given a half day dose of chemotherapy two days before and had a get permission to take part, which made completion all the sweeter. 

Much has changed in the last couple of years, I have been in remission for over two years now and am wringing as much as possible out of life. 

Exercise has allowed me to make good use of the time in recovery. Each day I try to follow the personal mantra .. Run, Ride , Roam , Repeat. 

I don’t achieve everything everyday but certainly prioritise the activity and keep trying to meet my half of the health bargain. 

“Always give 100% whatever your 100% looks like”

Lance Armstrong 

BIOPIC TIMELINE 

2016 Diagnosed with Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia .. treated successfully 

2018 Relapse...

2020 after successful CAR T-Cell therapy back in remission for two years.