Party on La Gomera

We are taking a short break and we’ll be going to la Gomera for a couple of days. We leave by plane on tuesday and return home on thursday. A short trip but very welcome to break up our daily routine.

We will be going with a few friends and at la Gomera we rented a big car for 7 people where we can all just fit. In addition to a big car we also rented a big house, hopefully with a garden so we can maybe even have a bbq! It will be quite the adventure. Of course there is also a big celebration! It is Alan’s birthday, so there will be a great party.

Lego timelapse 31103

Alex likes working with his tablet to make things. It gets even more attractive when various pieces of equipment are involved. This time he has produced a timelapse. A small Lego car (his brothers) was disassembled and rebuild, but now while making a picture every couple of seconds. This way the construction goes really fast. Alex did the building and the post production editing on his tablet. Add the intro, add a couple of images, fix the sound, and some music, Alex knows what to do and how to do it really well. This is the result.

Coach

I will become a coach. The date we have to focus on is Saturday the 19th. The event is the Kids Race 2022, in Maspalomas. Alex and Alan will have to perform then. Alan will run 300 meters, and Alex needs to cover 1000 meters. The kids have developed some nasty habits for the weekends where they quickly get bored, and often the situation deteriorates rapidly into fighting. I hope to change this behaviour by focussing on something physical in the mornings. We will do a couple of training sessions, just like the real deal.

Usually we go to these running events without any preparation. The distances are so small that the kids can easily run them, and just participating is much more important than actually winning. This time I want to try and get a good result. Finish in the top 10. We need to approach this professionally. Evaluate the distance. Find out a good speed. See how much sprinting they can do. We have two weekends to prepare and train. If we go on Saterday and Sunday we have 4 sessions available. If they both try their distance twice it should be more than enough preparation. If they train in the morning they don’t even need to change their weekend routines (hopefully with less fighting).

The plan

  • Warming up. Walk to Romano (the track), do some jumping, some stretching, maybe a few push ups.
  • Review the track. Walk the entire distance, and discuss the optimal approach to running the distance in a good/easy/fast way.
  • Alan: 300 meters. First a small candy for some extra energy. Start running normally the first 220 meters, and finish with 80 meters superfast. Drink water and relax/rest. Do this twice! I will measure the time.
  • Alex: 1000 meters. First a small candy for some extra energy. Start running normally the first 300 meters, then slow down a bit for 300 meters to regain strength, then another 300 meters normally and finish with 100 meters superfast. Drink water and relax/rest. Do this twice! I will measure the time.
  • Cooling down, a few jumps, stretch, discuss results, walk back home.
  • Objective

    The results really are not so important. If the kids have a good time that is the only important thing. The preparation is more meant to stimulate the kids and to prepare them a bit. If they reach their goal of finishing with the first 10, well, thats great! It will boost their self-esteem, which is great. If they just finish that is also great. They will have prepared for something, and gave if their best try. This is also something to feel good about.

    Losing weight

    I have to admit that I did have some unhealthy habits the last few years. Almost every day I ate some sausage, or some cheese, or a couple of nuts. A few days a week I would also drink a beer (usually after running), and these habits were a bit to much. Luckily these habits were reasonably easy to change.

    A few weeks ago I was still close to 80 kilos. I then set my target to 75 kilos (which is my usual weight), but as I am getting closer to my goal I am thinking that maybe it would be better to have an even lower goal of around 68. This seems to be the perfect average BMI, and it will leave me with some extra leverage and maybe even with some extra health benefits.

    I somehow doubt that for me this is really an obtainable goal, because the last time I weight less than 70 kilos must have been literaly in the previous century but if I don’t try I will never know. If I manage to do it I must treat myself to a good gift. Maybe a new Dell laptop.

    One week challenge: Sunday

    This is a post for my one week challenge.

    [08:00] The kids once again wake up early, but thanks to YouTube we get a little bit extra time in the bed.

    [09:00] Alex’ caterpillar has finished the entire plant. There is not a single leaf left. We lost the caterpiller for a while but Alex rediscovered it on the Aloe Vera plant. It was bungling on a leaf there and I suspect it will start its metamorphosis there.

    [10:10] A classmate of Alex will ride in a mountainbike race today in Santa Brigida. We are going to watch and support him.

    [13:30] The race is finished and Maikel did a really good job. We are heading back home.

    [14:30] We all have dinner next door at grandma’s place. She make rice with rabbit and snails. After dinner I clean our windows. We went to the nearby park to play a little. Alan brought his footbal, and Alex his roller skates.

    This is the last day. My one week challenge is now complete! But… as usual these kind of challenges always end in a challenge to someone else. I have my doubts, but I think I will do it anyway. I challenge the next generation! Annabel, Alex, Jack and Alan! They will probably never learn about this challenge so we will see. If you do read it, and want to participate, it is easy. For one entire week write down what you do every day. As detailed or as general as you want.

    One week challenge: Saturday

    This is a post for my one week challenge.

    [08:00] De kids are already waking up. Luckily for us the head to the living room to watch some YouTube videos, so we don’t have to wake up just yet.

    [08:xx] Run the washing machine with all white clothes. I also cleaned the bathrooms.

    [10:30] Today there is an event in El Puertillo, Arucas, on the beach. Here we have the ‘Cangrejo Fest’ a festival with a lot of activities for kids, so it might be fun.

    [19:30] Back home. Shower, dinner, teeth, bathroom, and to sleep.

    One week challenge: Friday

    This is a post for my one week challenge.

    [07:00] Again the same ritual. Wake up, kids, car…

    [07:30] This morning we made a new list for the supermarkt. Ana had complained to me that we did not have anything. I stopped buying sodas, beers, salty snacks, sweet snacks, and Ana has gotten hungry. She wanted bread, croissants, sausage, cheese and cola. No problem of course, but I do need to know. It is now on my list, so maybe I will pass by the supermarket his afternoon.

    [07:50] The garage door is stuck. It won’t go up and it won’t go down. It is impossible to get the car out, and Ana has an important meeting, so we take a taxi to the hospital. From there I take the bus to my work. I was lucky that Ana had a couple of extra masks in her purse because in the taxi, and in public transport these are still a requirement.

    [08:55] Work, half an hour later than normal, but I arrived, and I think the delay was not that bad.

    [08:56] Punch in

    [16:56] Punch out. Head home. Finally it’s Friday. I do have to head home with the bus, so I will be on my way for a while.

    [18:30] It took a long time getting home with the bus. First wait half an hour for it to arrive, stand the entire trip home, and walk half an hour to my home.

    [19:00] The garage door was fixes, so I could get the car and do some last minute shopping.

    [20:00] Ana was in ‘el viento’ with the kids. They were playing with their friends. It is almost a tradition, every two weeks we go to the park on Friday, where the kids play with Diego’s kids. After a couple of hours of playing we usually go to Diego’s apartment where the kids eat a pizza, and the adults this evening drink a bottle of wine with some cheese and sausage. Not very good for my weight, but a very pleasant ending of the week..
    A book that was anticipated book for a long time has finally arrived! Months ago I pre-ordered ‘What if 2‘ on Amazon, and it is finally here. The first ‘What if‘ was a fantastic book, so I am sure I will enjoy this new one.

    [23:30] Home again. Teeth, bathroom, pyjama’s and we all went to bed.

    Vitamin C

    I like eating my daily dose of vitamin C. I trust in the positive health effects even though I have absolutely no proof that the vitamin is actually a benefit to my health. Still, my mind clearly tells me that taking vitamins is a good thing, and it makes me happy.

    In Spain it is very hard to get vitamin C pills that you can take without first diluting them in water. I want something that will dilute in my stomach, because it is much easier. In holland this used to be my normal routine. Take a pill with some liquid, and done. One day, one pill, healthy me. It cannot be more simple.

    In Spain the routine would be: Get a glass of water. Get a vitamin C pill. Put the pill in the water, and stir. Keep stirring, because in cold water it does not dilute very well. Keep stirring. The vitamin pill is now like a small pile of dust on the bottom of the glass. Either keep stirring, or drink it all and hope that you get all the vitamins from the bottom. Add more water to the glass to get everything. Stir again, and try again. You don’t want more water, but you force yourself to drink it to avoid throwing away the vitamins. The same thing happens! Give up, put the glass with the traces of vitamin still on the bottom and on the sides of the glass in the dishwasher. A terribly frustating way to start the day healthy.

    Luckily I go to Holland every now and then, and now I found a great solution. At the kruidvat they sell huge pots with 500(!) vitamin C pills. Each pill has one gram of vitamin C, which is more than enough for me.

    One week challenge: Thursday

    This is a post for my one week challenge.

    [07:00] Again the same ritual. Wake up, kids, car, work.

    [08:15] Punch in

    [16:15] Punch out. Head home.

    [17:00] AliExpress packages have arrived. One package with nine lotus seeds which I will plant in the aquarium with the shrimp. Two of the nine seeds I put in water directly, to see if they sprout. The rest of the seeds I will probably give away. The other package contained a new tribal bracelet for me.

    [17:30] Alan his second English class! His first class at his new higher level. It went ok. I went on a short run, 5km.

    [18:30] End of class so we head back home together. On the way back we passed by the hairsalon and we made an appointment with our hairdresser, Jeremy. Next week on Friday our hair will be cut. Alex, Alan and me. I am thinking about cutting my hair radically short, just like my father Kees used to have (not like he has it now, because that would leave me with almost no hair).

    [19:30] Alex English (online).

    [20:30] Alex’s class finished. The kids head over to grandma’s house (next door) for their dinner. In the meanwhile I will prepare their milk. After eating they will brush their teeth, put on their pyjama’s, and head to bed.

    [22:30] Shower, some exercise, and to bed

    One week challenge: Wednesday

    This is a post for my one week challenge.

    [07:00] The same ritual. Wake up, kids, car, work.

    [08:20] Punch in

    [16:20] Punch out. Head home.

    [16:25] Pass by the local supermarket.

    [17:30] Tennis! The kids have their weekly tennis lesson. On hour, close to our home. During their class I go and have a short run in a park nearby. I forgot to bring cash. The tennis club only accepts cash for paying for the classes. I did not expect that to still be possible, but I suspect they have their reasons.

    [19:30] Cook some food! The first two days of this week I had the pig from tgtg for lunch. Today I had leftover pasta from last weekend, but now there is nothing left, so I will make my more or less standard food. Rice with turkey and some vegetables. The rice is steamed to perfection in the Thermomix. First some water, the basket with the rice and some salt and oil, and on top some frozen beans. 19.30 minute, 110 degrees, and that’s it. The rice will be steamed and be just about ready. Some hard bits, but heating it up in the microwave i the next couple of days should make it perfectly eatable. The turkey I will bake with some onion, paprika, garlic and then add a can of Tikka Masala. Divide everything over a couple of tuppers and I have my lunch for the next couple of days.

    [20:xx] After weighing myself I learned that I lost another half kilo! I now weigh 75.3 kilos, so I’m heading in the right direction. The biggest advantage I have is that we have no more beer, cheese and nuts at our home. I simply stopped buying them. Now, when I arrive home and feel a bit hungry there is no more option to get some cheese or some nuts, so I will eat a banana or an apple. If I’m thirsty I just get a small bottle of water. I think this helps a lot.

    [21:30] The kids are already asleep. I showered and did almost half an hour of exercise.

    [22:30] Cool down, relaxing a bit and sleep. Good night!