Tired of Being Old

You'll probably just want to skip over this one; I'm just going to sit down and have a good whinge, OK?

First of all I strained my back when I did my big shop last Wednesday. I'm pretty sure I shouldn't have wrestled the 12-pack of 1 litre milk boxes from the shelf to the trolley, the conveyer belt, the boot of my car, the kitchen. I should have dealt with a few boxes at at time, I know. Also, UK shopping trolleys are different to those in the US: you can go in every direction with all 4 wheels, not just the 2 front ones. Whilst this may sound like great fun, it just means that it's harder to control and nearly impossible once the weight of the groceries approaches your body weight. I always feel a tug in my lower back when I try to control a full cart from behind instead of giving in and dragging it or walking along side.

Then, of course, I wanted to keep my commitment to running 4 days a week. This isn't quite as insane as it might sound, as the last time I talked with a doctor who specialised in sports injuries his advice was to keep moving if I could. So I have. Mind I left it late yesterday and so was perhaps even more tired.

I passed a couple walking 4-5 dogs and though they reeled the dogs in and I made it around them fine, it must have broken my concentration and I tripped. I managed to stagger across to a patch of ground instead of smacking the concrete, but I went down all the same on one knee and my wrists and then pretty much the rest of me. I remember wishing the ground were a bit softer and at the same time being glad it wasn't muddier than it was.

The man came back to see if I was alright. He wouldn't believe me until I pulled myself upright. I was so surprised to have fallen and so impressed with his concern and his decency that I forgot to be quite as embarrassed as I normally am when I do this sort of thing. I made myself continue the general motion of running thinking I wanted to be home soon and keep warm and maybe it wasn't that bad. In truth it wasn't, but I grizzled for a moment all the same. If I thought I had a hitch in my getalong when I set out, on my return I was an advert for taking ones zimmer frame along to the gym.

I didn't sleep well, but I did feel better this morning. I am very stiff, though, and clumsy. I'm aware that being clumsy makes one more accident-prone and so I'm not moving more than I have to, which makes me stiff... OK, OK, I'll stop now.

But I am going for a run tonight.