Back to work

I completed my first week back at work. Moof IT have been very good, breaking me in gently. I had settled into a routine during lockdown, now I had to create a new one. The space at home is a little cramped, but no commute to the office is a positive change to my day. It's given me some extra time.

I didn't get out on my bike after work as much as planned. In truth my back and knees were hurting, and the new daily structure caused a dip in motivation.

I did finally go for a ride on Wednesday - a short one on the road bike - just over eigth miles. I did include a few hills, it did feel odd to be back home in thirty minutes. 

I left a short time after 5pm, it isn't a great time to ride though; the roads were very busy.

Didn't get out again until Friday, on the mountain bike this time. I rode the eight mile off road route. Leaving the house just after five and it didn't feel too hot, working hours had been almost unbearable. My little home office turned into a sweat box. 

It was a very pleasant outing, mostly away from the road I was surrounded by views like the one below.

The team at work have a virtual get together every morning. We chat about what's been happening with everyone, share news about Moof IT, and then a challenge or two is set. It is a very welcome addition to my day. It was my turn to head the meeting. I set serious and not so serious tasks. The not so serious one was to post the earliest picture everyone had of themselves.

This was mine.

The second task was to spend at least five minutes exercising at lunch time. Everyone was already taking regular breaks from their desks, I wanted everyone to think about how they filled the lunch hour.

I read somewhere if they keep it up for two weeks, it can become a habit. I decided to do push ups. I will continue and see how many I can do, I hope the others do too.

Exercise has helped me immensely, even before coronavirus. The last four months have allowed me to focus on myself, not something I do very often. I wanted to ride everyday to prove I could, and because it helped to steady me. I hadn't realised how tightly wound I was, I guess it builds slowly over a long time.

Saturday was a ride to Ide Hill, I needed to get some miles into the week.

The view was worth the effort.

On the way home on a very quiet lane two deer allowed me a brief interaction, before they disappeared.

On Sunday I rode to meet Matt at the churchyard, going back to old routines is also what I need. These rides were what I looked forward to all week before coronavirus. Now that we are allowed to meet people again, they return to being an important part of my week.

Unfortunately as I neared the churchyard a gear cable snapped, leaving me in the lowest ratio. That's not great, I only need it for steep offroad hills. I was able to adjust the mechanism to lock out the smallest sprocket.