Past the Promenade: A spanner named shingles

There's a spanner in the works for operation triathlon, and it's name is Shingles!

As you may have noticed, things have been a little quiet over here past the promenade! My apologies. We are in the middle of a truly mad time of year for all Year 2 and Year 6 teachers- it's SATS season and all of my non-essential life activities (blogging, preparing interesting meals rather than grazing the fridge, sleeping before midnight) have ceased in a flurry of moderation prep and drawing up class lists for next year. The kids haven't noticed anything different though, which, in my opinion, is exactly how it should be! Happy kiddos= happy teacher.

I guess, with hindsight, I was burning the candle at both ends (and in the middle!!) and went down with a bug at the start of half term. A lot of work came home with me for the holiday, and I kept on with my training plan, admittedly doing far less than I'd planned to, as I felt under the weather for most of the break.

I started sleeping badly, and my skin began to flare up (usually a sign my immune system isn't doing it's thing), and on Monday night I found myself at the out of hours doctor for 2 hours, waiting to be told that, for the second time in 2 years, I've managed to get shingles. Same side as last time, but going up and down my back, with pain in my ear, shoulder neck and arm.

"Take it easy and rest" is the doctor's advice, which doesn't sit well with someone who's been training hard for a triathlon since January, and that triathlon is in 12 days. As in, 288 hours. I'm not allowed to swim until the rash has gone, and, despite catching it really early this time, currently the rash is spreading rather than retreating.

Gutted is an understatement- but I'm trying my best to hold it all really lightly, rest and let my body do it's thing. I'm taking the huge antiviral tablets 5x a day, cracking the pain killers and even taking a bit of time off work as the pain has made me so tired and irritable I'm not much use to anyone.

Even if the rash clears, I need to get my head around the fact that I'll be 3 weeks behind my ideal training schedule (due to busyness before half-term, illness in half term and shingles now) if I do make it to the starting line.

However, I've been praying for perspective (and for the shingles to go away!!) and I've realised that actually this particular triathlon isn't the be-all and end-all. A 3 week (or longer) dip in a lifetime of health and fitness isn't a huge deal. I'll encounter other dips in the future, for other reasons, and the key thing is that I don't let them derail my determination and the enjoyment I get from training.

All of my hard work will be used and pay off on a triathlon this summer, even if it's not on the 14th of June. The stress-busting benefits and health impact that training since last May has had on me can't be taken away by a bug now, even one as sore and annoying as shingles. Worst case scenario that I miss it- I get even longer to work on my sea swimming and to get along to the transition trainings that Portsmouth Triathletes run. I'll still be there cheering my awesome training buddies as they chase their goal.

I'm off to curl up under a blanket, eat a tonne of fruit and veg and rest this virus out of my system!