blood sugar

The Primary goal of weight loss is slowly being achieved with [just] sub 100 weights being seen more often. 

Erg times are ok 

PB at park run 33:09. A 2 minute improvement over my previous.  More importantly I think it felt good. 

Just got blood tests back from the doc. 

Blood sugar dropping (should be less than 6.0) was diebetic with 8.0 in April '25, 7.9 Mar '26, 7.1 now.  So good to see on the way down. 

Cholesterol however is a rising issue. Should be less than 5.6.

Was 6.0 in Apr'25, 6.0Mar'26, 6.2 now. 

To get the weight and sugar to go down I had to give up potatoes, pasta, rice,  ice cream, chocolate,  milk & alcohol.  (With the occasional relapse)

Now apparently I have to give up dairy - milk,  Yoghurt, Ice cream, cheese,  butter, cut fat off meat. 

One wonders what's next. 

5kerg#11

I had offered to coach Thursday afternoon at Centenary as one of the usual coaches is away so took an early mark from work to do an erg. 

Now erg times are in, needed to find a new focus. I've the privilege of rowing in the regatta on Saturday and we did a race sim rating 29 on Wednesday so figured hooking along at a decent rate would be a suitable focus. 

5kErg#11 20:39 11-Jun-2026 1 sec worse than last Sunday and 13 sec off pb.

"It's harder than it looks"

https://youtu.be/g-qkY2yj4_A?si=epoXFtN-cha3P9KX

#11 20:39 11-Jun-2026 @Cent. 2:15 pm DF115 w=100kg

#10 20:38 7-Jun-2026 @cent 6:15am df115 tried some high rating bursts.

#9 20:47. 31-May-2026 @centenary 6am 27spm

#8 20:50 27-May-2026 @home 4:30pm 26spm variable

#7 20:38 24-May-2026 @cent 101kg DF115. 27spm

#6 20:26. 17-May-2026 @Centenary. 102kg DF116 28spm

#5 21:26. 10-May-2026 @centenary 102kg

#4. 20.57 6-May-2026 101.6kg

#3 21:17 26-APR-2026 @Centenary 101kg

#2 21:26. 22-Apr-2026 @home

#1 21:45 15-Apr-2026 @home

100.3

Thai with family

Tonight I will be a bit tight for time.  Coaching at Centenary and then home for dinner with kids. 

It's gonna be takeaway:

07 3162 7949 Bann Suan Thai Restaurant

1 Beef green curry

2 Pad Prik Khing Mu Grob

3 Roast duck with Tamerin sauce

4 Chicken Pad thai

5  mixed veggies (ask for stir fry else steamed)

Steamed rice x3

1 Phoebe 

2 Fletch 

3 Chris

4 Dan

5 Jemma 

6 Frank 

2026 Rowing Coaching Reacreditation

 ReAccreditation needs information about coaching activities over the last 4 years:
2023, 2024, 2025, 2026

It asks for Practical experience and Personal Development. 

I note in my previous reacreditation submission, 
https://thomsoneu.blogspot.com/2022/02/rowing-coaching-acreditation.html
I had done some on line course and also done some self evaluation of video.  I guess I could do that again.

 In the meantime, I think I will submit and pay and see what happens.

 

 

 

First Aid Certificate

 

Winter Racing Series #1

 2026 WRS#1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 WEDNESDAY

We did a race sim.   It was drizzling. We took the boat off the rack and put it on trestles inside the shed.

Rowed up to near the start line and raced back.  It took about 15 minutes and we rated 29.  The boat sat up.  It was a good row

 

The Road Not Taken

The other night Phoebe and I were reading poems to each other.  Phoebe read "The Road Less Travelled"

I was thinking I'd like a poem "The road Not Taken".

I was talking to Dave Nix and I mentioned I describe my life as "A life of mediocrity and under achievement".  Dave responded that I (Frank) had had a great life and achieved a lot.  It reminded me that we can't see ourselves. 

I was thinking that as we go through life we choose "roads" and therefore there's roads we don't go down. Then we see others and look at their lives and jealousy kicks in. I see bigger houses, more income,  yachts and so on. 

By coincidence, I was listening to this YouTube video on how Google maps locates routes so quickly. In essence by pruning routes from the search options.  I guess, in a way,  we prune routes from our lives.  Sometimes consciously and in my case unconsciously. I'll take options but not see or follow others potentially better options. Yet harking back to Dave's comments, that maybe I did choose well (or maybe luck?).

Now bring in the concept of God and Christians discuss the idea of what is the path that God wants them to follow.  Then I was talking with Phoebe and she mentioned her image was not of choosing a road but rather of being in a field. 

I thought that resonates with me that choosing a road implies someone has been here before me.  At least someone built the road.  

 My life is unique. Msybe it's not choosing roads as that implies following in the footsteps of others. 

Perhaps the image is more that I'm walking through the bush. There's trees and boulders that limit how far I can see. There are obstacles that I have to walk around or climb over. At places I can see the sky or reach the top of a mountain or the edge of a cliff and see a great view (analogous of the future) but there's danger of course. Don't fall off the cliff.  At other times it's a gentle down hill or across a plain. 

Phoebe lays turf

Phoebe bought some turf and laid it.  She also bought rocks and things that she put round the fire.