l MJF Blog: June 2005

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Rex is bigger

Rex is now about 7-8 months old and doing well. My last visit to the vet (regular checkup for parasites acquired from live food) revealed Rex might actually be a girl. Everyone finds it difficult to say 'she' instead of 'he' so I'm happy for everyone to refer to Rex ever how they feel comfortable. I have to admit, I also find it weird to call Rex a 'she'.

Rex is approx. 13 inches long now (32-33 cm) from head to tail and last weighed in at around 120g. (S)he has slowed down somewhat due to the cooler weather but still loves her crickets and vegetables when I provide them.

I currently have our 4 foot fish tank on eBay to make room for Rex's new upcoming home - a 4 foot reptile tank. The current 18" tank is becoming too small.

It was the fish or the lizard ! No prizes for guessing who won.

posted by Malcolm Smith @ 6:55 AM   0 comments

Hapkido progress

I started Hapkido in March and I'm happy to report I love it. Last night's training was the first session I've missed due to illness. It was hard to make the decision to skip training but I think my body needs the rest to recover.

I'm currently on blue-tip level (white to yellow to blue-tip) so I progressed a belt per month. I am having some trouble with my current belt. I have 4 kicks to perform, two are easy (reverse back kick and butterfly kick) but the other two are driving me nuts (spinning heel and sweeping round house). These two are difficult because my feet seem to plant themselves into the ground/mats and so I cannot spin. I purchased some 'martial arts' training shoes at AUD$135 (discounted from $159) but all I seem to do is erode the mad surface. Quite annoying, but I won't give up.

Another aspect causing me problems is flexibility in my legs. My groin is either strained or weak and my hamstrings are too tight. I just cannot stretch them enough. I'm doing some stretches and will soon be working on some resistive based excercises to see if it helps.

Wish me luck.

posted by Malcolm Smith @ 6:48 AM   2 comments

The need to swim again

It's been about 6 months since I finished my swimming lessons. At the time I stopped I could swim 50m before my breathing was out of whack. My breathing is the only thing that lets me down. I think this is a condition I've had all my life. Even during normal day-to-day activities I find myself having to take regular deep breaths to, what feels like, equalize my lungs. I wonder if I stop breathing when concentrating !! An interesting thought. Might follow up on it one day !

I have an urge to get back into swimming though, just for the fitness. It's finding the time that is difficult. I'll work on it.

posted by Malcolm Smith @ 6:44 AM   0 comments