1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,280 Hello and welcome back. I hope everyone's doing okay and has had a good week. 2 00:00:05,280 --> 00:00:12,640 I'm going to do a real bit of talking today about the kind of things I'm doing 3 00:00:12,640 --> 00:00:20,160 and I'm going to start doing in terms of trying to get myself in a bit of a better place fitness wise. 4 00:00:20,160 --> 00:00:25,760 Don't get me wrong, I know that's not going to be easy, but I'm having a go. 5 00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:33,520 But first off today, there's only one place to start and that was Saturday in London with my dad and my brother 6 00:00:33,520 --> 00:00:43,840 for the MS Society's walk. What a day. I mean genuinely what an absolutely superb day. 7 00:00:43,840 --> 00:00:54,560 Yeah okay it was a real early wake up. Six o'clock in the morning. Six a.m. yep wake up. 8 00:00:54,560 --> 00:01:00,960 Six o'clock in the shower. Sort myself out and then I had the fun task of trying to sort the 9 00:01:00,960 --> 00:01:08,640 fez machine out at that time in the morning. Let's be honest that hasn't been going particularly 10 00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:17,680 well just lately the old fez. I'm gonna be honest. So it wasn't great but I managed it and do you know 11 00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:24,320 what I'm gonna say it the fez actually on Saturday worked the best for me. It's worked for such a long 12 00:01:24,320 --> 00:01:32,320 time. The last couple of weeks I'll be straight it's not been brilliant but the one day I needed it 13 00:01:32,320 --> 00:01:41,680 to come through it came through brilliantly. I'm gonna be honest to say it was it was an early wake 14 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:50,640 up but it was well and truly worthwhile. It really was. Jumped on the train down, got into London. 15 00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:58,800 It's only an hour on the train from from where we are just over sometimes but so we got down there 16 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:05,520 jumped on the underground and what I'm gonna say traveling with a wheelchair. 17 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:17,520 My experience actually is very very positive. Very positive. Obviously we traveled down last year 18 00:02:17,520 --> 00:02:25,520 with the wheelchair and this year I don't remember a single issue. I really don't remember a single 19 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:34,880 issue. Not anything notable. It's actually been very very positive which I'm gonna be honest. 20 00:02:34,880 --> 00:02:41,360 My wheelchair is not exactly the smallest in the world but it's okay. It does a really good job and 21 00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:48,160 yeah I'll be honest I was really pleased. Really pleased. But yeah I mean once we got down there 22 00:02:48,160 --> 00:02:55,520 we got down there quite early. So when we come out of the station near where the start point of the 23 00:02:55,520 --> 00:03:02,960 walk was jumped into the shop. I don't know if I'm supposed to name the shop but you know what 24 00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:10,320 I'm gonna anyway. We went into a Costa and grabbed a drink went and sat outside it and 25 00:03:10,320 --> 00:03:17,120 sat outside it. Loads of orange shirts absolutely everywhere. It was really lovely to see I'm gonna 26 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:24,240 be honest. It was brilliant. It was absolutely fantastic I'm gonna say it. Everywhere you looked 27 00:03:24,240 --> 00:03:34,800 it was just a sea of orange and sat there outside. Nice drink and just soaking up a bit of sun. It 28 00:03:34,800 --> 00:03:40,480 was it was beautiful even at early time in the morning. Gorgeous out there. Really lovely. 29 00:03:40,480 --> 00:03:49,440 Fully enjoyed it. We went around to the actual where the walk starts. Music was playing brilliant. 30 00:03:50,080 --> 00:03:56,800 Absolutely fantastic. Atmosphere was great. Went and booked in. Got a nice little a nice little 31 00:03:56,800 --> 00:04:08,480 badge to put on our shirts to celebrate the 10 years of the MS walk. And yeah I'll be honest 32 00:04:08,480 --> 00:04:12,400 with you it was just it was a really good atmosphere. Everyone was down there for the 33 00:04:12,400 --> 00:04:20,000 same reason to make money for an incredible charity the MS Society. And yeah it was just 34 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:27,360 I don't know what else to say apart from it was just a great atmosphere. It really really was. 35 00:04:27,360 --> 00:04:34,880 Don't get me wrong I mean we didn't really pay much heed to the exercise before the walk. 36 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:41,360 Not really that kind of thing I'm gonna be honest. He says until he goes into what he's been doing. 37 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:48,640 Anyway but yeah no it was absolutely fantastic at the start. Brilliant. 38 00:04:48,640 --> 00:04:54,480 Getting everyone pumped up and ready to go and when it was our turn to go off. 39 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:58,800 You know the music was playing and everybody's ready. 40 00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:05,840 Again I've said it before and I will say again it was my thing where I guaranteed myself 41 00:05:06,400 --> 00:05:12,160 no matter what happens I will start the walk on my feet and I will finish the walk on my feet. 42 00:05:12,160 --> 00:05:17,440 Well there's a distinct sense of pride in me right now. I'm gonna be honest. 43 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:26,560 I did start on my feet. I did finish on my feet. On top of that and I'm gonna be straight on top 44 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:33,920 of that at different times it wasn't all in one hit at different times I easily walked about 45 00:05:33,920 --> 00:05:36,320 one and a half kilometers of the five kilometer walk. 46 00:05:36,320 --> 00:05:40,640 Absolutely over the moon with it. Really really over the moon with it. 47 00:05:42,880 --> 00:05:51,280 Part of the walk was down the mall outside Buckingham Palace and I walked probably halfway 48 00:05:51,920 --> 00:05:58,240 down the mall. Absolutely brilliant. Before that I'd done a little bit of walking in St James's Park 49 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:04,480 a bit of walking outside Buckingham Palace and I walked about a mile. 50 00:06:04,480 --> 00:06:11,440 A bit of walking outside Buckingham Palace. A bit further down the line I'd walked down Westminster. 51 00:06:12,720 --> 00:06:17,840 It was just absolutely fantastic. Really good. I felt good in myself to be able to 52 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:21,440 to sort of fight through a little bit because don't get me wrong. 53 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:31,360 Did it hurt? Yeah of course it did. Did it feel incredibly comfortable? 54 00:06:31,360 --> 00:06:41,760 That would be a no. But was I capable? Yeah yeah I was I was capable and because I was capable 55 00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:50,320 I think it would have been really really rude not to go ahead and actually just use my legs 56 00:06:50,320 --> 00:06:55,200 while they were while they were playing ball a little bit it was wrong not to. 57 00:06:55,200 --> 00:07:02,000 It was wrong not to. But I've got to say again I mean for me personally I think the route that 58 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:07,040 was chosen for the walk this year I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think there was lots of really good 59 00:07:07,040 --> 00:07:16,880 things to look at. As I've just said Buckingham Palace. It don't really get much more touristy 60 00:07:17,520 --> 00:07:24,720 than Buckingham Palace does it? It just doesn't. It really really doesn't. 61 00:07:24,720 --> 00:07:31,360 And don't get me wrong I've seen it no end of times in the past. It don't make it any less 62 00:07:34,720 --> 00:07:40,640 any I'm gonna say the word fun and any any less entertaining 63 00:07:42,480 --> 00:07:50,160 to look at the place where our now king resides. Now the royal standard wasn't up so obviously 64 00:07:50,160 --> 00:07:57,440 he wasn't at Buckingham Palace currently. That's fine don't make it any less entertaining to look 65 00:07:57,440 --> 00:08:03,280 at the place. I took some great pictures I'll be honest with you. Yes I did the real touristy thing 66 00:08:03,280 --> 00:08:10,800 and I was taking pictures. Lots and lots and lots of pictures. I've put them up on my social medias 67 00:08:10,800 --> 00:08:16,480 so they are there for anyone to watch if they want to. It's done in video format so that 68 00:08:16,480 --> 00:08:21,200 it's a bit more interesting because just looking at pictures with no music 69 00:08:23,840 --> 00:08:31,200 not quite as much fun these days is it? Let's be honest. But yeah honestly absolutely fantastic. 70 00:08:31,200 --> 00:08:35,920 So I mean coming away from that saw the Winston Churchill statue. 71 00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:44,800 Had a nice picture taken with my brother. Again I'll be honest with you I don't think I've ever 72 00:08:44,800 --> 00:08:51,520 actually seen Sir Winston Churchill's statue before. Racking my brains I don't think I ever have. 73 00:08:52,800 --> 00:08:57,120 So again that was quite a nice one. I'll be fair that was a new one on me and I 74 00:08:58,160 --> 00:09:05,200 yeah I've got the picture to show that I was there. To show I've seen it. So yeah no I'll 75 00:09:05,200 --> 00:09:11,440 be honest with you again that's a new one on me because I genuinely don't remember ever seeing it. 76 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:16,720 But yeah again I mean walking down the Mall itself. 77 00:09:18,800 --> 00:09:26,400 I've never seen it with no traffic. The traffic had been stopped there. Don't get me wrong there 78 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:32,480 was one point we tried to cross a road and no end of bicycles come past and I do mean no end of them. 79 00:09:34,400 --> 00:09:39,360 But apart from that we was actually able to walk down it not on the footpath actually 80 00:09:39,360 --> 00:09:48,400 the footpath actually on the road itself. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thoroughly thoroughly 81 00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:55,520 enjoyed it. It was great just to say that I have actually walked down it. But again I mean we went 82 00:09:55,520 --> 00:10:01,040 into St James's Park. It's beautiful absolutely gorgeous little park. Really do like a little 83 00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:09,040 park. It ain't that little. But yeah really really nice and again the sun was shining. We were so 84 00:10:09,040 --> 00:10:15,600 so lucky when it came to the weather I'm going to be fair. For the time of year it could easily 85 00:10:15,600 --> 00:10:20,560 very very easily have been a bit ropey. Give me a second I'm just going to have some water. 86 00:10:26,400 --> 00:10:30,160 But yeah I mean it could have been it could have been such a bad day for the weather but no it's 87 00:10:30,160 --> 00:10:34,720 brilliant. Same as last year. Last year's was October the walk actually went ahead. 88 00:10:34,720 --> 00:10:42,800 This year September the weather was perfect. Literally perfect. The sun was out. Yeah it was 89 00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:48,480 just just fantastic. We did go a little bit off map a little bit towards the end of the walk. 90 00:10:48,480 --> 00:10:52,800 We probably extended the walk actually to slightly low over five kilometers for us. 91 00:10:54,080 --> 00:11:00,880 Because seeing as we was in the area it was rude not to go and have a look at Downing Street. 92 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:06,720 It just would have been wrong. I'm sorry it just would have been wrong. So we sort of went a little 93 00:11:06,720 --> 00:11:14,000 bit off grid. Went down had a look at Downing Street. Again I took a nice picture. Really good 94 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:19,760 again it's a part of London I don't remember ever seeing. I genuinely don't think I've ever 95 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:26,640 seen Downing Street before. So it's another one to tick off the list isn't it. Tick. 96 00:11:26,640 --> 00:11:32,800 But yeah no it again I don't really know how much more I can compliment it. It was just 97 00:11:32,800 --> 00:11:40,240 a brilliant day. A thoroughly good day. Again the event itself was put on fantastically. 98 00:11:40,960 --> 00:11:47,600 There's two we've done now and I'm gonna say they they go out of their way to make sure that 99 00:11:49,120 --> 00:11:50,880 everyone's having a good time. 100 00:11:50,880 --> 00:12:00,000 Because again I'm gonna sort of go a little bit a little bit off the cheerful here. Not everyone 101 00:12:00,000 --> 00:12:07,840 there is there with a smile on their face and rightly so. 102 00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:13,520 There are some people there that are walking on their own for different reasons. 103 00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:20,880 But on the whole we're all there for one reason and one reason only. And I will say on my website 104 00:12:20,880 --> 00:12:30,480 I still have the just giving little buttons on there for this walk. If you're able to donate 105 00:12:31,120 --> 00:12:37,360 it is still able to be put into. At the moment we've raised the price of the event. 106 00:12:37,360 --> 00:12:54,640 Which I'm happy with. I'd set my personal goal for the team at 250. 107 00:12:55,440 --> 00:12:59,040 So yeah I was really chuffed. Really chuffed with what we've actually raised. 108 00:12:59,040 --> 00:13:06,960 On the website is actually still the just giving links a separate link for the skydive. 109 00:13:08,960 --> 00:13:14,640 That's the next one. I can't wait. But yeah I think that's probably where I'll call it a day 110 00:13:14,640 --> 00:13:20,720 on talking about the the walk itself. Because again I mean I could sit here honestly I could sit here 111 00:13:20,720 --> 00:13:27,040 for hours and just go on about how great it was and how much I enjoyed it. And all the different 112 00:13:27,040 --> 00:13:35,600 landmarks that we've actually seen. Let's be fair the first proper landmark was Big Ben. 113 00:13:37,120 --> 00:13:42,720 And Big Ben every time I look at Big Ben I just think that's awesome. But I've got a feeling it 114 00:13:42,720 --> 00:13:51,520 might be the first time I've seen it since it's been cleaned. It's gorgeous. It's just such an 115 00:13:51,520 --> 00:13:57,440 impressive sight it really is. But anyway like I say I could sit here and just go on and on and on 116 00:13:57,440 --> 00:14:04,000 about all the different landmarks and everything else that we've seen. But that would probably 117 00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:12,640 bore everyone except me. Because I saw them. I enjoyed seeing them. And I'll enjoy seeing them 118 00:14:12,640 --> 00:14:19,680 again next year. Because yes there's very little chance I won't be doing it next year. I am 119 00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:27,760 desperate for them to open the reservations and I will be there. Because why not. But anyway 120 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:37,360 just very briefly I say briefly. One of the things I've actually started doing a little bit now 121 00:14:37,360 --> 00:14:47,840 is exercising. Because I want to keep myself in a position where one for the skydive I'm under the 122 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:57,200 weight limit that you have to be to actually do the dive. And two do you know what having started 123 00:14:57,200 --> 00:15:03,200 doing some basic exercising I'm really enjoying it. I'm going to be honest I'm really really enjoying 124 00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:12,560 it. It's very much a case of I'm just doing basics real real basics. I'm trying to learn to do the 125 00:15:12,560 --> 00:15:21,280 plank. Yeah yeah I'm trying. I kind of got it wrong at the start. I'm going to be honest with 126 00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:28,480 you. I think my bum was a little bit high in the air. You live and learn. You live and learn. 127 00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:34,000 I'm doing press ups which is something I've been absolutely awful at my entire life. I'll be honest 128 00:15:34,000 --> 00:15:39,680 with you my press ups are kind of embarrassing. I'm going to be honest. They're not great. 129 00:15:39,680 --> 00:15:46,080 They're really not great at all. But I'm having a go. Sit ups. Sit ups. When I was younger and I'm 130 00:15:46,080 --> 00:15:53,200 talking a lot younger I could do limitless amount of sit ups. At the moment because I'm trying to be 131 00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:58,800 a bit sensible because let's be honest I need to learn what my body is capable of these days. 132 00:16:01,280 --> 00:16:06,320 There's not many things it's capable of but we're going to get there. We're going to get there with 133 00:16:06,320 --> 00:16:15,680 it. So I'm only doing currently five press ups, 10 sit ups, a plank and I'm going to do things 134 00:16:15,680 --> 00:16:21,840 if I'm able things like lunges and whatever else. I just need to figure out how to do that safely 135 00:16:22,640 --> 00:16:29,680 so I don't fall over and bang my head. Because let's be honest that would be really really silly 136 00:16:29,680 --> 00:16:37,040 if I was to do something like that and I was to bump my head. It just wouldn't be smart. Come on 137 00:16:37,040 --> 00:16:43,440 it wouldn't be smart. There's no way we can think of that and go well that was a good idea wasn't it? 138 00:16:45,120 --> 00:16:52,160 It wouldn't be. It just wouldn't be. Unless I filmed it and put it online for everyone to look 139 00:16:52,160 --> 00:16:57,680 at and go look at what you just did. Because I'm the kind of person who's going to be like 140 00:16:57,680 --> 00:17:03,120 what you just did because I'm the kind of person I don't mind people laughing at me for that sort 141 00:17:03,120 --> 00:17:10,720 of stuff. I really don't. It's just a bit of fun. But anyway that's the kind of thing I'm looking 142 00:17:10,720 --> 00:17:17,680 at doing and I'm going to be honest going to the gym. I know I've mentioned it previously. 143 00:17:18,480 --> 00:17:24,080 Yeah it's going to happen. I am really chomping at the bit to get signed up to the gym because 144 00:17:24,080 --> 00:17:29,760 so much I can do at home. Like I've just said and I've even been out and I've bought a yoga mat so 145 00:17:29,760 --> 00:17:37,120 that I can do this stuff comfortably. I know a yoga mat. Should I start doing yoga? 146 00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:46,480 I don't know the answer to that one to be fair but you know should I give it a go? I'm told it's 147 00:17:46,480 --> 00:17:54,800 pretty good. Time will tell. Time will definitely tell on that one. But yeah I mean I can do these 148 00:17:54,800 --> 00:18:04,240 basic bits at home. But there's other bits and pieces like other cardio work that I can do 149 00:18:05,040 --> 00:18:14,240 on say maybe a rowing machine. Certain types of bike machines. I just can't do at home. 150 00:18:14,240 --> 00:18:20,000 And that may well help a little bit more. I totally understand. I really do get that any kind of 151 00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:26,000 exercise for me is tiring. It really does. It completely destroys me. It wipes me out. 152 00:18:26,880 --> 00:18:33,920 It's worth it. It's genuinely genuinely worth it. If it makes me feel better in myself 153 00:18:34,880 --> 00:18:41,200 and it makes me feel like I'm doing something to try and keep myself 154 00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:46,240 where I want to be. Because when I got my diagnosis. When I started this podcast. When I 155 00:18:46,240 --> 00:18:53,440 started the social medias. I made a real big deal out of MS isn't going to change me. 156 00:18:55,120 --> 00:18:59,200 That's wrong. That was the wrong thing to say. Absolutely the wrong thing to say. 157 00:18:59,200 --> 00:19:03,680 And I can see that now having that little bit of experience with what's been going on. 158 00:19:03,680 --> 00:19:09,200 MS has changed me and it's changed me to a point where 159 00:19:11,520 --> 00:19:17,440 I now need to understand what I can actually do and how I can do it. 160 00:19:18,560 --> 00:19:24,160 Because I'm not saying this is a negative. Don't take this as a negative. It absolutely isn't. 161 00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:27,520 This is actually me being really really positive. 162 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:35,760 Because I just need to know how to live with the condition and then make the condition live 163 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:44,240 alongside me. Rather than me giving into it and me saying oh I'm going to ignore everything to do 164 00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:50,880 with it. It's not going to change a thing. That's rubbish. It can't happen. It has changed me. It's 165 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:57,440 changed what I've been through. It's changed me. It's changed me. It's changed me. It's changed 166 00:19:57,440 --> 00:20:04,560 what I can do. It's changed what I'm capable of. But not in a bad way. Really not in a bad way at all. 167 00:20:05,120 --> 00:20:13,120 It's made me learn new things about myself and I'm proud to have learned those things. 168 00:20:13,120 --> 00:20:22,960 I'm proud to be learning those things. And that for me is where things are going to start turning 169 00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:32,800 in my favour a bit. Because yeah that just is what's going to happen. 100%. 170 00:20:34,800 --> 00:20:45,360 Now to finish the show this week I suppose really I should talk about what happened earlier part of 171 00:20:45,360 --> 00:20:56,080 each. I had my first full bag of the ocrevas treatment and do you know what it might have 172 00:20:56,080 --> 00:21:07,680 been long. It took six hours but it went well. It really did go well. I had one little reaction 173 00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:14,320 towards the start. The machine got turned up. The drip got turned up and my body reacted. I got 174 00:21:14,320 --> 00:21:21,680 quite a rash on the top of my head. It was quite itchy and whatever else. So nurse turned the drip 175 00:21:21,680 --> 00:21:28,320 down a little bit and just sort of got my body back into a decent little flow. Turned it back up. 176 00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:36,800 Perfectly fine. Not a problem at all. Flew through it after that and yeah okay six hours. It's a long 177 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:44,400 it's a long time. Let's be totally straight six hours is a very long time. But I had my laptop. I 178 00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:51,440 had my phone and actually I had good company. The nurse that was with me absolutely brilliant. 179 00:21:51,440 --> 00:21:58,880 Fantastic. Really chatty. Very friendly. Absolutely brilliant. I had other people that was in with 180 00:21:58,880 --> 00:22:07,360 different MS medication that was being done. So I had three others to have conversations with. 181 00:22:08,000 --> 00:22:15,680 All of them great. Really nice people. Brilliant conversations. And to be fair okay yeah again I'm 182 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:24,720 gonna say it took six hours. But the time went really quite fast. It did go quite fast and 183 00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:29,760 a couple of days after very very tired. I'll be straight very very tired. 184 00:22:31,760 --> 00:22:40,960 But that really was it. There was no negatives to it. No bad side effects or nothing like that. 185 00:22:42,160 --> 00:22:46,640 I took my antihistamines like you're supposed to for the three days after. 186 00:22:46,640 --> 00:22:55,360 Well here we are on Sunday. I'm sat now having a chat with you and I don't feel bad at all. Apart 187 00:22:55,360 --> 00:23:03,280 from the obvious aching and pains and whatever else from my uh should we say the effort that 188 00:23:03,280 --> 00:23:10,800 I put in yesterday. Other than that absolutely feel okay. The bog standard. The hugs there. 189 00:23:10,800 --> 00:23:16,080 It's been a week and a half and I can still feel my right foot. 190 00:23:18,640 --> 00:23:22,560 I'm sorry I'm quite excited about that because it's been a very very long time since I've been 191 00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:29,920 able to feel that right foot. So absolutely over the moon. But yeah apart from that. So the numb 192 00:23:29,920 --> 00:23:37,280 legs are still there. Whatever. Whatever. It's the bog standard. It's the bog standard. 193 00:23:37,280 --> 00:23:43,680 I'm used to it. Not a problem at all. But yeah I think that's probably where we'll finish up for today. 194 00:23:45,680 --> 00:23:51,200 I like to think this has actually come across as a really quite cheerful episode. I'm gonna be fair 195 00:23:51,840 --> 00:23:54,560 because I do feel really cheerful. 196 00:23:54,560 --> 00:24:08,080 Cheerful? Cheerful? Cheerful? Yeah cheerful. A little bit like. Cheers. Yay! 197 00:24:11,120 --> 00:24:11,600 Anyway. 198 00:24:16,480 --> 00:24:21,280 Sorry I made myself laugh then. Anyway I hope you all have a really really good week. 199 00:24:21,280 --> 00:24:26,240 From my point of view this week I want to get myself booked into the gym. I want to start 200 00:24:26,240 --> 00:24:32,800 getting up to the gym. I don't want to start getting myself. I'm not gonna say fit because 201 00:24:32,800 --> 00:24:37,520 I'm never gonna be fit but I want to start getting myself a bit more comfortable with things. 202 00:24:37,520 --> 00:24:49,040 I hope you all have a great week. Thank you very much for listening. Speak soon. Bye bye.