[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” background_position=”center center” background_repeat=”no-repeat” fade=”no” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_loop=”yes” video_mute=”yes” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ border_style=”solid” padding_top=”20px” padding_bottom=”20px”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ layout=”1_1″ spacing=”” center_content=”no” hover_type=”none” link=”” min_height=”” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” class=”” id=”” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_position=”left top” background_repeat=”no-repeat” border_size=”0″ border_color=”” border_style=”solid” border_position=”all” padding=”” dimension_margin=”” animation_type=”” animation_direction=”left” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_offset=”” last=”no”][fusion_text]

I have a new found love for country walks, they have been made more exciting by the addition of Luna. Our 5 month year old German Shepherd puppy who just loves strolling around the countryside with me. We have been exploring the local country parks and beaches around where we live and I have been amazed and the incredible scenery and animal life that surrounds us.

So far we have spotted foxes, owls, lots of birds, swans and even a deer or two!

Our daily walks have been keeping me ‘sane’ whilst I recover from my operation. As I have internal stitches life is taking place in the slow lane for a few weeks while I heal. Doctors orders!

I hadn’t really been keeping track of how many miles or steps I had been doing and instead have just been enjoying exercise with no objective or aim, it is quiet refreshing from training where every session counts and has an aim attached to it. So it was rather a shock when I looked at my fitbit data and found I was clocking up some good miles! I have done over 77,000 steps this week and now have a challenge to beat that next week.

Keeping healthy is really important to me and so finding out that I was actually walking a good amount was very rewarding and made me realise that although I may not be training all this walking was keeping my body ticking over until I can start training again.

I have been on two short rides (27 minutes) since my operation which were odd I felt like my leg muscles knew what was going on but my stomach is still not happy about the idea of cycling just yet! So I will continue with the small steps and building up day by day. It is important to remember that muscle memory does not fade over night and building up slowly will mean I am back training quicker than ignoring what my body is saying. As hard as this may be to actually do!

So for now I will be practising my photography skills and enjoying the views.

I hope you enjoy these too!

 

 

[/fusion_text][fusion_images picture_size=”auto” hover_type=”zoomin” autoplay=”yes” columns=”2″ column_spacing=”5″ show_nav=”yes” mouse_scroll=”no” border=”yes” lightbox=”no” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility”][fusion_image image=”https://beyondthemud.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/IMG_5400-e1480431794255-1024×768.jpg” image_id=”2857″ linktarget=”_self” alt=”Luna at the beach” /][fusion_image image=”https://beyondthemud.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/IMG_5533-e1480432444218-1024×768.jpg” image_id=”2858″ linktarget=”_self” alt=”Early morning ride” /][fusion_image image=”https://beyondthemud.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/IMG_5514-e1480433378406-1024×768.jpg” image_id=”2861″ linktarget=”_self” alt=”Luna learns to swim” /][fusion_image image=”https://beyondthemud.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/IMG_5226-1-e1480433465952-1024×768.jpg” image_id=”2862″ linktarget=”_self” alt=”Luna and Lola at the sea side” /][fusion_image image=”https://beyondthemud.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/IMG_5508-e1480433536533-1024×768.jpg” image_id=”2863″ linktarget=”_self” alt=”Countryside stroll” /][/fusion_images][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]