Pole Pole

Pole pole is Swahili for "slowly, slowly", which is what the porters say to you as they pass you multiple times while going up the mountain. They are packing your stuff up the mountain, while you have to concentrate on packing your possibly very large arse up there. Acclimatization is apparently a bitch.

I showed up at the gym with all the hardcore gym bunnies- you know, the ones who are foaming at the mouth waiting to get in when the doors open in the morning. Now, don't mistake my meaning, I haven't become a hard core bunny, I just happened to be breathing the same air as them yesterday morning at 05:30 am.

I did a "long" workout, 70 minutes walking around the track with my trekking poles. I know I looked weird, walking around a flat track with poles, but my arms have to get in shape too (no, flabby is not a shape) and I'm not ready for hills yet.

Every single person on the track passed me, many more than once! Grandmas and Grandpas with such bad scoliosis their shoulders are 3 inches off level, fit guys running hard, overweight people of both sexes who can walk at something resembling a "I need to get there sometime today" pace and even the guy walking backwards (I don't know why- he was passing too fast to ask)!

I kept repeating "Pole pole, its not a race up the mountain, why race now?" Still, when I got lapped by the woman who appears the same age as my Grandma, my self esteem took a major dive!

Body check in:
Down half a pound
Right knee sore due to very, very tight calf muscle.
Finally might be rid of my paresthesia meralgia (nerve pain along the outside of my thigh) thanks to very, very, very painful release of my QL muscle.
Sleep: spontaneously waking up at 5 am whether I need to or not, very tired at night, quality of sleep, reasonable for me.