I'm back - well almost!

At the end of the year I wrote about "resetting" your goals and enjoying life.  I said I'd be back in April and here I am.  Beth & I were away for 9 weeks travelling to Singapore, Bali, Australia and New Zealand.  We have been blown away by the landscapes and the people we have met along the way.  I tried to keep up my running training, but in Australia had to concede defeat as I felt terrible and even after a km I was struggling.  Hills in particular had me short of breath including while walking.  I kept up my strength training meanwhile Beth kept focused and was running 10km a day - she's got a good season ahead of her after that hard work.
I visited the cardiologist and have decided before going through an ablation operation, which doesn't have a high success rate, I'll stay on the medication and go right back to square one with my training.  I need more aerobic training but I have to build up to that very slowly.  My two efforts at running 6 & 5km have led to injury so I'll start with walking and build from there.  I'll be strength training four times a week and continuing my daily yoga. Normally I'd have races in the diary but my goal in 2025 is to get back running without feeling out of breath.  
Many of you will have had similar challenges with your fitness and I've found it difficult to accept.  I've been comparing my fitness to that of 5 years ago which doesn't help my frame of mind, but have given myself a shake.  "Rear view mirror" driving leads to accidents and it's only going forward that matters.  What I have done in the past is like a library - there for reference when required.  It's been 12 years since I completed Marathon des Sables and 6 years since the Tahoe 200.  I'm proud of these achievements and many others but I now have a bigger, more important, but not so glamorous challenge.  
You have noticed I have changed the photo in my blog.  I have always wanted to Skydive but was too fearful.  The thought of going out the plane kept me from attempting it.  However in New Zealand I got the opportunity and thought, f@@k it I'm doing this.  Once you rationalise the safety statistics you realise the risk is exceptionally low.  Well, what a rush!  Dropping at 200km per hour from 9,000 ft was utterly amazing.  So much so that I did it a few weeks later from 12,000 ft.  It served to remind me that we can limit ourselves with what we think.  I also walked over the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge (did I mention I'm scared of heights?) and went "sledging" on the rapids.  All these activities made me feel 20 years younger!
As for retirement, I can highly recommend it.  The stress has been lifted from my shoulders and I'm taking to it like a duck to water.  I've been working on my book and am going to Portugal for a week to concentrate on writing.
I'll keep you informed of my fitness progress but please be patient as it will be like driving behind a motorhome on the North Coast 500 in Scotland - slow but you'll get there in the end.