Thursday cramp

As I was due to celebrate the Eucharist at St John's Canton again this morning, I didn't go into College to  join the Eucharist there. No lie-in either. I awoke at the time I've been pushing myself to rise at since term began, and wrote for an hour before breakfast, as there was material to prepare for a CBS Steering Group meeting due to take place tomorrow.

There were eleven of us at St John's and I drank tea with members of the congregation afterwards, being in no rush leave. Eventually I took the bus into town to the CBS office and continued working on other elements of meeting preparation until it was time to quit and get back to College for Evensong. Tonight's preacher was our local parish Incumbent Fr Mark Preece, reflecting thoughtfully on the meaning of Lent and spiritual discipline.

Clare had gone off to Kenilworth earlier in the day to celebrate Rhiannon's birthday tomorrow, so I was under no pressure to return home quickly in order to ferry her to her study group. I had enough time to walk home, cook a meal, and listen to the Archers before driving over to Penarth for Tai Chi.

During the class I had an attack of cramp in both feet, which stopped me in my tracks for a short while. Christie our teacher quizzed me about the cause, and observed how tense my calf muscles were. The reason for this? My second floor office in St Mike's is reached by 42 stairs, which I go up and down three or four times a day, sometimes more. My third floor CBS office is reached by over fifty stairs three or four times a week. I'm so used to it that I hardly get out of breath ascending these days. With two or three miles walking each days as well, I get so much exercise I have little need to go to a gym.

I've noticed how this only happens on Thursday evenings after I've driven to class, whereas on Tuesdays I generally walk the mile there and back. It's clear I need to warm up more before the Thursday class, to loosen up the muscles if I'm to avoid cramp.