Charles on the Move

Mid-50s husband and dad trying to improve my fitness. Running, cycling, swimming, lifting, and occasionally a triathlon.

[charlesonthemove]

Some photos from our family trip to London and Ireland. Just two nights in London because I wanted the kids to see the British Museum (they loved it, especially the Rosetta Stone) and then Dublin, Killarney, and Galway in Ireland. The pics are:

Rosetta Stone

Big Ben

The Long Room of the Library of Trinity College Dublin

Kilkenny Castle

Ross Castle

Torc Waterfall

Cliffs of Moher (highlight of the trip for me)

Bunratty Castle (we went to a medieval banquet inside!)

Murphy’s Ice Cream, which some of us visited 6 times in 3 cities

My Irish Flat Cap

Not pictured: more castles we saw, lots of sheep, many friendly people, and beautiful countryside.

[charlesonthemove]

I had planned to cycle to the county fairgrounds, which is about an 8 mile addition to the normal 28ish mile loop. A few miles in I found the road blocked by fallen branches from the storms last night. I tried another route but it was blocked by a downed tree. I went back to my normal loop, but I ended up with enough miles just trying to find a way through the roadblocks. So maybe next weekend I’ll get a fairground photo, instead of cornstalks. It was still a great ride.

[charlesonthemove]

When my 15 year old son and I signed up for an Independence Day 5k a few months ago we didn’t know it would be this hot! But we finished and he did great.

Happy Independence Day!

[charlesonthemove]

Happy Global Running Day!

I ran 5K (3.1 mi) or more on Global Running Day 2026 to earn this award.

[charlesonthemove]

We saw Bruce Springsteen at the Nationals Park in DC on Wednesday. I know and like his radio songs from the 80s but outside of that I haven’t listened to much of his work (unlike my wife, who is from New Jersey where state law requires you to be fan of the Boss, Billy Joel, and Bon Jovi). But I was excited about this concert because he is a legend and I knew it would be a night of solidarity in protest of the current administration.

It was among the best shows I’ve seen. They played for 3 hours with no intermission, and he didn’t hold back. He was joined on a few songs by Tom Morello, the guitarist from Rage Against the Machine, and I posted part of his solo in “The Ghost of Tom Joad.” I didn’t record the best part of the solo but it was incredible.

Here's a link to a Washington Post article on the show. Hopefully you can see it even if you don't have a subscription.

https://wapo.st/4fbRz1V

[charlesonthemove]

Happy Saturday!

Today I did a short brick workout: 10 mile bike and a 5k run. I have been doing walk-run intervals for the last few weeks, but this is the first time I’ve run more than a mile without a walk break since October.

Although I felt the lack of conditioning, my ankle felt good. I think my new shoes may have something to do with that. I’ve never run in Hokas before but I’m giving them a try and so far they’re great. They seem to have good support but they feel lighter than I expected.

[charlesonthemove]

Nice bike ride this morning. And the llamas are back!

[charlesonthemove]

I got a virtual gold medal for finishing a swimming training plan. It’s a major award.

[charlesonthemove]

Thursday morning’s swim felt good, and my score is slowly improving. Some of this is because a few of the drills called for fins, and speed improves the score, but even the scores for the intervals without fins improved. The pace shown in the graphic is faster than normal for me, also because of the fins I’m sure.

Today I had a nice bike ride. I’m slowly adding miles each week. I’m glad the weather is getting nicer.

Have a great Saturday!

[charlesonthemove]

This was an outdoor ride on Saturday morning. I was awake early so I did my strength workout (chest and back) first and then went out for a ride when the sun came up. No pics and no llamas again this week :(.

Today I slept later, and when I woke up I went to the gym to use the elliptical and sauna. Then I came home for my leg workout. My ankle is a bit sore today. I suspect it’s mostly due to the strength training and not the elliptical.

I hope you have a great week!

[charlesonthemove]

This morning was 63 degrees and calm, perfect for a bike ride. I set out a few minutes before sunrise and saw the moon setting in the west. I bet the astronauts on Integrity are spending some time watching it too. I should have stopped for a photo because I didn’t get any photos on this ride. I even took a little detour to the llama house, but the llamas were not out this morning.

Have a great weekend!

[charlesonthemove]

Thank you, HeadCoach!

[charlesonthemove]

The weather is warming up and I got outside for a bike ride. It was 46 degrees at 7am, but I was a little overdressed. I haven’t ridden outside since fall and I missed it!

[charlesonthemove]

It’s interesting that the time shown doesn’t include the rest time between intervals. This workout was really around 26 minutes from start to finish.

I haven’t posted in a while, so here’s an update:

Still swimming around 2x per week. My streak since getting the goggles is 11 weeks.

Weight lifting is also going well.

I missed out on cycling and elliptical last week due to a work trip. I could have done it at the hotel, I just didn’t.

I’ve been making poor food choices, maybe due to stress. Today was pretty good though.

Getting an MRI on my ankle on Wednesday. Hopefully then I’ll find what I need to do to get back to running.

There’s a lunar eclipse tonight if you have clear skies. It’s currently snowing in Maryland so I probably won’t see it ☹️

[charlesonthemove]

Not many people at the pool at 5am on President’s Day, so I had a lane to myself. The swim app said my form was better this swim, and I agree. It’s still awful, but not quite as awful as the last swim.

[charlesonthemove]

Some days I do a hard HIIT workout on the bike, and some days like today I just pedal while I watch critical role.

But I did do a hard leg strength workout.

And you can see I was not joking about lining up the dumbbells.

[charlesonthemove]

I was the only one on the track this morning, and I only walked it for 10 minutes to warm up. Then I stretched a bit and went to the treadmill to do some walk/run intervals. I saw the doctor last week about my ankle and he ordered an MRI, but he said it was ok to keep doing the intervals in the meantime. Today felt much better than last time.

Then I went to the sauna. I noticed the rules that were posted inside the sauna are now also posted on the outside of the door. Maybe the guy who works out in the sauna got the message because I haven’t seen him in a week or so.

Then I came home and did a 30 minute strength workout for chest and back.

Tomorrow I’ll do a bike trainer workout and leg workout, although maybe not in that order.