Olympic Fever

Have you all been watching the Olympics? I’m surprised to find that I’m ridiculously excited about it.

I used to love the Olympics. The first one I watched was Barcelona in 1992 and I thought that it was just magical. I thought the opening ceremony was thrilling, I loved the anthem with Freddie Mercury and Monserrat Caballe and the parade of the athletes from countries I’d never even heard of.

I listened to the speeches about bringing the world together through sport, and about athletes striving to be  the best that they could be, and I believed in them – I was only eight – I thought it was all amazing.

I think I watched almost every event of that Games. And the one in Atlanta in 1996.

It was during the time that Team GB had people like Sally Gunnell, Linford Christie, Colin Jackson, Jonathon Edwards and Steve Redgrave. They were my heros. They seemed so talented, and dedicated, and just so… happy.

As I got older though I lost interest.

There were all the drugs controversies.

The Games became less convenient to watch as I grew older and busier, and the events were staged on the other side of the world. Plus the fact that my school wouldn’t let me try out for the track team because I wasn’t on any of the winter sports teams, so I wasn’t going to get to be a runner myself after all.

I did apply for tickets to the London Olympics, just because I thought it’d be cool to be able to say I went. Especially if I got to watch the sprinting events with Usain Bolt. But I wasn’t especially excited about it.

I did get some tickets. They were for the ladies boxing though, and I’ve sold them on to a friend of a friend because I didn’t think that was a good event to be watching just yet.

By the time the build up began, with the tour of the flame, I’d lost interest again.

But then I watched the Opening Ceremony on Friday and thought it was phenomenal. Absolutely amazing. I thought Danny Boyle represented what Britain’s all about perfectly.

Although I’d be really interested to hear from any readers outside the UK whether you had any idea what most of it was about? It did seem like there were a lot of national in-jokes.

Anyway, the ceremony got me all hyped up to watch some of the events. And like I said before I am absolutely loving the Olympics.

I’m getting ridiculously excited about events I haven’t watched in years, like the swimming, and even events that I’ve never watched before, like the Judo. Watching the Olympics has taken up much of my weekend. Which is why I’m only just getting round to updating my blog in the middle of the night.

The athletes seem so focussed, and the atmosphere seems to be incredible, and everyone is so healthy! And I’m finding it really inspiring.

I’ve remembered how good it feels to be able to walk up seven flights of stairs, like I’m having to do to get to work while the lift’s out of action, and not be completely out of breathe. To be toned and healthy. To have an endorphin buzz after a fitness session.

So I’ve decided to take action.

I think my depression is light enough now that some consistent exercise might just help in driving the rest of it away, along with some other changes that I’m making. And as part of my phased return my start time for work has been moved to ten o’ clock.

Which means that I have time to start swimming every morning.

And I think I’ll see if I can make time for a fitness session that I’ve seen that runs on some evenings. It’s at the local muay thai gym and involves lots of intense cardio. I don’t know for sure that it won’t kill me, I haven’t done any exercise at all since I injured my back about twenty months ago, but I can at least give it a go.

I’m really looking forward to it. I’ll let you know how I get on.