Dear Doctor – I Did Exercise

Nowadays, when my doctor wants me to go and get a blood test for this, that or the other, I get a text. This is a very convenient service, except that sometimes I ‘forget’ for a few weeks, but eventually, yes I do comply and present an arm at the laboratory. I feel as though I have upheld my end of the bargain – the unspoken contract between practitioner and patient. But no! Apparently not!

It must also be said that my doctor is very efficient. On the said day of arm presentation, which I am going to claim to be around lunchtime it was mere hours – HOURS later that SAME afternoon that I get a text from my aforementioned efficient, sees all, knows all medical moderator.

From: Your Ever Attentive Doctor (NO REPLY) Hi, Craig, Cholesterol good, but ratio up.
(Whatever the fluff a duck a ratio is – but I digress – standby for the kicker…)
Exercise and weight loss will help this ratio.

OK, ok, yes, yes, I get it – one could lose a kilo or two or three, and one could if they really tried, haul their ass off the couch and do some…
dun dun dun…
e x e r c i s e…

Well I did.

Mrs N and I are on a bit of a road trip thing you see, and visiting some of the rather nice places that our country has to offer. One of those places was the Aoraki / Mt Cook National Park. Now yes, you can drive to the end of the road and get a pretty decent view of Aoraki, you can even jump in a helicopter and see it from the air. However one of the most rewarding things to do is the Hooker Valley hike to the Hooker Lake, which is full of icebergs that calve off the Hooker Glacier. See what they are doing there with the naming thing?

Hooker Glacier measuring 11 kilometres in length, is one of several glaciers close to the slopes of Aoraki / Mount Cook in the Southern Alps of New Zealand.

But! The most important factoid here dear reader, is that to get to the Hooker Lake, one must hike 5 km there and 5 km back. That’s a total of 10 km! Now according to DOC (Department of Conservation) the hike is ‘easy’ well ok, yes maybe… but it is a slight continuous gradient all the way there and there are a few – not many – steps here and there which do test the quadriceps to a point.

So there you have it. I did exercise. My doctor will be so proud.