Thomas "The Tank" Dade

Blog Update #16

Last update wasn’t so positive but was honest and the post before that was extremely positive and also honest, this post finds me at a happy equilibrium. For the past 6 weeks us Victorians have been in an unprecedented stage 4 lockdown, due to a “little” thing called COVID-19. 1 hour exercise limits, 5am-8pm curfews, numerous industries forced to shut down with hundreds and thousands of hardworking Victorians forced to stop working, compulsory masks, no socialising with extended family or friends, a lot of our freedoms and privileges have been taken away with a click of a finger. These restrictions have been necessary actions that may have been taken too far, with the intention of saving thousands of lives. It’s caused many to be angry and many others to be anxious or depressed as they worry about the future for themselves and their kids. Many Victorians are fatigued, tired and fearful of what the future holds and have become enraged by the governments decisions, with many more even questioning the integrity of the state government causing protest and upheaval. Personally I’ve had and still have mixed emotions about it all. First is appreciation, appreciation that amongst these crazy times I’m fortunate enough to be living with a loving family, to not have to worry about am I going to have a place to sleep tonight or if I’m gonna have food in the pantry, to be able to work 3-5 days a week, to be able to train and still make physical progress. However with that appreciation comes a feeling of guilt, guilt that I’m maybe over-privileged, that maybe I don’t appreciate what I have enough, that theres Victorians right now who are genuinely struggling and living in constant anxiety. I’m also angry with the government and believe the restrictions have been too strict for too long, to the detriment to the state and its people, that the government is being stubborn and arguably abusing their power. At times it feels they’re making decisions that aren’t practical or logical. They’ve also made a few too many mistakes that has caused Victorians to suffer and will continue to see Victorians to suffer, years down the track. However on the other hand I understand that the government is made up of people, and as people we make mistakes and we’re fallible. But with that being said is our government owning these mistakes? Are they learning from them? I’m not sure. The COVID-19 pandemic is also an unprecedented occurrence so it’s easy to look back and say how stupid a decision is. It would be extremely difficult as a government to deal with COVID-19 as there isn’t much history you could draw from that could help figure out what works or doesn’t work. You could argue that that’s different now as the Victorian government can look at how other states and even counties have handled COVID-19, and thats part of the reason why I’m not exactly happy with how the government is CURRENTLY handling the situation. But in terms of decisions made months ago those decisions will be looked back on to help future governments say “well that didn’t work so let’s not do that or that did work so let’s emulate that”. So in summary I have very mixed feeling about the handling of the pandemic. One thing I am sure of though is I’m happy with my own personal situation. I’ve been so lucky, I’ve been able to work enough to save a decent amount of money and on another note I feel I’m in the best physical shape of my life. Only 4-5 weeks ago injuries and chronic tightness caused me to stop running for nearly two weeks. However after allowing my injuries to heal and starting to stretch daily my body is feeling the best it ever has. I’ve still got a few niggles but I’m feeling strong, training daily and sometimes twice daily I’ve been getting in solid weight vest calisthenic workouts, weight workouts, runs, weight vest hikes and bodyweight calisthenic workouts. I’ve been watching my body get stronger and stronger and injuries become lesser and lesser. I’ve been shocked to realise how tight I was, all these little aches and pains caused by tightness have been going away and it’s loosened up my strides when running. The difference really is night and day. When it comes to my mood it’s been consistent, I’m not getting as much extreme lows, where leaving the world seems the most comfortable option or as much extreme highs, where I feel uncomfortably hyper. So with all that being said I’ve been in a good, balanced headspace, working towards my goals and luckily not being affected by the pandemic that much, especially in comparison to others. The only way I’ve been affected is all the cancelled ultramarathons and physical endurance challenges, as well as not being able to plan a next mountaineering trip due to overseas uncertainty. These are the things that get me to wake up every morning, these challenges are my fuel for life so not being able to participate hurts a little. But on that note it reminds me how privileged and lucky I am, that these are my concerns, at the end of the day they don’t mean s**t. Now they’ve been taken away for the time being it’s made me appreciate them that much more. Also on that note this weeks marks the week of my first ever ultramarathon, The Surf Coast Century 100 km. Definitely a life changing week that has led me on the path I am now.