Folks,

Will Guidara, author of Unreasonable Hospitality, shares a story of going to an out of town barbers for a haircut. “What do you want?” asked the gruff barber, pointing to three bottles of spirits. “Whiskey,” I replied with a smile.

A day later, I walked in to see my friend Panni to get my haircut. And what was waiting for me at the little bar he’s made to welcome his guests? A bottle of port and some Stilton. You can’t make it up.

A reminder about how Panni makes me feel each and every time I see him. 

Here's a photo of Panni, reading my book. He's just bought 5 copies to share with his client. Small gestures go a long way. 

I might have gone a little early on the whole 'sit back and reflect on the year,' but I had a little time, and I had a lot of training notes, so I got to work: 

Here's a graph of my training load (external weight only; I don't count bodyweight exercises like press-ups and chin-ups) and my time on the bike.

The thing I notice the most is the wild fluctuations—the Oct-Nov drop, or the peaks of April/May. As soon as the weather turns and the daylight diminishes, I don't do as much. The number of sessions typically doesn't drop, but the amount of time I spend out on the bike, or the amount of weight lifted, does.

Hmm!!

As we head into 2026, what conditions do you need to do your best work? 

That’s it from me today. I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Let’s pick this back up in 2026.

Best Wishes

Simon

P.S. If you have a photo of you reading my book that you'd like to share, or a review that could help others discover it, I'd love to hear from you. I plan to create a collage of pictures from those sent in.