Project Solstice

Philippe's 226 Blog November 2025

At this time of the year, it has been customary for me to set myself challenges for the following 12 months. It would traditionally be an Ironman, an ultra swim or a long distance bike ride, all with a view to progressing my mid life crisis. Whatever the challenge, I would use the public announcement as my commitment to achieve the target, whatever it took.

Life is different now, as I have absolutely no idea what is achievable in 2026. I know I can't race Ironman, I've lost the power / coordination to swim at pace and I've no idea whether even a top notch training schedule will prepare me for any cycling event. But I do need targets.

The last three months have seen me focus on table tennis in readiness for Lignano Sabbiadoro a couple of weeks ago. That was an amazing event and I continue to play competitive table tennis in the Leeds League. But it's not enough for me to maintain the motivation and focus required to fight my Parkinson's disease. I need a project focusing not on an event, but on improving my battle and hopefully reducing my Parkinson's symptoms. Every project needs an objective or an end date, so I looked at a few options and decided the project will be 226 days long. Long enough to achieve good results, but not too long to lose focus.

So do you know what's 226 days away? The summer solstice. There we are, Project Solstice it is. So how will I deliver?

I have developed a list of 26 impacts that Parkinson's is having on me, and Project Solstice will focus on improving each one of these impacts, thus reducing my symptoms. For example, Parkinson's is forcing my left leg to drag a little when I walk, so I have a training regime focused on that, also Parkinson's is impacting on my swimming, so there's a plan for that too.

Like any self respecting project, I have a dashboard.  Over the coming months, well the next 226 days to be precise, I'll do occasional updates on progress.  Ultimately, I hope this exercise will be useful and inspirational for one or two People with Parkinson's, and it may ultimately be a useful resource for a wider audience.