That was a bit of a blow... through this peak flow meter. Another Blipper showed one recently, and I thought, "Didn't I buy one of those... a while ago?" A wee look about, and yes there's an unused one still in its box.

They're often used by asthma sufferers to monitor their health. That's a condition I'm fortunate not to be burdened with. I'd come across them twice before, when undergoing fitness/health checks, but on both occasions, the person putting me through the test, failed to explain precisely how you were meant to use them, and I mistaken thought they were trying to measure how much air was in your lungs. No, you're meant to breathe out as quickly and forcefully as possible, and it records the peak of the outflowing air. Needless to say my readings weren't that great, and I was disappointed. I suspect before buying it I'd read the proper method, as that certainly would have piqued my curiosity.

Took it out the box, held it level, and gave a good blow..."What? 800... that's nearly off the scale! Must be doing something wrong. Better read the instructions." I know. Typical bloke.

You' re supposed to take the best from three, and the method had been correct. I had a few goes, and the worst was 660. The above was the last blow, so to speak. If I improve on that, I 'll either have to get one with a bigger range, or see how far I can bounce the needle back from the top!

The joints and bones may be on the way out, but the lungs are okay for a sixty year old that hasn't done much over the past year. Of course the dreaded coronavirus could very easily change all that... so best not get cocky.

I suspect that in the original purchase reasoning, I was intending to also use it to monitor my "performance" whilst using another (cheap) gadget that could allegedly help improve your fitness and breathing. Like the above, that other thingy hasn't been used either. Perhaps a future Blip (of desperation), if I find it.