So I have been meaning to write this blog for ages, and finally have for round to doing so at what I feel is quite a prominent time - exactly a year after I decided to move on from water polo and start my venture in triathlon

And what a year out has been.  After a summer of self-coaching and embarking on a program I now realize was completely unsustainable long term, I came back to Loughborough uni tired but satisfied by what had been a successful first season. It included highlights like winning the Leeds Castle, Portsmouth, and Clacton triathlons and getting on the podium in several others. My biggest moment however has got to be qualifying for the European age group champs this season after coming 5th at the British champs in Liverpool.

After a couple of weeks back at uni, I started on the high performance squad worth coaches Gavin  Smith and now 'retired 'elite triathlete Luke Watson.

I was under no illusion that it would be easy, where after my first session Gav made it quite clear that there were a few areas to work on(to put it lightly) , not just on the bike but swim and run as well.

Luckily I found that my body seemed to adapt quite quickly and after a couple of hard months not only physically but mentally as well ( no one likes going backwards but sometimes it is the only way to improve)  I was starting to see some improvements.

Then came BUCS duathlon, which, as it was my first race against this sort of quality field I was never really expecting much, considering it didn't include my strength -the swim.  But anyway I lined up, the gun went and from the off I was never in the race.  I started the first run conservatively as I felt I needed the strength for the bike,  but in doing so the race leaders disappeared up the road and with it any chance of a semi respectable finish,  so not the start I wanted, but a race I learned a lot from.

Following on from racing it was straight into the labs for submax and maximal run and bike testing to get some numbers, so we could compare pre and post camp where I was currently at.

So Then it was off to my first real taste of the life I had signed up to with a warm weather training camp in Fuerteventura. What followed was two weeks of very heavy bike mileage in (what felt like)  gale force winds, some great off road running,  and some swimming in the fantastic facilities at Playitas resort, and in the crystal clear,  if a little bit chilly seas surrounding it.

After returning home tired but pleased with what I left out there, it was nice to be able to have a bit of time off over Christmas, and then all too soon it was back to uni to start building into race season. 

Training followed a similar format to before Christmas with a greater bike volume (following on from camp) with a few mid-week 5k races thrown in for good measure to help give some kind of feedback to how I was progressing. 

The squad swimming at the brilliant facilities at Playitas resort

January came and went in a blur of run sessions, long rides and technical swims with the odd lecture thrown in. And all of a sudden I was on the start line of another duathlon, this time at windy Eton Dorney lake. Not wanting to repeat the same mistake as last time,  I went out much harder on the first run,  and if it wasn't for my back wheel coming loose on the bike then I would have ( hopefully)  taken the win,  but second was above my expectations so was happy.  Still some vital lessons to take from it, (like not leaving someone else in charge of your bike check…) but a marked improvement.

A week later and I was getting ready to race again, this time on the start line of a 10k, at Sandown park as part of the 220 show, and another second place confirmed I was finally getting somewhere.

So I'm currently sitting on a plane,  on the way back from our most recent camp to Portugal,  which incorporated a European cup race, where many of the squad raced and got some fine results, with a solid block of training, plenty of open water swimming and some heard bike sessions with a few  transitions thrown in for good measure.

The boys looking a bit hot after one of many climbs in Portugal

Now it’s back to training, and to get ready for my first big race of the season, BUCS sprint, with the added bonus of exams coming up just to make sure I don’t get bored…