Mental health battles but stronger through sport

You may have seen a few weeks back that I decided to open up about my personal life on social media and the post was the following.

Why do people train too hard? 

I don’t know about you but I clearly remember a quote throughout my life that goes back a very long time and that is “No Pain, No Gain” but when reflecting on that quote now you can clearly see the flaws in this. 

How to use cross training to improve your running

Cross training is hugely beneficial to a runner and you are seeing more and more runners now move away from running and entering multi sports, anyway that is for another blog. This blog is about how cross training can improve your running.

My story of becoming an ASICS FRONTRUNNER & 6 years on 

6 years  ago I applied to become an ASICS FRONTRUNNER member (more details below). I am one of few remaining members left in the team from when it started. But for me it is not just about free kit, it is a way of life for me. My last meet up with the team was at the Brighton Marathon Weekend, a weekend I enjoyed so much. Of course it involved running, a race and plenty of photos. I remember coming away with a PB but a high from the weekend.

Benefits of indoor training

Indoor training can be very powerful and useful in your progression. There are many benefits of indoor training and it does give you that security. In this blog I am going to explain why I chose to train indoors all year round and not just the winter but focusing on the running aspect of my training.

World Sprint Triathlon Championships Experience!

In 2012 I watched the Brownlee brothers on the telly come 1st and 3rd at the London Olympics and knew nothing about Triathlons; I wasn’t running and I couldn’t swim. In fact I was doing no sport – little would I know that 10 years later I would be at the start line for the 2022 World Sprint Triathlon Championships in Montreal representing GB in my AG and for sure a very proud and emotional achievement.

Brighton 10k

I headed off to Brighton on Saturday morning for the Brighton Marathon Weekend.

TRAINING TIPS FOR YOUR FIRST DUATHLON!

This blog was written in collaboration with the London Duathlon

Its not always about being the best, its about being better than you were yesterday!

When things get tough or things don’t go to plan its tough but always look back at the good times to remind you of what you have achieved. Its never plain sailing to success nor is it a straight line. There will be obstacles in the way but it's how you work round them to overcome them.

Don't Give Up!!

New resolutions are now beginning to end or people have already decided to give up. But like anything in life, if it is worth doing then don’t give up.

ASICS FrontRunner: My story of becoming an ASICS FRONTRUNNER team member

In 2017 I saw an advert on social media about “ASICS FRONTRUNNER” and the UK team was being launched. I didn’t know what it was about at first so I did some research and looked up their established FRONTRUNNER teams around the world.

Sound Mind, Sound Body: Is Movement Beneficial for Your Mental Health?

Mental health is such an important thing these days; it’s ok to not be ok, but it should not be neglected at all. A sound mind will of course help you have a sound body, but it’s important that you look after yourself and keep moving as this is so beneficial to your health and wellbeing.

Preparing your body and mind for race day

You spend many hours a week training for your sport and spend very little time mentally preparing for race day, which of course is very important on race day as its 100% a mental aspect. I decided to write this blog to help you prepare your body and mind for race day.

2021 European Sprint Triathlon Championships

Feeling good and in the best shape I have ever been in. I headed out on Thursday 23rd of September in the early morning to Valencia for the European Sprint Triathlon championships which was my debut for the GB Triathlon team. This was always a dream which was about to come true as I never thought I would be good at Triathlon.

Remember why you started!

I thought it would be good to write a blog on “remember why you started…” I think it’s important that you need to remind yourself why you started because it will come a time that you struggle in your races/training and those Personal Bests may not happen again.

2021 National Triathlon Sprint Championships

Its Friday the day before the National Triathlon Championships, my 2nd time I am doing this race but since the last one in 2019 lots has changed for me. In 2019 I moved into Triathlon and started to leave Aquathlons behind. I wanted to finish in the top 10 in my age group and improve from my 11th place back in 2019.

5 reasons why running has the power to lift spirits of entire nations

There are so many reasons why you should take up running however in these tough and uncertain times I explain 5 reasons how running can lift the spirits of entire nations in these tough times. We all know that you should enjoy your running and that it shouldn’t be a chore because you just fall out of love with it. Below is my reasons on how running has the power to lift spirits of nations.

So How Do You Start Running?

The past year since COVID started has seen a huge amount of people taking up running for a number of reasons. Things like escaping COVID, getting fit, getting outdoors, helping your mental health is just some of the reasons why there has been an increase in the amount of people running.

Struggling to sleep? Did you know this?

Do you struggle to sleep after training in the evening? Getting too hot in bed? So restless that you hardly slept and feel shattered in the morning? I have written a blog to help as we all know sleep is so important for recovery and keeping the injuries away.

Staying motivated and looking after your mental health through Covid-19

2020 was sure a year not to remember but there are still some positives you can take out of this time period. I have struggled like many others with these uncertain times but I have decided to share some of my top tips on staying motivated and looking after your mental health. I personally believe we have the last bit of the mountain to climb and things will start to return to the new normal slowly.

Heart Rate Zones Correctly Set Up?

Are you setting up your heart rate zones correctly? The chances are you are not….here is my guide.

No Races? Two Key Things to Work On

Its been such a strange year and it is still very much uncertainly across the world. COVID-19 has affected us all and at the start of the year with lockdown and then one by one races where cancelled. Travel plans, training, daily life all changed and we had to adapt in these uncertain times.

Different Shoes for Different Workouts

This blog will go through the reasons why you need different shoes for different workouts and how to plan this into your training and races. I have many shoes - I know it could be costly but then investing in the right shoes for the right activity is very important. Having the right shoe will not only help you get the most out of the session but of course it will help keep injuries away. My shoe rack is filled with trainers from gym shoes to running shoes. Your feet need a combination of cushion

Controlling What You Can Control

When things don’t go to plan do you panic? Get stressed out? Sleepless nights? Loss or appetite?. This is not just for training but in normal life with many issues that can contribute to this. But a lot of these issues that may cause stress are actually out of our control so why do we worry about them?

What is Zone 2 Training?

For most people they are under the impression that they should go hard in every session. They get fixed on certain paces all the time because they think they will not improve and therefore neglect the easy days and even go too hard on easy days as a result.

Making a Training Plan Around your Life

Scheduling training around your daily life commitments can be hard for a number of reasons, such as family commitments, working hours and so on. For me, it is very difficult because not only do I have a full time job and therefore work 5 days a week, I have to do all my training after work and around spending time with my wife, family and friends which is very tough. So I decided to write a blog aiming to help you structure your training plan, combining my knowledge as a running coach.

Mistakes Made when Training

At the start of a new year people set new goals and the common goals are things like achieving PB’s, first marathon/triathlon, get active, weight loss and so on. Which is no problem at all, however some of the common mistakes made are as follows.

Over Training During Lockdown?

With countries around the world going into lockdown and some allowing you to go out for one form of exercise a day, this has also resulted in an increase of people over training because of having more time on their hands – could you be falling into this trap?

Staying Calm When Your Races are Cancelled

There is something at the moment on the news and around the world that we can’t escape – that of course is the Coronavirus. This virus has caused chaos around the world, with countries struggling to control this and some countries even going into a lockdown. Many events so far have been cancelled, clubs postponing training until further notice and so on. It is tough times and a situation none of us expected or have gone through in our lives. So I have written a blog on how to safely keep fit and

Performance Study & the Results

Performance study and what results you can achieve.

Keeping Focused in the Christmas Period

How to keep focused & motivated during the Christmas period

Dipping into Multi Sports

What is an Aquathlon? fancy giving it a go?

National Aquathlon Championships

My last big race was approaching on September the 8th the National Aquathlon Championships. However leading up to this the weekend before I picked up a foot infection after competing at the triathlon sprint relays on the Sunday prior.

Triathlon England Sprint Championships

This season has gone so well and but where has all the time gone? It seems to have flown by. It’s been a great season for me no matter what happens in the remaining races I have left I have had a great one.

European Champion: A Shock for Me

As many of you know this was my last GB race for the aquathlon team before I take some time out from this team. I competed in the 2019 Târgu Mures ETU Aquathlon European Championships on Friday 5th of July for GB in Romania. The race consisted of a 1k swim in a lake and 5k run, with the run being four laps of 1.25km.

Spetsathlon Sprint Triathlon Update

What I have been up to recently at the World Championships and Spetsathlon races.

Is a 3D Gait Analysis Important?

My blog here today is about a 3D gait analysis

Fitting Training into Your Daily Life

Do you train with a Plan?How to structure your training around your daily life

Such a Scary Moment

Saturday 4th of August evening and I am out with a friend enjoying a bike ride. I am 25 miles into our long bike ride on the outskirts of Canterbury in quiet country roads. I go round a bend and look up to my horror to see a car take the corner very wide, it was going to hit me head on. The only thing I could do was quickly turn my bike while going around 20mph to avoid the car.

Believe the Impossible is the Possible

No matter how talented or how hard you train the key to your success is believing in yourself so you are able to achieve your goals.

A tale of two races blog

It’s 3.15am on 10th of July 2018 and my alarm goes off; I wake up feeling shattered.

Staying motivated and confident

There is no doubt that runners thrive on high levels of confidence. Indeed, self-confidence can be the difference between success and failure given the fine margins that exist in running. Despite this, we must acknowledge that self-confidence is like a rollercoaster that fluctuates between high and low.

Who am I?

I am a skinny sluggish man who decides to run a 5k Charity run for Sport Relief in 2010 at the age of 25.

Overview and let’s get the new year started in a positive way

This year has been a great year and it will be hard to improve and beat it. However I am determined to go better than this year.

6 Success Secrets

I have written this blog to help others and share my ideas that have worked for me.

World Championships 2017

I headed off to the World Championships in Penticton (Canada) on the 22nd of August. This would be my 2nd World Championships and I was very excited, I was in great form as the previous weekend I won the London Aquathlon whilst taking it easy. A race that I always wanted to do because it was in the 2012 Olympic Pool. I started the race as well as racing in the race. This season has had its up and downs, but has been a great one.

How not to be hard on yourself

How not to be hard on yourself