4/29/2019 0 Comments April UpdateApril has been a very uneventful month post performance assessments. Sadly it has taken me a long time to recover from the severe cold I had over the PA weekend. The cold turned into a severe asthmatic cough, which even after taking extra asthma medication from the doctors, wasn't clearing up. For nearly 3.5 weeks I was unable to put any intensity into my training or complete some of it at all without having to stop and cough uncontrollably. this led me to be very frustrated as I wanted to be training well and building on the excellent form I went into PA with. Having broken up from Uni for easter it has also been a struggle moving back to my training environment at home, but having had a week back in Nottingham it has allowed me to refocus on training and remotivate me to get my fitness back. I am building up to racing at BUCS Standard Distance Championships and BUCS Sprint before making a 2019 return to the super series. Hopefully my asthma stays under control so I can properly get going in the race season. First University exams and finishing off 1st year.
Thank you to my sponsors for all the support.
0 Comments
3/31/2019 0 Comments March, Performance AssessmentsMarch has been a very strong month of training. I had struggled with a bit of illness at the end of February but then come back stronger than ever. Running was starting to feel a lot stronger and easier, cycling was more consistent and swimming was feeling amazing. I have been swimming the best I have ever been swimming and working really hard to make minor improvements in training. I have also been working hard in S&C which has really helped with Injury Prevention and improving strength. I still need to work hard to improve my upper body strength to further aid my pull on front crawl.
Performance Assessment Weekend- University of Nottingham/Prestwold Hall, Loughborough I was going into the weekend feeling strong and excited to prove to myself how well training had been going. I was hoping for a swim of around 10min 10 seconds for the 800ms or faster as I knew I was in excellent swim form. I knew I was in way better form than last year and was hoping to beat my time of 10:26 significantly. Sadly on Friday afternoon I started to come down with a heavy cold that effected my asthma. I knew I could still swim and was hoping for a solid time. I struggled in the 800m to hold my splits and then finished in 10:32. I was quite disappointed in this as I knew I am in form to swim lot faster than last year but sadly got ill. I went to bed on Saturday evening hoping to be able to get round and get a place in the series. However with an awful nights sleep as I was coughing non stop I woke up feeling awful. Still determined to race I showed up and decided to register. I then went on a warm up jog and was coughing non stop, but decided to do the bike recce and see if I was able to cycle. Strong winds on the bike course meant my asthma was playing up a lot during this, so I made the call not to race. I am very disappointed in this and hope my appeal stands so I can qualify for the next races in the season. I hope to recover quickly and resume to normal training ASAP. Next race Llanelli (if my appeal is accepted) then BUCS Sprint. 2/12/2019 0 Comments Off SeasonThe 2019 Race season is fast approaching, so I just wanted to recap on what's been going on during the off season. In September I moved to Nottingham to study BSc Physiotherapy at The University of Nottingham. I absolutely love it here, and am really enjoying combining student and athlete lifestyle. I struggled during the first term to fit in all my training around the course, which has very long hours and is very intense, and struggled with a lot of illness. This resulted in over a month off training with a very serious chest infection, and a minor ankle injury aswell. This has not given me the best base for the season, but I am back training with my swim fitness fully there and looking to improve my bike and run abilities as the year progresses. Im very excited to see how I am going to progress.
I am very grateful to be training in a good performance environment with excellent coaching and good training partners. Also very happy to be supported by Pedal Potential again this season. This support is extremely valuable when paying for races all over the country when competing in the Super Series. I'm looking to race as a final year junior in the BTF Junior Super Series and also for the uni in some of the BUCS races (maybe even give an Olympic distance a try). My first race will be at the end of March at the Performance Assessments held here in Nottingham and Loughborough. I will be hoping for a good 800m swim PB from last year. Thank you for all the support. |