About Me!

I would consider myself a normal bloke, well, maybe slightly below average in most things sporty. I have a history of playing rugby to a decent level, playing tennis and badminton pretty badly, and cycling around London getting to work which balanced out my fitness levels against a very unhealthy lifestyle including smoking and drinking too much.  

I have always ran however. I ran around different London parks, I ran 3 Great North Runs, a Great South Run and numerous 10ks. I ran until one day I was putting on my socks and my back went into spasm. I don’t think running had anything to do with the disc, although I did run a 10k one night back from work with a really heavy bag on my back containing clothes and boots. However, sitting at work, and sitting around at home watching TV probably caused more damage. Anyway, examinations led to a diagnosis of a herniated disc, which impacts a lot of people in their 30s. I used this as an excuse to not run, not play sports and not really do much of anything. However, by this stage I did have 2 kids and a dog which kept me sort of active, and definitely reduced my disposable income and free time so I just settled into an existence with no real direction of better health or sporting ambition.  

What changed was when the world fell apart in early 2020. Covid 19 hit and myself and the family were reduced to staying indoors apart from 1 hour per day. As a way to encourage the kids to burn off energy I went running with wife, son and daughter. There was no other real options available. The loop we used was 3.3k, so we did it pretty much every day for a couple of months. Remarkably no issues with my back.  

I was also doing the Joe Wicks HIT sessions and then I purchased a multigym from Germany and stuck it in the shed. I was working out a lot relative to the previous 15 years. Possibly my core improved, although not consciously, but above that I put where I am at now down to mindset. I realised I was enjoying the exercise, and I decided to stop using my back as an excuse. Some of my friends had developed health issues. High blood pressure, some had cancer or prostate issues and I started thinking that life might get pretty short, pretty quickly. So, get your arse out there and start being better. 

PS. I am as far away from being able to offer medical advice as you can get so if you are injured or suffering from any kind of injuries then please seek advice from a doctor or physio.