Today has been a busy day. This morning I trained at Bisham Abbey; weights, under the direction of Wolfy and Katie [EIS strength and conditioning coaches] followed by a 70 min static cycle (we use Wattbikes as they have a power readout, which can be plotted against blood lactate [this gives us an ability to measure improvements in fitness and lactate tolerance]) - included in the 70 min cycle was 5 x 4 mins at near peak output. Some serious thigh burn was felt. This week has had a fair bit of intensity on the bike, lots of aggression and the odd bark to keep pumping forward.
After training I met Amanda and Penny from Atos Origin. It was really nice to meet them and they were both full of energy [even after travelling to Cardiff and back earlier in the day!!]. Atos Origin supports me financially towards my goal of 2012. I have used money from Atos to help me purchase numerous pieces of world class equipment. There have been many people that have supported me in various ways, I thank each and every one of them - over time I will try and mention them personally but today Atos will be the one I talk about. Atos are supporting 9 athletes towards the Summer and Winter Olympics in 2012 and 2014. The scheme is designed to help younger athletes, nominated by a previous Olympic champion in their sport [Tim Foster kindly put me forward for the scheme]. It was great to talk to Amanda and Penny, letting them know what I was upto and discussed how I can let everyone at Atos know how my journey towards the games are going (e.g. this blog). They told me of some of the new changes to the scheme and showed great interest in what I am doing - I will say my excessive story-telling was to allow them to eat their lunch, but in reality I just enjoy a good chat. Thanks to Amanda I learnt one important lesson - don't go for the pricey italian lemonade, the other one is way fizzier; fizz is obviously a good indicator of a quality beverage.
At 4:30pm I had an appointment with Dr Keith on Harley street, I thanked the ladies from Atos and joined a walking bus of 50-something women on the way for a nip, tuck and suck. On the way I chatted to Belinda, 58 from Hampshire, and if it wasn't for the constant "shocked" expression you would never had noticed she'd had some work done. In all my appointments with Dr Keith I am yet to see any other male in the building where he operates. I made my way upstairs to receive the second of three sclerosing injections. I didn't mind the first injection, it was the first time I had every had laughing gas and found the effect a pretty strange experience. As the needle goes in it's pretty sore, and as he moves it around you hope that the pain you feel doesn't mean he has hit something important. The second injection was no holiday. For some reason I was just waiting for the short stab and then the resulting discomfort from the needle moving around; This time I wasn't distracted by the effects of the laughing gas, and was being injected into the same area that was still swollen from the procedure 4 days ago. I was in and out of his office in less than 15 minutes, shuffling at about a quarter of the speed I entered the building at.
Tomorrow I will have to asses how it all feels and that will dictate if I can crack on with training or whether I need to give it another 24 hours to settle down.
p.s. you can check out my Athlete Bursary profile with Atos Origin by clicking on the link to them on the left.
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