Hi, my name is Stu, and I’m an out of practice athlete.
I was only moderately active throughout my teens, and spent more time pretending I was a rock star, than worrying about my fitness. In my mid-twenties however, following one of many professional/life-direction crises, I discovered triathlon, and more specifically, ironman-distance triathlon. I got into it quickly, buying a bike only 12 weeks before my first race, and having no real clue about how to train for such a thing. My first race was a half-ironman… 1.9km swim, 90km bike, 13.1km run. It hurt, it was hard, and I loved it!
For the next six years I completed a number of ironman-distance races, half, full, and double marathons, and many other running and swimming races of varying distances. And then, for reasons I still don’t fully understand, I stopped.
Maybe I was tired, maybe I was bored. Maybe I needed space in my life for other things. I’m now a dad, and in full time work, and five years on from my last race or any serious training. I’m lucky enough to not be struggling with weight gain or injury, but I do feel sluggish and like something is missing. I can’t imagine resuming the volume of training I was doing all those years ago, indeed, I haven’t been able to find the time (organise myself) to do even a tenth of my previous activity. So, inspired by a friend who did the same a few years ago, and countless internet videos by people who had much bigger hurdles to leap than me, I hereby pledge to run every single day for the next year.
I will start small, and see where it leads me, and I shall use this blog to help me stay focussed and accountable.
Stuart Westwood 