Preparation for Chile

I am a few hours away from packing and heading down to heathrow to begin my quest for Olympic success. I am racing two Pan American Cups: first race is in Santiago and the second is in Valparassio, Chile. I first started to pay attention to these two races before christmas and instantly saw them as an amazing opportunity and a great way to begin my season.

My training up to these races has been very structure. I have changed my approach to last season, and really focused on quality sessions over copious amounts of miles. Also, I have started to treat "rest" with much more respect than I ever have. I am giving my body enough time to recover from hard sessions in the pool, on my bike and running. The improvements I have made have been incredibly encouraging and as I have been easing down; my form is started to shine through.

One of the key changes I have made to my training is focusing more on the mental side of the sport. I have been working on keeping a "quiet mind" while I train and to put enjoyment as priority. I believe that by training for the sheer love of training and enjoying the opportunity that I have to be a full time athlete, I believe, will make me into a very successful triathlete.

I am incredibly fortunate to be sponsored by Specialized and Total Fitness Bath for my race bike and kit. It is a massive help to have them as part of my team in my development as a triathlete.

The flight to Chile will be 19 hours with a stop off for a few hours in Sao Paulo, Brazil. I actually dont mind these long flights. You get a wide selection of movies, music and TV and can really relax and fall asleep. To help me get over the fatigue of the flight I will be wearing an pair of compression socks. These sock are very useful in maintaining blood flow through my legs for the whole journey. The aim is to prevent any cramps or tightness and therefore, I can walk off the flight relatively fresh. Also, I will be taking some Cherry Active capsules. These capsules are really high in anti-oxidants and are made from the skins of Montmorency Cherries. By taking these during my flight it will help keep my energy up and prevent any muscles soreness that I may aquire due to sitting down for a long period of time.

However, the main purpose for using these capsules are that they contain naturally-occurring melatonin, which is a powerful compound, well-documented to help support your body’s circadian rhythms and natural sleep cycles. Quality sleep is an important factor in an athlete’s recovery as this is when your body’s complex repair processes are most active. By providing myself with the opportunity of some "quality sleep" on the long flight, I will feel very prepared leading into my race.