As always the title of this blog hasn’t been decided yet – so I’ll waffle on as I always do and then decide it just as I write the last paragraph.
If you’ve followed this journey from the start the intention was for it to give an insight into Ironman Training and what it takes to get to the start line. Little did I know that this served as a therapy tool as well as a tracking tool to see how far I’ve come since that fateful day in May 2021. The other day I saw my old MRI images of my leg only a matter of months after the crash and I realised how far things have evolved since and I posted it old social media to remind people (and myself) that we’re always looking for the next chapter in our lives that sometimes we don’t appreciate where we are right now. Deep I know but I thought I’d start by saying that…
Onwards….
The last few months have been a bit like treading water in so many ways. The post survey review showed that my body wasn’t as fast as we all had hoped to be in repairing and recovering from the operation. The second review, which actually was last week, was the “Plan J” that we had to wait for before giving the green light to several dates and commitments in 2026.
Suzy, naturally was very apprehensive about the outcome of that first review and suggested that I shouldn’t be hitting the exercise as hard as I was. In my own mind I was progressively adding duration, weight & intensity just as I would a client/athlete that I would be coaching. I had the idea that if there was pain on the inside of my right leg at the site of the incision then I should be worried but as I had experienced none then I was going to proceed on my own rehab path.
In a flash or inspiration or stupidity I entered a local “Winter Series” of 25 or 50 mile bike rides nearby in November & December. The first ride I decided to take my Gravel Bike, this way I would be restricted to the 25 mile route as I simply couldn’t do the 50 on that particular bike. This would also be my first ride outside since before the operation so I was very anxious about what I actually was capable of.
arrived noice and early, met up with some old faces and friends, talked to the organiser who I know quite well and got on with the 25 route. I was caught up with an athlete I coach and we decided between us that we would do half of the 50 route but once we got to the feed station we would take the 25 route back – in the end we did 40 miles so I was a bit overwhelmed with the fact that I had actually done this as my first ride back. Additionally, when I got home I was quite surprised how well my power and heart rate data was.
The following day I was already digging out my winter road bike and cleaned it up, knowing I was going to use it for round 2 in a fortnights’ time. Suzy noticed I was fettling with the road bike and almost instantly knew that there was no stopping me getting on with some road rides as well as the indoor rides I was doing – weather permitting of course.
Two weeks passed and I was back, this time all-in for the 50 route which took on a completely different route. I headed out on my own as the Hashtag rider was away that week, and passed a few riders before catching three at about 15 miles in. I rode with them for a little while but soon enough I had ridden off the front and they pulled back. To my surprise I was first in the halfway feed station – surprised wasn’t exactly how I put it when I walked in but you get the idea. After a couple of homemade flapjacks and a coffee I was on my way back. The prevailing wind meant it was a little quicker and I was back to the finish before I really knew it and again, first in of the 50 mile groupers. It’s not a race but a good feeling nonetheless considering I was only 10 weeks post-op from a fairly big procedure.
Another two weeks on and this was a 30/60 route so I decided to ride to it, do it and then ride home which was a shade under 120 miles. I felt pretty good throughout the whole ride to be fair and nearer to home I put on the power a little more – mainly because I could and also because it was getting dark and I had limited lights on the bike. The Hashtag rider was with me for the events’ 60 ride and he struggled a bit towards the end due to not eating enough and perhaps in a way this made sure I didn’t go too hard/mad at the end of the ride or else I might not have been able to get home in daylight!
Since then it’s been snowing and roads have been icy so all the rides have been indoors again, I don’t particularly like riding the hard sessions indoors, I’d much prefer to put the power down outside as that’s where I would be racing but it is what it is right now. There’s a few clearer and warmer days in the not too distant future so I’ll be planning a few longer than normal rides then.
The local bike clubs are already advertising their “Reliability Rides” in the next few months but if I’m being brutally honest they don’t work well anymore. The 4,3.5 and 3hr groups are never that and riders that have ridden the 3hrs in previously years (and finished in 2hrs 15mins!) don’t have many friends to ride with at that speed so they’re now riding in the 3.5hrs group and splitting that apart 10 miles up the road – I can’t see the point of dropping people on a social winter ride so I’ll probably give it a miss. I’ll go out solo and keep the chain tight in my own way.
(Just got to ride home now)
Swimming is going “ok” at the moment, there have been weeks where I have logged 16k (4k x4) in a week but I’m acutely aware I don’t want to get bored of that so I’m trying to remain positive about going to a pool and stare at the black tiles and hour at a time!
There are there usual mini battles that go on even in a 20m pool at a local health club, breastrokers will always not see why you’d want to go so fast and then there’s others’ who want to race you but that’s part of the fun in a health club as opposed to going to a proper swim club. I have contemplated it but for the moment I seem to be progressing well so I’ll stay in my own lane and carry on.
Gym work is also going well, I did stick to a fairly steady regime of 3x12reps on an assortment of exercises but things like this always need to change. The fact I see members at the local gym do the same thing over and over again…and look the same 6 months on is encouraging enough for me to change my plan every 6-8 weeks to create a new stimulus.
A lot of my downtime is spent coaching athletes, prescribing sessions and plans as well as conducting 1-2-1’s either by telephone or face to face. Hashtag Coaching was just a platform to help a few athletes back in 2023 but the past 12 months has seen a massive increase in our little community and it’s a lot of fun helping each & every athlete on their journey towards their goal. Whether it’s an event or just a state of fitness I really do get so much satisfaction as they progress both in a physical and mental sense.
When I was first coached I wanted certain things to happen and the communication and coach/athlete relationship to be much closer and that never really materialised. Maybe that was my poor selection of coach or perhaps I wasn’t clear enough at the start what I wanted from it. But I did jump around from coach to coach at one point never really getting what I wanted. All this experience is now put down to good use and all our athletes have that personal touch with limitless WhatsApp communication, immediate feedback on their sessions and they are all also part of a Hashtag Community on WhatsApp which is flourishing really well. At this time of year it’s so easy to crawl under our rocks and wait for the warmer weather to come out and start talking to each other again but I have watched from the sidelines and it’s absolutely amazing to see so many athletes gel so well.
This community spirit has been noticed by a few others and Hashtag Coaching is now an official partner of TPR Events – the rider organiser of those events I rode before Christmas. Exciting times! Never did I think this little coaching platform would become so popular – but it will always be my intention to keep it personal – a “Jerry Maguire” moment I think.
So that’s about it, as far as the past few months are concerned. Suzy and I disappeared to Cologne for New Years’ Eve to celebrate the new year in another City on our Alphabet Theme – maybe Dublin next year?
And of course…the 2nd post-op review which went well last Thursday. I’m healing well. Not as fast as he’d want but I am doing well. He’s asked to see me in 3 or 4 months’ time just to make sure my progression is good but overall I’m good to go for 2026.
Looking forward – there’s a Mallorca trip on the horizon, the racing season, a few more aquabike events, a couple of GB races and another trip to Mallorca later in the year.
That’s about it! Ciao for now….
