Holiday sun wipes out all will power

Like a true dedicated athlete, I set off for the sun of Egypt last week with all my gym gear packed in my case.

After 11 weeks training for the London Triathlon, I was ready for a week lying on a sunbed, chilling out.

But I also knew I needed to keep myself ticking over and with a gym in the hotel, I was ready to do just that.

I remember Rebecca Adlington’s mum speaking about about how, on family holidays, her daughter would still be up every morning at 6am. No matter what the shape of the resort pool, she would do as many lengths as possible, finding a way around pools hardly designed for training.

Total dedication. Hence two gold medals at the Beijing Olympics a few years later.

As I dropped down on my sunbed on the first day in the heat of Sharm El Sheikh, I still had every intention of hitting the gym.

But, with my all inclusive band firmly wrapped round my wrist, the will power drained away. In double quick time.

A midday beer started the ball rolling and before long I had resigned myself to giving the gym a miss.

After all, I was on holiday. Why on earth would I want to be pounding the treadmill or on the bike?

I could always go tomorrow. But tomorrow came, the same happened and I soon convinced myself that a week off was just what the body needed.

Now I am ready for another two or three months of intense training. And I need it to shed some of that booze and food from the holiday.

Problem is, I have signed up for this Sunday’s sprint triathlon in Mansfield. My first.
Adlington’s complete dedication was the reason behind her gold.

As for me, I have a week to blow off the cobwebs to make sure I simply get round the course.
Come the starting point on Sunday, my lack of dedication on holiday might just be my biggest regret.

To follow Stevie's progress on Twitter, click here

For the full story behind Stevie taking up the London Triathlon challenge, click here
Visit www.justgiving.com/stevieroden to sponsor Stevie.

American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit http://www.underarmour.com

All set for my triathlon debut

MANSFIELD watch out, Roden is ready for the big debut.

August’s London Triathlon still might be a while yet but after all this training, I am itching to get going.

So much so I have entered the Mansfield sprint triathlon on Sunday April 5.

It is no way near as long as what I will face in London as this will be a 400m swim, 14.5k bike ride and 5k run.

But for a novice like me, it is still a massive challenge.

I am sure there will be seasoned sprint triathletes in action, battling it out to be crowned number one.

I’ll leave it to them. I am not setting no targets, no times to meet.

But the practice of transitions and what it will be like on race day will be invaluable come the main event in London.

And I am looking forward to it. Not that it will be much fun until it is over, it will be sheer pain.
Only last weekend I did 40 lengths in the pool followed by a 45-minute spinning class and then straight out for a 3.5m run.

The result - a tired Roden.

I had been warned to get used to these “brick” sessions, doing two disciplines back-to-back so create what it will like on race day.

But after a punishing spinning class, my legs felt like they belonged to somebody else on the run.
I could not feel them, they were dead weights. I was almost dragging them round and struggling to pick my feet up.

But at least it will not come as a surprise when I take to the start line on the first Sunday in April.

And I have a few more pencilled in between now and London which might involve a few targets to meet.

But after weeks of training, I’ll find out where I am in my preparations after this first race out in Mansfield.

I am just keeping my fingers crossed that I prove I am somewhere on the right track and not totally out of my depth!

To follow Stevie's progress on Twitter, click here

For the full story behind Stevie taking up the London Triathlon challenge, click hereVisit www.justgiving.com/stevieroden to sponsor Stevie.

American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit http://www.underarmour.com

Training? A day at the races proves a safer bet

I hit a brick wall last week.

My whole body ached, I felt like a dead weight and could not muster the energy to get on the bike, in the pool or out running on the road.

After nine weeks of hard training, I felt it was my body telling me it was time for a break.
Rest up, relax. A bit of R&R would do me no harm.

Or maybe it was my subconscious working away because it was Cheltenham week. The best four-days of horse racing of the year.

I enjoy a bet on the horses now and again. Not big bucks, just a little flutter.

And when the Cheltenham Festival (top right) arrives, I get a little excited. So there was no better time to take a break.

But, maybe I abused it. A Chinese takeaway on Monday, fish and chips on Tuesday. Oh and on Wednesday I headed to Cheltenham for a day of gambling and booze. Did I mention the cooked breakfast on the way down and curry (with starter) at night?

To be honest, a day at the races was the best workout I could have had. And I lost a few pounds.

The heart was pumping faster than it ever does in training as one of my charges was head-to-head going to the final fences.

As usually happens with my bets, Carruthers decided to try and walk through a fence rather than jump it and the wind went out of its sails.

But the nervous energy from the day was a great workout in itself.

It was a refreshing change from the training and recharged, I got back into it on Friday before doing my own mini-triathlon on Saturday morning.

Unlike Carruthers, I don’t want to be faltering at the final fence so no more breaks from training are on the horizon.

But when that next brick wall hits me, will I be able to smash through it without a break for a flutter, curry and some booze?

I wouldn’t bet on it. After all it worked this time.

See Tuesday's Evening Post or visit www.thisisnottingham.co.uk for the story of arthritis sufferer Jacob Rickett's remarkable marathon challenge.

To follow Stevie's progress on Twitter, click here

For the full story behind Stevie taking up the London Triathlon challenge, click here
Visit www.justgiving.com/stevieroden to sponsor Stevie.

American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit http://www.underarmour.com

Rocky Roden out to prove he's no Fraudley

A famous name in the world of boxing has just started following my progress on Twitter.

You ask is it Ricky Hatton, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jnr, Oscar De La Hoya?

No, a much bigger man than that. Well, in body anyway. It is Audley 'A-Force' Harrison.

Now I am sure it is just some Fraudley fan posing as the former Olympic champion.

And don’t get me wrong, the more Twitter followers the better.

But when it comes to boxers I would look up to in my hour of desperate need during triathlon training, Audley is hardly the one.

Champion in Sydney in 2000, it all appeared to go to his head and in recent years it has been one failed comeback after another.

The latest to Irish cab driver Martin Rogan, one to all but end his career.

Despite his under achievements, I take my hat off to anybody prepared to step between the ropes and take a brutal beating.

But as I look for inspiration, it is other boxers I call upon.

Sad, I know, but I even have the Rocky (top right) theme tune on the Ipod for when I am pounding the streets. Always a great track to get me to the end.

Although I still haven’t found anything akin to those famous Philadelphia Museum of Art steps for that last darting run as the finale to a punishing workout.

It comes to something when you would rather turn to a fictional slugger than Audley (below right) for your inspiration.

However, watching the 24/7 shows charting the build up to the likes of Hatton/Mayweather, it is jaw-dropping to see how much effort goes into those 12-week or so training camps.

Despite all the trainers, conditioning coaches and nutritionists it is still sheer blood, sweat and tears that gets them ready and in peak condition for when that first bell rings on fight night.

That is how I look at it. I have longer to train but when August 2 comes I want to be in tip-top shape so there can be no excuses if I fail to complete the London Triathlon.

For me, Audley always strikes me as a man who could have achieved so much more had he shown the application of the likes of Hatton or, dare I say it, the legend Rocky himself!

I do not want to be in a position to under achieve.

As for charting my progress, I hope I can impress the A-Force with my punishing training regime.

If not, I’ll just be another Fraudley.

To follow Stevie's progress on Twitter, click here

For the full story behind Stevie taking up the London Triathlon challenge, click here

Visit www.justgiving.com/stevieroden to sponsor Stevie.

American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit http://www.underarmour.com

Lapland provides inspiration for my Triathlon bid

EIGHT weeks of training have almost come to an end. The body has hurt, ached and needed a good soak or two in the bath along the way.

So I take a look at the calendar and, oh no, the London Triathlon is still five months away. At least another 20 weeks of this punishing regime to go. And it will only get more intense.

But whenever that feeling arrives, that one where you might just skip a session, might not put in the required effort, I stop to think why I am doing it.
Not just as a personal goal for myself of swimming 1.5k, cycling 40k and then running 10k around the capital.

But for the Nottingham-based charity When You Wish Upon A Star, one that helps realise the dreams of sick and terminally ill children.
Their main trip each year is to Lapland to meet Santa Claus.
And I was privileged enough to be invited along before Christmas in 2002 to report on their adventure.

Now, I was as excited as the kids at the time. Lapland, the home of Father Christmas himself.
A near four-hour flight there to Finland, the same back and all in one action-packed day. I was shattered by the end of it, never mind the kids.

But to be among those poorly children and see the zest for life they had and the smiles on their faces throughout the day will never leave me.

Some had lost their hair as a result of chemotherapy and I remember helping one mother carry the oxygen tank off the bus into the forest for her child who was no older than five or six.

Husky rides in the forest, sledging in the candlelit woods, Santa Claus and his real reindeer walking down to meet the kids (see right).

It was magical for them and when we landed back at East Midlands, almost 24 hours later, the kids were tired.
But despite serious illnesses, they were still beaming at what they saw as the trip of a lifetime.

The sad reality is for some of those kids and ones that will benefit from the charity in the future, it is a lifetime cruelly cut short.

But When You Wish Upon A Star ensure they make dreams come true and I have seen proof of that first hand.

So the next time I hit the pain barrier, feel sorry for myself when the training gets tough, I will think back to that trip.
I will remember why I am doing it and how privileged I am.

Suddenly, you realise training for and completing a triathlon is a drop in the ocean compared to what those children and their families are going through.

To see full story behind Stevie taking up the Triathlon challenge, click here

To sponsor Stevie visit www.justgiving.com/stevieroden

American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit http://www.underarmour.com/

Triathlon swim deaths have put me in a spin

Remind me not to read those triathlon magazines again.

I came across an alarming article the other day, talking about a spate of triathlon deaths.

About three happened in America in the space of a couple of weeks last year and it pointed out 23 finely-tuned athletes had died over the years.

But more worrying, 18 of those had all died during the first section - the swim.

I am still to swim in open water which will be the task in the docks outside the ExCel Arena come August 2, covering 1.5k.

And swimming is my weakest of the three abilities. Oh dear, I better up the lengths in the pool - quickly.

So I read further down, surely there was a few bits of advice to help reassure this delicate first-time triathlete.

American Russ Evenhuis was on hand for some words of wisdom.

“Nothing can prepare a newbie for the start,” he stated.

Gulp.

“It can be like jumping into a washing machine. You will get swum over, kicked, hit and banged into.”

New underwear please.

Then triathlete and coach Neil Cook chipped in about no matter how much you do in the pool, the swim will still daunt you.

“There is no wall 25 yards away, you can’t see the bottom,” he explained. “Oh, and you are wearing this wetsuit that’s tighter than a girdle.”

Raise your heart rate and blood pressure under those conditions, he said, and "any weakness you have will become apparent.”

Heartbeat rising under those conditions?

It’s beating like a drum just thinking about it.

What can I take from that as I look to prepare in the best possible way.

Scrap the swimming pool and jump in the washing machine for a hour every night?

Maybe even head to the local laundrette. Well, there is more room in those industrial-sized beauties.

I am in a spin already. Maybe I’ll invest in a pair of armbands.

Surely that is better than chancing meeting my maker in the cold and murky waters of the Royal Victoria Dock.

To see full story behind Stevie taking up the Triathlon challenge, click here

To sponsor Stevie visit www.justgiving.com/stevieroden

American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit http://www.underarmour.com/

Surprise cream could prove spot on for triathlon

I am an Evening Post sports reporter and set to compete in the London Triathlon - a 1.5k swim, 40k cycle, 10k run - this August, and I will be sharing my experiences in the newspaper and in a weekly, online blog.

I am taking up the challenge to prove something to myself after being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis back in 2004, just after my 24th birthday. And I am also doing it to raise money for Nottingham-based charity, When You Wish Upon A Star.

I always worry when a suspect package lands on my desk at work.

Odd shape, as well. I wasn’t expecting anything when I rolled into EP HQ this morning.

Who had I upset?

On the back it had the address of the sender.

Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The Natural Skincare Factory.

Now I know I am hardly the most fresh faced of men and those triathlon pictures in last week’s newspaper did expose a few spots.

But somebody seeing that and sending in some acne products, were they taking the .....?

Finally plucking up the courage to open the intriguing package, I came across a jar - and a nice letter.

The power of the world wide web had taken my story to the far reaches of Scotland and this family-run business had seen it, and thought they might be of help.

They explained they were not promising any ‘miracle cure’ or ‘wonder product’ for treating rheumatoid arthritis.

But their Arthirache Cream for sore joints, aches and pains had received plenty of positive feedback.

A nice touch and given the challenge ahead, every little helps.

Before my next run, I’ll try and convince the missus to massage it into a few of the suspect joints. Convincing her might be a tougher challenge than the triathlon itself.

So suspect package turned into a nice little surprise, first thing on a Monday morning.

But maybe if I am honest, a pot of cream to help clear up a few spots would not have been a bad shout either.

To see full story behind Stevie taking up the Triathlon challenge, click here

To sponsor Stevie visit www.justgiving.com/stevieroden

American-based sports giant Under Armour have backed Stevie in his quest to complete the London Triathlon and raise cash for When You Wish Upon A Star by agreeing to become his official sponsor.They have provided him with a whole range of their latest hi-tech training gear to help in all weathers, and a new tri-suit for the race itself. For more information visit www.underarmour.com