Back on Track...

Training is going well this week, pool training went great last night as i finally got my weight right so gliding was much better. I found myself doing 3 & a half kicks per length (kick kick glide style) Warm up's were...

Full inhale (no packing) 2min 11secs 2mins rest
Full inhale (no packing) 2mins 30secs 2mins rest
FRV hold 1min 20sec 2min rest
FRV hold 1min 23sec 2min rest
Full inhale plus packing 4mins 2mins rest
Full inhale plus packing 5min 09secs

Dynamic session went well also, i completed 1x 75mtr followed by 1x 50mtr by 10x 25mtr concentrating on technique and gliding.

BIKE SESSION
av speed 14.2mph
dis 5.31miles
max speed 22.5mph

Really happy with getting back on track this week, hopefully carry on like this now for the next couple of months.

Time for a Re-Think

Wet training since the Christmas break has not been great. Last week saw a really bad session in the pool and i pulled out very early during my warm ups at 3min 40secs! I also tried a new neck weight using 3kgs this time but found myself sinking instead of gliding! Not a good week.

I have been training very hard over the past 2wks and have decided to split my training into separate parts on different weeks.

Week 1 Heavy weight sessions plus dry statics and one pool session
Week 2 The same as week one
Week 3 Cardio (cycling) plus dry statics and one pool session
Week 4 same as wk 1 & 2

Currently I'm on week 3 and I'm loving the bike rides sessions. The gym sessions are purely for working core strength only. My weight has gone up from 11st 12lbs - 12st 1lbs and diet is much better.

BIKE SESSIONS
Mon : av speed 12.1mph
dis 5.31miles
max speed 20.2mph

Tue : av speed 13.7mph
dis 5.31miles
max speed 22.1mph

I have made another neck weight for tomorrow's pool session which has just over 2kgs in so fingers crossed i will glide better. I have also been getting my warm up's a bit upside down and round the wrong way (don't ask!) so fingers crossed for at least 5mins.

I have also got some sponsorship from http://www.9lounge.co.uk/ Pete Marshall owns the best cocktail bar in the South East (if not the world!!) and also employs one of the best doorman in the South East (if not the world!!) who have agreed to fund my next monofin http://www.leaderfins.com/cgi-bin/form.cgi/63eng?id=194&tm=1233095249 this is the fin i will use this year for my first competition. My good friend Craig is going to do all the sponsor graphics on the blade. I'm sure it will look great!

ITV Meridian Tonight Coverage of WR

I was contacted by ITV after our fund raising WR attempt that has now seen the UK officially break the Australian WR for extreme ironing. I was interviewed yesterday and the news went out last night. I did a 5min interview which heard me say the words SaltFree a hundred times and they only managed to get in a bit about our training as freedivers :-(

I wanted to give my new founded home a great plug but at least i managed to get my NDC t-shirt printed up in the morning with SaltFree (the deepest freediving in the UK) & Woodstock Divers (the club that allow me kindly to train every week) which was something.

Anyway...enjoy!

New World Record...

O.k, it's not the best freediving WR but it was fun and raised over £10k for the RNLI. 127 divers meet up at Chepstow National Dive Center to try and beat the Australian WR for underwater extreme ironing! 86 were recorded!

This was my first meet with SaltFree Freedivers run buy Sam Kirby. We all meet up at 8am only to find that we all had to wait till midday before we could get in the water (which was 5 degrees)

I paired up with Sam and Brain paired up with Virginia whilst our cameraman sorted out our ironing boards on a platform built underwater.

We had 10minutes of up & down to our ironing boards and generally had a good laugh, Brian started to iron his fins and Sam put on a well ironed SaltFree T-Shirt whilst at her ironing board!

Sat night was spent having the SaltFree Christmas dinner and secret Santa presents given out but we turned in at a reasonable time due to the tasks ahead on Sunday.

On the Sunday we demolished the platform, it was nice to be able to do something for the club as this was my first appearance. I'm looking forward to doing my 2* AIDA course with Sam this year and spending as much time as possible learning the depth side of freediving which is why i started in the first place.

Back 2 Training & Extreme Ironing!

After a 6wk break from training at the gym and pool, and with Christmas and new year new over and done with including the seasonal coughs and bugs, it was back to training!

Really hit it hard this week all in preparation for a World Record Attempt this weekend. Extreme Ironing! Myself and another 127 divers including other freedivers from SaltFree are getting together at Chepstow to try a new WR in this crazy sport. People have tried ironing up Everest and even jumping out of planes but never underwater with this many people before. (and never in temperatures of this kind either!!) The Ozzies currently hold the WR for the most divers underwater ironing at the same time, not for long....(come on the UK)

I'm sure there will be lots of pictures coming on here soon....

Pool training last night was hard, i only managed 4mins 45sec on my last hold taking around 40 contractions but i suppose that is what happens when you don't train for ages. I tried my new fins (Cressi Gara Pro's) they were fine, really flexible and comfortable.

Off to pack my bags for tomorrow's trip to Wales now....