Steven came to me with one goal in mind – to be an Ironman! He already had a good fitness level and was knowledgeable about triathlons, so I had a good base to work with. Steven is also a very driven individual with a positive attitude which also really helped his progression.
As our starting point, I went through some physical assessments which flagged up some minor issues which were the same issues Steven had when running in the past. The assessments gave me a good picture of where we needed to go with his training plan. I put a strength and conditioning as well as a pre-hab plan in place to work on important key areas. I also wrote him a full ironman triathlon plan that would help him build his body up in order to get him through the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26-mile run!
During training, Steven picked up an acute injury while running on holiday on very hilly and uneven ground. So, in our subsequent weekly training sessions, whilst continuing to follow the cycling and swimming plans as normal, I treated him on the gym floor with trigger point therapy, acupressure and Thai massage as well as putting an additional rehab plan in place and within 3 weeks, he was running again. Once we had gotten over this hurdle, Steven was right back into his program and it was plain sailing again, and sure enough in July 2019, 8 months after Steven came to me, he heard the words that every triathlete dreams of hearing …. “Steven, you are an Ironman”
Having done some Olympic distance triathlons and half marathons I made the decision to step up and do a full Ironman, Bolton UK. I knew I would need support and advise for such a step as I was quite daunted by what I had been reading around preparation. I was so fortunate to find Will who had a wealth of experience and understanding, and had also done the Ironman himself. Will tailored my strength and conditioning sessions to my ability and requirements, but also over 10 months drew up a full day-by-day training plan that developed as my fitness did. He was also really knowledgeable on diet, with advise I still use today. When I was injured he changed my plan accordingly., and provided treatment to my muscles. He was also full of support and enthusiasm, and gave me confidence in my ability when I had doubts for such a daunting task. He was always available for the hundreds of questions I had, with words of advice and encouragement when needed. I have absolutely no doubt that without Will I would not have been successful in reaching my goal of completing my Ironman (where 20% didn’t).
