In 2003 I was a participant in my wife’s dissertation relating to exercise physiology and had my VO2max measured. The results suggested that I had a high VO2 max (mid 80s), and this gave me the determination to take my training more seriously. As my training became more intense, and with a a balanced diet, I started to lose more weight, and eventually became the correct weight for my size.
My first triathlon win came in 2007 at the Bananaman Triathlon. My boyhood dream of being “Bananaman” had finally come true! This served as another stepping stone in helping me to better my performances across all three disciplines.
For some years I had been mixing training with full time teaching, and still managed to achieve good results, though my available time and nutrition were seriously lacking. I decided to leave full time teaching at the end of the last school year, and started to train nearly full time, while managing a renovation project for a house in France. The reward for this training is clear from my results this season, which has seen me crowned British sprint champion, and has also enabled me to compete in the Elite waves at Blenheim (33rd), Windsor (18th), and London (29th). These events have shown me where I now need to focus my efforts (swimming!), and have served to further ignite my passion and determination for the sport.
With the support of USN I will have access to top quality nutrition that will allow me to push myself to the limits in training and during competition. I feel that I have not reached my potential, but with hard work and help from sponsors I can achieve my goals for next season. Feel free to come and say high if you see me at an event.
Below is a list of my best performance from the past few seasons
2011
London Elite Triathlon 29th
USN Silverstone Duathlon 2nd
Windsor Elite Triathlon 18th
Blenheim Elite Triathlon 33rd
National Sprint Championships 1st
Grendon Triathlon 1st
Mallory Park Triathlon 1st
Duston Triathlon 1st
Halesowen Triathlon 1st
East Leake Triathlon 2nd
National Duathlon Championships 2nd 30-34
Wellingborough 15km X-C round 3 1st
2010
Roade Triathlon 1st
Tatton Park Sprint Triathlon 1st
Macclesfield Triathlon 1st
Hathersage Hilly Triathlon 1st
Sheffield Club Championships 1st
Lincoln Triathlon 3rd
Southwell Triathlon 2nd
2009
Roade Triathlon 1st
Last Minute Triathlon 2nd
Rugby Triathlon 2nd
Leeds Xpress Triathlon 1st
Silverstone Duathlon 3rd
Duston Triathlon 2nd
Clumber Park Sprint Duathlon 1st
2008
Clumber Park Sprint Duathlon 2nd
Wellingborough 10km X-C round 1 2nd
Wellingborough 10km X-C round 2 1st
Wellingborough 10km X-C round 3 1st
2007
Bananaman Triathlon 1st
D.O.B: 18/12/1981
Height: 164 cm
Weight: 10st
Live: Northampton and Aveyron, France
Married: Beth Damms
Education: BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science
Favourite:
Film - Pan’s Labyrinth
Food - Curry, curry and curry (I’m a curry monster)
City - Rome (where we married)
Band - The Killers & Fleetwood Mac (‘The Chain’ is the best for Turbos)
Race - Alpe d’Huez (France), Speedy Beaver (site of my first national title)
Comedy - The Big Bang Theory (I’m a nerd at heart!)
Hobby - Snowboarding and Beach volleyball
Supplements - USN
Heroes - Lance Armstrong, Maire Curie
What is your favourite USN Supplement and why?
During training rides I tend to use
EpicPro. For me it offers everything, I can push hard during the session, and I recover quicker too. To top off the session I like to use
RecoverXcell, it's amazing and is vital when doing multiple sessions in one day, as many triathletes do.
Achievements in sports since taking the product?
Since taking these new products I've started to feel stronger, and can get the most out of each session. I have also won my first olympic distance triathlon win, and have added another sprint win to my cv. There is no doubt that my power output, and the ability to sustain it, has increased.
What is your ideal product stack when training?
In the lead up to a race I train using
CytoPowerHP as this is what I use in races. The week before an event I use Enduroload in combination with VO2MAX tablets, just to give me that extra kick, especially in longer races.
Vooma gels - due to their caffeine content I use these during sprint events to give me that extra boost to the finish line
Recover Xcell - after hard sessions this is great at helping me to recover, ready for another testing session.
Cytopower - a fantastic product for use on the bike. I find this particularly useful on hot days as it allows me to keep my electrolyte levels high. The caffeine hit also helps when fatigue starts to set in.
Epic Pro - an amazing all round product. Great for taking to events as it serves as a recovery drink, and also as drink for during longer events.
2011
Desford Triathlon
Oxford Triathlon
Birmingham Triathlon
Roade Triathlon
2012
My aims for next season are:
Qualification for Ironman Hawaii
Alpe d’Huez long course
British Elite Super Series
French Grand Prix races