The start of the road to Thailand

06 Mar 2007

It was Sunday 4th Feb and after a fornight's consideration I booked myself charity challenge's Thailand Jungle Trek in July. I found out about the trip from Leukaemia Care for whom my friend Lucy ran the London Marathon for last year.

I had already just joined the gym across the road from work in order to move my swimming away from the local pool and make it more regular. I was locally swimming once (or twice) a week 30 x 25m lengths.

Due to the trek I am now increasing my walking and each morning and getting off the train in the morning a stop earlier for the past couple of weeks. I have just extended this to a stop earlier on the way home with a steep incline on the route even if there is not much increase in time. On top of this I am now climbing all the escalators/stairs at tube stations (I don't use the tube everyday so this is not too much)

My trips to the gym are now aimed at 3 times a week - I swim and 2 x 10 mins on the cross trainer and 30mins on the treadmill walking at 6/7 kms an hour.
Week 1 - 20 weeks before departure w/c 12th Feb. 1x swim 2x cross trainer/treadmill - gym work eased in as first time. didn't quite make the 10 mins on the cross trainer!! Weekend - 2x 15min walk plus Emirates Stadium to the Bank of Friendship and Oxford Circus to Regent Street and back looking for hiking shoes/boots including up and down to the 5th floor at Lilywhites.

Week 2 - 19 weeks before departure w/c 19th Feb. Two days annual leave for trip to Holland for PSV v Arsenal so figured the amount of walking over and above the days I would have had in the office warrented 1 swim and 1 cross trainer/treadmill session. A two hour/4 mile walk per my guidebook was planned for the Wednesday but it rained so my Dad & I walked round the Van Gogh museum instead. Walking had been the unexpected on Tuesday as our hotel in Amsterdam was not the one I thought I had booked and was the other side of the city centre, which we did the long route. Also walked back there from train after arriving back from Eindhoven. Sat 1x 50min walk with my mum then 1x 20min walk to a friends.

Week 3 - 18 weeks before departure w/c 26th February. A horrendous journey to Cardiff on the trains (1x 15min walk to local station) for the Carling Cup final arriving home 1.30am meant postponing my training from Monday to Tuesday and then due to being busy at work managed just 2 x cross trainer/treadmill. Weekend 2 x 15 min walk to station Sat further 2x 15min walk Sunday. Purchased a pair of hiking boots prior to this week so started using them whilst training.

I have a suggested training schedule from charity challenge for 16 weeks prior to departure which I will try and follow and compare with what I actually do.