Best_fullback's Training Blog

[best_fullback]

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<div align='center'>---Welcome to best_fullback's training blog---</div>

The Aim: Over the coming weeks I will be finalising plans for a training regime for the coming summer in which I hope to transform myself from a general utility back (wing, centre, fullback) into a fully-fledged fly-half.

Why?: For years playing Rugby I have marvelled at the skill involved at fly-half and have always wondered if I could push myself to be at that level. At the moment I am a very average kicker, an average passer, a fast runner and a solid tackler. Hopefully I can develop my weak skills until they are strengths and become something I have always wanted to be.

Whats in it for you: Apart from reading my daily or weekly blogs (not sure how it will pan out yet) to gain insight into my training, I will hope you can offer constructive feedback also. I will be posting the up the gym routines I am doing, training sessions and drills, reviews of drills and equipment, my nutrition as well as detailed results over the course of the training. Hopefully this will help in people's decisions for training and choices you make in pre-season.

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Firstly I think it is best you know details about me:

Age: 19
Weight: 140lb (10st/63.4kg)
Height: 5'9'' (175cm)

I have been playing Rugby since I was 6 years old, though I stopped when I first moved to secondary school where I found my passion for it again. When I was 12 I joined a local club where I played all the way through to the adult team until leaving home to join university. I decided to have a year away from Rugby due to studying and the socialising aspect of first year uni, though I did join the university Rugby League team, though I soon found that Union is far better sport for me.

I am a very fast runner (the fastest in my club team) and I ran the 100m in school in 12.5s as well as represented my county at the sport. I am also a very good tackler for my size for which I have been put at 12 often to defend crash balls. Apart for this as mentioned above my kicking and passing aren't as good as they could be so I hope to improve them significantly.

Sadly, I am still at University at the moment so the training will hopefully begin the w/c 15/6/09

Any comments will be appreciated and I will try and get back to you ASAP.

Watch this space for training information soon!

 

[best_fullback]

<div align='center'>---Week 1---</div>

<div align='left'>Hi, and welcome to week 1 of my training blog designed to help me improve my game as and become a fly-half and also provide the community on here with insight into training, gym work, equipment and results.
On the long road to my aim I have begun with virtually nothing. I have played rugby for years but since having a year out of the game my equipment seems to have literally disappeared, therefore the first port of call for the training blog is to acquire my equipment!

Over previous years when buying equipment I have encountered lots of differences and irregularities between rugby equipment websites regarding price and delivery which has meant that I have browsed for long periods trying to find the best deal. This week has been no different. Many websites, though the price looks great to begin with, may be excluding VAT only to add a delivery rate of £6+ for standard delivery.

Don't get me wrong, i'm not some sort of skank, im just a sucker for a bargain . My aim for this entry in my blog is to show you the websites I have browsed and the differences in price for the items I have chosen and the delivery rate for the overall package. Hopefully it will help you for future purchases.</div>

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<div align='left'>My shopping list consists of:

• An adjustable kicking tee
• 3x Gibert training balls (e.g. XT400 or equivalent)
• Needle adaptor (Ideally 7mm)

The 3 balls will be used for kicking practices. I have chosen the brand Gilbert as they are reliable, used frequently in games and a lot of other balls I have used have less grip and feel round and football-like when kicking. The kicking tee is obviously to practice goal kicking. The needle adaptor is for a pump as when I got home from university I suddenly realised I didn't have a pump! Thankfully my dad has a robust tyre pump in the garage and a 7mm or less needle adaptor will fit it.

Below are the rugby sites that I used as well as the prices they offered for the above equipment (or equivalent if not available) in total as well as delivery:

Puma adjustable kicking tee: £6.84
3x Lovell pro world rugby match balls (equivalent to Gilbert): £29.97 (£9.99 ea)
Needle adaptors: £1.99
Delivery: £8.50
Total: £47.30

Puma adjustable kicking tee: £4.51
3x Gilbert Zenon rugby balls (XT400s with hydratec moisture barrier to keep it dryer; XT400s were also in stock for same price): £28.77 (£9.59 ea)
Needle adaptors: £2.02
Delivery: £0.43
Total: £35.80

Samurai telescopic kicking tee: £3.95
3x Samurai training balls (no Gilbert balls available or in very short stock): £23.67 (£7.89 ea)
Puma handy pump (don't sell needle adaptops so this is cheapest pump in stock): £5.82
Delivery: £4.50
Total: £37.94

Puma adjustable kicking tee: £4.95
3x Barrington sport training balls (not really of same quality as Gilberts but only other Gilbert balls cost £16+): £15.00 (£5.00 ea)
Needle adaptors: £2.50
Delivery: £5.95
Total: £28.40

Gilbert adjustable kicking tee: £11.74
3x Gilbert XT400 balls: £22.50 (£7.50 ea)
Needle adaptor: £0.39
Delivery: £8.19
Total: £42.82

In the end I chose to buy my gear from Newitts.com.

I firstly chose this because of their delivery rate; only 43p! However it says it may take up to 5 days to deliver but I would rather that than pay a silly price such as £8.50 from Lovellrugby.co.uk and £8.19 from Pure-rugby.com. As good as next day delivery is, i'm not keen to pay nearly a fifth of my total as delivery.

I was also quite dissapointed that a lot of the sites such as Lovellrugby.co.uk, Barringtonsports.com and Eggcatcher.com didn't have bog standard XT400 training balls in stock. Unless lots of clubs are buying them, I would have thought they would have been an important item on any rugby website. Newitts.com also sold the 7mm adaptor in a 3 pack with is ideal for my pump, as well as having a reasonable price for the kicking tee.

The average price for all the goods was £32.45 so I think £35.80 is a very good price to pay.</div>

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<div align='left'>I hope this post shows you that with a bit of searching on the internet you can find a good price for equipment and where one site may look promising to begin with, the price of some items or delivery can be quite excessive. If you have any comments I would be more than happy to answer them </div>

 

[best_fullback]

<div align='center'>---Week 1 (2)---</div>

Here are my planned weekly training routines:

2½ Mile Run: A road run around my village on tarmac and grass. At a running rate of 7mph (an average run speed) I should be looking to complete this course in 21:42. However over the weeks I hope to get this time down to around 15-17 minutes meaning, with a speed of 8-9 mph.

I have found these sites very helpful in calculating distances, times and speed for training:

Speed, Distance and Time Calculator
'Runner's World Training Calculator'

I ran the course for the first time today and set a time of 19:05 meaning I have run a pace of 7.86mph. I think it is more than capable to get this figure down to around the target said above.

Gym Workouts: These workouts will vary week to week as I become stronger and have to increase endurance of training. The basic routine will probably start with a treadmill and cross-trainer warm up, weights on all areas of the body and a warm down on the rowing machine. Each session will focus on specifics e.g. upper body weights on Tuesday, lower body weights on Thursday and then endurance, balance and fatigue routines on Saturday as well as everything listed above.

Rugby Drills: These will be listed in detail in a further post.

 

[Hall]

I think I might be quite enjoying this!

I would do something similar over the summer as I aim to put on a lot of lean mass but I'd be stealing your thunder. I'll just read this...

Obviously I'll still put the mass on!

 

[best_fullback]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Hall @ Jun 18 2009, 06:10 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

I think I might be quite enjoying this!

I would do something similar over the summer as I aim to put on a lot of lean mass but I'd be stealing your thunder. I'll just read this...

Obviously I'll still put the mass on![/b]

Cheers mate

Nah feel free to add your comments or even make your own thread about yours if you want. Then we can share opinions and feedback about our different methods.

Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated.

 

[cyRil]

What kind of level are you aspiring to? Because being 10st as a 19 year old FH is pretty small. I'm not trying to put a fly in your ointment and obviously size really isn't everything, but it is increasingly an issue these days. I've put on atleast a stone playing at 12 over the last year and that's helped enormously I feel.
Anyway, good luck!!

 

[best_fullback]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (cyRil of Ospreylia @ Jun 18 2009, 10:46 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

What kind of level are you aspiring to? Because being 10st as a 19 year old FH is pretty small. I'm not trying to put a fly in your ointment and obviously size really isn't everything, but it is increasingly an issue these days. I've put on atleast a stone playing at 12 over the last year and that's helped enormously I feel.
Anyway, good luck!![/b]

Nah im not big really but I have always tried to live by the ethos that 'size isn't everything' like you said, though it does obviously matter a lot. The level will be university standard.

I have played all the way up to senior level and never had any major problems with my size. I was technically one of the best tacklers in my team and I think sometimes if technique is good it doesn't matter what size you are. Weight gain for me is a big issue and over the years I have tried lots of methods but nothing ever seems to work very well because I have a stupidly fast motabolism. How did you go about your weight gain?

Cheers for the comments, much appreciated

 

[best_fullback]

The equipment has arrived! Expect the full training to begin next week beginning Monday.

Will keep you updated with routines etc as time goes on.

 

[best_fullback]

<div align='center'>---Week 1 (3)---</div>

ARGH Blisters!

The dreaded blisters of summer training have come back to haunt me! Last night I decided to go down my local club and play some full pitch touch with the seniors, with bad consequences!

Positively I played quite well doing my best to play as a 10 or in that sort of role, though obviously touch is a lot different to a real game scenario. I made some good line breaks and my passing and general handling with pretty positive. Learning when to hit the gap has been a bit tricky and, as ive figured in just this one game, takes a good amount of experience. Sometimes I was just caught or it wouldn't lead to anything. Towards the end of the game though when we had a good break and their defence was rushing back I managed to sell my best friend (who is a south-west of England player, just thought i'd slip that one in ) with an absolute peach of a dummy and slide through the gap to score. Morally, and banter-wise, that was really good for my confidence.

Kicking wasn't really used as it was touch but I've got all my mid-week sessions to work on that.

Sadly, as you can figure out by the ***le, I got blisters. Result: Blood stained socks and a lot of hobbling that night. Think I will either invest in some cheap mouldies or some running socks to stop blisters.

I found this article about prevention of blisters which might be of help to anyone else who suffers: Blister Prevention and Treatment

I think I will probably start training regularly with this team over summer so this will be added to my weekly routines. Another team asked me to come to training with them so I may be training for two clubs soon! Watch this space for more.

Overall this week has been a good introduction to my training plan.

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With regards to my general rugby routines for everyday of the week, I have been researching a lot of websites for training guides to kicking, passing and general fitness. Here is my draft training guide so far.:

Kicking

Kicking will revolve around:

• Place Kicking
• Drop Kick Restarts
• Kicking out of hand (Drop kicks, Punts, Spiral Punts, Grubbers etc)

Obviously I need drills and routines that will enable me to hone my skills and be recordable so I can post my progress up here. For that reason I have decided the following.

Place kicking: 9 kicks at goal from different measured distances and positions (9 kicks at each position). This can then be easily calculated to see my average kicking accuracy, maximum kicking distance and weaknesses regarding kicking from angles.

Drop Kick Restarts: Will place cones in square area on pitch approx 10m x 10m and take attempts at kicking the ball so that it lands in this area from half way line. 9 attempts again on each area so I can record results.

Out of Hand Kicking: Drop kicks will be done in same way as place kicks. As for punting and spiral punting, I will do several exercises. If anyone has played Rugby 08 this drill will be very familiar to you. I will place 4 cones down the touch line to where I am kicking at 10 meter distances apart. I will then kick the ball trying for maximum distance. If it goes through the furthest 2 cones I will reward myself 10 points, Middle 2 cones will gain 5 points, and the closest will gain 2 points. Any kicks not within these areas will gain no points. If you are struggling to understand what I mean here is a diagram:

The red area is 10 points, yellow 5 and blue 2. The red X indicates where I will be stood. This exercise will be done on both sides of the pitch 9 times with a total at the end being an indicator of how my kicking standard is, and how it is developing. This will be done on for kicks out the full from the 22 and also as if it has been passed back into the 22 with a kick that has to bounce before it reaches touch for punts and spiral punts.

For grubber kicks I was thinking of doing a fun session such as in this video: All Blacks Kicking Games

Here is a good general guide to kicking for anyone interested: Videojug Place Kicking Guide

Passing

Passing is obviously a lot more difficult than kicking to practice as you generally need a buddy to help. Ideally if I had a lot of people I would practice drills such as the ones shown here: Rugby Passing Drills

A drill such as this would be ideal for my fly half training for quick passing: Pressure Passing Drill

I also have one of these Gilbert Reflex Trainers:

In my spare time I will use this to practice general reflexes and passing.

Other than that I expect I will just work on my passing in rugby session at the club(s) I will go to.

Does anyone know any good passing drills for one person? Any help in this area would be appreciated.

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Does anyone have any comments regarding my training sessions so far? or any critisisms? any guidance will be greatly appreciated!

 

[Woldog]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>

Does anyone know any good passing drills for one person? Any help in this area would be appreciated.[/b]

Torpedo pass the ball straight up in the air, as it comes down, catch and go through the motions of passing to either side without actually letting go, then pass it straight up into the air again using the opposite hands to the first pass, catch it go through the motions of passing to the opposite side and repeat for 9 years.

Other than that, just flicking with a twist of the hand so the ball so it spins to the other hand, and keep doing that, I do that while I'm on the computer most of the time.

 

[best_fullback]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Woldog @ Jun 20 2009, 02:45 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Torpedo pass the ball straight up in the air, as it comes down, catch and go through the motions of passing to either side without actually letting go, then pass it straight up into the air again using the opposite hands to the first pass, catch it go through the motions of passing to the opposite side and repeat for 9 years.

Other than that, just flicking with a twist of the hand so the ball so it spins to the other hand, and keep doing that, I do that while I'm on the computer most of the time.[/b]

Yeah generally I am going to try to have a ball with me quite a lot now during the day when im lazing about just to improve my grip and handling.

I remember a quote from Zinzan Brooke once where he said the best thing a young person can do is to just have a ball with them all the time.

Cheers for the advice

 

[best_fullback]

<div align='center'>---Week 2---</div>

<div align='center'>---Training Day 1---</div>

Its official, the first day of my training programme has begun, and infact, is now complete.

On Saturday I went down to my old school, where I will be conducting the rugby drills section of the programme, and tested out my planned drills. Everything seemed great so come today I was happy to begin.

I was a little rushed for time early in the day today so I didn't get to begin training until 5pm. However being the longest day of sunlight yesterday, there was no problems with visibility. After I completed my kicking I came home and ran the 2 ½ mile run to complete the days training.

Here are my results:

Place kicks:

• 20m distance straight infront of post: 7/9 kicks successful (77.8%)
• 22.36m kick from right hand side (used pythagoras to work out distance ): 4/9 kicks successful (44.4%)
• 22.36m kick from left hand side : 7/9 kicks successful (77.8%)

Out of hand kicking:

• Punting for touch with points ranking system: 29/90 possible points (32.22%)
• Drop goals at 20m distance: 7/9 kicks successful (77.8%)

2½ Mile run:

• Ran in 18.35, a 30 second improvement upon previously

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On the whole this first session was satisfactory. I spent a good hour and a half practising my kicking and by the end of the session I was relatively pleased with how it was going. However I did find my place kicking was fairly irratic and sometimes I would catch the ball sweetly and be really happy, only to have my next kick skew of my toe wide! Ah well, I suppose practice will make perfect. It is only day 1 after all.

I chose to begin todays session with kicks from a like 20 metres back in three positions, and increase this distance as I improve. The hardest position I found the kicking from was the right hand side, as would be expected for a right footed kicker, where I only kicked 4/9 kicks over. I think this was more psychological than anything. I think I need to get over the fact it is in a difficult postition and just concentrate on hitting the ball straight.

The drop kicks were fairly ok. I have always found drop kicks quite easy though I agonisingly kicked two wide in todays session. Tomorrow, if time permits, I will do more drop kicks at different angles to have more data to show and improve my technique.

Kicking for touch was good. Today I was finding it infuriatingly difficult to spiral kick, so I stuck to what I knew best and just straight-up punted the ball. I was pretty happy with my kicks as I got one 10 and quite a few 5s and a lot of 2s. I shanked a few shorter than the 2 mark though I know with practice I will be able to cut this out.

The run I was very pleased with. I felt the whole way round that I was going to do well and beat my previous time. 30 seconds was more than I expected though! That means I have taken my average speed up to 8.0717mph! Best achievement of the day for me.

I know I have missed out a few drills such as grubber kicking and drop kick restarts, but due to time restrictions and not actually finding a good drill to do for them, I will commence them tomorrow!

Expect an update soon.

 

[best_fullback]

<div align='center'>---Week 2 (1)---</div>

Since the first day of training I've realised there is quite a lot of work needed on my general kicking as it is inconsistent.

Research on the internet and found some sites which gave tips for goal kicking and how to perfect the spiral kick.

James Hook training tips:
Perfect Spiral Kick
Place Kicking

However the training is progressing, and my average ratio is increasing.

Also worth noting my run times are seeing a 30 second margin of improvement each time! My first run was a time of 19.05, and yesterday I ran my third run in a time of 18.01! I can almost feel my fitness improving by the day

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With regards to my weight training, I will be going to the first gym session tonight as I couldn't get to the gym on Tuesday. I have been researching into weight routines and diets that I should be doing as in the past I have found it nigh on impossible to put on muscle mass, only definition.

Apparently I am classed as a 'Hardgainer', defined as: <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>

"[a] naturally skinny person, who no matter what he or she eats, always seem to remain the same body weight."[/b]

This is what I have alwasys suffered with. This comes from this site. Though obviously focusing on bodybuilding which isn't what my aim is, it has the right idea for me about diets and gym routines further down the page.

These include:

• 50% carbs, 25 % proteins and 25% good fats diet (Opposed to 40% carbohydrates, 40% proteins and 20% fats of a 'normal' person)
• Minimising my caloric expenditures and maximising my caloric intake (heat expenditure)
• Because of this I must get in the gym, stimulate my muslces and get out in a routine lasting no longer than 60 minutes.
• Less than 90 second rests between sets.
• No weight training for more than two consecutive days
• 6-15 repetitions of weights.

This is the routine suggested on the site for a hardgainer:

Hardgainers' Sample Mass Building Training Routine

Monday: Chest/Back/Biceps/Triceps/Upper Abs

Superset #1:
Incline Dumbbell Press (adjust bench to an angle of 25 degrees) 3 sets of 8-10 reps (No Rest)
Close Grip Pull-up to Front (palms facing forward) 3 sets of 8-10 reps (1 min rest)

Notes: If you cannot perform the pull-up, then try to have your partner help you up or use a weight assist machine. Otherwise, substitute with Pull-downs.

Superset #2:
Flat Dumbbell Bench Press 3 sets of 10-12 reps (No Rest)
Neutral Grip Pull-ups 3 sets of 10-12 reps (1 min rest)

Notes: If you cannot perform the pull-up, then try to have your partner help you up or use a weight assist machine. Otherwise, substitute with Pull-downs.

Superset #3:
Dumbbell Hammer Curls 3 sets of 8-10 reps (No Rest)
Overhead Triceps Extensions 3 sets of 8-10 reps (1 min rest)

Superset #4:
Dumbbell Preacher Curls 3 sets of 10-12 reps (No Rest)
Triceps Pushdowns 3 sets of 10-12 reps (1 min rest)

Crunches 3 sets of 15-20 reps (1 min rest)

Tuesday: Thighs/Hamstrings/Delts/Calves/Lower Abs

Superset #1:
Wide Stance Squats 3 sets of 8-10 reps (No Rest)
Dumbbell Stiff Legged Deadlifts 3 sets of 8-10 reps (1 min rest)

Notes: If you suffer from lower back problems substitute the wide stance squat for a wide stance leg press (press with toes since you are working the quads).

Superset #2:
Leg Extensions 3 sets of 10-12 reps (No Rest)
Lying Leg Curls 3 sets of 10-12 reps (1 min rest)

Superset #3:
Lateral Raises 3 sets of 8-10 reps (No Rest)
Standing Calf Raises 3 sets of 8-10 reps (1 min rest)

Superset #4:
Bent Over Lateral Raises Curls 3 sets of 10-12 reps (No Rest)
Seated Calf Raises 3 sets of 10-12 reps (1 min rest)

Hanging Leg Raises 3 sets of 15-20 reps (1 min rest)

Thursday: Chest/Back/Biceps/Triceps

Modified Compound Superset #1:
Incline Bench Press 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)
Close Grip Chins with reverse grip 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)

Notes: If you cannot perform the pull-up, then try to have your partner help you up or use a weight assist machine. Otherwise, substitute with Pull-downs.

Modified Compound Superset #2:
Chest Dips 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)
Wide Grip Pull-ups to front 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)

Notes: If you cannot perform the pull-up, then try to have your partner help you up or use a weight assist machine. Otherwise, substitute with Pull-downs.

Modified Compound Superset #3:
E-Z Curls 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (60 second rest)
Close Grip Bench Press 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (60 second rest)

Modified Compound Superset #4:
E-Z Preacher Curls 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (60 second rest)
Lying Triceps Extensions 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (No rest)
Crunches 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (60 second rest)

Notes: In order to be able to finish the routine within the allotted time, abs were included in this last modified compound superset. The way this superset is performed is by doing the curls first, resting 60 sec, moving to the extensions and without rest to the crunches. After the crunches, rest 60 seconds and start over.

Friday: Thighs/Hamstrings/Delts/Calves

Modified Compound Superset #1:
Medium Stance Squats 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)
Lying Leg Curls 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)

Notes: If you suffer from lower back problems you may substitute the squat for the leg press. Since you are performing the leg press as your second exercise, then just use a close stance on this one and a medium stance on the second one.

Modified Compound Superset #2:
Leg Press 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)
Barbell Stiff Legged Dead-lifts 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (90 second rest)

Modified Compound Superset #3:
Seated Military Press 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (60 second rest)
Calf Press 3 sets of 10, 8, 6 reps (60 second rest)

Modified Compound Superset #4:
Upright Rows 3 sets of 8, 6, 4 reps (60 second rest)
Standing Calf Raises 3 sets of 10, 8, 6 reps (No rest)
Lying Leg Raises 3 sets of 10, 8, 6 reps (60 second rest)

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I am going on holiday from 24/06/09 until 04/07/09 so next week I will not be able to perform my programme, but afterwards it will be business as usual.

 

[cyRil]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (best_fullback @ Jun 22 2009, 10:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

However I did find my place kicking was fairly irratic and sometimes I would catch the ball sweetly and be really happy, only to have my next kick skew of my toe wide![/b]

Story of my life! I love it when I smash a 45 yarder over from the touchline and then follow it up with a scuff wide on the 22.

 

[best_fullback]

<div align='center'>---Week 3---</div>

Setbacks

Home again!

I arrived back from a lovely holiday in southern France on Saturday night having missed both the 2nd and 3rd Lions tests. Watching the 2nd one that night I can only say 'Wow' to such an awesome spectacle of rugby. Gutting that we ended up on the wrong side of the scoreline though! :angry:

Week 3 has begun with a set back that may last for a few days or possibly even a week yet. On the Friday just gone my family and I went to the Pyrenees moutains for our final day before coming home and chose to eat at a restaurant which supposedly had a michelin start chef. Suffice to say my brothers girlfriend and I were on the recieving end of food poisoning from mussles. She proceed to be sick several times about an hour later and then recover while I didn't feel the effects until that night.

In the proceeding 4 days I have had nausea, bad stomach pains and really bad muscle aches on my right shoulder and arm though am yet to vomit. It is really intermittent though, and sometimes I feel ok and full of energy, the next really rough. I have woken up at least twice every night and found it nigh on impossible to get back to sleep because of the pain in my arm and stomach. The pinnacle of it was this morning when I woke up at 5.30 in the worst pain so far. It was absolutely horrible. I couldn't get back to sleep so I have been up since then.

I decided today to see the doctor which I have just got back from. He thinks that its not necessarily the food poisining but an acid imbalance in my stomach caused by the bad food. Apparently an acid imbalance in the stomach causes you to feel much worse when you lie down which would explain why I keep waking up in pain. He has prescribed my anti-acid tablets which hopefully will do the trick. However, until I start to feel better the blog is going to have to be put on hold. As much as I would love to just get out and train, I don't want to go and make myself any worse.

Infuriated would sum up how I feel.

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On a lighter note I have been doing more research and have emailed several high profile sports companies asking whether they would be interested in endorsement, sponsorship or even allowing me to test equipment for them. The general consensus was a resounding 'no', which was what I thought though you don't get anywhere by not asking. However everyone who got back to me were very helpful and polite. Some just plain didn't reply.

Canterbury and Nomis were the two most helpful offering me good will gestures and wished me good luck in my programme. I was very thankful for this. Glenn Joyce (The Chief Executive & Chief Operating Officer at Nomis UK) was very helpful and offered me recommendations for boots as I let him know I had been interested in the Nomis range for some time. This has resulted in me ordering new Nomis boots!

When I start my programme again I will review my new boots, as well as post up my first month results.

Any comments would be appreciated

 

[Sebastian_Chabal]

Interesting thread. :bravo: bravo mate


EDIT= 5'9 is 175 cm not 145. correct it

 

[best_fullback]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Sebastian_Chabal @ Jul 8 2009, 07:01 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Interesting thread. :bravo: bravo mate


EDIT= 5'9 is 175 cm not 145. correct it[/b]

Cheers for the feedback mate!

Yeah I realised I had made that mistake earlier but this thread doesn't actually allow me to edit any previous posts so I can't change it. I have emailed the Admin team to see if there is a way to change this but so far it hasn't be resolved!

Cheers again

 

[best_fullback]

<div align='center'>---Week 3---</div>

Well after the visit to the doctors and being prescribed the biggest pills Ive ever seen, which sounded like they had a ball bearing inside, I am getting better! So much better infact that I went for a run two days ago completing the course in 18:45 which, considering I was still feeling a little fragile, is a good time. Still faster than my slowest ever one!

Then last night I went to my local team's first training session of the year which turned out to be a massive beasting session. Everyone turned up thinking we were going to play 10-a-side touch for an hour, but instead our fitness was tested... a lot.

The session started with a few slowish laps of the pitch. Rest. 50m continuous circuits with 10m of double foot lunges over tackle bags. Rest. Line work (Running as a line, one leader: Forward; everyone runs forward, Left; everyone side-steps left, Down; eveyone does a pressup etc). Rest. Shuttle runs. Rest. Pyramids. Rest. Finished with 30m continuous circuit with 20m of lunges over tackle bags.

Needless to say everyone was shattered. I had a piercing headache and I thought I was going to be sick. The game of touch that followed was pretty tired to say the least. My legs felt like lead! The good thing is though that sessions like this show me how much work actually needs to be done to improve my fitness to complete my aim. This wasn't a massive session by any means, but after a year out of rugby and any regular exercise, I didn't do too badly. I will be going to this training every week on a Thursday evening. There is also another more serious club that are starting to do fitness training on Tuesdays, so both of these will be added to my training routine.

I think next week I will be able to begin my training routine again. I want to say sorry to any people who have been reading this regularly and only have one real week of exercise and drills and two weeks of nothing really. The holiday I obviously couldn't do anything about, but the illness was unforseen and annoying for me more than anyone else. Hopefully now I can start to get back into the swing of things.

Lets just hope I don't get Swine Flu!

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In my last post I said that I had ordered some new boots to combat the blister problem. However I recieved an email from the website saying that the availability shown on the site was wrong, and that I would have to wait several weeks for the boots to come into stock and then more days on top for delivery. I cancelled the order and looked on Newitts.com (which as you may have read I stated was the best site to order equipment from) and found a pair of Adidas Predator Absolutes for £35! For anyone who doesn't know these are (well were before the most recent predators) the boots worn by Jonny Wilkinson, Dan Carter, Matt Giteau etc and usually retail for £120. I couldn't beleive my eyes so I ordered them on the spot.

The arrived next day (yesterday) and they are brilliant! So comfy and almost weightless on your feet. I wore them to training last night and they were so comfortable to run in, jump, sidestep and kick. Plus they provided just as much grip as my other soft ground Adidas boots. A real bargain. Just goes to show that if you are looking for something on a budget, look on Newitts.com and you will be pleasantly suprised. Though they sell virtually no replica jerseys, their range of equipment surpasses any other rugby websites.

Here is a picture of the boots:

Courtesy of (http://www.prodirectsoccer.com/prod_images/zoom/PDS002001829.jpg)

Colour is a bit gay I know, but for £35 I don't really care! They are the first no black boots Ive owned apart from these red Puma boots I had when I was 6! Ah, the memories!

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Well that just about raps it up for this week. If you would like to ask any questions or leave any comments I would be happy to answer them

 

[Olyy]

Really interesting blog, looking forward to the next update
Think i had something similar to you the other week (the almost-food-poisoning), very unpleasant experience
Newitts is quality, got my first boots from there. If i'd have seen the predators on there last week i'd have snapped them up on the spot, for 7s
Treated myself to some new adidas flankers though, so they'll do for both

 

[best_fullback]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Olyy @ Jul 11 2009, 02:48 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Really interesting blog, looking forward to the next update
Think i had something similar to you the other week (the almost-food-poisoning), very unpleasant experience
Newitts is quality, got my first boots from there. If i'd have seen the predators on there last week i'd have snapped them up on the spot, for 7s
Treated myself to some new adidas flankers though, so they'll do for both[/b]

Cheers for the comment mate, I appreciate it

Yeah it has been pretty unpleasant. Im feeling a lot better now though.

I think the preds are still on there but only in size 7 and 8 and I think only 1 pair in each size, which would explain why they're so cheap!

Cheers again!