So this was my first Christmas as a full-time fencer. No exam revision, no essays and no working Christmas Eve and Boxing Day shifts at Pizza Hut. What a blissful prospect ... but not reality. Christmas as an athlete has actually been one of my biggest challenges yet and has demanded all the self-discipline I could muster.
The festive season is largely about the excessive and unnecessary consumption of food and drink. Mince pies, bread pudding and mulled wine aren’t really required, but they do seem to be a vital element of the celebrations and boycotting them opens one to accusations of party pooping. Finding the willpower to avoid these things, together with the requirement to train throughout, is enough to make one reach for the sloe gin.
I won’t pretend I didn’t enjoy a massive sense of smugness sitting down to Christmas dinner after running 3k. However, my satisfaction was challenged when I realised the public weren’t impressed by my dedication. Instead, the few dog walkers looked at me with wariness, confusion and humour as I slid and gasped my way across the frozen grass and mud of Holmebrook Valley Park.
I did have a particular story to inspire me though - not only through Christmas, but over the next few years. Lance Armstrong went on a ride on Christmas morning and another one later in the afternoon. Then, on hearing a fellow cyclist was planning on training that day, he undertook a third ride in the evening, to ensure he had done the most training that day. Armed with this knowledge, he came to the start line of the next competition, confident that he was the strongest.
One thing is certain about “professional” fencing – it consumes your life in a different way from an average graduate job. True, it does allow for afternoon naps, but every other rest moment is devoted to either sponsorship and promotional ideas, or psychology and equipment checks. On the few occasions I have a chance to socialise, I have to watch what I eat and drink before retiring to bed early to ensure I’m well rested.
And Christmas is no exception.
