More About Me: What I’m Working on This Winter

A bit more about the person behind this account, and what I’m working towards this winter.

Over the years I’ve put together a marathon PB of 2:50, an Ironman PB of 9:43, and brought my golf handicap down to 9.2 – not all in the same season, but each one a product of the same approach: consistent, well-structured training built around a full life (as examples, my Ironman PB was when I was working 80+ hours a week in investment banking and my golfing career started only just before my son came along (and he’s not been a good sleeper!)).

This winter I’m running my own version of the golf off-season strength plan I’ll be sharing on the blog this month – building strength, with power exercises incorporated so that I can hit next season in the best shape. This is whilst trying to get my 5K PB back down to closer to my pre-kids PB (which was sub 17 when in my running focused phase) and working on some specific exercises just for fun.

The specific goals for this 12-week block

• Golf – clubhead speed of 115+mph (cruising); clubhead speed of 120+mph (max)
  • Both are important metrics to understand, with the max showing more of your potential/ceiling and the cruising being more similar to your on-course swing
• In the gym – 5RM bench press of 90kg (I’m currently at 82kg), 5RM front squat of 95kg (I’m currently at 85kg)
  • I could look at 1RM too but that’s a much less meaningful number for me given my training. Most people don’t need to, and/or certainly shouldn’t be testing 1RM in a traditional manner
• Running – sub 18:45 5K PB (I’m probably in 19:30 shape at the moment)
• For fun – do pistol squats on both legs for reps (I can do one or two but the leg in the air has a tendency to cramp); improve my overhead snatch (tight lats and shoulder injuries have meant I’ve recently been able to get the bar overhead, but this is something I want to push on with)

These are all goals that are based on reasonable improvement percentages. Whilst we need to challenge ourselves, the goals we set also need to be realistic, especially when trying to hit goals across a number of different sports.

As you’ll see, these goals are a mix of golf, running and gym. I’ve had years where I’ve been much more focused on running only, triathlon/duathlon events in the early new year and other sports entirely. For most of us, our fitness and sporting careers do not bring in any earnings and so we should be focused on what interests us most and what we really want to target (and that can change or cover multiple aspects!). My plan will be built with those specific goals in mind, and I’ll be programming so that it fits entirely around my life (family, work, travel and any social side).

I know that there will be some moments where I won’t be able to execute every session perfectly and I’ll probably choose (or be forced to) miss some, especially with last minute work travel. But, a plan gets us most of the way there and allows us to try and maintain as much consistency as possible. The plan also allows for easier tweaks around whatever comes up, and allows us to keep moving forwards towards the goals we set.

What’s your winter goal – golf, a spring race, or both? Or something that you think is just for fun. If it’s in rough form or a fully formed plan, I’d love to hear more about it – any questions and I’ll try to cover what could be helpful in future posts.

The next step I’m also doing is sketching out next year properly – whether there will be any races (and what those are), what I want to achieve on the golf course and also in the gym. I have a good idea of what that will look like and those winter goals will certainly get me closer to performing next year, when I really want to. There will be more on full season-planning in a post coming up, but there is real value to planning well in advance and making sure you’re ready to perform when you really want to.