Setting the scene...

I’ve recently got back from a solid race in beautiful Kitzbuhel, Austria, but lots of training to get done ahead of the ITU World Championship, London, in just a few weeks time now. I’m racing at the London Triathlon next weekend so this should be a good warm up ahead of the big event.

Marc, my trainer (and husband!) has set me a tough programme for this final few weeks – I’m going to be swimming five times a week, running six times a week, going on four bike rides and heading to the gym at least twice a week. So not a huge amount of down time but it’ll be worth it as it’s so important to go into this kind of race mentally and physically on top form. It’s a great feeling to be doing a season without any injury, although I mustn’t talk to soon!

It’s certainly going to be a tough race as there are a lot of girls having a great season – Brits like Hollie Avil and Jodie Stimpson as well as the Aussie girls. I think it’s going to be a close race with so much talent and determination this year. I’m beginning to feel a little bit of pressure…

So, for this next week, I just want to concentrate on eating well, trying to rest as much as possible (taking my dog Barney down to the beach is my therapy!) and ensuring I’m getting consistent results from each training session. My Suunto heart rate monitor results are being closely monitored to ensure I’m pushing my boundaries at each stage without over-exerting myself and, so far, I feel like I’m getting a good balance. But it’ll be interesting to see how I feel after the weekend!

Helen