Sooo… because my leg rehab has been going (very well) for about 6 months now and it seems we’re suckers for punishment – I mean a good challenge – Carl and I have now registered for the Spartan Sprint race in Sydney on March 16^th.  A short 5 weeks and 2 days away!  With this we’ve also decided to tie in a trip to The Castle – one of my favourite places, just off the NSW South Coast to revisit the ground where I first injured my leg in 2007.  These events will be the testing ground for my leg, and general biomechanics – which as Carl and the Willis Street Physiotherapy team have told you, tend to be a bit out of whack causing all manner of niggles and pain which have, in the past, prevented me from pursuing physical aspirations.  With any luck we’ll also fit in a skydive to celebrate Carl’s big 3-0.

I’ve always loved physical activity, more so out doors, in the wild with great company.  I’ve not so much been into competitive sports, so this whole competing in a race thing is a new thing for me.  I do however like the little adventure aspect of the Spartan race and see it as a good testing ground for future adventure racing.

This is not just purely physical though.  As anyone one of you with a chronic injury or wacky biomechanics knows, not being able to get out and do the stuff you love is a huge mental, spiritual and emotional challenge – in many different ways.  One of my big challenges at the moment is to really learn to trust in my body again – to be able to trust in it’s ability to complete the Spartan race pain free, or to get me in and, more importantly perhaps, out of a wilderness without needing to be carried!  It’s also going to be somewhat symbolic to return to the Castle – one of my all time favourite spiritual places and the place that triggered this whole rehab journey.

Over the course of the next 5 weeks we’re going to document our training programmes, rehab and nutrition plans so that you can see what we’re up to and use it for your own training preparations.