Stoptober update

How's it going? I hope you have all managed to stick to your Stoptober plan? I have, just about anyway, but I do have to thank my girlfriend for not stocking the cupboards with snacks and chocolate or I may have failed at the first hurdle ;-)

For me the first week was the hardest but I have now replaced all of my nibbles with a piece of fruit; bananas are my favourite as they release their energy slowly and help keep a lid on my hunger pangs. I had set myself a target of losing hopefully about 3kgs over the month which should take me back to my normal training weight and I am bang on target towards reaching my goal as I have lost 2kgs already - c'mon!

I have been back in the gym full-time for six weeks and I now believe that my body is back in good condition, or good enough at least to start adding new skills into routines as you can see from this video clip. It's also a reminder of just how dangerous my sport can be and that you really do have to be in top condition and mentally on the ball. Wipe out, lol!

The gym is also a little quiet at the moment as we have lost three big personalities and sparring partners:

 • Luke Fowell - 2010 Commonwealth AA champion who officially retired from gymnastics in July

 • Luke Carson - Irish Champion and close friend who is recovering from surgery to his leg, get well soon bro

 • And of course there's Louis Smith. Well, we all know where he is! Strutting his stuff on the dance floor with Flavia Cacace for Strictly Come Dancing - c'mon Lou!!

So at the moment I am training alongside GB squad member Cameron McKenzie during the week at Huntingdon and on Saturdays I go to Loughborough Uni to train alongside GB squad members Sam Oldham, Ruslan Panteleymonov and Sam Hunter. Official GB squad training won't start again until after the New Year.

Lemon sole for tea - delicious!

Good luck finishing Stoptober! We are all half way there now!

Cheers,

Dan

What a tough two weeks!

I am now back training full time after almost six weeks off and boy, was it tough. Every muscle and joint in my body was aching for at least five days, and it was only when I got into the second week that things started to settle down. My focus for the next four weeks will be conditioning, conditioning and even more conditioning because to even attempt routines and skills on the apparatus with this level of fitness would be just too dangerous as fatigue could set in at any time, which could lead to serious injuries.
I have also gained a couple of kilos in weight, but it really is not as much as I had expected, especially after my over indulging in Egypt and Marbella. It's nothing a few salads and a more balanced diet won't sort out :-)
I have also put together my new four-year plan with my coach and I am really excited with what we have planned! Unfortunately I can't give away too much detail, but I am looking to pick up a few major medals over the next couple of years leading up to the Olympics in Rio. I can say what my short, medium and long term targets are:

• Short term: my focus will be on the European and World Championships in 2013/2014;
• Medium term: my focus will be on representing Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow; and
• Long term: my focus will be the World Championships in Glasgow in 2015 and the Olympic Games in Rio in 2016.

Over the past couple of years I have also had more than my fair share of injuries, but now that British Gymnastics has a very good medical/physio team in place I really do think I will have a bit better luck over the next four years, although saying that I think I have just caught some Man Flu :-(
Note to myself: never take six weeks off again but hey, after the sacrifices we all made over Christmas and the New Year it was the least we deserved!
Also, if you don't know already, I am sure you will definitely be seeing a lot more of close friend and team mate Louis Smith as he puts on his dancing shoes and takes on the challenge that is Strictly Come Dancing............ c'mon Lou!!

Cheers, Dan

The most successful Team GB ever

Can it really get any better than this?

Daniel gives his review of the Rotterdam World Championships 2010 and some backstage secrets from his first assignment for the BBC.

The current crop of GB gymnasts has just returned from Rotterdam and, after finishing 5th in the final medal table, can lay claim to being the most successful team ever.

Never before has British gymnastics had such huge success at a major championships and our sport really is in good shape going into an Olympic year.

Read more from Dan's blog on the Opus Energy Challenge website.

Commonwealth Games success for British gymnasts in Delhi

Dan gives his thoughts on British performances at the Commonwealth Games and the upcoming World Championships in Rotterdam.

He's spent his first week back at Lilleshall with the medical team putting him through intensive testing.

Dan has also gives his congratulations to Luke Folwell as he has just become the most successful Commonwealth Games gymnast ever!

Read more from Dan's Blog on the Opus Energy Challenge website.