One of the keys to making the distance is effective training. However if your carrying something on you mind it can make things ‘sluggish’. In this particular case it was carrying the blame for the loss of mum. Despite the face the cancer had spread so quickly I felt there was something I could of done to help her. It took a friend outside the family who has some experience in these situations, to help me understand it wasn’t.

This lightened my heart enough to help me really get things going again. Returning to Dorset I found myself enjoying my running again. What’s more the swing is back in my indoor rowing. Whilst I’m focussed on covering the distance of Southampton to New York on my rowing machine the first big one-day event is coming up. The London Marathon is taking place in April. I regard the New York Marathon as a tougher course and I managed to pull myself through that in November a week and a half after we cremated mum. It was a very laboured battle but I completed it. Now I will have to see whether the new mentality will help me produce a better performance in London.