nevergiveup

The Match

Last week I made it to Croker for only the second time in my life to watch the game against Slovakia. The first time was to see U2 in concert so this was a bit different but the atmosphere was still fantastic. I’ve always been into football so to go to an international at such a great stadium was definitely one to remember. The lads came away with a win which made it all the better so I’ll definitely be going back! Here’s hoping we can keep it up…..

A real eye opener

Now that the training is underway, this week the really serious business was my visit to The Mater Foundation to have a chat with them and learn more about Sudden Adult Death Syndrome and what they plan for any sponsorship or donations that are raised doing the Triathlon.

One of the things that really surprised me was how the condition can affect anyone, even the most active. When you think about players like Cameroon footballer Marc Vivien-Foe, Under19 Ireland Rugby player John McCall, and Cormac McAnallen, who captained Tyrone, all super-fit lads yet died from SADS, it gives you a real wake-up call to how serious it is. You’d never expect fit sports players to die so suddenly, given the healthy lifestyles that they lead.

So I could get an idea of what is involved I had my own screening during my visit. They only have one full-time nurse and a part-time support technician who operated the machines while I had an ultra-sound on my heart. Weird watching it beating away and seeing the blood flowing backwards and forwards! The second part of the test involved getting hooked up to a heart monitor to track the number of beats and blood pressure. Tough going when you’re on the treadmill but interesting to see how all the different elements work together. The best advice they offered is that if you think you are at risk, make a visit to your GP first who will be able to advise on whether or not you should be screened.

They really are in need of support and greater resources – some of the monitoring equipment alone can cost up to €150,000. Not much though when you compare it to the cost of a life.

You can check out the photos from my visit on my Bebo page.

Feeling the strain

The training has been tougher going this week – after a few sessions on the bike I can feel the muscles in my back are starting to strain. Friday I took a rest day but Saturday I headed back to the pool to stretch and get some more swimming practice in – every bit helps!

The last couple of days I’ve done a few laps jogging around the park and headed down to football training on Tuesday with a few bottles of Powerade for the team – went down a treat! I’m off to the physio tomorrow so should be back in full training soon!

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 5th, 2007 at 1:40 pm and is filed under Week Three. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.