In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss what 10 days in the heat chamber looks like. We talk about how quickly the improvements come and start to dial into the specifics of Badwater 135.

It’s no surprise that heat acclimation is required for Badwater. It’s probably the most frequent question I get asked in fact. So what does heat training look like? How do you do it in the UK?

On the 23rd of May I toed the line on my first backyard ultra - I wrote before about the plan, just 10 laps. This race wasn’t really for me, it was for Basil. He’s been wanting to do an “official” race for ages, but at 13yrs old its hard to find something of any distance that he can enter. Most races fall under UK Athletics where strict age limits apply - so you can’t enter when you are fit and 13 but you can be obese and 30?

In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss this weekend’s upcoming Backyard Ultra (what even is that?) and we begin the rather large topic of sweat. A bit of an internet glitch led to a rather abrupt end - apologies.

This weekend I’m taking part in my first backyard ultra - for those that don’t know, it’s not me just running around my garden. It’s a race format where you have to “run or walk a precise loop of 4.167 miles (6.706 km) every hour, on the hour”. It’s not as random as it sounds, 24 yards in 24 hours equals exactly 100 miles - well I suppose it’s still quite random.

Well, I must say it’s quite nice to be sitting down - it’s been a solid week of training and I’m looking forward to a rest day.

Sunday night checking in with Fletch “Evening, all uploaded. Big week this week." - he wasn’t joking.

In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss marathon training, fuelling strategies, recovery, and the impact of thyroid health on performance. They share insights from recent races, training adjustments, and scientific principles behind endurance performance.

It's been a bit strange. The normal tempo of training has been disrupted. Some good reasons and some bad - the high was a PB at the Stratford Marathon, the lows were injury niggles and the related mental challenge. Let's dive in, I'll try to provide some context and insight. We'll tackle the easier parts first.

In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss what to do when you can’t set a training plan. The weeks when there are so many variables that it’s impossible to stick to a plan - like when you break down on a journey to France and slip on some ice.

This week had a very literal kick up the backside. I slipped on the ice on day one and landed square on my lower back and butt. That set the tone: the glutes were working overtime from the start. Add in lots of skinning uphill on skis, running the alpine roads and then skiing with the kids in the afternoons, and it turned into a big, slightly chaotic training block.

My Mum was an orphan. She built a family - raised three of us, held us together, made something from almost nothing. My Dad came from a very modest background in a northern town.

This week felt like two different lives stitched together. The first half was classic Badwater prep: a solid block of running and some honest graft in the gym. The back end of the week turned into a European road trip with more traffic jams and breakdown drama than I’d planned

In this episode, Ben and Fletch discuss recent VO2 and lactate testing results, fueling during high-intensity sessions, and upcoming adventures including skiing.

Tuesday was lactate and VO2 testing, it’s a fairly short but punchy session on the treadmill. A chance to check in and also meet up with Fletch in real life. The test was “ok”, a slight uptick in VO2 which is good to see, also no drop off in other zones where the focus hasn’t been.

This was the first proper week of getting back into it after a lighter spell, but with a lactate and VO2 test booked for Tuesday I did keep the back end of the week a touch gentler.

In this conversation, Ben and Fletch discuss their personal updates as they kick off 2026, focusing on training strategies for endurance sports, particularly in preparation for the Badwater 135 Ultra Marathon.

This week felt like proper training. The big one was the 30 km session on Saturday, that went 10 + 5 + 5 + 5 + 5 - each split getting faster. You do not blag 135 miles in a desert. You build it, one session at a time.

Half term always makes the week feel like a jigsaw. Good fun (I think?), but every run has to slot in around kids and general chaos. The upside is it forces a bit of discipline.

Badwater is now official. The place is confirmed and it feels very different seeing “I am in” written down rather than just nudging an application form around. The timing lined up with a solid training week too, which helps. It is one thing to dream about Death Valley, quite another to hit “submit” and then have to go out and run.

The dust has settled on the news I received on Sunday 8th February - I’ve been invited to race in Badwater 135.

Racing Badwater 135 has been a dream for many years. It has been the overarching goal that all other athletic pursuits have fed into. It has defined so much of what I do and who I am - and now, after all those steps, I have been invited.