Michael's blog

Following yesterday's blog post about Michael Jamieson's upcoming Olympic Trials, he's just sent us his own account of how training's been going...

We are now coming to the end of our training camp on the Gold Coast, Australia. It doesn’t feel like we have been here for seven weeks but it’s been a great trip and a very productive training block.

A few weeks ago, we travelled to Melbourne for a competition. The meet was the last before the National Champs next month so it was important to fine tune any technical aspects. I posted my fastest in season times which hopefully means I’m heading towards some personal best times when it counts in March.

Post competition, we had a day of training and sightseeing before flying back to the Gold Coast, which we made the most of! I and a few of my teammates went to the Australia Open for the day! It has definitely been my highlight of the camp, the atmosphere inside the grounds was amazing and there was some great tennis to boot!

The end of the camp signals the start of our taper* and resting period for the Olympic Trials next month in London. As a swimmer, the taper is the most exciting part of the season. Due to the high aerobic, conditioning nature of the sport, swimmers only taper twice throughout the year. This would generally be for the National Championships in March and then the major meet of the calendar in the summer. The tapering period is three – four weeks long, a steady decrease in volume and intensity, aimed at peaking on the day of my main events at the National Champs.

The taper is also seen as a period where an athlete doesn’t make many physiological improvements, the training and conditioning is done and the focus is now on the psychological aspects. I feel like I have some experience in pressured situations like this after the past few seasons and hopefully this will help me through the next few weeks.

In order to qualify for the Olympic Games, I would need to finish in the top two places. I will be going for qualification in the 100m and 200m Breaststroke. This year has always been the target for me; eight of nine years of training will come down to two races over five days. The preparation has been done and I can’t wait to race!

A fantastic post Michael - it's great to have your personal account of what's been happening, especially during what must be a very busy time for you. We wish you every success at the Olympic Trials next month.

* = tapering is part of the final preparations for a major championships, where the volume of training is reduced significantly to allow the body to recover from its training workload so peak performance can be achieved on competition day. Endurance athletics and swimming are two of the key sports where this is practised. The above link takes you to more information if you're interested.

In his blog post above, Michael talks about his training switching from physical to psychological preparation during this time. There's also quite a change in diet - as this very telling tweet from him on Monday said:

Taper diet has started - no bread...or midget gems allowed! :(

Here's hoping the lack of midget gems makes all the difference ;)

We'll be catching up with Michael again after the Olympic Trials. Don't forget, we'll be passing on any messages of support for him you leave in the Comments below.

Jamieson Eyes Next Month's Olympic Trials

[caption id="attachment_2050" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Michael wins bronze in the 200m breastroke final at last year's European Short Course Championships "][/caption]

In less than three weeks Michael Jamieson faces the next major milestone in his quest for Olympic glory this summer.

He faces a tough challenge at the British Gas Swimming Championships next month which double up as the Team GB selection event for London 2012. Michael may be the defending British 100 and 200m breastroke champion, but he has two other world top 10 GB swimmers hard on his heels for the 2 team places up for grabs for each event. Good swims at the stunning new Aquatic Centre in London will not only secure his place on the team, they will also be perfect preparation for the 'big one' this summer.

The championships take place from March 3 - 10th.  Tickets are already sold out for the finals, though some are still available for the heats during the week. You can leave a message of support for Michael here or in the comments below. We'll make sure your comments are passed on to him.

The key dates are:

• Sat 3rd - 100m breastroke heats and semi-finals


• Sun 4th - 100m breastroke final


• Tue 6th - 200m breastroke heats and semi-finals


• Wed 7th - 200m breastroke final

Go Michael, GO!

We'll be catching up with Michael in Dispatches tomorrow. In the meantime you might like to read this article from December's Metro. There's also a profile of Michael on The Guardian's website, but be warned this is a video rather than print (and there's an advert first). It's one worth watching at home if you have the time and shows him in action at Bath University's Intensive Training Centre.

Smiths News are sponsoring Michael - son of Instore's Jackie Jamieson - in his training up to the Olympic games. You can also follow him on Twitter - you'll see his profile mentions #SmithsNews!

'Strolling' Around Kirklees

[caption id="attachment_1931" align="alignleft" width="213" caption="72 miles? Phew!"][/caption]

Hurrah - we have our first fundraising news for Community Week 2012 :)

Mark Silver, Library Promotions & Design Manager at Bertram Library Services is undertaking to walk The Kirklees Way, a 72 mile walk around the town's perimeter.

The walk takes place over 5 days from Saturday 23^rd to Wednesday 27^th June and Mark is raising funds for the The National Literacy Trust.

Mark says on his Publicity Form:

Lack of access to good literacy support at a young age can become a life-long barrier to many important opportunities. This feels like such a great chance to help support the vital work that the National Literacy Trust are engaged in with people of all ages within educational institutions, libraries and the community as a whole.

It's also a very neat tie-in with Mark's role at Bertrams and he hopes he'll have support from his colleagues along the way.

Full information can be found on Mark's Just Giving sponsorship page. Mark will also be tweeting during the event via the @bertramlibs Twitter account. Is this a tweeting first for Community Week?

Newcastle put their best feet forward AND dig in!

[caption id="attachment_1818" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Ian Rothwell, House Manager and Marilyn Stadius, Community Champion present the cheque to Gill White, Facilities Manager at Marie Curie Hospice, Newcastle upon Tyne[/caption]

Newcastle House had the great job of handing over some of the rewards from their hardworking fundraising efforts when they presented a cheque to their chosen charity, Marie Curie Cancer Care last December.

Community Champion, Marilyn Stadius takes up the story:

Our Night Despatch and Local Systems Administrator, Nic Spencer and Scott Stevenson walked from Cumbria to the North East coast and raised over £1,000 in the process. The money raised was for Marie Curie Cancer Care and we have requested the money to be restricted to the Marie Curie Hospice in Newcastle which is our adopted charity.

Nic and Scott's walk was along Hadrian's Wall last September, which takes in some very rugged terrain at times as well as having breathtaking scenery. A great achievement guys.

Marie adds:

We send a team each month of at least four staff to the hospice to look after the Day Care garden; digging, weeding painting etc. The Hospice are happy to have the commitment of our company and look forward to our visit each month. In turn, all staff who attend the days gardening feel a sense of pride in the work they have done and the visit is a huge morale boost!

NB Marie has previously told us about their gardening activities here.

It's also worth noting that whilst their chosen charity is a national one, Newcastle House have successfully managed to ensure their contributions are felt at the local level.

Dress Up or Dress Down?

In our last update from 2011 there's a pair of stories involving clothing and Breast Cancer Awareness...

In the Pink

[caption id="attachment_1409" align="aligncenter" width="640" caption="Pink, pink sunshine brightens up Wakefield House"][/caption]

The girls in the new selling point team (NSP) showed their support for Breast Cancer Awareness on 28 October by holding a pink day – which is exactly what it sounds like! The team dressed up in pink and encouraged everyone else to do the same, paying £1 to wear
something pink.

The events included morning coffee and tea for everyone at Wakefield House. Employees took part in a raffle, guessed the number of sweets in a jar, and had their nails painted – pink, of course! There was even the chance to play a slightly dodgy version of
Pin the tail on the Donkey, involving a bra. We’ll leave the rest to your imagination!

£300 was raised – nice work, ladies!

Dressing down for charity

There was a relaxed atmosphere in Reading House on 28 October, as everyone enjoyed a Dress-Down Friday in aid of Breast Cancer Research. All comfy-clothes-wearing required a £1 donation. The day was a great success, with everyone pitching in to raise even more money during the day.

Louise Blake, from Customer Service, sold delicious homemade cakes, which went down a treat. “We also held a raffle,” says Carly Hughes, Customer Service Manager, “and we raised money by washing cars.” A sealed-bid charity auction completed the event – congratulations to top bidder Steve Drew, Reading Returns Manager, who netted himself a rather stylish Claude Valentini watch. We’re sure he’ll be showing it off around Reading House over the coming weeks!

Charity Handiwork - Can You Help?

Does your New Year's activities include having a good tidy up and clear out? Then you may be able to help Jacqueline Bunnett with her fundraising...

[caption id="attachment_1356" align="aligncenter" width="640" caption="Jai and Jess helping out on the stall"][/caption]

Jacqueline Bunnett from the data management team in Swindon is using her enviable handicraft skills to raise money for her two favourite animal charities.

In September,  Jacqueline made her debut as a fundraiser with a stand at an event organised by Torbay Animals in Distress, selling her handmade patchwork baby cot quilts, pram quilts, soft toys, bags, cushions and many more items. She also plans to raise funds for the Swindon and District Animal Haven.

These two charities are close to my heart. Jai, our wonderful three-year-old border collie, came from Torbay and our eight-year-old collie Jess came from the Swindon animal Rescue Centre. 

Both dogs provide my family with lots of pleasure, and Jess is even trained to help with my epilepsy. If I have an epileptic fit, she will nuzzle me and lick my face to reassure me when I come round from the attack, which can leave me confused and frightened. As you can imagine this gives me a lot of confidence when I am on my own.

Without the hard work of charities like these two, many animals would be left to fight for survival due to neglect, abuse, or the changing circumstances of their owners.

If you would like to help Jacqueline’s fundraising efforts she is appealing for donations of
cotton and polycotton fabrics for her patchwork products.

Darren's Shedding Pounds for £££!

Many of us will have made a New Year's resolution to lose weight. Darren Young's quest to do so is already well under way...

Darren Young, Night Supervisor from Bristol Emerson’s Green, is undertaking a year-long diet for charity.

From Monday 11th July 2011 to Monday 9th July 2012, Darren (‘Desperate Darren’ to his friends) will be eating healthily to shed those pounds, all while raising some much-needed cash for Children in Need. Darren’s target weight loss is an impressive six stone, and with such a great cause in mind, he’s sure to make it! You can sponsor Darren’s hard work by clicking on his Just Giving page.

You can sponsor me for each stone lost, each pound lost, or for the whole six stone! Every penny you can give will encourage me to reach my target and help vulnerable kids across the UK and beyond.

Why not give Darren the best possible post-Christmas encouragement and make a donation?