Actually the planning of it takes over a full 12 months. The first important thing is to secure the venue for the particular date. I have been very lucky, Rick the General Manager at our club has been very helpful. He encourages events such as this and is keen to get members and staff involved.   The next thing to look at is the layout of the course, we looked back on last years event and considered if we should make any changes. One area for change was the men's intermediate course, we felt it was just a little too quick last year so decided that we would increase the reps in that category. We had thought about increasing the weights but decided against this for this years course.   The bulk of preparation is done over the final three months. Things such as Trophies, t-shirt design and just getting the information out, then its a case of sorting the applications in race order for the day.  

As I  said before we get support from Rick the general manager at Fitness First Gorton. He even helps out on the day as a judge.   The person I want to tell you about most is Rahat Perveen, she has done so much this year I can not thank her enough.  She is a member at Gorton and some may know her from competing in the ladies x-training comps. She quietly gets on with things, is always there for me and has been a true friend. Without her it would be very hard to have got the competition going this year.

We have a good mix of people at Gorton, in the ladies intermediate class Penny Bunton has really hit some good form. It's also pleasing to see Terri Downs taking the plunge and stepping up to the advanced course. Terri as been a member of the x-training group since Micky White set it up and I know he would be very proud of her taking on the challenge of the advanced course.  

I have to say, it been good to see the Gran Prix up and running and seeing  just how popular Gary's idea has proven to be. Well Done Gary.   I really support what Stuart Leng and Gary Nicholas are developing with standardising rules and disciplines, I look forward to next years calender of events unifying their work.   For the future I would like a discussion on the use of drug testing. I believe that if you are serious about taking any sport onto a larger stage then I strongly believe in drug testing of competitors. I know its a costly exercise but to have an organisation such as UK Sports involved in carrying out drug's tests can only be a good thing. 

My own personal record in x-training goes back to Dragons 2003, since then I normally compete in 4 or 5 races a year. On the body building side I only compete in one competition a year. To prepare for a show can take a lot out of you. I try and time the bodybuilding show so that I does not conflict with any x-training events.   The competitions for bodybuilding generally run from May to October. I have competed in the NPA and BNBF these are both natural bodybuilding associations and as part of their determination in keeping the sport natural, they drug test all the winners of their competitions.  

I love X-training, it has given me a great platform for trying other sports and without it I may not have tried bodybuilding. There is no doubt x-training helps you to develop your body, mind and confidence to challenge yourself  in other sports.

I found an article in Ultra-fit magazine many years ago regarding their yearly competition. At that time I was looking for something to channel my training into. I had given up playing Basketball and needed a direction. I knew I was not ready to enter a competition but thought I would give myself a target and train for it. It was the first time I really developed as an individual, until then I had just been a team player.

Gorton Grueller 2006 ... The class of now!

The future of X Training...

X Training will become the sport of gyms.