For the first time in months, I was home and enjoying the company of my cats on a Friday evening while I prepared for the British Special Needs Judo Championships. As my first special needs competition, I was unsure what to expect but I knew that I would be the only amputee competing and was very excited at the prospect of meeting other adaptive athletes. I am not allowed to wear a prosthetic to compete so it's always interesting to see me hop around the mat trying to throw people. 

A few days before the event, I was weighing in at about 75kg and was conscious that I needed to drop my weight to <73kg to ensure that I competed against lower-weighted individuals. This is generally quite easy to do within a few days as you simply cut down on your food and drink intake. By dehydrating yourself, you drop your 'water weight' and are able to compete in a lower weight class - I was still very nervous to see if I was going to get to the right weight in time. 

I returned from Morocco on the 11th and got straight back into my crazy schedule. The plane landed at about 2:30pm and I then dropped my dad off before popping home to collect my dryrobe (essentials for a muddy weekend). I unpacked my Morocco suitcase and packed my weekend bag in about 10 minutes and drove straight up to Coventry to then prepare for Mudnificent 7 the following day. 

Mudnificent 7 is an Obstacle Course Race (OCR) and Expo that has 7 different race organisations (and one secret organisation) that contribute towards one event. They were split into different zones and the expo had a range of different organisations offering a range of products that are essential to an OCR lifestyle. 

As I sit here, while taking some time off in Morocco, I can't help but reflect on how incredible July was and how exciting August and September look! 

I started July very apprehensively as I knew that I had booked in many, many events and had given myself minimal personal and recovery time. Nevertheless, I threw myself in at the deep end and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. My first weekend was with the Army Cadet Force, where I met some fantastic individuals and started my journey towards helping more young people achieve their dreams.

As I begin writing this blog post, it's almost like I have no idea where to start. This month has been incredible and I have made friends that I believe will last forever. On Thursday, I received a running blade from Blatchford in Basingstoke and was able to run without pain for the first time in 14 years. Being able to run, and having feeling that ultimate freedom is something that no other experience can replicate. Earlier in this month, I travelled to Ireland and Germany as well as volunteering with vulnerable young people in Wales and as many of you may know, this weekend I completed my 11th and 12th Tough Mudder in Yorkshire.

As I have now completed quite a few muddy runs, I really wanted to give somebody an opportunity to experience Tough Mudder and complete the course, regardless of their disability. I placed an advert on social media and I had quite a few responses. I sought to find somebody that would not be able to complete the course without the help of others and suddenly, a young man called Jeshu appeared. As I still had my all-terrain wheelchair from my adventure in Spain, I knew that we could use that around the course and my previous experience of completing two tough Mudders in a wheelchair meant I knew it was possible. 

This weekend, I will be travelling straight from work to Yorkshire's Tough Mudder. As I've now finished 10 Tough Mudders, I have decided that I would like to make things a bit more challenging and give others the opportunity to finish the course with my help. 

A few weeks ago, I put out an advertisement on Facebook, looking for a wheelchair user that would like to complete the course. I had a number of responses however decided to assist a young man called Jeshu. He has a less-severe version of the same condition that I had prior to my amputation but he has it in both feet. I approached him and asked whether he would like to use my special all-terrain wheelchair to complete the course and he was very excited to accept. 

I have the very exciting news to tell you about my new sponsor dryrobe. They produce the world's most versatile changing robes. This means that after Tough Mudder, I will be able to just wash all of the mud off and get into my dryrobe so that I can stay dry and warm. 

I had such an amazing weekend in Ireland completing both my 8th and 9th Tough Mudder. I only anticipated completing one this weekend however, as I used my prosthetic leg, I was able to run on the Sunday too! 

I finished work at 4pm on the Friday and went straight to the station to then travel to Southampton airport. After checking in, I waited for my flight which was unfortunately delayed for about 1.5 hours. As I was on the flight, I noticed that the sleeve for my leg (the section that holds my leg on) had a HUGE rip and I knew that I would have to sort it before the event. Eventually arriving at Dublin airport, I was then kindly picked up by some awesome other mudders and we headed towards our shared air bnb house. Once we arrived at the house, along with the help of my friend, we patched up my sleeve and got into bed for about 1am. 

On Saturday morning, I was ready to go for 7am and we headed out to the venue. Going through vast fields, I was getting excited for my first international Tough Mudder but also very nervous as to whether my prosthetic would be sufficient. I have only had a few weeks to familiarise myself with my prosthetic and my stump is not used to the pressure of continuous use so I bought my crutches to the event. As another measure, I also bought my Iwalk to be placed into the First Aid tent for emergency use. 

I thought I would just share with you what I have been up to for the past week as I've reached some great milestones with my prosthetic leg that I purchased from the Blatchford clinic in Basingstoke. 

I purchased a new socket from Blatchford just before my trip to Spain. As I am still waiting for revision surgery, the NHS decided that they would not supply me with another leg until I was fully recovered. Adamant that I wanted to be up and running ASAP I approached the Blatchford clinic and within a few weeks, I had been fitted with a leg that was at least 10 x better than I had previously been fitted with. 

As some of you may know, I started a full-time position in May as a Credit Analyst. This has meant that my life is suddenly extremely busy but it also means that my life has a lot more structure. I've now planned all of my weekends for July and I'm really excited! 

On the 7th of July, I am off to Ireland to complete my 8th Tough Mudder. I will be leaving straight from work (4pm) and heading to the airport to fly into Dublin. I will then be running on the Saturday and volunteering on the Sunday to return home in the evening. I will then be up and ready for an 8am start at work on Monday. 

Hey everyone! 

As a lot of you know, I recently uploaded a short clip on Facebook and Instagram of me competing against an able-bodied person for my Dan grading (for those that haven't seen it, it's HERE). I thought I would give you a bit of background into my Judo journey and my intentions with it for the next year-or-so. 

I started judo whilst training under at my school club when I was about 5 years old. After training at school for a few years, my coach invited me to join Pinewood Judo club, which I was a member for another few years until about the age of 9. 

On the 11th of February, I was picked up at 3am to start my journey to Santiago. After arriving with minutes to spare before my flight, I made it onto the plane with nothing but a few items of clothes, some toiletries and a sleeping bag.

Rewinding to February, I had a meeting with a charity called Young Star Mentoring called Tony. He explained to me that he would be running a trip whereby young people from all walks of life would join him to complete a section of the Camino de Santiago. After quite a few last-minute changes, the team was set to go. We were to start in Leon and (hopefully) finish at the Compostela in Santiago, with only 15 days to complete the 322km trek.

Hi all! 

It's been a busy few weeks while preparing to go away on the Camino hiking trip. I've completed another 2 Tough Mudders and it's safe to say that I've destroyed another iWalk (despite them being extremely robust). This highly engineered bit of kit has been a real lifesaver for the me and I thought I would share my experience with you and how it has changed my life for the better.

Thank you to those who have been getting in contact with me and following my social media pages.

In January, I started working with the Knights Foundation (http://theknightsfoundation.org/), who offer gifts and help carers and families who manage disabilities throughout their everyday life. They help to supply equipment for young people with disabilities and their families, while helping individuals become more independent. They also aim to give respite to families and young people, as well as inspiring disabled and able-bodied children to achieve great heights, despite their challenges. 

I would firstly like to apologise for not posting a more recent update but I’ve been just been trying to chase some positive news to give out. Having said that, I think it’s about time that I update you with what has been happening. I think it’s very important that, as I share my journey towards the Paralympics, I keep you informed with just how amazing but also difficult things can be sometimes.

Yet to be officially launched, I have recently become an ambassador for The Knights Foundation Charity, who work extremely hard to help support families and carers of those with disabilities.

2016 has truly ben a fantastic year from both a personal and athlete standpoint.

On a personal level, I finished my degree and graduated with a very high mark. I moved into my own flat and adopted another furry family member – my new cat Rio. Earlier this year, my surgeon agreed to amputate my foot and despite multiple challenges and disappointments, it finally happened in September.

As I go into the New Year, I am gaining confidence on my new prosthetic leg and looking forward to the start of the athletics season in April. I am now waiting for my stump to be surgically fixed, which will hopefully be in a few months. The surgeons have decided that they would like more healing time before changing my stump again.  This surgery will simply re-attach the muscle back onto the bone and allow more protection for the currently exposed bone, which is very uncomfortable at the moment.  The initial amputation so far as severely increased my quality of life and has really made my year.