Having dipped my toes in the sea for the first time on Monday, I thought it would be a good idea to get a couple of last minute pool sessions in. It feels like I’m about to have an exam and I’m opening my maths text book for the first time.

The two sessions were ok: one at my gym and another at the surprisingly nice new municipal pool in Braunstone on the edge of Leicester.

For the Braunstone swim, I shocked myself by getting up at 6.30am and heading for the pool. Once in, I was happy enough to be getting the practice, but was soon downhearted when I noticed an old dear overtaking alongside me. She must have been in her mid-sixties, didn’t look like she exercised all that much, and to make matters worse she wasn’t even undulating. She just breezed through the water without dipping her head, for fear of getting her perm wet. I’m stuffed if she’s competing at the weekend.