Seven years ago yesterday, we arrived at Acorns Hospice, Worcester.  We had been looked after marvelously by Birmingham Children's Hospital - but hospitals are places to make people better.  Harry needed somewhere more suitable, and BCH needed his bed for someone they could actually help.

We arrived at Acorns scared, intimidated, and ignorant at to what went on.  We scurried to our allocated room as quickly as we could, and took refuge in the privacy.

Harry barely left the hospice for six months.  Esta, Lewis and I lived there at the weekends.  Acorns became our life, with virtually everything revolving around Harry.

It sounds like a nightmare.  

Imagine what it would have been like if Acorns was not there!  

Please click here to sponsor me for my Channel swim, to ensure Acorns is still there for other families when they so desperately need them.

I've been doing lots of reading about how to mentally and physically endure the cold water.  When it comes to initially getting in and (excuse the pun) taking the plunge, there are no two ways about it - essentially I have to man up, take the pain, and slowly build up a tolerance to it.

Indeed, there are groups of year-round swimmers, often affectionately referred to as 'polar bears' who brave the cold water day in, day out.  They build up a resistance to the normal cold water immersion shock, and tend not to have the natural bodily reaction of shivering after the swim.

BUT....  These polar bears tend to enjoy the 'feel good' factor generated by a short, sharp swim.  Most of the sites I can find tend to talk about 'dips' in the water of 10 or 20 minutes.  Some 'hardened' swimmers even state they can last up to 30 minutes.  Because like it or not, the longer you are in the cold water, the deeper the chill will set.  Once your core starts to cool, the end of your swim is nigh.

So, you have to insulate.  In addition to acclimatisation, the core has to be protected.  It needs a layer of subcutaneous fat around the body.  And further to this, with an anticipated weight loss during an average Channel swim of four to five kilograms, my body will need a ready supply of quickly accessible energy, necessary both to keep warm, and to keep moving.

I'm not sure what my current body/fat ratio is.  But whatever it is, I know it's far from sufficient.

So after years of constantly fighting any bulge, I now have to begin to consciously pile the pounds on, whilst simultaneously ensuring my fitness level increases as I get closer to the swim.

Kebab and gym, anyone?

Thanks to a generous donation by my good friend Bill McDougall, owner of Golf View Guesthouse in Tain, Scotland, the total sum raised to date for my Channel swim is now just over one thousand pounds.  This is an excellent start to my attempts to raise £10,000, especially considering there is another 38 weeks to go, and more mini fund-raising events yet to be staged.

All of this money goes directly to Acorns, and every penny will be well received and used by them.

Acorns have confirmed that I raised £145.63 during my press up challenge.  That's not a bad hourly rate at all, especially (as previously mentioned) as the event took place the day after Children in Need, and that a host of other charity events appeared to be taking place at the same time.

Once again, big thanks to all the volunteers who helped on the day, including my wife Esta, Lewis Gale, Rebecca and Julian from HallmarkHulme, Graig Gillies from Worcester Warriors, and Carole from Acorns.

You will probably not doubt me when I say that the unheated outdoor pools are getting somewhat cold now.  Motivation is hard to find when it hurts to even enter the water, let alone to stay in it for any period of time.  Dr Julie Bradshaw advised me to wear a swim hat whenever possible, as though I'm not allowed to wear a wet suit or any insulating clothing, a swim hat will offer some minimal protection from the cold.

I'm delighted to confirm that HallmarkHulme have decided to bolster their sponsorship of my swim, offering increased financial support in addition to that already generously provided.  This subsequent offer is extremely well received, as it allows me to complete the administration side of the swim, registering with the Channel Swimming Association, and securing the services of an official observer.

Many thanks to Rebecca of HallmarkHulme for your continuing support, and your faith in me.

I'm hoping that the recent publicity that my Channel swim has been attracting will encourage additional businesses to come forth with offers of sponsorship.

The administration costs of swimming the English Channel are considerable.  Dovetail and HallmarkHulme have already generously contributed, but at this point I still require:

1. £400 for the Channel Swimming Association registration/fees for an official observer (to fully ratify the swim)
2. £1400 balance for the pilot of my safety boat

Please retweet/resend/share this post to help me reach as wide an audience as possible.  If you know anyone who might be interested, please either send this post on to them on my behalf or feel free to mention them to me.

My personal contributions to this challenge have exceeded £2000 so far.

Without that extra funding, I simply cannot afford to do this swim.  It will be a tragedy to have come so far, only to have to cancel my attempt for want of funds!

Anyone interested in sponsoring me, please contact me here.

My first mini fund-raiser was a big success today.  Not only did I manage to achieve 1023 press ups in the hour (23 more than my target), but the small army of volunteers who turned out were also marvelous.  

Big thanks to Carole Crowe from Acorns for officiating on the number of successful press ups, Julian and Rebecca from HallmarkHulme (and their families) who dedicated some of their Saturday to come along and help, Simon from FT images (photo courtesy of his collection), and Craig Gillies - all of whom kindly gave their time and effort to come along and cheer me on, whilst explaining to bewildered shoppers why a bald man was randomly doing press ups in the middle of a busy shopping precinct.  Many thanks should also go to my wife, Esta, who had to put up with Will whilst also trying to fund raise, and to Lewis, for handing out leaflets. 

We are waiting to hear how much we collected in the buckets from generous contributors.  I was oblivious to most of it, concentrating on my own task, but I was aware of many well-wishers, and I know that there were some very kind donations.  With this event happening immediately after Children In Need, and with the recent tragedy over in the Philippines, it's always amazing to see how generous people can be.

A special thanks goes to the gentleman who ran after me as I left Crown Gate, in order that he could donate £5 towards the swim!

Onward and upward towards the next challenge.

This morning I went for my first outdoor swim in a while.  The water was just eight degrees.  Believe me when I say that water at such a temperature is painful to get into unless you are used to it.

In remembrance of our son, Harry, who died at age ten months, on Saturday 16th November I will be holding my first mini fund-raising event to further highlight my Channel Swim (August 2014).  

At 12:00 I will be attempting to achieve 1000 press ups in an hour, in Crowngate Shopping Centre, Worcester (at the back of Boots Chemist).

I'm hopeful Craig Gillies, former Worcester Warrior, will be there.  A photographer will be present, and the event will be covered by the Worcester News.  Collection buckets for Acorns will be manned by willing family and HallmarkHulme volunteers, so please come along, watch me struggle and sweat, and donate a few coins (or even notes!) to Acorns.