There is no one in crosstraining who couldn’t learn from Lee Rankin (well, maybe one person). In 2001 Lee has won Tropicana, Boxfit, Dream Team, Xzone team event, the list goes on. He has also competed in Tough Guy, Lanberis Half-Iron Man and various other events including a crazy kayak triathlon in Scotland.
CrossTrainingUK caught up with Lee to find out how he started in the sport, how he remains at the top of his game and exactly what keeps him motivated.
When did you first get into crosstraining?About four years ago. I did the Dream Team, enjoyed it and wanted to do something for myself, so I started looking at the individual competitions. Tropicana was the first and I think I finished sixth.
What do you believe is your greatest crosstraining achievement to date?Tropicana. Breaking Hywel’s record by so far. I was surprised how close Adam Horder got to me too. I thought I only had to beat Kirk (Kirk Gibbons – 2000 Champion) to win and once I knew I’d beaten him, I eased off a bit on the runner.
What’s the hardest event you’ve competed in up to now?That would be Winter Tough Guy last year. Hellish conditions and a near broken leg half way round. Really tough. Pain from the cold and pain from my injury.
When you’re training for these events do you stick to any set programme?Not really, it depends how I feel. I do a lot of mad sessions but if I feel I’m overdoing it, overcooking a bit, I’ll have a couple of steady days to recover. I won’t take them off but I’ll train easy.
So you do have rest days then. You are human.Oh yeah, I always have one day a week where I don’t do anything.
Do you think your diet is important?Yes, incredibly important. It’s everything. If I have a few days where I don’t eat my normal diet, a bad few days, I can feel myself slumping.
Hywel Davies has been quoted as saying that he trains better after sausages and mash and doesn’t worry about his diet.I don’t believe that. What you eat is really important. I don’t bother with supplements but I stick to my set diet.
Strength. That’s what he’s got. That’s it. His strength was obvious in the way he banged out the shoulder press at Xzone. If it wasn’t for that, well...I think next year there’ll be a few surprises.
Who do you think’ll be up there other than yourself?Adam Horder. He’s strong. Hywel’s been a brilliant champion for a long time but I think he’s prime for beating now. He’s brilliant to chase and that’s why we all do it. I don’t think it’d be as good if I didn’t have him to chase. I think he’ll retire as soon as he’s beaten. That’ll be it as he’s done everything in crosstraining and he’ll go on to concentrate on his Iron Man Triathlons and long distance events.
Now that 2001 is almost over, which event do you think was best?Xzone. Great value for money and great event. Think with Ultrafit everyone got a bit ripped off. And the judging was stricter on some than others. Yeah, definitely Xzone. Also the half iron man at Llanberis was excellent and great value.
You mentioned judging. What are your views on crosstaining judging?Well Ultrafit was disgusting. The judging’s very strict in places and not so strict in others and completely different between the two lanes. One lane on the Saturday can be a piece of cake and then for a greater effort the next day, you end up with a much slower time. It’s obviously difficult to judge a big event but the Ultrafit has some disciplines which are just too difficult to judge fairly. The press-ups aren’t easy and the ab crunches are ridiculous. They should do full sit-ups. Put them on a 45-degree incline and do 50 reps. That way, those with strong mid-sections will be successful, not just people who are flexible.
What’s good about crosstraining and why would you recommend it?It never gets boring. You have to be really, really good at everything. You have to be a master of every discipline which takes training and time. If you think you can get to the top and have a weak point you’ll never do it. Because that weak point will just take too much out of you and make your strong disciplines feel too hard. You’ll take too much out of yourself and it’ll just be hell.
Can we expect good things from you in 2002?
I’m up for it. I considered concentrating on triathlon next year but no, I’m still a crosstrainer. I just want to go in there and show a few people.
To contact Lee for tips or training advice email us at enquiries@dbmax.co,uk and we'll pass your messages and questions on.
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Vital Stats |
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| Age | 28 |
| Weight | 78kg |
| 2k row | 6:23.9 |
| 5k row | 16:51.9 |
| 10k run | |
| Favourite Food | Caviar |
| Favourite Drink | Bacardi Breezer |
| Favourite Film | Endless Love & Bambi |