I Want To Summit Box Hill In Sub-Six

Former rugby pro Gareth Mason, 40, is a finance-exec recruiter from Bookham, Surrey

- 

As you can see, I’m not a natural hillclimber! My background is rugby: I turned pro in 1997 and played for Ebbw Vale for three years, then Swansea (which became the Ospreys), then Worcester Warriors, and I finished my pro career in 2008 with the Exeter Chiefs. I was a prop forward — one of the fatties!

My playing weight was 117kg, and my genetics predispose me to fast-twitch fibres and muscle-building. Even though I haven’t been to the gym for three years, I still look like a bodybuilder. The only strength work I do is at home with a pair of Jane Fonda 10kg dumbbells three times a week — I don’t want to sacrifice my upper body strength completely.

After retiring from rugby, I continued to keep relatively fit, going to the gym regularly, then I decided to start running again. But I soon realised I was a bit too heavy to run every day, as it was taking too long to recover. So in autumn 2013 I bought a bike, aiming to alternate between running and cycling. I haven’t run since! I lost 12kg last year — I’m now 105kg.

My aim is to ride up Box Hill in under six minutes. Although I’m no longer a pro sportsman, I am still competitive. My fiancée is in great shape, and maybe that is a factor. Another motivation is to beat the rest of my cycling group, which would be hilarious. On the flat, I can already put them to the sword, but they take the mick when we’re going uphill!