16Personalities
A free online test that sorts you into one of sixteen types. Twelve minutes, and a good first look at your preferences.
How I use it. My result: Logistician. The first one I took.
Tools
Every tool here is one I use myself and I’m happy to recommend, with how it fits into my week.
29 things I use14 kinds
Assessments 3
Take these first. The Start Here guide has my results and what each one changed.
CliftonStrengths
Gallup’s assessment ranks 34 talent themes from your strongest to your weakest, so you can build on what you naturally do best.
How I use it. My top five: Achiever, Intellection, Consistency, Learner, Harmony. Full 34 taken in 2021.
Kolbe A Index
Measures how you instinctively take action, across four modes, rather than what you prefer or what you are good at.
How I use it. My result: 7-7-1-7. The 1 in Quick Start changed how I plan my week.
Training 2
Garmin
A GPS running watch and the HRM-600 chest strap. Routes go on as GPX files before a race, and the strap gives better heart-rate data than the wrist.
How I use it. Every run and every strength session. Race routes loaded the week before.
Strava
The app most runners use to record, compare and share training. Mine goes back years: morning runs around Greenwich Park, the O2 loop, the Thames Barrier, and race days.
How I use it. Everything is public. Follow along.
Breathwork 1
Wim Hof Method app
Guided breathing rounds, a cold-exposure log and mobility sessions, built around Wim Hof’s method of breathing, cold and commitment.
How I use it. Breathing early most mornings, then a three-minute cold plunge when I’m brave. On long-run mornings I usually skip it.
Recovery 2
HigherDOSE Infrared PEMF Mat
An infrared heat mat with pulsed electromagnetic field coils, from a US brand. I bought mine through Healf, with the cover.
How I use it. Recovery afternoons after the Saturday long run. Feet up.
Cold plunge
A MyoMaster ice bath with the chiller unit, in my garden.
How I use it. When I’m brave, 3 degrees for 3 minutes, after the breathing.
Wearables 1
Nurosym
A wearable from Parasym, a London company, that sends gentle electrical impulses to the vagus nerve through the ear, in timed sessions run from the app. Parasym say it is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
How I use it. Every day. I find it keeps me calm and focused.
Health testing 2
BodyView
DEXA body composition scans: a low-dose X-ray scan that measures fat, lean muscle and bone, region by region, with the report in an online dashboard.
How I use it. I book a scan every few months to track my body fat, muscle and weight through the training year. The scales give me one number; the scan shows what that number is made of, and whether the training is building muscle or just burning it.
Randox Health Everyman
A broad blood test from Randox Health, taken at one of their clinics, with results released to their app over the following days.
How I use it. I have it twice a year to track my blood markers through the training year. Seeing the same markers side by side over time tells me far more than one result on its own, and it means I spot a trend early rather than waiting until something feels wrong.
Mobility 1
Slant board
A wooden board that puts your heels below your toes, for calf stretching and loaded lower-leg strength work.
How I use it. Slant Sessions, Level 1: the knee and lower-body strength programme I do, typically on Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings.
Race kit 3
Salomon
Trail shoes and the race vest, the pack that has to carry the mandatory kit, water and food for a day on the hills.
How I use it. Every trail race.
Saucony
Running shoes: the Xodus Ultra 4 for the trails and the Endorphin Azura for the road.
How I use it. My shoes for road and trail runs.
Gymwash
A laundry powder made for sportswear, from a UK brand, sold in 900g bags.
How I use it. All my training kit, to avoid softeners damaging it.
Supplements 4
Bare Biology
A UK supplement brand, batch-tested and sold direct from their site. What I buy: Life & Soul omega-3 fish oil capsules, High Flyer creatine monohydrate and Ready & Rested magnesium bisglycinate.
How I use it. Creatine in the morning, the omega-3 with breakfast or dinner, and magnesium at dinner.
Green Vibrance
A greens powder from Vibrant Health: cereal grasses, spirulina and chlorella, vegetables, herbs, fibre and a probiotic blend in one scoop. I buy it from Water for Health, its UK stockist.
How I use it. A scoop goes into my morning protein shake. I’ve trusted it for a long time, and it’s the simplest way I know to get greens in before the day gets going.
Time Health
A UK brand selling single ingredients at stated doses, direct from their site. What I buy: NAC, MSM, Lion’s Mane and a curcumin extract.
How I use it. Taken in the morning or the evening, depending on the supplement.
Simple Science
A UK brand with short ingredient lists and lab testing on every batch. What I buy: Alpha GPC, trans-resveratrol and nicotinamide riboside.
How I use it. Typically in the morning, so I start the day focused.
Nutrition 2
Veloforte
Energy bars, chews and gels made from real food. What I buy: Avanti bars, Nero chews and Rosso gels.
How I use it. Long-run and race fuel, Saturday mornings and race days.
Hunter & Gather
A UK brand built on real-food ingredients and no seed oils. What I buy: the olive oil and avocado oil mayonnaise.
How I use it. Great for making healthy sauces.
Personal care 2
Fussy
Natural deodorant in a refillable case with compostable refills, and body wash sold as refills, from an East London brand.
How I use it. On subscription, so the refills just turn up. Body wash in Sicilian Lemon, Rhubarb Rush and Juicy Peach.
SURI
A sonic electric toothbrush with plant-based replaceable heads and a UV case, from a London brand that takes used heads back. I use their refillable toothpaste with nano-hydroxyapatite too.
How I use it. The Pro 2.0, morning and night, with heads on subscription. New to me in autumn 2026, so I’ll update this as I go.
Productivity 1
Todoist
A task manager that runs on every device. Mine is set up for Getting Things Done: an inbox, next actions, projects, and a weekly review.
How I use it. Everything lands here, work and home. The overdue list is my backlog, and the due date tells me how long something has been waiting.
Money 2
Emma
Brings all my bank accounts and cards into one app, sorts the spending into categories and spots the subscriptions I’d forgotten about.
How I use it. Once a month I export the previous month’s transactions and go through them line by line. An accountant’s habit, and the reason I know where the money goes.
I own shares in Emma.
Revolut
A current account and cards in the app, with spending abroad in the local currency and an eSIM for mobile data when travelling.
How I use it. Day-to-day spending abroad, and mobile data in South Africa without buying a local SIM.
Travel 3
British Airways Premium Plus (Amex)
The British Airways credit card I use to collect Avios on everyday spending.
How I use it. I use the Avios for reward flights: European short haul, and long haul back to South Africa. Nothing here is an invitation to apply.
SeatSpy
Alerts when reward seats open up on the routes you watch, for British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. Reward availability changes hourly, and alerts are the practical way to catch it.
How I use it. Watching London to Johannesburg for trips home. The alerts land in my inbox the moment seats appear.
Jack’s Flight Club
Email alerts for cheap fares out of UK airports, found by a team that watches fares all day. The premium tier gets the alerts first.
How I use it. Mostly reading. Every so often one lands for a place I had been meaning to go.
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This is not medical advice. It is what I use and why. Consult your doctor before starting a supplement, device or new routine, especially if you have a health condition or take medication.
This is not financial advice. It is what I do with my own money, not a recommendation for yours. Investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you put in. Tax treatment depends on your circumstances. If you need advice, speak to a regulated financial adviser.