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A day in the life of a Jockey

Jockey and Love the Races blogger David Crosse, first started racing aged 16. The 29-year-old’s day revolves around losing weight, a lot of driving and a rather unusual diet…

Early bird

On race days, David has to be up for 5:30am.

"I don’t get up a minute before I have to," he says, smiling. He allows himself eight minutes to get dressed, clean his teeth and jump into the car before stopping en route to his yard for something to eat.

Breakfast isn’t what you might expect of a sportsman: "I have a large bag of cheese and onion Walkers crisps and a large latte with a couple of sugars – that’s literally something I look forward to every day."

He reaches the yard at 7am, where he rides out horses for a couple of hours to warm up for the race ahead.

At the races

David tries to arrive at the racecourse as early as possible. Depending on where in the country it is, it can be as much as a three-hour drive from his home in Lambourn, Berkshire.

He normally warms up by sitting in the sauna for 20 minutes and having some physiotherapy on his shoulder, back and previously broken leg. The sauna also helps to knock off a couple of pounds before the race.

Races start after midday and he’ll only stop for a sandwich and a cup of tea once they’re over. "Because you’re on the go the whole time, your adrenaline keeps you going and you just end up picking," he says.

Back home

David aims to get home by 5:30pm, so he can take his dog for a 30 minute run. If he’s not doing a light racing weight (10 stone) the next day, he’ll try and have a "proper meal" of potatoes, meat and vegetables at around 7:30pm.

After dinner, David likes to unwind in front of the television. He tries to get eight hours sleep, which means getting to bed for 9:30pm. But the thought of racing again the next day doesn’t affect his kip. "As soon as my head hits the pillow, that’s me out!"

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