Several years ago I decided to take a career break for six months to take some breathing space. As it turned out, the first day of the break was a Big Birthday, which I guess makes it a mid-life crisis. It was quite a scary prospect, having six months with time to fill, and so many options. One project I wanted to do was an extreme running event – something that would be achievable, but challenging.

I’ve always liked running in hot weather, so I narrowed it down to a desert race. But not a mass participation race like the Marathon des Sables, as that felt like too many people.  I found a small four- day race in the Namib Desert run by an Italian company, with varied terrain, including the biggest sand dune in the world. It sounded perfect.

I’ve done a lot of running, but this was well out of my comfort zone, so it required a lot of planning. As well as the usual training, you have to make sure you have the right kit. You need gaiters to fit over your shoes, with Velcro, which has to be stitched on by a specialist cobbler. You need to experiment with different foods (I found out the hard way that jelly babies melt in the desert). And if you can, it’s a good idea to do some heat chamber training – I used the setup at the University of Kingston in London. You do a series of hour-long sessions on a treadmill in a very hot, dry room. Gradually your body adapts and you cope better with the heat.

I loved the race, and the desert. Each day was different and all of it breathtakingly beautiful. One stage was in the dark. Every day was hot (up to 50 degrees). Once, I saw an antelope in the distance, standing on its own, under a spindly tree. We looked at each other, and a wordless communication passed between us – ‘hot, isn’t it?’.

I learned a lot about planning, and confidence, and pushing your limits, for that race. I took a lot of advice from people I knew and did a lot of desk research. Unfortunately, I also developed a desert habit and have now been back to the Namib, and to the Sahara, for other races. There really is nothing like it. Just don’t take jelly babies, take Kendal Mint Cake.