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Race Report: Spartan Race UK “The Beast”
Date/Time: Saturday 11th October
Location: Pippingford Park, East Sussex
Distance: 20km+
It’s pretty common knowledge that I love a challenge, particularly one that involves running and being part of a team so when my work asked if I would fancy doing a “Spartan Race” I was definitely interested. HOWEVER, when I discovered that they were referring to “The Beast”, the hardest course out of all the Spartan Races, I will happily admit that I was extremely nervous. But with lots of support from my gorgeous friends and family I finally said yes.
5 weeks leading up to the race I changed my training routine (partly because of my stupid tumble during Bacchus meant I couldn’t run properly) and decided to seriously up my strength training sessions. I did all the (assisted) pull ups you could think of, slowly but surely upped all the weights I was lifting and jumped at the opportunity to try as many rope climbs as possible! It was actually quite exciting seeing my self named “Mr tickle/snowman twig” arms grow and even show a little bit of muscle! But I knew that I was still definitely going to be relying on guys to throw me over the walls during the race!
So race day! Now the weather forecast was horrendous! Black cloud and TWO rain drops on the BBC app! However, when we turned up at the station I am pleased to say the sun was shining and well, the surroundings were pretty beautiful! Don’t get me wrong it was still COLD but at least the sun was out!
Race number, aka our headband (which I love and will keep forever as proof!), collected my team of four guys and one other girl headed to the start line.
The first wave of nerves came before the race had even started! To get to the start line you had to climb over a 6ft wall! I felt a little sick after this, this wasn’t even part of the race! After a pep talk from a man in a spartan suit, with one seriously impressive 6 pack, we were off into the woods to battle!
The scenery was absolutely beautiful but the track itself, to a road runner, was SCARY! It was just so muddy and I don’t mean a little muddy field “muddy” I mean lose your shoe muddy! If you didn’t have trail shoes this race was going to be horrendous! In fact ten minutes in we sadly passed a spartan on the ground with his ankle strapped! This muddy track led us onto the first obstacle, down a seriously steep, muddy hill. I chose like many others to slide down on my bum trying not to pick up too much pace so not to fall in the water at the bottom! Then of course you had to cross the water and climb back up another muddy hill…not easy! This was to be the first of many downhill, uphill, muddy, climbs!
The track then looped round back towards the starting area, where were all the spectators were, and towards an “A” climbing frame which I really enjoyed, it was like being a kid again! Quick tip here climb up normally, but when you climb over go down on your back like a crab, it makes it quicker to get off at the bottom and get running again.
From here it was back into the woods and it was the start of the water and I don’t mean puddles! The first water crossing was up to your knees, cold but bareable. But for the (I think) 6/7 water crossings we did they varied from knee height to a short swim, barely being able to touch the floor! This is where the first of the thank yous start. At the end of a water crossing there were no convenient stairs out, it was wet and muddy and you had just been in freezing cold and seriously smelly water. Safe to say it was exhausting and I really struggled to get out each time but my team were INCREDIBLE, the guys literally just pulled me out of the water and plonked me on the ground (I have the bruises to prove it!!!)
Whilst looping back again we jumped over wooden hurdles and climbed through small gaps in walls bringing us to a seriously long set of monkey bars. These of course had muddy water below. I knew there was no way I would make it the full way across but you had to try and well I managed to get half way before dropping (apparently my grip strength was better than I thought) so off I went to do the first of 3 sets of burpees! The next two sets came during the rope climb and the rotating pull up bar?!? But I did manage to lift a heavy weight which was attached to a rope. You had to lift it all the way to the top and I used the pull and sit down method learnt watching YouTube videos!
From here it was uphill … Oh and when I say uphill I mean uphill for a LONG time on your hands and knees trying to avoid the barbed wire above you! This was quite ridiculous, every time you thought you were done it just kept going!! And what followed was a serious amount of lifting – logs, sandbags and a tire (which we had to carry for a mile!) of course up hill, down hill over extremely uneven, boggy ground! Then it was onto the smelliest of obstacles the muddy hurdles (and when I say muddy I mean up to my thigh muddy!) We were faced with three hills to climb up and down with pools of water in between! It stunk and it was super exhausting!
More muddy running, lots of sliding and more wall climbs later it was time for “the swim”. Now we knew they were going to be a swim as the organisers had pre-warned us. I knew I could swim, I’m not the best, but I can swim. HOWEVER, this was a lake, it was a good distance and well I had NEVER done anything like it before. Safe to say I had a little moment but surprisingly I just got in. It was cold but that wasn’t bothering me, what bothered me more was the open water, trying not to swallow it and also working out the most effective, I mean quickest, way of getting across.
Here comes another thank you, there were two guys on canoes in the water and I think they must have seen that I wasn’t looking thrilled about this part and so they stuck with me talking absolute rubbish the whole time! They got me through this, there is no way I would have been as calm without them! Coming out of the water I sort of wanted to cry a little (probably because I was tired, we were 2hours30mins in at this point) but also because I had just done yet another thing I really didn’t know if I could do!
Free banana (so so grateful for the organizers planning the one and only food stop here!) inhaled and a quick tire pull around a tree we were back to the running, muddy climbing, crawling under walls, tire flipping and water crossings. I swear every time you got dry they planned more water!
The final carry was a big bucket full of water around a small course which included a stupidly muddy hill of course, and then a water crossing. Plus point – the bucket floated in the water, bad point the water had huge logs in so you had to tread so so carefully and getting out wasn’t that fun either!
More high climbs, thanks to a man dressed as the hulk for literally throwing me over, and it was onto the spear throw! The Third set of burpees was here!
And now the finish! There was another A frame, but not a fun climbing frame, a wet, slippery surface with a rope to pull yourself up and over. We had been on the course for nearly 3 and half hours I was wet, muddy and well maybe a little exhausted but you had to do it, I could see the finish line! I started off strong quickly pulling myself up but it was high, really high and well I think I just panicked, I sincerely thought I was going to fall backwards – and that would have done serious damage! Luckily a guy in front saw this and literally grabbed me … more bruises to prove it and he helped me over! THANK GOD FOR HIM!
A climb down, a serious pep talk and then it was a little hop, skip and a jump over a FIRE PIT! YES A FIRE PIT! Then across the finish line! WE DID IT, we actually did it!!!!!
Grabbing our medals and all the freebies, thank you Whey Ice Cream for all those extra pots ;D we collected our bags, changed and ate everything in sight!
I sincerely thought there was a huge chance I would not complete this race. I knew I could run the distance but the obstacles. This is my final thank you – my team were incredible! We all had very different strengths and weaknesses and decided that we would tackle the whole thing together! It was an awesome experience with these guys and I could not have done it without them … we might be looking at another OCR next year ;D
If you are thinking of trying a Spartan Race here are my top tips!
1. Tri suit – You are going to get wet and cold almost immediately. I don’t know if all my nerves kept me warm or whether all the carb loading the night before helped but I was lucky enough to not get too cold during this race and I swear a lot of that was done to wearing a tri suit offered by the lovely Jen Slater!
2. Listen to as much advice as possible – Act as a sponge, logging any hints, tips and tricks about how to tackle various obstacles. Watch videos of previous races and ask for help from previous Spartans!
3. Wear long trousers – I wore 3/4 length trousers and safe to say my legs, two weeks on, are still a HUGE mess! Scratches, bruises and all sorts of marks all over the place!
4. Do it with a team – I could not have done this without my team. They got me through it, with chat, encouragement and of course physical strength! As mentioned at points they literally pulled me out of the river!
5. SHOES – Invest in proper trail shoes!!! This course is always going to be muddy and if you have no grip on your shoes you are asking for trouble! I had incredible trail shoes on from Helly Hansen which were amazing but they even at points struggled with all the mud!
6. Train outside – Get used to the cold, the wind, the rain! I love the outdoors but even I have to admit that if it is chucking down outside I am tempted by the gym. When in Spartan training embrace the weather! It will mean you are used to dealing with the elements!
The Spartan Beast IS NOT EASY! However it is a fantastic thing to achieve (in my mind anyway)! If you have any further questions please free feel to drop me note :D! I know I spoke to 100s of people pre race so I would be happy to pass on everything I have learnt!
GOOD LUCK!
Race Report: Beauty and the Beast
The Helly Hansen Beauty and The Beast
Date/Time: Saturday 20th September 2014
Location: West Wycombe Park
Distance: 26.2 miles (completed in a team of 6)
I love that my friends ask me out for food as much as they ask me to join race teams…
Held in the stunning West Wycombe park Helly Hansen’s Beauty and the Beast is tagged as the “UK’s toughest multi lap marathon” and when we arrived I could see why…
Staying at Charlie’s the night before we obviously took our race prep seriously, fuelling appropriately at Outsider Tart (GO, GO THERE NOW!)
Then early on Saturday morning myself, Charlie and Leah made our roller coaster experience of a drive over to West Wycombe to attempt the race as a team of 6, with fellow lovely ladies Jen, Josie and Emma, each doing one lap of the course. When we got to the race area we were firstly distracted by the start and the small mountain that seemed to follow directly after it! Next came the second mountain which we had to drive up to get to the start – we spent a good few minutes stuck in the mud, like I said it was a roller coaster of a journey!
Parked up, hand break definitely on, we wandered over to the Helly Hansen tent as they had kindly provided us with the bibs and kit for the race. The tent was a life saver, huge comfy red bean bags, shelter from the cold, as it was a little chilly out, and ALL the food which appeared to just kept coming!!!! Picking up our race pack was far too easy and I was extremely grateful to be handed a cliff bar with my race number (this was to be the first of many cliff bars much to my excitement)! So back to the tent for a quick sample of all the cakes – muffins, flapjacks and some of the best tiffin I have ever had and then it was time to wave our first runner off!
Charlie set off amongst other relay teams, individuals doing half marathons (3 laps) and people doing the full 6 laps!
Whilst waiting I got into my awesome Helly Hansen leggings and laced up my trainers. Now usually I wouldn’t advise wearing brand new trainers for a race but it was wet and muddy and after last weeks falls I felt that trail shoes were a lot more sensible and I was only going for 4.5 miles!
We saw Charlie coming in so I stripped off my layers got the ankle tag and then headed off … up that hill!
Filled with motivational quotes the whole way you just knew you were in for a treat of a race.
But luckily what goes up must come down and straight away we did.
I think I had been running for 5 minutes and already I had spoken to various people en route. I am starting to learn that trail runners are just awesome, they are a very relaxed crowd who just enjoy running and getting muddy!
First hill done and it was into the woods! WOOHOO!
Ever since the Spitfire Scramble I have realised that I love running through the woods and this was great! Making more friends along the route and high fiving the fantastic Marshall’s I steadily made my way through woodland and parkland and fields.
And then it was time for the second of three mini mountains!
This one came out of no where and was crazy steep so a power walk it was. I was told that it was always better to walk up hills, conserve energy ready for the flat and the downhill. Mountain done, around a corner and down hill for a quick water stop then it was up up and up all over again but at least the top provided gorgeous views of the surrounding area and led onto more woodland path!
View from the top
I had heard rumours of a river and en route I bumped into a couple of runners I had met earlier in the day who confirmed this and then continued to explain that the only way to cross was straight through the middle ….
So, after a little pause, a photo and a pep talk I went for it! Ha! It was awesome and after a only a few squelchy strides my new Helly Hansen shoes were clean and dry! AMAZING!
Once away from the water we got to explore the gorgeous grounds of the Wycombe estate, past gardens and a lovely large pond, a little mini hill, which was far more tough than it should have been (I blame the fact that I had been nattering none stop with one of my new buddies) and it was round the corner to the finish line!
This route was fantastic, if it wasn’t for my knee after last weeks tumble I would have definitely gone for another round and have no doubt that I will be doing this next year.
Once finished I swapped over with Leah and proceeded the make use of the VIP space, eating yet more cake and of course getting involved in a little legs up a wall, no wait legs up a deck chair, action whilst catching up with the rest of my awesome team and eating more cake.
One by one the girls came in beaming from their laps and when we spotted Josie, our final runner on the course, coming round the corner we ran together to cross the finish line as a team!
Finishing in under 5 hours in total we were pretty pleased with ourselves as we had just set out to enjoy the course rather than focus on a time. Our medals were given to us on a podium which, in my mind, had one of the greatest tag lines above it …
I loved this race. I loved the route, I loved the various terrain, I loved the views and I loved the atmosphere!
Thank you Helly Hansen for a such a brilliant event, the cake was fantastic and I shall definitely be seeing you next year … for the half ;D!
Race Recap: Spitfire Scramble
Date/Time: Saturday 30th – Sunday 31st August
Location: Hornchurch Country Park
Distance: As many 10km laps as possible in 24hours
When Leah asked whether anyone would be interested in entering a competition to win a place in a 24 hour race weekend I, of course, jumped at the chance and put my name down and then forgot about it. Then a couple of weeks ago we got an extremely surprising email confirming that we had won! Team Naturally Run would be the VIP team at the first Spitfire Scramble, 2014!
The Spitfire Scramble is a multi-terrain race where, as a team or as a solo runner (!?), you attempt to complete as many (roughly 10km) laps as possible over 24-hours! So on what started out as a very rainy Saturday morning (thankfully the weather got a lot better the further East we went) Jen, Leah, Katy, Becs, Becki, Emma Nikki and I made our way, along with roughly 200 other runners, to Hornchurch, Essex to set up camp!
Kitted out in predominately BLACK (personally the brighter the better for me when it comes to kit), BUT extremely comfortable Crewroom kit we had a quick photo shoot (and a costume change) and then got down to business deciding the order in which we would run … roughly thinking that each lap would be around an hour …
First out was Becs, a tactical move as she is easily one of the fastest women I know and so would put us in a good place for the race!
Following Becs, Nikki headed out and then before I knew it I was being called up!
When my first lap came around I have to admit I was pretty nervous. Hearing that I was going to have to climb over things was definitely going to be a new experience for me during a run, and well this obviously wasn’t your typical race, start – run – finish and then go out for celebratory food, but I wanted to do well for my team so I set off and settled into a relatively steady pace.
The route took you through various terrains, uneven field track, gravel paths, muddy paths, around lovely lakes and then my favourite, woodland paths!
I was loving the off road route! It was definitely a little different for my legs who had a few wobbles, but it was just so much fun, though having to stop to climb over things and then start running again is not the easiest! On seeing the finish line I sprinted to the finish, passing on the illumious slapband! Yes a slapband! Checking my watch I was over the moon and ridiculously surprised, my first lap was sub 50!!! Literally beaming!
Whilst all the other girls one by one went out for their laps the rest of us just chilled out around our tents, eating, catching up, eating more and just enjoying spending some time together.
We were extremely lucky to have some of the other TNR girls pop by for support too. A huge thank you to Lucy and Glen who made this gorgeous sign …
The lovely Laura who brought homemade cheese straws! Err amazing! And then of course …. LISSY!!!! The most amazing friend in the world for bringing my favourite thing ever, her DARK CHOCOLATE BANANA BREAD (if you want to make someone’s day head to her site for the recipe! (Seriously it’s a game changer)
My second lap came at 21:30. At this point I was nervous, it was dark, and I mean reallydark. I am super conscious about walking alone at night due to boring events when I first same to London and now I was about to run for 6miles by myself with just a headtorch through fields, parkland and woods!!!!! WTF! This is where I have to give a HUGE mention Lissy (again) and the RDC team who gave me an amazing pep talk and assured me all would be fine!
With my amazingly strong headtorch (courtesy of LED Lenser) switched on, blinding everyone in the process, I plugged my headphones in and got going. It was dark, the route was empty and my headtorch was my only source of light but this my friends was one of the most amazing running experiences I have EVER had. There is something quite incredible about being alone in the countryside with just a headtorch and the stars, plus running in the dark meant that the hills, and there were a few sneaky ones along the route, were over before you knew it! I loved it, I absolutely loved it and I obviously had so much fun even the Marshall’s were laughing about how much of a runners high I was on as I bounded across the finish line!
My third lap however was tough. Orignally due to happen around 3:30 ish by about midnight I settled into my tent for a few hours sleep but at 1:30 I was woken up to hear the sad news that Jen was out due to a poorly leg and asked whether I could run sooner than planned … in 30 minutes! Now this race was all about the team and well there was no way I was going to let the team down so I quickly got dressed and joined Emma at the change over point and then with very little sleep and fuelled by half a Mars Bar – thank you so much Emma I still owe you for that – I ran from roughly 2:15-3:15 and I definitely felt my legs falling asleep whilst going down the hills!
When I got back Beki was there ready to go and explained that if I could would I be able to go again when she got back as both Jen and Leah were now officially out due to injury 😦 and Emma and Bex were catching up on some seriously well deserved zzz. I figured as I was up why not and it would mean I could get a solid couple of hours once I was done so I headed to the food tent for some slightly better post run / pre race fuelling, a Nuun and my Bounce Ball whilst enjoying late night ramblings with some of the other runners!
The fourth lap was a bit of a blur to be honest, somewhere around 4:30, the sun was definitely on it’s way and once again it was just me, my headtorch and Ronnie Herel’s old skool mix. I was pleased to see I got through it quicker than my third lap but by the time I crossed the line I was ready for sleep and so after a very sorry looking little bowl of oats and raisins I tucked myself in for a snooze.
Now originally we had all planned to do 3 – 4 laps each but due to some of the team being injured plans had gone a little awry. When I woke up after a couple of hours sleep the team incredibly were still running but had said that there was no pressure to so anymore. We had all gone way above expectations and we had all done each other proud but well … I wondered if my legs could do any more….
Doing a fifth lap would mean doing just shy of 30 miles, the furthest I have never run, it would mean getting another lap in for the team, and it would mean I could eat even more food! My team were incredible and without hesitation told me if my legs were up for it I could do it! So I did.
It was tough, I was tired, I was smelly, it was hot and the hills felt steeper in the daylight (hence the worn out face) BUT I did it and well I felt AMAZING! I would not have got through that lap without knowing I had my teams’ support so thank you so so much ladies!
Incredibly Nikki was there at the finish line ready to go! It was 11am ish and we had achieved our 24 laps but determined to get a 25th in Nikki set off to walk the final lap alongside Emma who on realising what she was up to ran to catch her up. (It’s worth noting here as long as you cross the start line before 12 the lap would count.)
On seeing the girls coming round the corner towards the finish line we of course joined them to cross the final line as a team …
This race was such an amazing experience for me. It was the Spitfire Scramble’s first year and I will definitely be signing up for next year! It attracted a really lovely mix of people and the atmosphere throughout was extremely supportive and friendly! The marshals along the route were smiley and the organiser himself, Danny, was extremely personable and made you feel very welcome! A word of warning the catering wasn’t exactly ideal (unless you love salty bacon (which will repeat on you whilst running) and jacket potatoes for every meal over 24 hours) but fueling for this sort of thing was always going to be tricky! Overall however it was fantastic and an experience I am so grateful to have shared with 7 other incredible running ladies :D. We even came in the top 50% out of all the teams that took part!
Oh and it’s worth mentioning that we actually came first in our division “All female team of 8”! That’s right we won trophies as well as medals!!!
So of course we used these to drink our celebratory fizz out of on the way home ;D!
A HUGE THANK YOU TO EVERYONE INVOLVED IN SPITFIRE SCRAMBLE! Us TNR ladies had a truly fantastic 24 hours!
Rain, raving and racing!
… “Run, eat, rave, repeat” …
Monday
So staying over at Lissy’s meant I had the pleasure of doing my circuits over looking the beautiful canals around Wapping so it all started well – 3 rounds of full body circuits. This, if you read my previous work outs, is usually followed by a run however, if you can remember the weather on Bank Holiday it was awful and I mean AWFUL! But because Lissy and I are crazy and had originally planned to be in Shoreditch for around 3pm we decided to brave it, Lissy on the bike (so she could enjoy shouting abuse at me to run harder) and me, well I was the idiot in shorts and my Games Maker jacket. This run was hilarious, we got absolutely soaked, couldn’t hear each other to talk to as I had my hood up and Lissy had her helmet on, and by the time we got to Shoreditch we were so unbelievably drench thanks to a car purposefully driving quickly through a puddle we just went home. Still we got a run in ;D
Tuesday
A killer 6.5mile run with the crew! I actually think this was one of the most epic runs yet! Led by the machine that is Chris we straight away hit an awesome pace tearing our way through the streets of London headed for Trafalgar Square. Once at Trafalgar Square we of course stopped for a few photos and met up with the rest of the crew. From there we headed down to the river and then RAN … and ran and ran all the way until the path stopped and it was time to head back North towards 1948. It was a long, hard slog but the sense of achievement at the end of it was IMMENSE. I know I say this every week but I LOVE Tuesdays!
Wednesday
Morning Gloryville RAVE!!!
Bouncing about for 2 and half hours definitely counts as a work out!!! Kicking off a 06:30 in the morning Lissy, Steph and I made our way across to East London to be welcomed into a space full of leotards, glitter and killer leggings!!! With live DJs at the decks playing some killer tunes we bounced, giggled and sung along from 06:30am – 08:45am having the time of our lives … and then quietly made our way to work.
LITERALLY THE BEST WAY TO START YOUR DAY!
Thursday
Bring on those 10 x 1 repeats and of course the double helping of granola!!!! This week a bizarre thing happened … I started my sprints and don”t get me wrong they were hard, but not as hard as last week. In fact I managed to go further in each minute! Keeping in mind consistency rather than killing my legs (and myself) and well it worked! I hit my targets every single lap, even managed to go a few strides further on my last couple of sets … I think this is what you call “winning” at sprint sets. As you can imagine my celebratory portion of granola was pretty EPIC!
Friday
Oh hello rest day … all the protein and GBBO …
Saturday & Sunday
A casual 30 mile run, in a team, during the afternoon, just after midnight, in the dark hours and in a glorious, sunny morning! I got scrambled …to be continued… #spitfirescramble
New routes, oats and CARNIVAL vibes!
So it’s been another week of training this time with a few familiar faces!
Monday
3 rounds of full body circuits followed by a lovely 30 minute RUNcommute to work … looking oh so cool in my commuter gear
PS notice I was still wearing shorts at this point! Summer had not completely finished!
Tuesday
All about the cross training ready for sprints (and of course celebratory granola) the next morning. So it was 20 minutes on the x trainer and 15 minutes on the bike. Both at a steady pace .
Wednesday
Morning – Second attempt at pretending that I can maintain a fast pace doing 10 x 1 minute repeats. Started with a 10 minute super slow jog to warm up and then got to it. The first four went really well, fast (or at least fast for me) and I managed to get further in the minute than last week but then 5 hit … from the 5th repeat my legs were getting tired so I think it’s fair to say that I need to work on consistency!
Evening – An absolutely gorgeous Yin Yoga session with Cal from Yoga In The Big Smoke over in Fulham Broadway with a few familiar faces …
I really enjoy Yin Yoga because, like many runners I know, I get impatient holding stretches for too long so probably don’t do each one for long enough. Yin yoga makes you hold every position for at least 2 minutes a go so no escaping!!! Ouch ;D!
Thursday
Due to the location of Yin the incredible hostess that is Steph very kindly offered me a bed for the night and even better she offered to do my morning workout with me! So after a late night of chatter our alarm sounded at 06:30 and together we got through 3 rounds of my full body circuits and then she took me on a tour of her local 5km route. It was so so lovely to be running with Steph and in totally new surroundings. Exploring, running and chat is just a perfect way to start a morning… oh and then throw in a packed, homemade breakfast and well honestly there is NOTHING better!
NUTELLA CINNAMON BUN with my name on!
Friday
Oh hello rest day … and cocktails with these beauties …
Saturday
After learning some serious lessons last week with my first attempt at 6x1km repeats I got my game face on, starting with breakfast! I had very kindly been given oats by The Chia Co in a goody bag and well we all know oats make a good pre run breakfast so …
All you need to do is empty the sachet, add water and stick it in the microwave for a minute or two and BOOM! Super quick, super easy, yummy pre-run fuelling DONE!
So after a very slow warm up to Highbury Fields (VERY SLOW) I got myself ready focusing on the fact that yes each 1km needed to be an effort but they also needed to be consistent. I had a time in mind, based on my average last week, and so set off trying to keep a relatively steady pace. My first loop I came in 10 seconds slower than the time I had in mind so on the second I picked up a little and then the following 4 laps I managed within 4/5 seconds of each other! I was absolutely exhausted and my legs hated me but at the same time I felt so so much better than last week and was a little smug about not completely collapsing by the 6th lap!!!!!
Sunday
Another opportunity to run in new territory! I am very lucky to have amazing friends who will put me up for the night and then come running in the morning! Lissy and I had an AWESOME 50 minute run in the sunshine around the canals onto Mile End. 50 minutes of slow and steady running followed by an epic breakfast of granola and french toast.
Oh and then we hit Notting Hill Carnvial for hours and hours of bouncing with friends!
Friday’s Fact File
Things that I have discovered or just loved this week …
Music!
Ed Sheeran ft Rick Ro$$ – Don’t
Labrinth – Let It Be This link takes you to a live recording from Camden! He is pretty epic!!
Blak Twang ft Rodney P, Jehst & Samson – Dettwork Southeast Remix Link is to the original as I cannot find the re-release yet … but if you want to check it out head over to 1xtra & listen back to MistaJam’s show on 19.08.14
Eats!
If you were asked whether you would like to try some “tasty, gluten free, 100% natural protein flapjacks” would you say no?! Of course NOT, I jumped at the chance to try some! Flapjack = yummy, protein = I am all about my protein at the moment! Provided by a young start-up company by the name of “Battle Oats” I was sent two of their brand new bars “Cranberry and Blueberry Fusion” and “Dark Choc Chip”. Here’s the low down – they are free from wheat and gluten, high in protein isolate (22%!!), made with coconut oil, high in fibre, GMO free and most importantly … THEY ARE YUMMY. Personally my favourite was the “Cranberry and Blueberry” as you could really taste the berries, but for those of you who like a chocolate fix then you know where to go! I found the bars extremely tasty and extremely filling, they will definitely keep you full til lunch or would be great after a loong run/work out! Thank you “Battle Oats” for sending the bars through, I shall definitely be looking out these once they hit the stores however, if you want to get your hands on them now and support a UK based company then head to the website now and buy buy buy! :D!
Stuff, things, bits and pieces!
We all know we love a pair of jazzy leggings and well these are pretty bright …
Circuits, running, diving and cinnamon rolls …
So it’s been another week of training with a few random elements thrown in for good measure of course ;D!
Monday
Had the pleasure of working from home so kicked the day off with 3 rounds of full body circuits, did some work, went for a steady 30 minute run in the sunshine, came back and did more work, went to a casting and then came home to build my new bed with an extremely handy friend. You know, just another normal day ;D!
Tuesday
20 minutes on the x trainer and 15 minutes on the bike. Both at a steady pace ready for tomorrow! (No RunDem run as had an event in the evening)
Wednesday
My first real attempt of channeling Bolt in a run. I think he still might beat me. So Wednesday was all about 10 x 1 minute repeats, but not only did they need to be at full effort they also needed to be consistent. So using a quiet path which I found whilst doing my warm up I used a tree as my starting point and ran at full effort for a minute which roughly took me to a bin at the end of the path. With 1 minute recovery in between I then ran back at full pace in attempt to get back to my starting point! By the end of it I definitely felt like the bin and the tree had grown legs and were moving about to tease me … either that or I was just getting tired ;D!
In the evening, well it was just another normal evening catching up with Charlie … a normal evening where you get a personal diving lesson with the Tom Daley Diving Academy! Spogo kindly invited us down to the London Aquatics Centre and well we couldn’t say no! More details will be up on the blog in a couple of days but for now here’s a couple of pictures ;D!
Thursday
Three rounds of full body circuits and a gorgeous 30 minute RUNcommute to work! I forgot how convenient it can be to run to work, easily the most efficient way to get to the office!
Friday
Oh hello rest day! I generally find rest days quite tricky as I am not very good at sitting still but this rest day was seriously appreciated … my legs are definitely feeling the speed work so instead I had an early night and cooked some of my favourite things 🙂
Saturday
Disgusting 1km repeats. And when I say disgusting I mean disgusting! Who knew that Highbury Fields had a few sneaky inclines! And where on earth did that wind come from?! So once again speed and consistency were key for this so after an extremely slow, almost horizontal, run to Highbury Fields (about 1.4 miles) I set off on my first of six 1km laps around Highbury Fields. My first three laps were relatively similar, my fourth was WAYYYY OUT and then I brought the fifth and sixth back to a similar time to my third lap. This was hard, really hard, particularly as my double helping of granola before this apparently wasn’t the best fuelling! Lots of lessons learnt on this run, no granola before speed work and definitely need to slow it down on my first lap to keep the consistency up!
Sunday
So after missing out on Stephanie Muzzal’s infamous homemade cinnamon buns on Saturday due to over fuelling and late running I knew I would somehow have to get across London to get my hands on one! I had a 45 minute run on the plan and it had to be super slow (holding back on my “super slow” runs is something that I am struggling with at the moment but I know they will help when it comes to speed work so I am just gritting my teeth and getting on with it) so figured why not jog on down to Waterloo Station and jump on a train to meet her after her incredible 20 mile run?! So that is exactly what I did! Apart from having to remind myself to go slow this run was lovely, I knew the route so could hide my phone away and instead I just enjoyed the sights and sounds whilst running down through central London. It has to be said that the amount of “walk of shames” I past was INCREDIBLE and extremely entertaining! Once I got to Putney the moment came … those cinnamon buns are like no other! Yes Steph it was hugely impressive that you ran 20 miles today but personally nothing tops how incredible your baking is. Cinnamon buns like no other!!!
This week’s workouts & THAT rain!
As always a bit of running, a bit of weight lifting and one random workout ;D Just how I like it!!!
Monday
3 rounds of full body circuits followed by 30 minutes on the x trainer
Tuesday
Morning – All about upper body weights in the morning! Very excitingly (to me) I know I am getting closer to doing an unassisted pull up … small goal for this year … me and my snowman twig arms have got a way to go yet but we are getting there!
Evening – First run back with my Run Dem family after two weeks away! This time we went loooonnnng running to the Olympic Park and back! I loved it, EVERY SINGLE MINUTE! Always so good to catch up with everyone and regardless of the day I have had I always finish these runs with the biggest smile on my face. Casual, unplanned 9 miles … whoops!
Wednesday
Intervals. Horrible, horrible intervals! 10 minute warm up, 10 x 1 minute efforts followed by a 10 minute cool down. It was hard, it was sweaty but hey I got it done and the reward was 100% WORTH IT ;D! These legs WILL get used to speed!
Thursday
3 rounds of full body circuits and a lovely 30 minute jog in the sunshine. Nothing like getting up early and having a relaxed run in the sunshine!
Friday
REST DAY!! Actually enjoyed today’s rest day, well my legs did that’s for sure! And instead of getting sweaty I chucked on my dress and heels and enjoyed some gin at the Gin Joint with some very gorgeous ladies …
Saturday
Oh you know, casually became a fully qualified indoor cycling (or spin as we know it) instructor ;D!
A good few hours of spinning, shouting, more spinning and eating!! More to come on this shortly!
Sunday
A WET RUN. Yep the lovely Alice and I said we would go on a little run to catch up and then have a HUGE brunch afterwards. I think the run was our excuse to have more brunch HOWEVER, the English weather had other plans! So I set out in the pouring rain (thank god for my uber stylish visor!) and ran the 18minutes to Alice’s door. I love the running community, on my way to Alice’s house I passed a good few other crazy runners also braving the rain and every single one I passed gave me a knowing smile “YES we are MAD”! I picked up Alice and we braved the outdoors, planning to do a 30 minute loop around Highbury. It was wet, and when I say wet I mean WET. The paths were flooded, the park waterlogged and we, well we were wet to the bone, quickly discovering that our trainers were not “flood proof”. So 5 minutes in we gave up, turned round grabbed a towel and went to Lululemon Islington to enjoy a yoga class instead. By the time we had finished our busy day of run, yoga, brunch and bed dismantling/ripping apart the sun showed up so YES we did go back out for a glorious 30 minute run! HA! Take that English weather ;D we got ya in the end! 48 minutes of running, 1 hour of flow yoga, 2 hours of brunching and 2 hours of ripping wood to shreds! It was a good day!
This week’s word: Sweat.
Monday
The world’s sweatiest run! Whilst in Valencia it was only right that we tried out a run or two in the gorgeous green path created by the old Turia riverbed. So setting out nice and early (to beat the 35 degree heat?!?) Harry and I made our way to the park and did enough of a stretch to make it a nice 3 miler and then headed back. I love running in new cities, it’s just a great way to see the place BUT by the time we got back we were both a complete sweaty mess! I have done HOT yoga before and definitely needed a towel during it but nothing competes with how we felt after this run!
Tuesday
Flexing our muscles in an attempt to keep calm with delay after delay after delay getting back to the UK ;D!
Wednesday
3 rounds of full body circuits followed by a HIIT workout on the stepper! Definitely not on holiday anymore! Ha!
Thursday
Making my track! Inspired by some of my incredibly speedy friends I decided to get out and do some interval training. Now I don’t have a track outside my door but the lovely Laura had mentioned that she had used the Emirates Stadium as a track in the past … so off I went! A nice 1.2 mile warm up followed by 6 x 400 “sprints” with a 1.2 mile cool down home. I will be doing a lot more of these sorts of runs as my legs are not built for speed. Not one bit! Ask me to run and I’ll go and go and go, ask me to go fast and it’s another story … maybe if you put a piece of carrot cake on a stick I might be more tempted ;D!
Friday
Weights day! Yay! There is something really satisfying about lifting! So a few rope pulls, pull ups, shoulder presses, bent over presses and pull over presses later I was a very happy lady!
Saturday
Hungover circuits followed by a horrendous 3 miler on the treadmill. There isn’t much to be said about this run. The cocktails from the night before definitely did not enhance my run, but hey I still got a 2minute plank in!
Sunday
Back in Christmas 2013 I contacted Leah, a lovely blogger I had had the pleasure of meeting at a few races/NTC sessions, after seeing her post a picture out on a run with a couple of other girls all in the name of marathon training! Having just agreed to do my first marathon, and with no idea where to start, I asked Leah if I could join them on their next run. So one VERY cold winter morning I went and met a load of strangers and went for a run. 8 months later, with numerous shared races, training weekends, RUNcations and of course celebratory meals & drinks I now call those strangers some of my closest friends and this Sunday I met up with Harry & Steph and ran a glorious 8.8mile route around Hyde park retracing that original route I did in winter! It was absolutely gorgeous! Running, chatting and taking some stunning scenery, plus we did a bit of celeb spotting Adele!
I LOVE running!
Getting into a routine …
So I think I am finally getting into a nice little routine … almost … nearly
Monday
Bit of ab work but otherwise “cool down” after the seriously sweaty race that was “The British 10km”
Tuesday
Morning – Upper body stuff, kicking off with interval rowing! This was then followed by pull ups, skull crushers, curls and presses. As mentioned last week I went with my list of moves and also started to note down the weight I use so I can monitor my progress!
Evening – RUN DEM aka speed session! This week I decided to go to the next level after figuring that I really need to start pushing myself and so I opted for #CheetahElites but somehow got asked to lead! It was an AWESOME 5 mile run and absolutely amazing to have the opportunity to lead such strong crew of people! Down to City Hall, across to Blackfriars and along past St Paul’s this SPEEDY run left me buzzing for days!!!
Wednesday
A great 7 mile run to an awesome soundtrack. During all my races now I chose to go without music and just enjoy the sights and sounds around me but when I am running on my own I love being able to catch up with musics/mixes! It’s awesome running to some serious tunes and I would definitely recommend listening back to MistaJam’s show at 7pm on 1xtra, it’s a great mixed bag of beats!!
Thursday
BOOM Cycle and London Duathlon BRICK Training Event
On Thursday I was lucky enough to be invited to an intensive one hour BRICK training alongside London Duathlon 2014 ambassadors, ITUDuathlon Champion, Ryan Ostler and Junior Team GB silver medallist, Charlotte Harris, in a 30 minute spin class mimicking the hills of Richmond Park followed by a 5k run. It definitely provided that “jelly leg” feeling but I actually really enjoying pairing the two disciplines! So much so that I would definitely have signed up for the London Duathlon on 14th September but sadly I am already taking part in another event! However, if you fancy getting involved you can find out lots more on their website – http://www.londonduathlon.com
Friday
LEG DAY – I know I keep saying it but I am loving my strengthening sessions at the moment, I just love the idea of making my body stronger! During this session I tried something a little different. After a gentle warm up I did 3 minute bursts on the sweat inducing stepper machine following by squats, lunges and kick backs. I did this little sequence 4 times … and then collapsed! It was AWESOME!
Saturday
Gardening … lots of gardening! I volunteered through work to help a fix up a school as part of a surprise for the pupils. It was a great thing to be a part of and I definitely think it counted as a full body workout! Even just carrying the wheelbarrow was tough haha!
Sunday
An absolutely glorious 10 mile run in the sun and when I say glorious I 110% mean glorious! I went with my music, after sourcing a great mix by Kaytranada, and just ran, not for time, not for distance but just to run and it felt amazing!!!! Now I know I am shortly going to start working on my speed which means shorter, more intense runs but this confirmed I just love a long run! I love the feeling of racking up the miles and the glorious satisfaction of that. I could have carried on for hours but I had a brunch to get to…of course ;D
So there we are! Do you prefer a long, chilled run or are you the type that likes short bursts of intensive running?
Run Round Town 