Seven weeks & counting…

It’s only just dawned on me recently how incredibly close I am to doing this triathlon. I’m mildly panicked to say the least, not only have I not lost anywhere near enough weight but I’m worried about my lack of cycling. Both of these things are going to imapct on the final day. So serious head on, this is what I must do in the next 7 weeks…
1) Stick to my nutrition plan, as someone once said to me no one ever died of starvation between lunch and dinner…
2) Stick to my training plan, consistency goes hand in hand with success
3) Do my long bike rides, miles in the legs will give me payback on the day
4) Absolutely no alcohol…at all…really!
5) Do another triathlon but don’t cut off half the route (I’ll explain another time, but safe to say I’m now officially my club numpty!)
6) Bite size chunks, one day at a time…that kinda thing

Well, that’s the idea.

 

 

Training, Wobbles & the Power of Peanut Butter!

I feel as though I’ve been ignoring you all over the last couple of months, I’m sorry, life has been manic, running around, hair on fire kinda thing.

I’ve been focusing on getting used to my new way of training. I always knew getting a coach would give me structure and it has, he’s fab, I just hadn’t factored in the intensity or how the lack of freedom to my training would affect me. All I have to do each day is look onto Training Peaks and voila, there’s my training plan. In that respect it’s great, the only thing I have to worry about is packing my bag the night before..swim kit…running gear…cycle stuff…clothes for work…brekkie & lunch, sorted. But there are days when I feel ever so slightly overwhelmed by it all. What have I taken on? Can I actually do this? How long will I take? Where did I put the kids? Ahhhhh!  Like any other sane woman out there I head straight for the peanut butter and take a moment to stable the wobble and think things through rationally.

And then I have a swim session like this morning.

I seriously felt like a rocket.  (BTW, this isn’t me!)

I can feel my training coming together and it felt good. I initially thought maybe it’s my new sports drink (1/3rd apple juice, 2/3rds water – all hi-tec stuff with me) but then I thought, maybe coach Musty’s master plan and my own hard work is begining to take shape…. one arm drills, band swimming, sprints, they’re all begining to take effect. In the immortal words of any Z list celebrity O.M.G!

Wobble over, head in the right place I’m ready to rock!

Now…has anyone seen trainers, track tonight where I will hop, skip & shuffle my way to faster running…apparently.

Dry January

I’ve been doing Dry January and I have to say up until this week I’ve found it relatively easy. Not so last night. It’s been a long week of early starts, training, busy days, doing kiddie things and just stuff.

I felt tired last night, Simon had opened a nice bottle of red, I’d cooked a lovely juicy steak with a big salad with Simon’s home-made salad dressing and, as I sat down & felt the stresses of the week melt away, I really wanted a glass of that wine. I didn’t, but it did make me think, have I noticed any differences since being dry?

Well the answer is yes.

1) I sleep more deeply.  If I drink even a couple of glasses of wine I fall asleep quickly but inevitably wake up at around 3am and find it difficult to fall back to sleep.  My mind starts whirring & whizzing here & there, thoughts, images, conversations, songs, people, children, training, shop, work.  It’s really distracting and although I have developed my own coping mechanisms to get back to sleep again I notice if the following day.  Being dry, I fall asleep quickly and unless kids dictate otherwise, I stay asleep.  I was woken at 7 this morning by the kids slamming open the door and yes I still felt a little tired BUT I didn’t have a slight headache or feel drowsy & groggy. This must be a good thing.

2) I don’t pick at food as the evening progresses.  I don’t know what it is about alcohol but if I do drink then I feel the need to eat more which if you’re trying to loose weight isn’t really helpful.  Anything I eat pretty much after 8pm I can’t burn off so it just stays and makes itself at home on me.

3) I have the largest zit on my face ever!!  I’m lucky I rarely get zits so when I do as far as I’m concerned  it’s like a beacon on my face.  Is this all the ‘bad stuff’ coming out?

4) My runs in the morning have been a little more springy if that makes sense.

So I’m just hoping that I can carry on for the next two weeks, even though I have a big family event to go to today.  I also hope that from February I make it normal NOT to have any alcohol in the evening rather than to immediately head for the fridge, corkscrew in one hand and glass in the other.

Wish me luck!

Useful Link: http://www.dryjanuary.org.uk/

Footnote.

Whilst writing this blog I Googled alcohol and it’s affects on sleep and then stumbled on something that I’m shocked at but not surprised of.  Drunkorexia.  This is something that is more prevalent in young women, they actively skip a meal in favour of  alcohol so as not to double up on the calories and therefore loose weight.  This is shocking on so many levels.  Where are the nutrients to help their bodies function properly coming from? At what point do they consider this to be a good decision?  What impact will this have long-term on their bodies internally & externally & their minds?  Dietitians now think there is a direct link between binge drinking and anorexia Why am I not really shocked by this? Is this because I’ve seen this type of calorie controlling in people that I’ve worked with over the last 20 years?  Whatever, this is a big topic and deserves respect & time to educate young people…

Useful Link: https://www.drinkaware.co.uk/understand-your-drinking/is-your-drinking-a-problem/are-you-a-drunkorexic

I just want to leave you with this thought…

There are so many pressures on young women these days to be stick thin, the celebrity role models that they choose to idolise demonstrate a completely unrealistic & mostly unworkable lifestyle for us mere mortals. The images we are bombarded with on a daily basis are flawless and completely unachieveable – even the models themselves don’t look like themselves. Photoshop has a lot to answer for. Cindy Crawford once said ‘I wish i looked like Cindy Crawford’.

If Cindy wants this, then what hope do normal, everyday young women have and, more importantly for me, how do I deal with this as my own daughter grows up and becomes self aware to her body, to those around her and the images she will see in magazines, newspapers & TV?

My Nutrition Plan…

I wouldn’t say that I’m vastly over weight but I do have weight to shift and if I want to get round a middle distance triathlon for 6 hours, I need to be light, nimble & eat the correct nutrition between now and race day.

Twenty years ago if you’d met me you most probably wouldn’t recognized me as the same person I am today. It’s not that I was Jabba the Hut in proportions but I was certainly going that way. Anyway, I took things in hand, joined a slimming club, lost a load of weight and then just stayed at the same still too heavy weight…..for a long, long, long time.

Then I found out about Sal. (Thanks Mitts)

Sal is a nutritionist and writes eating plans. Not just any old eating plan but a plan that gives me a nutritious intake of balanced healthy, simple & delicious food. No low sugar this or low fat that or let’s kick the shit out of food & rebuild it again kind of stuff but good, old fashioned, full fat, 3 quality meals a day kind of food. Not only this but her experience in personal training means that she can give nutrition advice based around my own training schedule. It’s been a revaluation & education for me. Plus I don’t have to write my own food plan each week, hurrah!

What do Sal’s plans give me?
1) A robust immune system
2) High energy foods at the right time
3) Building blocks to repair my body
4) A varied food intake

The results through 2013 were amazing, very gradually and before I knew it I was down from a size 12-14 to a healthy size 8 to 10 – and I didn’t even really register it.  Anyway 6 months of consultancy work in London saw the weight & fat pile on so with The Gauntlet fixed as my ‘A’ race for the 2014 I’m back on plan 100%.

Wish me luck!