The Carb-loading Experiment

Carbohydrate loading is one of those universal hot topics in the lead up to marathon day.

I’ve never researched proper carb loading before, instead I have always gone with what I’ve seen others do. Planning out the last evening meal loaded with carbs, normally a pile of pasta enjoyed with other athlete friends.

This time is different.  Taking on the high workload of Hansons Marathon Method, I thought that I would explore the best way to carb load to ensure I was ready for race day after all my weeks of hard training.  I read through numerous websites (including Hansons), books and whatever I could get my hands on and the advice was unanimous.  I would be best slowly increasing carbs for the week and then embark on a 3 day carb load of 600g per day.  Easy right? Carbs are delicious.

See food diaries at end of post

Day 1 – Thursday:

I ate my usual breakfast of oats & protein because it is great for post run recovery and it is my favourite meal of the day.  I placed my carb loaded food ideas into MyFitnessPal and realised that this was going to be a lot harder than I first thought.  Keeping fats, protein & fibre down during these days basically has me eating variations of rice, sweet potato, strawberry jam & bananas.

Feeling: Full! A little dizzy and a little stressed from trying to hit the carbs.
Carbs: 542g
Calories: 3,325
Ran: 10km
Weight: 63.3kg

Day 2 – Friday:

My 8km easy run felt amazing.  There were no hunger pangs towards the end of my run and my body felt like it was well fueled.  It also helped that it was taper week and I’d been to see the Chiro to have my hips aligned.

I was feeling uncomfortable from eating so much food.  Due to being gluten intolerant, it isn’t as easy as eating bread and pasta.  I was going to avoid medjool dates due to the fiber, but they are loaded with carbs for little space in my stomach. I’ve never had gastro issues from eating lots of dates, so I’m comfortable adding them in.  Feeling so full limited my coffee consumption, which I was aiming to do in the lead up to race day.
Okay, I’ll be honest.  I had a donut as well and I enjoyed every bite of it.

Feeling: FULL.  Really, really full.
Carbs: 574g
Calories: 3,469
Ran: 8km
Weight: 63.4kg

Day 3 – Saturday:

Hitting the 600g grams seemed to be easier today.
I have a fantastic Mealami meal bag that I packed with pasta, banana, dates and PB & jam into to stay on track while out and about.  I got lucky on my flight with Qantas Gluten Free meal being packed with high carb bars.
An early pre-race dinner was at Krua Thai, I had ordered home delivery from many times back when I lived in Melbourne, so I knew they were good. I ordered a plain bowl of rice and the best chicken pad thai. I left feeling huge and my tummy was rounded. I can see in photos that the abs have gone a little soft from bloating. The scales hadn’t changed, unfortunately my accommodation didn’t have any to measure on morning.

Feeling: Great!  Bloated from loading in a shorter amount of time than usual to ensure I’d digested by morning.
Carbs: 594g
Calories: 3,479
Ran: 5km
Weight: 63.4kg

Race Day:

Oh what a day!

I got to the starting line feeling fantastic.  My body felt fueled and hydrated, but unfortunately both my piriformis were not feeling great.  While my marathon was difficult due to my returning injury, my nutrition was spot on.  I enjoyed a few lollies that spectators offered and had great timing with my gels, much better than my other 2 marathons.

There was one moment going uphill in the botanical gardens where I cried and wanted to stop, but I got past that and apart from injury – I felt GREAT.  It was a hot day and I wasn’t feeling dehydrated or any heat stroke symptoms and my energy levels were spot on.

Feeling: Post race feeling was very nauseous.  I wanted desserts but found them too sweet after months of staying away from them.  Coffee and chocolate on the other hand were AMAZING.
Carbs: Plenty – together with fat because I enjoyed International Cakes, Qantas Club & Maccas Pulled Pork Loaded Fries!
Calories: No Idea!
Ran: 43km
Weight: 62.9kg

Conclusion: The struggle was being able to eat enough, but once I added the dates it was easier. The mental side was tough with body image issues and feeling like I wasn’t eating nutritious foods.  I felt like everyone could see my carb baby which is ridiculous, because it barely existed.  I am amazed that I didn’t put on any weight with that level of carbs and calories.  I didn’t have scales to weigh myself race morning, but I woke up feeling lean even though I felt heavy the night before.

Going into 70.3 triathlon training, I will stay on higher percentage (60%) carbs and I will be doing the same carb-loading during race week.

Note: This was not done with a nutritionist or dietitian.  I have seen a fantastic dietitian previously who helped me get my snacks in order to ensure that I was eating enough and often enough for endurance training.  I will look to do that again when I start training for the full Ironman in 2020!

Thursday Food Diary

Friday Food Diary

Saturday Food Diary

 

Macros.com.au review: Meals for athletes

I’ve had a number of my awesome Instagram friends contact me to find out more about Macros.com.au meals.  I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to write a post about my thoughts on this brand and their meal options.

When Macros.com.au contacted me through Instagram to try their meals I was incredibly skeptical.  As a runner and triathlete I find these meal prep companies to be low calorie and low carb – not my preferred choice.  But Macros.com.au are different, they offer 3 levels of calorie and diet goals with a huge range of meals.

Sculpt: Lean & Defined

Performance: Maintain peak fitness

Muscle Gain: Build mass and bulk up

Now I’m interested!  Checking out the Performance plan, I see that Protein is a focus, but the carb values are there too.  On a high loaded training day I might add some fruit or rice cakes on top of the meal to get a little more carbs.  As a gluten intolerant, it is great to see there are dietary options available as well, including plant-based which is so popular right now.  With all the details looking good, I decided to give them a go and I am happy to say that I am REALLY glad that I took the time to research their offer.  The meals are delicious, filling, fresh and freezable PLUS they have everyone in the office drooling at the smell as they heat up in only 2 minutes.

General thoughts and points on the meals:

• Much more generous on the meat volume than any other plan I’ve tried
• Fresh ingredients that are cooked perfectly given they are reheated in the microwave. No sad, soggy veggies here.
• Full of flavor and perfect ingredient paring
• Filling – I have a sweet tooth, but find myself just having a coffee afterwards if I eat for lunch.
• Delivery packaging keeps them super cold and left safely at my door

On the reviews by meal

Roast Turkey Performance Plate
Rating: 10/10

Flavour BOMB and a stack of turkey.  The inclusion of lentils makes me want to add them to more things when I do cook at home.  I love the macros on this one too.  Low fat, higher carbs and very satiating.

Buttery Beef Tri Tip
Rating: 8/10

I had to try this once since it has “tri” in the name.  Generous meat and potatoes.  The green beans are still fresh and don’t end up a soggy mess.  It’s is really delicious, but there are other dishes that are better

Sicilian Chicken Performance Plate
Rating: 9/10

Stacked with chicken and incredible flavor in the beans and vegetables.  Being a crazy carb lady, adding some quinoa to it for an evening meal after a swim session would make this a 10/10, the Sicilian flavours in the sauce are drool worthy.

Mongolian Beef Bowl with Rice Noodles, Choy Sum & Chinese Broccoli
Rating: 7/10

I think this is a popular one on the menu, I thought it was nice but expected maybe some carrot or something to add to the veggie count.  Again, generous meat and great flavours.

Roo Rendang
Rating: 8/10

Ok, I LOVE Roo and I LOVE rendang so my expectations were high. The generous helping of roo was tender and not too ‘gamey’.  I think there could have been a little more lemongrass, but still incredible flavor.  I’ve tried once to make a roo curry and it was tough, so I am impressed with the meat quality!

Coconut Chicken & Lentil Stew with Kumara
Rating: 10/10

I LOVE this dish.  Want to lick the bowl and get every last drop kinda love.  Low calorie but filling and makes a great rest day meal.  I think I need to throw in some microwave rice next time just to make the meal last longer.

Seared BBQ Performance Steak
Rating: 10/10

Another bowl licking, flavor bomb meal.  The whole meal just works perfectly together.  The BBQ sauce melts into the sweet potato, beef & veggies.  The hidden pecans are this weird but wonderful crunch and the brussel sprouts are even delish.  I am a smokey meat addict and this hits that crazy on the head. SO GOOD.

Chicken & Broccoli Bowl with Miso, Edamame & Brown Rice
Rating: 9/10

We all love the bowls that are in right now.  This one is perfect because it is at least half the calories of a poke bowl but packs just as much fresh, tangy flavor.  This is my fave to pack with an ice pack and keep on hand for a post race meal – like at Noosa Triathlon.  It can be eaten hot or cold.

Herb Encrusted Salmon with Sweet Potato Mash & Vegetables
Rating: 10/10

This was one of the first meals I tried and I was completely shocked at the big slab of salmon in the bowl.  It was cooked perfectly and all the veggies were cooked to perfection.  Salmon and sweet potato together is delish!

Classic Pad Thai – Vegetarian
Rating: 7/10

Ok – honesty here.  This is probably a 10 but as a born and bred meat eater I am getting my head around the tofu texture in this meal.  The smell when this one heats up is a true indication of the flavor that hits on the first bite.  It is fresh and delicious.  It’s one that makes a great eat-at-your-desk meal since no knives required.

The OG Veggie Stew
Rating 5/10

I have mixed feelings on this one. The curry flavor is drool worthy and the quinoa is cooked to perfection, but it’s just peas & onion.  I don’t hate peas, especially with the sauce, but I make a bomb chickpea & pumpkin curry which I prefer just because it has more veggie variety.  The low rating isn’t due to flavor – just personal pea feelings.

Hit me up with any questions!

*Disclaimer: I am provided with free product in return for posts on Instagram.  This blog post was of my own accord and all thoughts and opinions expressed herein are my own and not influenced by the company.

20 minute stair workout

This fun session can be done at the gym or head outdoors for a fresh way to train!

Repeat 4 times – first and last repeats to be at warm up/cool down pace

• 1 minute: straight walk up
• 1 minute: sideways walk, right side
• 1 minute: sideways walk, left side
• 1 minute: two stairs straight up ()
• 1 minutes: straight walk up  (if outdoors, miss this as it counts for you time going DOWN the stairs)

What this works:
Stair climbing engages the core while building strength and endurance.
Sideways climbing engages the inner and outer thighs as well as hamstrings, glutes and calves. Win!
Climbing stairs can also help runners with balance and coordination

Why I love it:
Changing it up every minute makes the session go really fast!
Also, anything working the adductors and abductors feels great on my piriformis syndrome.

Hot Tips:

• Engage the glutes to feel them BURN!
• Tighten those abs as you pull the leg up onto the stairs
• Listen to some latin beats – feels like you’re dancing

 

What does it feel like to fail?

SPOILER: It’s not as bad as you think.

From public speaking to starting your own business, fear of failure stops a lot of us from taking chances in life.  This fear of failure is often paired with a fear of judgement, at least that’s how it is for me.  So, what happens when you’ve taken a chance, talked something up with your friends, family & social media – only to fail?

Nothing.

I recently took on a 16-week program to complete my second half ironman distance triathlon.  That’s a 1.9km swim, 90km ride & 21.1km run.  One after the other, non-stop, in one day.  I posted my training journey all over Instagram, sprouting how I had the biggest reason to get over that finish line and nothing could stop me.

But I failed.
A massive DNF (Did Not Finish) – I barely even started.

There is an underlying fear of putting in all that time and hard work then failing to finish, but when it happens it truly is not that bad.  No, it’s not easy repeating the story to everyone asking how you went, but once I’d told them, it was no big deal. Onto the next topic. The post on Instagram was showered with support and kind messages, then onto the next post.

That’s it!

I don’t have any negative feelings within myself.  I gave it my all and stopped before getting myself into any trouble.  I failed this attempt, but that doesn’t make me a failure.

I am determined to learn from this.  Be bolder, take chances and don’t be afraid of putting myself out there in pursuit of my goals.  Failure isn’t that bad and if anyone is judging me for it, well what I don’t know doesn’t hurt me!!

Race recap – How did it all go so wrong?

Due to my brother’s terminal cancer prognosis and deterioration, my energy levels had been low throughout training, managing headaches and loss of appetite. I barely slept during race week and hardly a wink of sleep the night before.  My brother stayed with me and I was on high alert all night, I was so scared of something going wrong and ‘breaking’ him.

Race day transition set-up is normally brimming with nerves and excitement, but I was just tired and over it.  I was only there because my brother had traveled the hours to see me race and I wanted to make him proud.

Walking along the beach to the starting point, I got to chat with Chell & Kris, the triathlon community is filled with some truly wonderful people who are always ready to support you and these ladies were amazing.  Looking out across the bay was stunning and although the bay was choppy, I felt good.  Even as the horn blew and I took my first steps into the water, I felt good.  The buoy at the first turn was so shallow, it was barely over my head.  But when I put my head underwater to start swimming, I couldn’t breathe, my chest closed, and I was EXHAUSTED.  It wasn’t like the panic I’ve had before.  I turned onto my back to try sculling, I just had nothing in the tank.  Endurance sports are a mental game and I just didn’t have the energy or desire to fight the battle.

The lifesaver boat was keeping an eye on me and I signaled for them.  It wasn’t a hard decision.  As they tried to lift me into the boat, my body became a limp dead weight.  I was beyond exhausted and I was so glad that this pressure was over.  I walked back to transition with another athlete and I felt a weight had been lifted from me.  It was the right decision.

If you ask my loved ones, I should never have signed up for the race, let alone turned up on the day.  But I wanted that race day victory lap, those finish line feels.

I’ll be back one day to test my endurance on this stunning course.  The bay sparkles with a swim parallel to the beach, the cycle course looks to have some fun hidden challenges and finishes with a tough, but stunning 4 loop run on the beach.

Until next time Coles Bay!

Melbourne Marathon Race Report

Growing up in Tasmania, our weekends revolved around watching the AFL.  I absolutely loved it and for years you could throw a team and a number at me and I could straight up tell you the players name.  When I moved to Melbourne I had to live in Richmond to be in walking distance and the first year living there I went to 28 AFL games. I love the MCG, I get tingles being there.

So of course, it was only a matter of time until I did the Melbourne Marathon.  I decided to do it as my 3^rd marathon in hope that I would get a PB.  When I was hit with piriformis syndrome in April I was devastated thinking that my Melbourne Marathon campaign was over, instead I decided that it would be a great motivator and force me to do all the right recovery things to get me there.  There were a few people who had some doubts that I would make it and I couldn’t wait to show them!

I trained for 18 weeks using the Hanson’s Marathon Method training for a sub 4-hour goal time.  My training was on track for 4:05 and I was hoping the race day vibes would get me under 4 hours.

Fast forward to race day. The morning started perfectly with my boyfriend flying down last minute and getting me to the start line with loads of time.  I seeded myself with the 4-hour pacers and stood around for 30 minutes chatting to the fantastic people around me filled with excitement.

Although there were 7,238 starters for the marathon, the start flowed well, and my first km was 5:42 pace.  The feeling running through a closed Flinders Street was incredible.  The space they allowed the runners was a stand out for me and I hope Melbourne City continue this for a long time to come.

I started out feeling fantastic running with the pacer, but when they started running 5:15 pace to make up for a slower incline, I began questioning my ability to keep up.  I missed the first water stop because it was manic and while the second one was calmer I had to push to catch back up to the pacers. I had trained hard for this goal and I was determined to give it my best shot, so I decided that I was going to stick at out to 10km and see how I felt since many of my training runs took me 8kms to warm up.  Unfortunately, during the week my Chiro had told me that both my piriformis where now inflamed and with those words in my head and the pain in my hips, I slowed my pace down to around 5:45.  I was not willing to tear up my body and take months to recover when I was already hurting this much only 10km in.

It was tough watching those pacer flags disappearing.  I felt disappointed and there was a feeling of failure too since I’d been loud on social media about chasing the sub 4-hours.  But then I ran into my friend Steve who had been suffering the flu and was also feeling the pinch.  We chatted about how just getting to the start line is a massive achievement and when the goal is out of sight it is a great opportunity to enjoy the scenery and the race day atmosphere.

As I ran along Port Melbourne I high fived the kids, tried not to stop and pat the dogs and lapped up the cheers from the sidelines.  I took another crush when the 4:10 pacers came along, I tried for a while to stay with them thinking that they may motivate me, but I couldn’t hold the pace without pain.

Clear blue skies and sunshine made running through St Kilda absolutely stunning.  There was a buzz in the air running along Fitzroy Street and down past Luna Park.  This is where I felt the best and got some great pace and momentum going.  By this stage the deal with myself was to run until walking through the water stations.  I kept this up until 30km.

Coming back up St Kilda road was tough.  I had checked out the course online and knew that this was going to be a test for me.  I wasn’t disappointed!
I’ve never seen so many people stopping on the side to stretch or sit down.  This is where my training had paid off.  While my piriformis where wrecked, meaning my glutes weren’t firing and powering me, my head was strong knowing that I’d ran on tired legs consistently.

St Kilda Road is tree lined and pretty, but those trees paired with the wind made leaves and dust fly everywhere.  It was horrible and I was glad I’d had antihistamines in the morning.

Then you run back through the botanical gardens.  8kms to go and I’m being handed a raspberry Zooper Dooper. Awesome! But that’s where the fun ended.  The gardens where really hard for me, I wanted to cry from the pain in my hips (even after Panadeine forte) and trying to run any sort of incline was proving to be difficult.  I walked quite a lot of these 5kms, however knowing that I wanted to run into the MCG I kept rolling the legs over, so they wouldn’t seize.

I was super excited coming up to Flinders Street station, I’d seen the most amazing photos previously and got myself camera ready.  But DAMN IT! The women in front of me stopped to get a standing photo together.  Yes – I am pissed!

Running back up Flinders Lane you cannot get the MCG out of you sights, yet I still had to walk/run due the pain because of the slight incline.  When I saw the turn to run into the MCG, I took out my music and off came the sunglasses.  I burst into tears as I saw the lush green grass, the big screens and the enormity of the stadium.  Oh. My. God.  This moment was a dream come true.  I looked down at my brothers name temporarily tattooed on my arm and bawled my eyes out for the whole lap – it meant that much to me.

Crossing the line and going through the chute was surreal.  I cannot get over how many others were crying and how many people were vomiting.  It seemed to be a tough day out for everyone.

Because I LOVE bullet point lists here’s the highlights:

• Running major roads of Melbourne City completely closed down for us
• Doing a jump shot for the photographer in port Melbourne
• Singing and dancing to myself to keep those last 5kms from hurting – it works!
• Running with Steve in parts, it’s great to see a friend on course
• The camaraderie on course, I had an amazing girl pep talk me for the last KM and we got to hug at the finish
• Shout out from Brownie on course – I’m always own zone so I love it when I get a shout
• The volunteers – they must have been hot and exhausted, but they smiled all day
• Having Jack at the finish line. In the hard moments I kept running because I just wanted to get to him.  And to cake!
• Lastly and most of all – running into the MCG

Would I recommend the race to a friend?  Absolutely!
It was only injury that made the course so tough on me, as I sit here now my quads are burning which means my form was a disaster with no glutes firing.  The course and race are fantastic and you cannot top that finishing line!

Why I chose Hansons Marathon Method (HMM) for Melbourne Marathon – Review

Famous for its 6-day running schedule, cumulative fatigue and the longest runs “only” being 27km, HMM claims to have helped thousands of runners smash their marathon times.  I’m not going to get into the ins and outs of the method, if you want to understand it further I highly recommend you buy the book.  In very basic terms, it is smart training with 49% of your running being easy and the remainder mileage being speedwork, strength training, goal pace and long slow runs.

Training to adapt – not just to survive

You would think someone recovering from piriformis syndrome, an overuse injury, would steer clear of a marathon program that requires running 6 days a week, with weeks up to 90km in distance. It is against everything I’ve learnt in running groups, through coaches and during my running accreditation courses, yet I was drawn to it.

I came across HMM while scrolling through Instagram. @runchar2 posted a photo of the book and it stood out.  I googled, I checked hashtags, scrolled through the Facebook group and concluded that this was for me and I ordered the book.  It is a fantastic read.

Below are the reasons I chose to go with something labeled “A Renegade Path to Your Fastest Marathon”

• I LOVE running and being ‘allowed’ to run 6 days a week would be amazing
• Most of my running PR’s have come off the back of my biggest half ironman training weeks, so I wasn’t scared of the load
• My marathon mind game is weak and HMM is meant to help develop coping skills to run the “last 10kms” of the marathon
• I like simple sessions. It is the same each week – speed/strength on Tues, tempo Thurs, long run Sunday.  Training paces stay the same, it’s just the distances that change.
• The book, the website and the app make it easy to understand the pace ranges you need to hit to work towards your marathon goal time
• My foot was wrecked with my piriformis injury and I thought running more would rebuild the strength and do better from recovery runs rather than rest days
• I’m a running coach and thought I was the perfect Guinea Pig to try the method on

As I enter Week 17 of the 18-week program, 2 weeks out from Melbourne Marathon, here’s what I have found:

• I am OVER running. I am fine once I get started, but it is taking me longer to get out the door than what it used to
• It is very time consuming. Missing a run doesn’t make sense in the method, which keeps you motivated, but also means running is your #1 priority for 18 weeks
• My mind game is feeling strong, I can’t wait to test it come race day
• Strangely I feel the sorest the day after rest day
• I have a new-found respect for what my body is capable of. Doing speedwork on the 6^th day of running is ridiculous, but it is absolutely possible to do and hit your target pace!
• I have remained injury free throughout the training cycle, just a few niggles now as I head into taper
• Going into the training, due to my injury, I was concerned I wouldn’t be able to do the marathon. Heading into race week I am confident of finishing and even aiming for the sub 4hour goal!  I believe I have every chance of getting that or at least a huge PB.

Would I recommend the method?

Yes, if:

• You have the time and support to making your runs the priority
• You use running as therapy
• You are strict with sticking to a plan and the appropriate pace
• Mind game is a goal for your marathon
• If you like running alone
• You understand your body and know the difference between pain and fatigue

No, if:

• You’re time poor or have family/work commitments
• You struggle with self-motivation and often make excuses
• You like running groups or running with friends and find you end up running at their pace
• You think you must go fast on long runs

 

 

Enjoying your holiday while still keeping fit & healthy

We work so hard to be in our best shape for a holiday only to blow it all when we are away and struggle to get back into the habit once returning home.

Before heading on my recent holiday to USA I turned to my boyfriend Jack and said that I was going to make the most of all the BBQ meat, chocolate and Dr Pepper over there since it will be another year until I get to do it again.  That’s 10 straight days of eating amazing southern food and sugar laced goodies.  Surely this can only lead to disaster?

While I am not as lean as when we left (Jack came back just as ripped!) we made sure we kept up some good habits so that it wouldn’t be so hard on return, all while gorging on BBQ sauce smothered ribs, caramel M&M’s and Dr Pepper.

We don’t want to obsess over health & fitness while on holiday, we still do our fair share of overeating, rest days by the pool drinking cocktails and sleep ins.  But we do try to balance that out with healthy habits.

Here’s my 10 tips

1. Make your own breakfast
   As soon as we roll into the city, we buy protein powder and breakfast cereal (oats for me), milk & yogurt and ask for bowls and spoons from reception. Occasionally I’ll go out for a big breakfast, but oats are my favourite.  I’d rather save the money and the big meal for lunch or dinner
2. Workout
   Keep it up! Our training has not been the intensity it would be at home, but doing some form of exercise has helped loosen our bodies after long flights & drives and set us up for the days adventures.
   If your hotel doesn’t have a gym, google local gyms or check if your normal gym has something in the area – Anytime Fitness are located throughout USA so we were able to go there!
3. Pack protein bars
   I am gluten intolerant so this is a habit anyway, with our first stop from the airport being GNC, I grab a heap of bars so that I’m not eating junk for snacks.
4. Don’t eat EVERYTHING put in front of you
   I think this made the biggest difference on this trip. I didn’t eat all of the in flight meal if I didn’t really like it – or wasn’t really hungry.  Even when I had a plate of ribs & brisket at an incredible Memphis BBQ restaurant, I stopped eating once I was full.
5. Drink plenty of water
   That old cliché!
   I drank plenty on the long haul flight and included some electrolytes, but unfortunately I didn’t keep it up throughout the trip. Lesson learned.
6. Get some sleep
   This can be hard, especially if you’ve had a few drinks. We get some natural sleeping aids from the chemist to assist and it truly made a difference.
7. Running and bike tours
   Due to injury I didn’t get to discover New Orleans by bike or running, but it is something I recommend. I ran through New York myself and it was an amazing experience.  If you have any concerns for safety, most cities offer running or cycling tours.
8. Pack fit supplies
   My bag included fitness bands, small ball to roll out my glute pain, sports tape and plenty of gym wear. I’ve included my skipping rope at times and always pack swimwear – just in case.
9. Wear active wear sightseeing
   Active wear as everyday clothing is so normal now and being comfortable walking around sightseeing all day makes a huge difference. The more comfortable you are, the more likely you’ll walk rather than taxi or bus.  Even streetwear shoe styles are comfortable for a day walking 17,000 steps around Graceland and the Memphis Zoo!
10. Enjoy the moment!
    I certainly had moments where I felt body conscious due to what I’d been eating. But I would remind myself that enjoying beautiful restaurants or days off of training are no big deal.  A couple of weeks are not going to ruin your progress forever.  Life is worth living and holidays are worth enjoying.

    

Minding Her Business – A lesson in attitude

Last Sunday I went out of my comfort zone and went to my very first networking event.  Ran by Minding Her Business, the event encourages women in business to connect, collaborate and create.

As I walked into the stunning venue I was buzzing with excitement about the day ahead – inspirational speakers, connecting with girl bosses and the perfect Instagram space.  Then I noticed the women. Wow. Every single one looked like a model and as I looked down at my $15 Supre dress, I felt like running out the door. I didn’t belong here amongst these beautiful, obviously talented women.  I walked to the bar, took my glass of champagne and hoped it would bring with it some dutch courage.

I was lucky enough to be gifted the ticket from the #MHBTribe Girl Bosses Katie and Dani, so when I spotted the divine floral wall, I knew I had to get the courage to ask someone to take my photo for me.  Lucky enough there were two ladies ahead who I shamelessly offered to take photos of together if they could help me out too. They did far more than that! When they noticed I was there alone they invited me to hang with them and I clung onto them for the rest of the day.

Gorgeous ladies Meagan @the_style_boss  and Kirky @kawattz

The speakers were amazing, the feeling in the room was incredible, but I left very disappointed in it all.  My first thought was to blame the event.  It seemed more like fashion people and I’m fitness. They’re supermodels and I’m just taking pictures with a phone timer.  I’m just starting and they are already on their way.  All the excuses that you allow yourself, thinking everyone else is better than you and assuming they probably had it easy along the way.  Then I remembered Guest Speaker Renee Slansky, who opened the day talking about relationships. If you want to see change in your world, it begins with YOU.  My attitude towards the event stank and my attitude to these amazing women stank!

When I was asked what I do I mumbled a reply about doing contracts in real estate and then a throwaway comment about being a running coach.  The same way I used to reply when people would ask me about my running. “Oh, well, I’m not really a runner”.  How many times have you heard yourself saying that?

You tie up your shoelaces with the intention of putting one foot in front of the other for exercise?  You are a runner.
I treat myself and my brand as a business with the intention of helping others and making money? I am a business woman.

I left the event thinking that there was no way I’d bother doing anything like this again.  What was the point?  I met two amazing women that I intend to keep in touch with, but I had so quickly sank into my anxiety hole and instead of speaking with people, I stood around dying to know what each Girl Boss was into.  What did they do? What inspired them and how were they making it happen?

How many times have you started running or fitness, it felt horrible and you barely saw results, so why bother?  That’s how I felt.  My own worst enemy.

The hour long drive back to Brisbane gave me plenty of thinking time.  I started to think about how I could relate the experience back to running since one of the biggest lessons in my life came from running my first half marathon.  I had read an article about an office worker doing it and thought I could to.  So I found an event, got a plan to get me to that goal and finished the race.

We don’t start anything at our end point.  It doesn’t happen over night either.  What I realized on the drive home from the networking event is that I could apply my running outline to most things in life to succeed.

1. What is the goal?
2. Set the plan
3. Be committed
4. Gear up
5. First time is the hardest but every time after that it becomes more and more of a habit
6. Don’t try and compete or compare yourself with others – that is not what you are doing this for
7. Learn from others
8. Be yourself

The next event is in June and I intend on going in with the goal to talk to the other Girl Bosses and get excited about their goals!  I’ll plan better, including conversation starters to help me feel less lost in the room.  I’ll also plan my outfit better (gear up!) to be more of who I am so I can be comfortable in myself.  I saw a girl there in her Nike’s & dress and I kicked myself – I had been dying to do that, especially with my piriformis / sciatic injury pain!

What do you have in life that these points can assist with?

2018 running goals

It is long past January 1st, but I thought I would add my 2018 running goals onto the blog to hold myself that little more accountable.

I ended 2017 very flat and drained in training, but the hype of a new year kept me motivated. I posted my goals on instragram and got excited. Unfortunately January wasn’t any better and I had been so tired at night that I was almost in tears. I started feeling really down and started questioning my abilities as a runner and in turn, a Coach.

But then I had a conversation with my partner about a calorie and nutrient tracking app and how I normally track my food intake for a few weeks every 6 months to ensure I’m fuelling properly.

That’s when I realised I haven’t been having enough carbs and iron. Iron is something that women need to be aware of, especially when training a lot and it is something that I have been low on my whole life.

I immediately started taking iron supplements and I am still tracking my daily food intake to ensure my carbs are high enough for my body.

The difference has been incredible. Within days of additional nutrients I was already starting to notice a difference. My breathing wasn’t as shallow, my thinking was clearer and I wasn’t so exhausted. My last 2 weeks of running have been back on track with some great speedwork, 3rd in Age Group placing in a 5 mile race and back to doing some longer runs, including 16km today.

So now that I’ve regained motivatation and positive about 2018, here are my running goals.

5km: sub 20min

10km: Sub 45min

21.1km: Sub 1:40min

42.2km: SUB 4 HOURS

I will be celebrating every PB that I get along the way, even if it is only by 1 second. Celebrating those mini achievements is so important and keeps you positive and on track on for hitting those big goals.

If something in your body or training isn’t feeling right, have a good think about what it could be Speak with your doctor. It could be something as simple as diet like it was for me.

Happy Running!

Training Diary 12-18 February 2018

Mon: Rest day

Tues: 5.5km slow recovery run with the doggy. Feeling tired after the 5 mile race.

Weds: 52min ride around the bike track. Low effort, tight hamstrings

Thurs: Lasso repeats x 4 (800m)

Fri: 45min windtrainer bike session. Low effort, humid weather, sweatfest

Sat :2.5km swim session. No plan

Sun: 90min run – 16km and felt fantastic!

Protein breakfast muffins

 

I basically took up endurance sports because I love eating.  Especially carbs. I grew up demolishing fresh loaves of bread as soon as they came out of the oven. Mmmm that hot spongy bread smothered in melting butter and jam.
So it was rather devastating when I found out that I was gluten intolerant. Removing gluten from my diet has had amazing, life changing results but I do still day dream about that bread!

The hardest thing to change was my morning oats. I tried quinoa, rice flakes, gluten free muesli, but none of them were as satisfying as oats. Oats are a different gluten (avenon) to wheat and not all GF’s are intolerant, so you can try to reintroduce them after some time. Lucky for me I am able to have them, as long as it is certain brands that aren’t contaminated by sharing fields or machinery with wheat.

Anyway, back to the fun part.

Muffins for breakfast! My sister gave me the random gift of a muffin maker when I was young. It was awesome, takes half the time of an oven and come out perfect every time. I recently hunted one down and love that my breakfast recipe makes mixture for 3 muffins that I can throw into the maker while I jump in the shower. Us runners/triathletes are time poor and hungry so it is my wonder recipe.

Ingredients

*1/2 cup oats

*1 scoop protein powder

*1/2 teaspoon baking powder

*1/2 cup water (or more if too dry)

*Finely grate half a carrot or zucchini (you wont even taste it!)

*Cinnamon, cardamon, ginger, tumeric, cacao powder, mixed spice – flavour you like

Directions

Whizz up the oats, protein powder, spices, baking powder and water. Stir in the grated veggies and throw in the muffin maker for about 10mins or oven for 15-20mins.
Serve with 170g greek yogurt.

It is also a great recipe to use as pancakes when you have the time.

Cals: 418
Carbs: 46g
Protein: 33g
Fat: 11g

*dependant on your brand of protein and what additional flavours you add – eg choc chips

This is a great recipe for anyone focusing on their health & fitness and goes perfectly with a coffee.

Let me know if you try the recipe
Coach Bee