Ive done it!

I made it! . Seeing the finish line and be able to gather enough adrenaline to sprint all hell towards it! Wow - it was hard but I really proud of the time. Finished in 1hour and 44 mins. Was actually the most rewarding thing I've ever done!


Official times: Swim 22.01 - Transition 05.01 - Bike 44.21 - Transition 03.32 - Run 29.39.


A reasonable performance coming in at 218 out of 600 female competitors! I will wear this smile for at least a few weeks!

RESULT = Totally exhausted!

Click HERE are some pics!

Taper, taper, set...GO!

The past 10 days have been good, solid training.
Sunday 5k run
Monday 5k run bricked with 900mtrs swim
Tuesday 70mins cardio in gym, treadmill, xtrain and bike
Wednesday Spin class
Thursday early am 6k hill running
Friday bike loops in regents park
Saturday - a well deserved R&R day out
Sunday - am 90min fast bike ride and 6k trail run on the heath

This week is all about the 'taper' rest and recuperation! So Monday was a steady swim, Tuesday a gym cardio session and Wednesday run and spin class. Today is pure rest - and Friday should be a super short run - just to remind myself of what's in store...

Food wise I am trying to follow the rules by keeping hydrated, lots of fruit and veg, complex carbs and wholewheat pasta planned for pre-race dinner tomorrow....

I feel good though - this training feels like an accomplishment - I have made lots of sponsorship for the BHF, just the act of receiving kind words of support from so many people has really made the training- and it is hard to ignore the physical benefits of this training too: 6kg lighter, 11 inches loss from my body measurements (all over - not just my gut!) - results all round!

Perhaps the reality hasn't dawned - the race pressure might hit me. But i keep reminding myself - it's the largest novice race in the calender so reassuring - oh, and it being the largest mass participation triathlon in the WORLD!

........

2 weeks

14 days and 1 hour to go!

Yikes and my race number came with the wave start time in the post this morning....THE REALITY IS UPON ME!

But on the whole I am feeling much better - although the cold/cough hasn't completely subsided, I do feel 90% back to myself so after a training week, which SHOULD have been the most intensive so far - but really consisted of a Monday gym/ bike combo and run/ spin class on Wednesday, the week was fairly relaxing - I got a bit angry and disappointed with myself for not being well enough to train. But I'm hoping I have turned it around and now trying to stay positive for the next 2 weeks no matter what life throws at me! And in the dubious wisdom of a crazy American tri-obsessive Jay Martin "whatever negativity and inferiority you feel in training, that negativity will come with you on race day...banish it now and enter competition feeling fierce and ready to WIN" (yup - good strategy?)
This morning, I swam 850meters, ran to the gym, biked 20k and ran 5k on the treadmill. If I can do this in training so no reason I wont be able to do it on the day...how fast is not my concern- finishing is! The money I raised so far has really spurred me on to do this and I thank you all for your support!

So I have my start time, 3.30pm Female Sprint Second Wave. My number is 1618. I have the next 2 week to do an intense week - concentrating on timings, techniques and transitions. The 3 T's of Triathlon!

Bring' it on :)

Resuming the level

Ive been so tired and busy since last week that by Friday the late nights and new job had taken their toll on me and woke up on Saturday with a stinking sore throat, sinus and headache! Nightmare! and meant that the three days I had skipped training were then added to the enforced illness break...
But I am feeling better now, so hit the gym early and had a steady workout. Then went for a training ride after work, 4 loops of regents park outer circle. The real test is how I feel Tuesday morning...

4 week countdown!

here we go - time to get all 'serious' about training...ha! I laugh in the face of such dedication. No really, I haven't given up I just have a LOT on at the minute! New job :) So the past week had 2 unplanned rest days - and a fair bit of social time but feel like I redeemed myself with a long bike ride on Sunday. Quick recap of what was the first of 3 solid weeks of good quality training:
Monday Gym AM and bike ride PM 45mins hill repeats Swains Lane (awful and too hot!)
Tuesday Gym 15mins xtrain, 35min treadmill run, 10min bike and all important stretches
Wednesday Body pump class, weights and 45min spin class
Thursday really enjoyable 9.31k run round Regents Park, lovely sunny evening :)
Rest on Friday and Saturday...few shandies and fry up didn't help!
Sunday at 6.30am - the reward of beautiful sunshine and empty streets in central London, made the cycle adventure worth the early start - biked for 2hrs incorporating 5x Outer Circle loops at 11mins per 5k (on that basis I'm hoping for a near 40min bike performance on the day)
That wasn't enough - the endorphins flew through my bloodstream so ran up the stairs with my bike and back down with runners on for a brick 5k run! a good 28mins too.....
Luckily the afternoon reward was BBQ and fun times with friends so all worth it.

And tonight - the most perfect evening swim in the Lido, sunny and with a few days of nice weather the water could almost be described as 'warm' so treated myself to a non-wetsuit swim (22 lengths of 60mtrs). I have never seen it so busy at that time, all of NW5 had a similar idea for a cool dip...a fabulous reminder of why I really do love London...sometimes.

Fundraising Cake Sale - Pieathlon for Triathlon!

Yippee the fun part of training - baking and eating cakes all in aid of fundraising! So we had a fab turn out at the office fundraising cake sale, special thanks to Libby, Cathy and Paul who contributed with their culinary skills :)

I managed to sell cakes on Thursday and Friday making £105.60p! Amazing really considering it's a 'health' charity! :)

From adventures of a very amateur athlete

From adventures of a very amateur athlete

From adventures of a very amateur athlete

Training wise (bar eating the cakes) it has been a fairly good week - cycled the Outer Circle at Regents Park last Tuesday 4 loops of 5k, there and back, so a good 25k ride. Gym sessions for strength training on Tuesday with a 5k on treadmill, rubbish failed run in the rain on Wednesday (manged 5k - badly), an energetic Spin Class on Thursday, Swimming on Saturday morning followed by a tiring hill/trail run with Graeme.
Started a new week with an early gym session 25mins Xtrainer and 5k run - stretches and weights - despite the rediculous weather - heat this time hitting 32c , I also managed a quick bike round Hampstead - up Swains Lane (I admit stopping half way up! Must get better at gears!) and through Spaniards Lane. Easy enough but VERY HOT and sweaty when I arrived home....
Onwards and upwards, 4 weeks to go - have some podcasts to get through discussing mental attitudes and positivity during the race which I'm hoping will stand me in good stead.

swimming in the rain

After waking up at 6am on Saturday, I was feeling ready for a bike ride but the inner tube I had replaced had gone down overnight and didn't dare risk another embarrassing walk back with the bike. So in order to redeem my wasted attempts I went for a punishing 10k run through the heath. It was almost perfect that early - none of the usual 'on-trend-runners' with their inappropriate fashion wear and dj headphones! Took in some hills and varied the pace. As I was feeling energetic I followed it with 1.2k swim in the lido - good but still feeling outta shape and slow in the pool. I was feeling on top form at 9am sat with a coffee when it was all done! However, the rest of weekend was spent enjoying food and booze, so kinda back to where I was before come Monday morning! ah the perils of modern living!

Rain is becoming more than just a tiresome inconvenience, so instead of a bike ride had to brave the lido this evening. Strangely everyone else had the same idea :)
It's Wimbledon week so rain looks set to continue...grrrr hurry up summer come back soon. I need to get back out on the bike and make the most of the light evenings.

week in review

It would be fair to say its been an odd week. Bike arrived on Tuesday and spent most of the evening putting handlebars, wheels and seats on. I did surprise myself with an ability to grasp the basic mechanics of it all, thanks to YouTube managed to reattach the oily chain and work out the way it was meant to go on (the Internet basically can tell you EVERYTHING!)

I'm impressed with the bike, nice smooth ride too, brakes well (a must)- gear changes seem to baffle me but will get the hang of it. The fact that it actually fits me and is Women's Specific Design makes a huge difference - i could actually describe the seat as 'comfortable' not sure for how long (30miles later could be a very different story!)

Had a meander round the park and round the block, funny and humiliating, made me feel like a child learning to ride. Basically I am...

So this week in review: Pros: Have bike
Cons: Weather has been rainy so only managed one ride on Friday night.

Monday started off well thanks to G keeping me company with brick training (nothing to do with housebuilding) 5k running loop of parliament hill followed by a freezing dip in the Lido - hence only managed 12 laps (720mtrs)

Tuesday enforced rest waiting for bike to arrive.

Wednesday slight redemption with body pump weights class for 60mins, then 45mins spin class and a gentle 10minute 2k treadmill run.

Thursday a good lunchtime saw 2 loops of regents park outer circle - beating my previous PB with a 52minute 9.3K - nice so smiled all afternoon at work- then ruined it with 4 pints after work and cheese on toast at midnight...oh well, no matter how I try some thing's never change!

Friday - post work break in the rain so took the 'baby' out for a virgin spin in the local area. The Heath cycle routes are a total waste of time - one is too short, the other is gravel so only suitable for bikes with suspension! GRRR! Had to make do with the actual roads to West Hill and then up Millfield lane through Fitzroy Park - big hill! (I admit I stopped once first try - the gears fault honestly!) - back down and up again for practice, then up Millfield Lane and out at Highgate village, I resisted the temptation of heading up a big B Road...and had a pootle round and down Highgate West Hill - wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Complete with white knuckles as a van pulled right beside me! Brake control was all I used all the way to Swains Lane - where I went into residential streets - lovely undulating roads and hardly any traffic. Phew! I'd like to think it was around 5miles in an hour and 20mins. Had to text my nearest and dearest when I returned just to let them know I survived :)

Saturday - early morning wetsuit swim - lido temp had dropped from all the rain to a cool 15c. Only managed 14 lengths, felt tired.

Sunday - to make up for the unscheduled rest day on Tuesday and mitigating circumstances of rain, I ventured to the gym for a long session. 25mins xTrainer, 30minute 22K Bike, and 5k run in 29min.

Two PB's in one week - knackered and proud are the only words I have now. Looking forward to roast chicken and a good nights rest as reward.

wetsuit swimming...

Saturday was a whole new experience of wetsuit swimming. Very weird at first when you enter the water, but does have a level of buoyancy that helps with speed. Needed to practice crawl and breathing as feeling way to reliant in the old faithful breaststroke technique. But overall need to make an effort with at least 2 early morning swimming sessions per week.
Mornings mainly due to the fact that easier to do length's, no kiddies, and the other 'triathletes' swim then, looking all serious like automated seals speeding through the pool....intimidating yet hopefully will incite the competitive streak to help me not feel so much of an impostor!

Not a bad week over all on the countdown, all things considered. Thursday's run in Regents Park was good, despite not remembering the Gamin to track heart rate and kms. But managed 2 loops, so a 9k in 58Min's and despite the warm weather didn't feel any pain next day. (apart from the post-exercise headache that evening---not good)

So week 1 of 8 has seen me achieve a total of 19K running, 12k cycling and 1k swimming, + 2 cardio classes all in 5 hours and 35 minutes. A beautiful example of time management :)

Evan's cycles in Chalk Farm must named and shamed for selling me a helmet yesterday, with security tags attached....now have to go all the way back to the shop to get them to remove them!

Training plan

Yippeee.... 8 week countdown is here.
Schedule this week started on Sunday with a good 8k run with G - Darlo's finest scenery - Blackwell to the River Tees, lovely route and all the dogwalkers and fellow runners all said 'ello' as we passed. Ah the friendly northern charm!
Monday - a day of pure rest - catching up on sleep :)
Tuesday - Gym session with 25mins Xtrainer and 12k static bike followed by the joys of Ed's bootcamp class.... no pain, no gain....circuit killer. Im gritting my teeth all the way through. Although the saving grace is the 80s tunes!
Wednesday - Gym again, 20mins treadmill fast running, 25mins Xtrainer and my favorite Spin Class :) Sweaty!
So still to come this week:
Thursday - Regents Park outdoor run with some work runners...aiming for 8-9K
Friday - Early swim avec wetsuit which DOES make me look like a superhero (wishful thinking but yes, it really is that clingy!)
Saturday - depending on alcohol consumption - a good run / swim would be ideal
Sunday - stretches - long walk... maybe :)

BIG NEWS! Im awaiting my road bike to be delivered...so whenever that turns up, schedule out the window and speeding round the park instead!

First Road Biking....

So here is the report from my first time road cycling.....er, kinda hard work!
My Dad's expertise helped as we 'pootled' through a 12 mile course (his words, not mine!) starting at Croft, up to a few large hilly section to Middleton Tyas and through to Moulton, where we stopped for a breather (my suggestion!) Red faced and thirsty I supped a glass of orange juice at the Village fete and Dad talked to old dears about tomato plants!.

The roads were fine, and learnt a lot about 'Car Up' and 'Car Down'...the rules of changing gears to conserve energy on the uphills and how it actually feels to go down hills at rip-roaring speed, thrilling! Mostly traffic free so I didnt lose my cool when the cars sped by! eek!

I must buy a bike soon as I really enjoyed it but have so much yet to learn! I was spoiled by the fact that the bike was a fab Boardman, smooth, light and easy to handle...albeit a tad unconfortable on the seat! :) Women's seats are definately a must!

Right tomorrow sees another run with G, I'm planning a course up to the River Tees, through Blackwell and up to High Coniscliffe. let's hope thw rain stays away....

Oxford Town and Gown 10k by lindsaybennett at Garmin Connect - Details

Oxford Town and Gown 10k by lindsaybennett at Garmin Connect - Details

Town and Gown

So proof that I survived that Town and Gown 10k race lies in the fact that I am writing this and lived to tell the tale.

Boy it was tough, the real thing was the
mental stress of an actual competition. I think none of us had worked this out as we spent the night before loading up on carb-laden pasta (any excuse!) and sipping mineral water (strange concept, sans-alcohol evenings). All our concerns were on the physical, 'have I trained enough' 'ive never ran more than 8k', 'will it be too sunny', 'what should we have for breakfast'...and the good thing is we need not have worried as the whole group finished, despite our reservations of starting at the back of the sub-60 mins, we all flung our selves round the course (lovely meandering streets of oxford) and shattered expectations with great first time finishing times.

Drum roll please...I finished bang on 60mins...feeling mentally and physically exhausted. At the finish line, I wanted to burst into tears- something really just came over me that made me feel that way, v. strange. Perhaps it was just the tapering off from my last stores of adrenaline as I sprinted to the finish...despite the stitch at 4k it was all worth it. Lovely t-shirt from the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign and MY FIRST EVER MEDAL! (everyone got one!)
Afterwards, all situated in the pub for lunch and celebratory pints, all the conversation turned to our feelings of the weird psychology of being in a race, stuck with the crowds, most of us felt like everyone surged forward while you're getting further behind.
I'm now thinking I have a lot to learn about blocking this feeling out in the coming weeks

Welcome, welcome

13 May

So here is my accompanying training blog…yawn.

Nah, I’m hoping it will become filled with musings of interest and sharing some noteworthy observations on the way towards July 30th.

So just to give an update so far.

Picture the scene. It’s christmas day – at the family dinner - annual sprout and dry turkey feast, I happen to mention my vague inkling to take part in the London Tri – My Dad being the oh-so-professional road cyclist we all have become very proud of, seem’s to guffaw at the distances. “Ha triathlon, not really a race” …rising to the challenge and not wishing to be out done by the fitness levels of my 60+ Dad. I declare – “Well, that’s it then im definitely signing up’!” So stubbornly and perhaps even drunkenly, the Triathlon had been committed to.

And here I am 5 months later – so far having stepped up my gym routines, learnt how to run outdoors, become the owner of some spanky trainers (a valentines gift) and still I’m 80 days away from the sprint distances that I still fear…..and no bike!

On the 7th May – I swallowed my pride and signed up for the Virgin Active Indoor Tri – abnd suprised myself with two things, 1) how much I enjoyed it, the feeling of acomplishment when I finished was unbeatable and 2) how secretly competitive i might be…..

Right, this Sunday will be the first ever 10K run ive taken part in, thankfully Im not alone as its running with the beautiful Oxford girls (and 4,000 others!). The Town and Gown may jsut make me realise how hard running is…..

I will post up the results as soon as I can.

much love, enjoy the weekend x