CONQUERING L’ETAPE LONDON

September 28, 2024 / No Comments

You know those races that you sign up for and then forget until it’s just round the corner and you realise you haven’t done much specific training?

Well that’s how I felt going into L’Etape London, a 75km cycle sportive starting in Stratford and heading out to deepest darkest Essex before coming all the way back.

In the run up to the race I’d done a couple of longish cycles (55km and 50km) as well as the 40km in the middle of my triathlon in August but that’s about it. I’ve always loved cycling ever since I was young so although I see these long cycles as a challenge it’s certainly not something that I was nervous going into.

The day dawned beautifully clear and sunny so after my normal pre-race breakfast of protein oats I hopped on my bike and gently cycled the 5km down to the Olympic Park velodrome where the start was. There were fewer people doing the race than I thought there would be so the event village was small, uncrowded and friendly. There were no queues for the toilets (shock horror) and there was no wait to have a last minute tyre pressure check.

The only thing that I noticed at the start and the whole way through the race was the lack of women. I’d say that about 70% of the entrants were men of all ages and the rest were women. In my start wave there were a few older women but I was one of the youngest women there. Come on girls, it’s time to get cycling!

Anyway, off we went into the beautiful morning and before I knew it we had ridden through most of East London and we had hit Epping Forest. This is where the hills started, at this point they were long and gentle which was good to get my head down and pedal steadily to reach the top. Just before Epping we turned off to Theydon Bois and this is when the real pain hit. Between Theydon Bois and Ongar (the turn point) it seemed like we were on one long switchback. The ups and downs were short, sharp and never-ending.

My quads and hamstrings were really starting to protest when we hit the feed station, a total blessing. There was a table laden with pain au chocolat, biscuits, sweets, bananas and boiled salted potatoes. Potatoes?! I know, they were amazing… I didn’t want to spike my blood sugar at this point (34km in, not even halfway) because I knew that the sugar crash would hit me before the end of the race and I would really struggle. All I needed was some carbohydrates to replace all of the glucose that I had used up in my muscles.

After scoffing 4 potatoes, refilling my water bottle and stretching my legs I hopped back on my bike and set off through the cobbles of Ongar. From this point to the end of the race the pack was much more strung out as people spent different lengths of time at the feed station. I spent quite a few stretches all by myself which was amazing.

The sunshine, countryside and sense of freedom that cycling brings all added up to one happy little lady. I was actually smiling to myself at various points of the race because I was just so happy to be out in the sunshine cycling as fast as I could.

Eventually I made it to Epping where I waved at my in-laws’ house and sped back through the forest down those hills. With about 15km to go I hit the wall. Everything was sore and my legs just didn’t want to work anymore. I stopped for a couple of minutes, had a gel and a swig of water and stretched my legs. It did the trick because a couple of minutes after I got back on my bike I felt strong again and I flew down through East London back to Stratford.

The final km was on the road track at the velodrome with a sprint finish and I gave it everything I had left, crossing the line in just under 3.5 hours. I picked up my medal and pretty much kept cycling! The 5km home felt like a luxury cool down as I took it at a nice slow pace.

The biggest shock and biggest pat on my back was when I checked the results later that night and found out that I came 8th in my age category! Bloody hell! I’m normally that one plodding in at the back but not this time.

Overall I would massively recommend this race and I’ll definitely be doing it next year! Maybe even the longer route… Plus how sexy is this medal?!

WHY YOU SHOULD DRINK MORE WATER

September 21, 2024 / No Comments

Drink more water! Make sure you’re hydrated! Blah blah blah, we’ve heard it all before but do you know why it’s so important to be adequately hydrated?

 

Our bodies are around 70% water and without enough of it we just don’t function properly and it can prevent us reaching our fitness goals. Dehydration and illness can be caused by losing just 10% of your body’s water, really not that much when you think about how often you lose it through going to the toilet, sweating and just existing. Losing any more than that and you’re getting into dangerous health territory.

Here are my top reasons why we should be guzzling the good stuff:

1) Our brains are about 90% water so making sure that you’re drinking enough ensures that your brain can function efficiently and you can stay focused on whatever you need to concentrate on

2) Dehydration can cause your skin to appear wrinkled and tired so if you want to have plump and youthful looking skin make sure your skin cells are pumped full of water and use a moisturiser to seal in that moisture

3) Without enough water your muscles can shrivel which means that when you start working out you will fatigue much quicker and that kickass workout that you have planned is suddenly not an option

4) Your liver needs water to metabolise fat so if your goal is to lose body fat then drink that water so you can torch your fat reserves

5) It helps keep you regular because if you’re dehydrated then your body pulls water back out of your poo (sorry that I didn’t call it ‘stools’ but that word has never sat right with me…) and makes you constipated. No one wants that now. Sufficient fibre and fluid will keep your colon and bowel healthy and efficient

6) Water helps your body get rid of toxins by allowing the kidneys to function properly and flush out all the nasties in your body. If you regularly don’t drink enough then you risk damaging your kidneys

7) Adequate water helps to keep muscles and joints lubricated and will help to stop you getting cramps and strains

8) Often if you feel hungry you might actually just be thirsty so if you’re prone to snacking unnecessarily chug a glass of water before reaching for the snacks, wait 15 minutes and see if your hunger goes away

So how do you know if you’re drinking enough? Well, this is where you have to start looking at your pee. It should be light in colour, relatively odourless and easy to pass. If it becomes stronger in colour or odour or you have to strain then you need to get on the water and rehydrate your body because it’s struggling.

Try and aim for a minimum of 2 litres of water each day which can include some caffeine-free herbal tea but not tea or coffee because caffeine can be dehydrating in itself. I find it easiest to have a big bottle of water (800ml) that I fill up 3 times during the day so that I know I’ve drunk my minimum fluid required. I’ll top that up when I work out with an extra 500ml and here’s my top tip; whenever someone offers you a drink, take it and drink a glass of water. You’ll be amazed at how much extra you’ll drink.

How do you make sure you drink enough?

 

WHY BODYCON?

September 17, 2024 / No Comments

You might have seen on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter (yes, I know, I love social media…) that I run a weekly class called BodyCon at Love Your body Health Hub in Hackney, East London. So what exactly is it?

Well, BodyCon stands for ‘Body Conditioning’ so the format of the class is roughly 30 minutes of cardio work (eg. tabata, hiit, circuits, AMRAPs etc.) followed by 30 minutes of free-weight work focusing on a different body area each week. The idea is that if you come every week you will work your way round the body each month and build some muscle.

The cardio section is designed to keep your heart-rate jumping up and down and burn some fat while the weight section will increase your muscle mass and therefore increase your metabolism, allowing you to burn more calories even when you’re resting. The EPOC (Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption) effect keeps your metabolism boosted for at least 24 hours after the class helping you to burn even more calories.

So all in all it’s a great class for whatever your goal might be. Also, you’ll get a brilliant smug feeling for working so hard early in the morning!

BodyCon also stands for ‘Body Confidence’ which is a big part of my approach to fitness so I like to make sure that the class is accessible for everyone, no matter what their level of fitness. It’s a great laugh, I get super sweaty doing the class with everyone and I love teaching it!

If you want a review from the point of view of someone who’s taken the class have a read of Project Hot Bitch’s review here.

Come and join me every Wednesday 7am-8am at Love Your Body Health Hub, I promise you won’t regret it… You can book in here

 

MY AUTUMN KIT LUST LIST

September 13, 2024 / No Comments

Here in London the weather is starting to turn from summer to autumn and my thoughts are starting to shift towards those early morning workouts and PT sessions. I’m not great in the cold so I like to make sure that I’m fully prepped for frost, snow, rain and PT sessions run in the dark before sunrise.

This is my Autumn kit lust list of everything that I would love to have to see me through the next few months of workouts.

1) North Face Nuptse 2 Gilet £130 - I prefer gilets to jackets when I’m training clients or myself outside, particularly for the beginning of the sessions because they allow you full movement while keeping your midsection toasty warm. This North Face one is light, stylish and packed full of goose down

2) Sweaty Betty Utrasana Half-zip Hoody £115 - it’s just as important to stay warm after your workout as during so keep this hoody in your bag to throw on after your sweat session and let your muscles cool down slowly

3) Helly Hansen Active Flow Graphic Base layer £40 - base layers are essential for keeping warm and this one is moisture-wicking which is perfect because half of staying warm is staying dry

4) Nike Dri-FIT Training Bralette £35 - perfect for us ladies who are endowed with small boobs and don’t need a huge amount of support. Also, I love the high neck as it’s different to most other sports bras out there

5) Under Armour HeatGear Shorts £25 - I don’t know about you but I always get a cold bum and thighs and they stay cold for ages, even after I come inside. These base layer shorts will be essential for keeping my extremities warm!

6) Nike Pro Midnight Floral Tights £90 - The pattern on these is amazing, I can’t stop looking at them! The other Nike Pro tights that I’ve had were very comfortable, not see-through and great for wicking away moisture during workouts

7) Asics GEL-DS Trainer 20 £107 - While I have to run in Saucony trainers thanks to my over-pronating flat feet, these Asics trainers are perfect for gym training. They’re still supportive, very comfortable and look awesome. Also, I heart neon

Now who wants to buy me a belated birthday present…?

 

WHAT I LEARNT FROM THE #WELOVEOURBODIES CHALLENGE

September 9, 2024 / No Comments

If you’ve been following me over the last couple of weeks you’ll have seen that I ran a 2 week challenge called #weloveourbodies. The aim of the challenge was to encourage myself and other people to get into a habit of body positivity rather than looking in the mirror and hating what you see.

You can see all of my posts on my Instagram and see what other people contributed to the challenge by searching the #weloveourbodies hashtag or clicking here. Rather than posting all of the images here I actually wanted to tell you what I learnt and what I’m taking away from the challenge.

1) Focusing on positivity can change your day

Each day that I posted an update I felt that my whole day was infused with a bit more positivity because I was looking at things in a new way. I was definitely stuck in a rut of looking at myself and my life and picking out the negative aspects rather than celebrating the positive ones

2) The human body is amazing

The things we can do by pushing ourselves and also just by existing are incredible. On a day to day basis our bodies get us through all sorts of things (like waking up at a 5:30am alarm…) as well as those special days when we push ourselves up to and beyond our limits

3) Being positive can be difficult

Towards the end of the challenge I was running out of things to be positive about, despite only identifying 10 or so things that I loved about my body. There were plenty of other bits of my body that I could feature but I was really struggling to be positive about them. One of the most difficult to post was the final day, featuring my stretch marks that I’m still learning to love

Showing some love for my stretch-marked love handles

4) It’s amazing what we can do with a bit of support

I’ve noticed that particularly with women there is a default position to be bitchy and judgmental and we do it without even thinking, especially when we’re with friends. This challenge has shown me that with a bit of positive support then we can help other people to feel good about themselves. Let’s not tear other people down, let’s build them up together. Next time you want to say something bitchy take a deep breath and think whether it’s necessary

5) You can be positive about your body & still want to improve it

Part of loving your body is acknowledging what it can do and working with it to improve. The phrase ‘don’t workout because you hate your body, workout because you love it’ has never been more true. Enjoy the feeling of progress, revel in reaching your goals and celebrate your achievements. Try not to stand still and instead be constantly looking to see where you can go next

REVIEW - THE JOYS OF MYPROTEIN

September 7, 2024 / No Comments

You know those shops where you see something in the window then walk in and see a million other things that you want, like an Aladdin’s cave? Well MyProtein is a bit like that but online. Which makes it even more dangerous because you can shop in your pyjamas.

When I was offered some products to review I was spoilt for choice but this is what I went for:

1) Cookies ‘n’ cream diet whey

2) Energels (tropical flavour)

3) Capri leggings (not on the site anymore but these are pretty similar)

4) Gym barrel bag

5) Slim shaker

My top pick has got to be the protein and not just because it’s cookies ‘n’ cream flavour (my favourite ice cream). It’s perfect for a high-protein breakfast which is when I tend to mostly use protein powders, especially if I want a light breakfast that I can train on soon after.

My go-to breakfast is a protein smoothie made with 1/2 banana, handful frozen berries, 2 tsp ground flaxeed, 1 tsp chia seeds, 1 scoop protein powder, ice and almond milk.

The powder contains green tea extract, Acetyl-L-Carnitine and Essential Fatty Acids as well as instant oats to give you a low-GI boost of carbohydrates. For someone who’s looking to lean out rather than build serious bulk this is a great protein because the Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALCAR) helps the body to utilise fat for energy while the green tea extract gives you a boost of caffeine and feel-good energy. Plus, it tastes really very nice which helps.

I used the Energels during my triathlon training and the event itself and they did a great job at just keeping my legs moving when normally they would have given up. The flavour is ok and would be better if they were cold but an hour into a race that’s not going to happen. The carbohydrates in the gels replace all of the glycogen in your muscles that are used up during exercise, allowing you to keep going. They also contain electrolytes, a vital component for those long events. I picked the ones without caffeine because I’ve heard way too many bad stories about what happens if you take too many caffeine gels….


The shaker is a perfect size for drinking BCAAs during my workouts to make sure that my muscles don’t break down when I’m going hard and the barrel bag is a great size to chuck all of my training gear in to take to client sessions. The only thing I’d say about the bag is that the zip is a little bit dodgy and doesn’t always close properly!

And so, onto the leggings. This is a tricky one because they’re probably the most flattering leggings I’ve ever put on. The grey colour and soft fabric is good at accentuating every muscle and curve which led to some interesting and unwelcome comments in the supermarket.

Hello hamstrings starting to appear…

That said, my problem with the leggings is that not only are they a bit see-through but if you’re in the middle of a serious sweat session, everyone is going to know about it. After a hiit session, teaching a class and then a heavy leg session the sweat was showing in all of the areas you don’t want it to. Crotch, knees and bum. Yep, not cool.

Excuse the graphic nature of this shot but you can see the black label through the leggings! Enough said…

Overall I’d say that MyProtein is really excellent for supplements and nutrition but I’m not completely convinced by some of their other products. Try them out for yourself and let me know how you get on!

PS. if you’re in the US try this link for specific USD prices and products: us.myprotein.com

Disclaimer: I was sent these products to review for free but all opinions are my own as always!