Christmas

I am currently in a training black hole & vat of Quality Streets (choccies in tins for y'all that don't kno) I expect to stay in said place until at least 8pm of January 1st. Where I will reign victorious & slay the Christmas-over-indulgent Dragon.

Until then dear friends, I suggest you do the same. Enjoy the rest, your family & the lack of pressure to do anything else. Merry Christmas


Ps have managed 3 runs of no decent length tho but they've all been with my 15yr old sis who is slowly catching the running bug / getting influenced (manipulated) by big sis teehehe

Uh oh

It has to be said that half the way to recovery is admitting you have a problem. One of my flaws - yes, there are many, how kind of you to think otherwise! ;) is that I am ‘gung ho’:

I rush into things, I often respond immediately saying, ‘yes that’s a brilliant idea, I’d love to!’ before thinking and then have that 'WTF have I done?!' moment roughly 10mins after. Or I sign up to things thinking it’s a great idea and then revert to foetal position when I realise the magnitude of the challenge at hand.

To make said flaw worse, I quite like it, I often think of it as a charming enthusiasm to life *idiot*. I’m so cautious otherwise & if I wasn’t a little hasty in parts then I am convinced I wouldn’t have done the following in the past month:

1. Signed up to the Team12in12

2. Swam 3.9km before work with some Adonis-esq triathletes

3. Changed career & landed a dream job

4. Agreed to purchase this & perform a 12in12 race in it <- SERIOUSLY NOW LUCINDA, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?! THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS.

Which brings me on to my favourite number ‘5’…I’ve just blinking well signed up to Janathon haven’t I?!





If you are unfamiliar with Janathon / Juneathon, you are about to get more intimately acquainted to it. The idea behind it is…run every day in January & blog…every day in January.

So dear Little Blog reader…yes you with your afternoon coffee trying to stay awake, expect typed drivel, (stream of consciousness style) as I try desperately, in vain to keep buggering on (Winston Churchill’s words not mine) throughout January, in an equally desperate attempt to break the back kick start my training for 12in12. You have been warned!

So now I’ve acknowledged my problem the next stage is to amend the behaviour- pah!

Drowned Rat

So on Monday (yup dates changed) I dived in to this...

I went to a Tri club and had a bash at their swimming training.

Everyone had completed an Ironman or a Half Ironman, I completed one sprint triathlon and broke my arm doing so (thanks GOAM, that blog post always makes me feel better). Anyway...you get the idea, I was Robin to their Batman, Watson to their Holmes and what proved it was this:

1. 800 m warm up
2. 3 x 300m (ie 900m) with float between my legs
3. 3 x 300m with hand paddles
4. 3 x 300m with fins
5. 200 m cool down

That right there is a loooooooooong distance! and within the first minute I resembled a coin in a fountain but it got easier! actually, no wait it really didn't. I felt useless and completely deflated all day, I thought I was quite sporty and would be able to cope with the swimming and at least 'wing it' but not even in the slightest. Eugh...enthusiasm does not make up for skill! ha. Well, I am now resolute, I will improve. Me vs. Swimming training I will be victorious come end of 2012! and the same with Me v Life.

In the meantime, I saw this & felt it really captured how I felt!

Mondays

So you know they're gonna be tough when they start like this

x5 cups of tea and 18 1/2 hours later (UK time) I am ready for bed...must remember to reset alarm, must remember to reset alarm, must remember to reset alarm, must remember to reset alarm, must remember to reset alarm, must remember to reset alarm, must remember to reset alarm, must remember to reset alarm. Zzzzzzzzz

Cardio Kettling

So, I was set the challenge to do something a lil’ bit different to my normal run / bootcamp routine and this came in the shape of Cardio Kettlebells, a new class at Frame Studios. I worried about resembling a shot-putter (Kelly Sotherton; is the aim not ur standard shotputters) but Frame put my fears aside – the class is a low weight, high repetition session that gets your heart rate high, so no bulk just toned muscles.

Kelly's Guns...if only!

I entered the rather fabulous exposed-brick, über trendy and so very Shoreditch, studios with my fellow Cardio Kettlebellers. We each grabbed a cute pink, baby blue or black kettlebell, depending on how brave we were feeling. Then Clare B, our instructor, walked in and turned the tunes up loud – think a night out in your fav Soho bar, Kylie, Scissor Sisters, Mika – and we cracked on with the class!

It felt like a modern update on the much loved Body Pump class, but the way you move with a kettlebell worked my core and hamstrings a lot more. There was a set for the arms which involved lifts plus a rework of the push up (ouch!). On the legs set we mainly did squats and lunges with twists which worked the back too. Abs rounded off the class, with waist-defining-twists and sit ups. The much needed cool down and stretching completed the class, and with Clare B egging us on the whole time, it meant the class flew by!

24 hours later my abs were utterly cursing the day I picked up the cute pink kettlebell. The class was so deceptive, because of the low weights you end up doing more reps than you ordinarily would. It wasn’t until each set had finished that I realised I was breathless (I blame the great soundtrack) and it wasn’t until the next day that I’d realised how hard I’d been pushed! It was so motivating to do something different and in my view the change was as good as a rest – especially if it is in the shape of a cute pink kettlebell!

Dear Father Christmas / Mawi / Fairy Godmother...

I have been very good this week doing my training even though I've had a cold (shhh you, I know it's only Wednesday) anyway...I know we are supposed to reward ourselves to work harder see here and so I wondered if I could these babies...Mawi Cobra Coil Earrings with Crystal Gems ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh oooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Just in case you need a visual reference of beauty http://bit.ly/uZ1KGC

Or failing those babies how about; world peace; my £12,000 target; find a cure for cancer or an eco friendly alternative to oil or how about getting Rihanna a nice boy?

Thank you
Lucinda

Tri-ing new things

Just signed up for a taster session at a potential triathlon club. I know that sounds uber sporty and serious which is why I am actually very nervous because really I don't feel that fit at the moment & I don't take my training seriously.

I will be leaving the comfort of the Superchicks, which I have loved and enjoyed so much, for more specific and focused training. If left to my own devices this happens. I admire people who follow a training plan and actually do it so much because it's so dedicated of them, unfortunately, I have little to no discipline, unless training becomes non negotiable, I wont do it.

So I'm 'tri'ing out <-like what I did there? TriLondon  mainly because their sessions are bike & swim heavy (the two bits I 100% need help on for my 12in12 challenges) but the real reason is because they call themselves, 'London's friendliest triathlon club'. 

After a few emails with the club's coordinator I'm meeting the new crew at 5.50 am (yes A-M) next Friday for my first swim session. I think Homer Simpson can provide a pretty good visual representation to how I'm feeling right now:

ARHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

How real/soon/scary is that?! What if I'm rubbish? What if I don't get on with anyone/they don't get on with me? What if I sleep in? What if I'm so rubbish they hope that I don't sign up to the club? 

I know I'll only find out by going and I'll never manage to do all my events if I don't train for them but I wish I could fast forward this bit! Wow it's like first-day-at-school nerves.

Totally necessary to improve stats like this:

Cycled - 25.76 km

Ran - 16.53 km 

Every meter counts!!

New Kit = Happy Days

Oh yeah guess who got their super hero outfit today 11 years after requesting one for their birthday?! Well technically, not me. This is my brand spanking new Xterra wetsuit that arrived in the post last week but have been a little busy to try it on. Well tonight, I tried it on and BOOM! love it feel like it should have a red cape rather than a yukky swim cap + goggles, yeah I know, I'm missing the point! Unfortunately, the wetsuit is a bit big on me so I'm going to get the smaller size (woohoo!)

The main reason I've got this is for next year's epic challenges - look here for a recap. I need it for open water swim training, mainly in the Serpentine Lake, Hyde Park and also for the triathlon in London. I'm not a very good front crawl swimmer (I last possibly 5 breaths before I feel Poseidon dragging me to the depths) so got this nifty wetsuit to convince me it would make a difference <-we shall see.

I'm so very very excited about testing it out in the rather lovely  duck / goose filled Serpentine that I've been youtube ing a load of the Peter Pan Christmas Day races, though as you can see on the video, wetsuits aren't allowed on the day - WHY OH WHY?! PLEASE CHANGE THIS RULE BY 2012!!!!

Whilst I momentarily forget about the horrific training challenges that await me, I'd just like to give an update on the ol' fundraising - your amazing generosity has got me to 2% of my target ALREADY! Thank you so much. The donations go to some amazing projects

Please help me reach £12,000 or on today's exchange rate €1165.54 or $18829.43 Think of me Christmas Day next year, doing this... *brrr*