Brighton Half Marathon Blogg Update.......Wind Down......

Less than 2 Weeks To Go……….

OMG…… I cannot believe I have less than 2 weeks left until the Brighton half marathon. I was planning on doing the Watford half marathon as a training run but I had been advised not to, so I decided to skip it.

Lucky I did, because it was snowing!! I thought it would be a good training run but if I was to be honest with myself I do not think I would have been able to not race it. This is why I was advised not to do it but to save myself for the actual race.

I am looking forward to the Brighton half and want to achieve a personal best. I hope the nerves and adrenaline will help me through on race day.

I do feel my training is going well. I have managed to do most of my runs outside which is good but due to the snow I am going to have to do some training this week on the treadmill.

Some of my training sessions in the gym have involved:

Circuit

1 mile run on the treadmill @ speed 14.5 and completed in 6:45 minutes

Squat to row x 20

Chest press x 20

Leg extension x 20

Bike 3 minutes

and repeated the circuit again

Weights session included:

Squat 2 row 3/12

Push up 3/12

Hamstring curls 3/12

One legged squat 3/12

Leg extension 3/12

Leg press 3/12

6km run on the treadmill

Last week I did 2 hours on the treadmill which was extremely boring but I did it at a low speed as I just wanted to spend that amount of time on my feet. It’s important that your body is use to being on your feet for a constant 2 hours without a break.

I have been getting some advise by an experienced athletic coach, Lynda Palmer back in South Africa and she has advised me that as this should be my last week of hard training .

On Saturday I am going to do 5 miles followed by rest days on Sunday and Monday. On Tuesday I will do a 10 minute run and a few strides followed by another 10 minutes. On Wednesday I will rest and then on Thursday I will do the same workout as Tuesday. Then I will rest and hopefully be ready for race day on Sunday 19th February.

Bodyism Pancakes - You Have To Try It........

I absolutely love the Bodyism Pancake. I feel full and satisfied after having this pancake as my pre run meal and have lots of energy for my run. I would definately recommend trying the Bodyism Pancake.

Meal of The Month - January 2012

Peanut Butter and Banana Healthy Pancakes

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Less than 70 calories per pancake

Ingredients

4oz/113g wholemeal flour

1 egg

Half a pint of skimmed milk

1tsp Splenda Granulated Sweetner

To serve:

1 tsp peanut butter

1 x banana

Method

Put flour into a basin and make a well in the middle

Put the egg in well, and stir in the flour, adding milk to make a smooth paste

Beat thoroughly to ensure the mixture is smooth and lump free

Add the remaining milk and stir in the sweetener

Using a non stick frying pan sprayed with frylight, pour in enough batter to coat the base of the pan

When the underside is brown, toss the pancake, or use a spatula to turn it over and cook on the other side

Ways to kick start your New Year to a new fit and healthy you........

Choose an exercise you enjoy.

Find an exercise buddy or get a personal trainer.

Set yourself goals and make sure you write your goals down.

Don’t let a bad day or week throw you off track.

Sign up for an event.

Nutrition

Firstly, clear out all the junk food and alcohol from Christmas and New Year so you have no more temptations.

Don’t choose a fad diet because you want a quick fix. Choose a healthy balanced diet that you are able to maintain.

Count calories or sign up to weight watchers or just eat a healthy balanced diet combined with exercise.

Tips:

Write a food diary

Do your measurements

Don’t skip breakfast

Don’t allow yourself to get too hungry.

Don’t go shopping when you are hungry because you tend to want to buy everything and it is normally all the “naughty foods”. Write a list before you go and make sure you stick to it.

Eat more fruit and veg

Reduce the portion size of your meals

Stay away from processed,fatty,sugary and starchy foods

Plan for the day ahead so you don’t find yourself grabing a chocolate ect. It may take a little extra effort but will be worth it. Try carrying around plastic pots of fruit, nuts and seed to nibble on in between meals. If you work long hours try and cook food and freeze it so you have healthy ready prepared meals.

Try  to eat little and often.

It is important to sit down and eat your meals and try not to sit in front of the tv. Chew your food slowly and this will help send signals to your brain to say you are full.

If you are still hungry after a meal, wait 20 minutes before grabbing some more food. Your body can sometimes take this long to register it has had enough. Also you could mistake hunger for thirst so have a glass of water instead.

Try and identify when you are more likely to want to overeat. Then find alternative things to do to keep you occupied, go for a walk, go to the gym, have a relaxing bath.

Most importantly learn to say NO…..do not give into temptation. Your friends and colleagues should not be encouraging you to eat sweets and desserts but should hopefully be supportive.

Be aware of the calories hidden in starbucks and costa coffees. Ask for the skinny version.