Filed under: British Military Fitness | Tags: Borneo, British Military Fitness, spread the word
If you’ve read my blog in the past and wondered whether to have a go at British Military Fitness but never got around to it – now’s the time to sign up! That’s because I want a BMF t-shirt and the chance of winning a free trip to Borneo with the BMF crew.
I shall explain: the lovely chaps at British Military Fitness are running an incentive programme this month – Spread The Word – to encourage existing members to introduce new members. There at t-shirts, places for BMF events, free membership for a year and a Kinabalu Challenge trip up for grabs. Despite the fact that I’ve been spreading the word for months on my little blog, I don’t qualify for a t-shirt until I introduce a new triallist…so roll up (and quote “Jo at irunbecauseilovefood” on your application form…)
Here are a few good reasons for signing up:
- The first class is free, so you’ve got nothing to lose.
- It’s brilliant exercise – you’ll work muscles you literally never knew you had and tone up all over.
- You will burn on average 640 calories per class.
- Membership is cheaper than the average gym membership.
- And it’s much more fun than the gym.
- You’ll meet a bunch of like-minded people, and have a laugh while you do it.
- It’s a very inclusive and supportive environment, despite the scary-looking instructors in their combats and boots (they’re all pussycats really).
If you’re thinking about it even a tiny bit, click on these links for more info:
- Overview for new members on the official website
- A write-up of my first ever class
- How to survive a winter class
- And if you’re still with me, here’s a little vid of a beginner’s class…
Now…sign up!
Filed under: British Military Fitness, running, walking | Tags: British Military Fitness, Little Miss Sunshine, running, sense of humour
More than 24 hours after Riotrunner, you’d have thought that my sense of humour might have returned. Not so last Monday evening at British Military Fitness. Surprisingly, I didn’t ache too much during the day, even after the beating that my ankles and knees took on the frozen sand at Borden (sand, it may have been, but it took on the properties of concrete in the cold), so decided to give it a bash.
It was an inky black night in Prospect Park – perfectly clear with hundreds of stars, and no moon. But I wasn’t happy. Especially when Instructor Steve made us run up and down the rugby pitch about 100 times, with only a few 85 barstardoes (squat thrust, press-up, squat thrust, jump) to break the monotony. My legs decided quite quickly that they did actually hurt rather a lot. And my sense of humour went firmly AWOL.
Happily for Steve and my fellow BMF-ers, it had returned by Wednesday evening, when we had a more varied session involving running round the football pitch and doing lots of different exercises on each corner.
Unhappily for Phil, the GSOH did another disappearing act on Saturday morning, when we tried to do an eight-miler. My left hip was seriously playing up, I felt very old all of a sudden, and I walked/limped/grumbled my way home.
Gave it a rest yesterday, and am planning on another BMF session tonight. Let’s hope Little Miss Grumpy becomes Little Miss Sunshine. Even if it is cold and damp.
Does this photo not give you all the information you need to know?
I was cold. And tired. My knees hurt. And a great big lump of ice had just cracked me on the shin.
And why the hell was that woman in the background looking so pleased with herself?
Filed under: British Military Fitness, fitness assessment, running | Tags: benchmarking, British Military Fitness, fitness assessment, iPod, jeans test, running progress, weight
I shall be jolly glad when January is over. At the risk of sounding like a grumpy old bag, it’s not been the best of months. The period after Christmas and New Year is always a bit of an anti-climax; the snow, which was lovely when it was playtime, was quite inconvenient when it came to work, getting anywhere or running; my best friend’s Mum passed away after a brutally short struggle with lung cancer; and, during the last two weeks, I’ve seen very little other than the inside of my office between the hours of 7am and 8pm. All in all, I’ll be glad to get into February.
My exercise routine has suffered particularly badly. There was a relatively high point the weekend before last when Phil and I managed an 8.5-mile run from his house. At least the first five miles were fine for me (rough for him), but I suffered during the second half of the excursion with pain in my, hip flexors and lower back (while he seemed to feel better).
That, and a conversation at British Military Fitness last week about the relative speed of others in the red group, got me thinking about the way in which I benchmark my progress – or lack of it. And much of the way I feel about myself is based entirely on the performance of other people. If I run with Phil and he’s having a crap time of it, I feel quite good. On the flip side, if he’s running comfortably and I’m struggling a bit, I get very cross indeed. Some of that is linked to the fact that I more or less introduced him to running, so I think I should be better at it.
But it happens at British Military Fitness too. The Reading class attracts 30 or 40 people on average – split into blue, red and green according to the level of fitness that’s measured by the fitness test on a monthly basis. If you want to do the fitness test, that is. I don’t particularly often, so I’ve stuck to red for quite a while now. My gut feeling is that I’d still be classified as red: although I’m not bad at sit-ups, burpees and even press-ups, my running’s not fast enough to give me the points I would need to go green.
But the class is then typically split down into two groups: blue and lower reds, greens and upper reds. I go in the “upper” class, to push myself a little bit more. When I first went in the upper group, I was consistently last in every exercise. Nowadays, I’m not always last; and I like to have two or three people behind me to feel that I’ve made some progress. But I hate exercises where we’re then split further down into teams for a little race, the result of which is determined by the slowest runner. I always feel as though I’m letting other people down, and beat myself up about it afterwards.
So, I’m going to resolve to try to not be so bothered about other people, and focus on individual progress:
- Weigh in – before Christmas, I was half a stone lighter than the previous Christmas, having kept off the weight I lost in Morocco. A few pounds have crept on since, probably due to the crappy January regime, but I should be able to get back down below 10 stone with a concerted four-exercise-units-a-week routine.
- Do the “jeans test” – I still have a pair of jeans in my wardrobe that I bought nearly nine years ago after completing my first London Marathon. I don’t wear them any more, because they have a rip in the right bum cheek area, but I tried them on today and they still fit. Result. I might keep them for the rest of my life, and periodically do the “jeans test”.
- Go solo – somehow I need to find a way of running on my own from time to time. I don’t get much chance during the week, but I think it would be a good habit to get into as the days get longer (they will do that eventually, won’t they?). Even a short route, accompanied by my iPod and a stopwatch, should show some irrefutable progress – which I haven’t been able to see since I gave up my gym membership and the regular 5k treadmill challenge.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2010, Bath half marathon, disabled skiing, Paralympics, sit-ski, Vancouver
Another non-running and non-foodie post, but I hope you’ll all read this and take something from it.
Seven years ago, a 33-year-old fit and active PE teacher was paralysed in a road accident. He was given a 30 per cent chance of surviving the accident and told he would be in hospital for two years if he lived. Within eleven months, he completed the Bath half marathon and within a year, he was back on the ski slopes in an adapted sit-ski. This week, he qualified to compete in the 2010 Paralympic Games in Vancouver.
That man, Talan, is my ex-husband.
Despite everything we’ve been through together, I remain very proud of his achievements and single-minded determination to reach his goal. No matter how difficult that was for both of us at times.
I wish Talan, Russ, Sean and the rest of the team all the very best in Vancouver. Go Team GB!
Talan
Yesterday, Phil and I re-insulated the loft in his house. If anyone asks you to help them do this, find any excuse NOT to do it. Anything. Just make it up. It’s a minging job.
Number of binbags filled up with old insulation materials: 40
Number of trips to B&Q to get Outbreak suits, facemasks, goggles and gloves: 2 (forgot the suits first time around)
Number of trips to B&Q to get new insulation materials: a further 4 (you try getting more than six rolls in a MINI)
Number of rolls of new insulation materials laid: 23
Number of holes in the bedroom ceiling, slightly larger than a size 9 boot: 1 (and I take a size 6…)
Number of times I had to shampoo my hair to get the crap out: 3
Number of times I blew my nose, only to discover black snot: at least 8 (I wasn’t actually counting)
Number of Papa John’s extra-large pizzas eaten, post-DIY: 2 whole ones
Number of hours’ sleep required to recover: 12
And we still haven’t finished – need to put more insulation down and board over a chunk so the loft space can be used to store stuff. We also have to find a way of getting rid of 40 binbags. And, no, it’s definitely not going in the back of my car. The council website is no use whatsoever, so it would seem that a skip will need to be procured. Oh, and someone needs to fix the hole in the bedroom ceiling.
All that said, it was a very good day. Aside from painting and decorating, I’ve got a very handy Dad who’s always done anything difficult for me. It was very satisfying to do a horrible job but see a result at the end of it.
A bit like a nasty long run really. So, with only one unit of proper exercise under my belt so far this week, that’s next on the agenda…
Filed under: British Military Fitness, food, walking | Tags: British Military Fitness, Henley, Maison Blanc, snow, sonning, The Bull
In years to come, we’ll look back on the last week or so with fondness. Right now, I’m struggling to find anything positive to say about the leftover dirty slush, freezing temperatures at night and perma-drizzle during the day.
Last week, I had every intention of maintaining the two-British-Military-Fitness-classes-and-two-runs-a-week routine that I established during the second half of 2009. I headed off enthusiastically to British Military Fitness on Monday, after the first day back at work – quite full of beans. It was a cold night – two days before the first huge dump of snow – and the ground was frozen solid, to the point that it hurt my bottom, knees and hands every time they made contact.
But on Wednesday, the world turned white and chaos ensued. There was no way I was going to try to drive to work, and no way of getting to BMF. I actually did want to go – after one day of working from home, I was climbing the walls and desperate for company. Thursday and Friday, I still didn’t dare dig out the MINI and got lifts into the office, but still achieved very little in the way of physical movement let alone exercise. By the weekend, I was suffering from severe cabin fever, but quite honestly didn’t want to risk a broken ankle or worse by running in the snow.
So went walking instead on Saturday. P and I caught the train to Henley, and walked out across the beautiful white landscape. Finally, it was time to enjoy the white stuff and we had a lovely time tramping six miles or so across fields to Rotherfield Greys and back, stopping off to watch little kids and big kids alike go shooting down a slope on make-shift sledges. We were freezing by the time we got back, and therefore compelled to pay a visit to Raymond Blanc’s Maison Blanc for hot chocolate and a tasty little tart.
On Sunday, I needed to go into Reading to run a few errands. Again, got the train in and walked the five or so miles back along the canal, via The Bull at Sonning for a cheeky pint. Well, it was a long way…
Filed under: food, recipes | Tags: baked raspberry cheesecake, chili con carne, dips, guacamole, lemon flan, New Year's Eve, recipe
On New Year’s Eve, we had a bit of a gathering for a few friends. Nothing too outrageous in terms of numbers, but I had a lot of fun planning the menu. In the end, I plumped for some old favourites: chili con carne, chicken tikka masala, jacket potatoes, naans, salads, dips, lemon flan; plus a new baked raspberry cheesecake – all prepared by my own fair hand.
You know what everyone was most impressed by? A bowl of guacamole, knocked up in about ten minutes.
Some things are just not worth making by hand, as the pre-prepared stuff is so good. Hummus falls into that category. But others are well worth a small amount of effort. Supermarket guacamole isn’t a patch on the home-made variety.
Here’s the recipe, adapted from one on the ever-reliable BBC Good Food website:
Guacamole
- 1 large tomato
- 4 ripe avocados
- juice of 1 lime
- handful coriander
- 1 small red onion, finely chopped
- 1 red chili, deseeded and finely chopped
- Peel avocados and roughly chop.
- De-seed tomato and finely chop (you don’t have to bother de-seeding, but I prefer it as the end result can be a it soggy if you don’t).
- Mix all ingredients together, and mash – my avocados weren’t all that ripe so I used a potato masher, but a fork should suffice.
- If you’re not planning to eat immediately (and this is a jolly good tip) sit the avocado stones on top of your dip, cover and refrigerate. This stops the avocado going brown.
- Serve with tortillas and crudités, to rapturous applause.
Filed under: food, running | Tags: Brocket estate, Lemsford, Mojito, run, Singstar, spacehopper, Welwyn Garden City
Three more runs completed this week around Lemsford, Brocket Hall estate and Welwyn Garden City. I can’t really say I’ve enjoyed them, but at least they’ve got us out away from B&Q self-assembly Hell and burnt off a few more Christmas calories.
Monday’s was a six-miler, featuring fields, a farm, a long open stretch exposed to biting wind and a narrow lane with no pavements along which various elderly people nearly drove us into a ditch. For some reason they seem to like to hug the hedges. I was wearing only cropped leggings, a thin dri-fit top and a light gilet. I was freezing.
On Wednesday, I added an extra layer and replaced the gilet with a showerproof jacket. It offered a small amount of protection against four miles of wind and rain, but not a lot.
Then on New Year’s Eve, completed a 5.5-mile slog, slip-slip-sliding all over the place on the sodden ground.
I attribute my lack of enjoyment primarily to the weather. I’m fitter now than I have been for a while, and I’m capable of running faster. But it’s just so bloody cold and wet. I know it’s terribly British to complain incessantly about the weather, but I can’t bear the combination of freezing temperatures and constant rain. One or the other I can handle (I love bright, sunny winter days, and I don’t mind running in warm rain) but not both together.
Anyway, new year and all that. I shall stop complaining and hope for more days like today. Not that I was in a fit state to run after the Mojito-fuelled spacehopper-Singstar soirée last night. The most we could manage was a post-bacon-sandwich stroll before coming back for more tea and chocolate.
Happy new year everyone.
Filed under: food, running | Tags: 1000-mile socks, Boxing Day, run, running
Just catching up on the old blog, as it’s been a busy few days. I managed to get out on Boxing Day morning with my brother to burn off a few of the calories consumed in the preceding 36 hours.
We were both resplendent in our spanking new white 1000-mile socks that Mum had put in our stockings. After five minutes in the top woods near Mum and Dad’s, they were rather less spanking and white. We sheepishly returned for Mum and her washing machine to do their magic. Which doesn’t seem that fair on Boxing Day, come to think of it, but we did help with the washing up later on.
My brother runs somewhat faster than I do, of course, despite having been a runner for considerably less time than me. Not that I’m bitter. He headed off up the road at quite a pace, leaving me puffing. He bounced through the woods, while I staggered behind – somewhat regretting the cheese that I really didn’t need to eat on Christmas night. I even got him to give me a blow-by-blow account of his recent British Military Fitness trip to Borneo, to try to slow him down and so that I didn’t have to talk.
The result, according to his Garmin, was a 4.2-mile run inside 38 minutes – around 9-minute miles on average, which isn’t bad given that half of it was off-road and I really did try to save my socks by trying to avoid some of the puddles.
