Tag Archives: Brisbane

My Knight in Shining Armour Around the Lake

21 Aug

The choking incident…

Have you every drunk your water too quickly and it has gone down the wrong way? That’s what happened to me this morning, and I was running at the time. I was just trotting around the lake near where I live and I took a massive gulp of water. Almost immediately I felt my face burn and my throat felt like it was closing up – I realised it wasn’t like normal and I staggered to the side of the path.

I started really coughing and then found myself a little short of breath and really wheezy and making a sound that resembled someone that was on their last legs – and I was fighting for my breath! I noticed a couple of girls walking by me and looked up as if to say HELP but they carried on walking as did another couple, and a guy with a little boy walked by – but then he came back, asked me if I was ok, and I managed to say ‘water gone down wrong way’  and he basically whacked me on the back a few times and after the third or fourth time I felt much better.

knight in shining armour

ok so he wasn’t riding a horse but you get the idea..

My knight in shining armour! 

I was a bit scared as at one point as unlike other occasions where I have coughed and it has all come good – this didn’t feel right, so very thankful – whoever he is…

It just made me realise how easy it is to just walk on by, and I’ve gotten myself into a few scrapes when running – thankfully most of the time I have been with people – but it did make me think. I always try to stop and help people unless it looks like a dodgy scenario in which case I would call for help – but I kind of wonder have we really got to that point in life where we are afraid (or don’t want to) help people?…sorry rant over.

Learning to have a rest

I was running by myself today as I was meant to be on the Sunshine Coast running a 10k race – but I decided a week or two ago not to do it, due to a number of reasons – I knew the week just gone was going to be a crazy one with work – as we were working to a deadline which unfortunately meant a lot of hours (thankfully we made the deadline – yay!) so I knew I would be exhausted (which I am), and also the 10k race didn’t start until 9am which personally I think is nuts. Back in the UK I could have handled it but not in Queensland even in winter.   I would have crashed and burned I think as it has been a warm day and I would have no carbs to pull on.

So I had a nice lie in and woke up and ran at leisure – it was great bar the choking part! I have another race next weekend so in hindsight it was pretty silly to sign up for two in a row as these days with LCHF eating I do find it harder.

Post race goals

I have a few things on my mind at the moment running wise.

MAF Training

Reading a lot of information about Phil Maffetone and his MAF Method I feel that one session a week might not be the way to go I think I need to go the whole hog. So the plan is to run MAF style over the next few months as much as I can and maybe sneak in the odd park run and then by say end of November – see if it is really making any difference.

LCHF = Endurance not Speed

In addition, with my Low Carb High/Healthy Fat lifestyle I am finding with my running I am slower than I was due to lack of carbs I guess as I just don’t seem to have as much power – but my endurance is  getting really good just at a slower pace. Sometimes I feel once I have found my pace I could keep running and running – so I am also thinking of pushing up the distances again and seeing how I go by the end of the year.

If I find that I am doing ok I might try a half marathon which whilst I have done lots of them would be my first on LCHF, and if that goes well then maybe just maybe I could try for my sixth marathon…..but that is a very slim maybe right now!

Anyway long post for me today – the inner ramblings of the mad running woman….Have a great week!

 

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Product Review for Posto9 by Activaware4U – ethically made clothing

26 Jul

A while ago I somehow ended up on a modelling shoot – haha – me on a modelling shoot! Basically two of my friends were having some photos taken by a friend Jacqueline who launched her own fitness wear line designed in the UK and made in Brazil – Posto9- they were then going for a run afterwards and invited me along to be an extra model and to run afterwards.

I was presented with what were very bright and vivid clothes and initially the thought of wearing them freaked me out! Jacqueline pointed out some beautiful blue and black pants which I instantly loved so they were mine along with a crop bra with a gaping hole in the back! We literally had to get changed in the middle of Kangaroo Point which was interesting and trying to keep some modesty!! But anyway it all went well and the photos came out well.

Activaware4u

Wearing the crop and leggings in the photoshoot at Kangaroo Point

 

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This is the back of the crop top – not me wearing it!

Ethically made clothing 

The thing I like about the brand from chatting to Jacqueline is that the clothing is not only great quality but also ethically made. An ethical clothing company ensures that either the textile is eco-friendly and/or the employees – usually women – are treated fairly and Jacqueline believes that those making our clothes should not be subjected to a life of poverty and I wholeheartedly agree and stand behind such a brand.

Clothing thoughts

The fabric I have to say is amazing quality and very very comfortable. I was surprised as I thought I would find them uncomfortable as they looked more about the pattern and fashion to me than overall usage for running. The clothing is quite versatile and great for gym classes as well as running. I wore the running pants and bra on a number of trail runs, gym sessions and a park run and I can say hand on heart they are very very comfortable. The only down side with the pants is no pocket which most running tights have these days. But I am happy to have no pocket over very comfortable pants.

One of the great things about the running pants is that the ones I tried out were high waisted so great if you aren’t skinny and have curves to hold in – and I didn’t have to worry about a muffin top! I liked the fact that they were not elasticated either – just comfortable and firm fitting.

Both the pants and top have yet to show any signs of wear and tear – usually the running pants I have (thanks to my thighs that join in the middle) start to show wear and tear pretty quickly – nothing from these yet. Crop bra is also very comfortable and firm – so suitable for running.

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Pricing

The pricing on the Posto9 range is pretty in the middle of the range – when you consider high quality range products might charge in excess of $70 for a crop top and $120 onwards for running tights – the products are around $35 for a crop top and $70 for the pants which is very reasonable for higher quality clothing.

 

Summary

Pros

High waisted

Reasonable price

Ethically made – know that you are contributing to a brand that cares about the people making the products when you buy

Cons

No pocket in pants

Online order so can’t really see them before you buy unless you live in Brisbane and you can contact Jacqueline and have a look or look on her website as above. Ordering online is pretty normal now though so not really an issue.

Ordering

You can see some of the range at http://activaware4u.wix.com/activaware4u or call Jacqueline on 0424652016 for more details. Jacqueline has just had a new delivery with new designs in so if interested order now before she runs out again!

Please note I was not paid for this review, and all opinions are my own and open and honest to the best of my knowledge.

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Sometimes there are more important things than running!

24 May

I haven’t written for a while as life outside of running for me has been a bit crazy. We’ve been flying around as a family trying to fit lots of things into our life, and as a result my son got a cold and I was feeling under the weather last week and at the weekend, and I also started a new job so getting used to not working completely for myself and just the general routine has been challenging – but so far so good!.

As a result of all of the above I missed a few runs which initially I was really beating myself up about – but it was something my friend Sam said to me when I cancelled that made me think – she said:

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Running for fun! Sam and I finishing the Twilight Half Marathon earlier this year 🙂

“We’re just doing it for fun anyway, no stress!”

Exactly right.

I’m not a professional runner, I do this for fun and I think the moment it starts to feel like it’s a burden will be the moment I stop doing it. So I reframed how I was thinking and thought ok – no worries it’s ok to have a week off, and I am good to go next week.

I think sometimes it is so easy to get caught up into things and to accept that we cannot always do everything – and sometimes things have to go – and for me on this occasion – it was running.

I’m back now – feeling better and ready to run tomorrow. I also entered the City to South – just to give myself a challenge. It will be very slow but I’m doing it with my friend and it will be FUN 🙂 Then after that it’s the Dubbo Stampede which will again be FUN (and hilly) running around the Dubbo Zoo – so a few things to look forward to running wise.

It’s a short post today but lots more posts to come.

Have a great week of running and having fun!

Zoe xoxo

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Race Recap – Twilight Half Marathon

22 Mar

I should have known it was going to be a tough day when I woke up with a headache, and feeling decidedly under par – knowing I had to run the Twilight half marathon at 5pm later in the day. I hadn’t been too well in the week leading up to the race and hadn’t run all week so I knew I was going to face a battle on the road – but I wanted to do the race!

I have been training for the past few months with my friend Sam (and a couple of times Penny) and I was excited about the race, and  being a member of Intraining I felt it was almost a right of passage to have to run it, and the lovely running vest you get for entering was an extra incentive!

I don’t tend to enter races in summer as I am not too good with the heat but I figured a race that started at 5pm at night would be a good option. It did get rained off last year but the weather forecast was good. Sam picked me up and we drove to St Lucia to the Uni and I did my usual two trips to the toilet before the race (it’s a ritual! can’t not!).

Twilight Half Marathon 2016

All smiles before the race! With my friends Penny and Sam (left to right)

We stood in the line up both quite nervous and I intended to just run at an easy pace and run the race – not going for a time considering the last week and being ill. There was a sea of Twilight tops as well as Intraining, Springfield Runners and others that I didn’t recognise. Everyone was excited and pumped for the race to start and busy chatting, nervously glancing at their watches.  The 10k and the half started at the same time so I had to make sure I didn’t get pulled along with those 10k runners running  fast race!

The Race

We started running and there was a bit of a scrum so Sam and I got slightly separated but weren’t too far apart, and I relaxed into the steady pace and tuned into my music, and started the race.

Sam had mentioned to watch out for the hills and we went up one slight incline and I thought – wow was that it….no alas it was not! We went down the hill we were to later come up and it was a fairly steep incline. I don’t think that would have been an issue had we not had to do two laps of the course as the first time I ran up it I didn’t feel too bad.

Twilight Half Marathon 2016

Most of the route was flat and I haven’t run around St Lucia much before so it was nice to see a new area. The km points were well placed and I was feeling quite good watching each km go past. Seeing the front runners fly by was incredible – I was one side and they were flying back the other way – it amazes me that pretty much they were running twice the speed that I was running.

I found with it being two loops my brain started to play mind games on me and when we got back to the start which was where the 10k runners turned off to finish that was when it started…. my body suddenly wanted to slow down and finish and I took a gel to pump me up a bit and pushed myself to push on and then started counting down. I had seen my Intraining coach Paula and knew she would be at the 16/17k ish mark second time round so I started counting down and telling myself once I saw her I only had 4-5km left.

It was dark by this point and there wasn’t much lighting but thankfully there were a few people in front of me and a couple behind so I didn’t feel alone, and I just kept pushing towards that 16/17 mark. By the time I got there I was tired and I think I managed a quick look up to Paula and then it was head down push on to finish.

Coming in to Finish

That last 4k seemed to go on forever but I was determined not to stop and just keep pushing. I didn’t take on much water in the race as I noticed there were only one lot of toilets that I had spotted anyway.

I think I must have started my watch slightly early as it was ahead of the km signs in the race each time so I felt psychologically like I was having to run further each time even though that wasn’t the case. I had 1km left and I started to try and pick up the pace, and at about 500m left I felt a hand on my shoulder – there was Sam just when I needed her!! We pushed and ran together and then I saw the finish line and sprinted.

It’s funny that I was exhausted yet I had the energy to sprint finish!

I staggered over the line and there was Margot Manning – one of the owners of Intraining and she had a microphone in her hand. Sam took off and I stood there wobbling all over the place whilst she asked me a couple of questions. I can’t 100% remember what she asked me – I think it was something about how was the race – and I remember saying something like ‘It was hot and it was hard!’ not quite sure if that was the answer she was looking for but at that point I was willing my body not to throw up by her feet – I’m very glad I didn’t!

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Finished!

 

Afterwards

I got home and was sick! I think I had used every last ounce of energy and my body melted down. I literally had a shower, half a bagel, a gulp of water and was back to the toilet and then straight to bed! So I know I worked as hard as I could!

The race in my opinion was really well organised. Maybe a few more toilets on the course but it is tricky when it goes along residential areas. The running vests are great compared to some I have had in the past and it was a lovely atmosphere of supportive runners and spectators.

I think if I was to do it again I might do the 10k as the half in summer was a bit too much for me! When the sun went down I did cool down but I don’t think I will ever get used to the Queensland heat!

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We went a bit nuts after the race finished!

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Running in Brisbane and heat stroke

29 Feb

Hope you had a great weekend of running.

I’m slowly building back up for the half marathon I have in a few weeks time. It feels so much harder than last year but I have to remember that I had an injury to recover from and it has been hotter which brings me to my post today.

Saturday according to the weather forecasts was going to be a boiling hot day, so my friends and I arranged to do a run in the city. We left at 5.00am to be there and running by 5.30am.

I felt pretty good and decided a few kilometres in that I’d like to pick the pace up – as I wanted to get as ready for my race in March as I could. So I said to the girls that I would push on and they were all good so I did.

I felt pretty good for a while. As I ran I looked around me at Brisbane early in the morning. I don’t tend to go into the city much so it was a real treat to be there running by the bridge and Eagle Street Pier etc. It’s so picturesque around there I love it.

Running by the river - the girl that runs

Brisbane by the river first thing in the morning – so beautiful and picturesque

We were running all the way from the Regatta Hotel to New Farm and back for a good solid 20k – It’s a little bit boring as it is just a straight line but good to get the distance in. But it all got a bit too much by the time I got to New Farm at the 10km mark as the heat hit me.

Running In A Sauna

I literally felt like someone had pushed me into a sauna and locked the door – and as much as I wanted to I just couldn’t get out. I drank a fair bit of water but didn’t seem to be able to cool down. The girls caught up and I decided to run back rather than going on any further – so I turned around and started trotting again, filling up on water whenever I could. The girls had gone a slightly shorter way back and it had more shade. So I hit the sun again. I passed my friends – feeling good – and that’s when the trouble started.

I got to having about 7.5k left to go and was running along the river, when I started to feel hot again. It was literally like I was running through treacle and in a sauna, and my head hurt so I walked for a while. One of my friends passed me and then the other caught up and I decided to try and push on again. I did for a while and got caught in the local park run race which pulled me along.

It was crazy that I could be freezing cold on a boiling hot morning!

Thankfully I was in the shade but I started to feel myself wobbling and I suddenly went very cold and got goosebumps all over me. It was crazy that I could be freezing cold on a boiling hot morning. I grabbed onto the railings where I was running as I felt like I was going to pass out or be sick. I decided it would be good to vomit over the side of it as I didn’t want the park runners to have to run through vomit!

So there I was dry wretching when my friend came up beside me. I told her to carry on but she insisted on staying to make sure I was ok. We ended up walking the last kilometre to the finish of our run and I was feeling much better by the time we got back. I’m so thankful to my lovely friends and them pulling me through!

So I thought about it and wondered whether it was my rushing to run off quicker that made me sick – but I deduced it came down to the heat, the distance and potentially yes pushing on a little too quick. But I finished my 20km run and am ready for my next one – but will be thankful when it cools down!

Running in the Brisbane CBD - the girl that runs

View whilst running of the Brisbane Bridge 🙂

Heat Stroke

Heat stroke is a real issue and especially here in summer in Queensland. When back in London I had a similar problem, and we had an unusually hot day. I was running 18 miles (30k) and I pushed hard, got back to the running club club house and felt freezing cold, and to cut a long story short I ended up collapsing at a local supermarket and being carted off to hospital. I’ll write in more detail about it another time – but it was a rude awakening that we runners should take the heat seriously and be really careful.

I’ve written a couple of previous posts about running in the heat if you are new to it.

Anyway onwards and upwards. Yet again I have learned my lesson and am looking forward to my next long run this coming weekend 🙂

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How to treat and prevent blisters @azumioinc

14 Jan

Hey there! I hope you are having a good week and that you are getting to run lots. It’s been a mixed bag of a week for me with trying to still keep off my feet a little bit to let my bursitis heal but I am feeling much better and the pain is starting to subside.

I’m volunteering at a ParkRun at the weekend in Southbank as my running club Intraining has organised volunteers and needed help and I figured in order to ensure I kept my pace down that I would volunteer for the 35 minute 5k. That works out to about 7 minute km which is a lot slower than I would normally run but I am hoping I get to run comfortably and encourage people along the way if they need help.

Anyway I’ve been a guest blogger for Azumio for a good few months now and I was running out of ideas as to what to write and my latest post is all about blisters – how to treat them and how to prevent them in the first place. I am no podiatrist but with all the hassles I had in the lead up to the Gold Coast Marathon last year with that horrendous blister to the point it nearly sidelined me I figure I have a few tips from what I learned along the way.

blister before treated - the girl that runs

This was my blister at its largest – it was a monster – at least an inch and a half big! yuk.

You can read the post on Azumio’s blog – but always remember if you have any injuries or problems please always consult a professional.

Have a great rest of the week and happy running 🙂

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Counting down the days to Christmas and setting challenges for 2016!

22 Dec

It’s been an interesting week or so which landed me right back in the physio’s office and no running thanks to bursitis on my hip and a bit of the same on my shoulder.

I thought I would freak out but I was actually quite surprised at how calm I was when my physio said no running in the lead up to Christmas. I do feel somewhat lazy but it has given me time to think about next year and what I would like to achieve.

I have found since the Gold Coast Marathon and then being overseas that I just haven’t been able to get it together with my training or eating to an extent. After chatting to friends and to my husband I realise I am a structured person and need structure in my training too. Not having any major goals has meant I have been a bit all over the place with no real reason to get out there and run So I have a plan for next year.

2016 running goals

The Plan

Whilst I hadn’t planned to run another marathon I have decided actually I will. I am not going to put any pressures on myself but I am going to train for it and run it – simple as that. I’m going to enjoy it and enjoy the training 🙂

I have a few in mind – I could either do the Gold Coast Marathon again, or try out the Brisbane Marathon or my wild card this time is the Dubbo Stampede as you get to run around Dubbo Zoo and we have friends there too (in Dubbo not at the Zoo !!). How fun would that be!

So the plan is sort my hip out, train and run the Twilight Run in March and then start the steady build up to one of the Marathons!

This year was hard because my friend was meant to be training with me but she got injured so I did a lot of the training alone, but next year I have a few friends who are planning to run a marathon and I am a member of Intraining now too so there are runs that they do that I have access to for Marathon build up. So I am hoping that things will be a bit easier where training is concerned.

R & R 

So whilst a lot of people are relishing the idea of having time off work over Christmas and running lots it looks like I may well still have my rest time if my hip doesn’t clear up and then will start training in January.

I’m quite excited about the new challenges and really enjoying running at the moment (when not injured!) – with no pressures.

So here is to an exciting 2016. I hope you have lots of challenges and goals planned! I have a feeling it’s going to be a good year 🙂

In case I don’t write again before the new year. Hope you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year – thanks for continuing to read my random ramblings – it means a lot 🙂

Zoe 🙂

Ps. 

My most recent blog post as guest blogger for Azumio Inc is now live if you’d like to read it. It’s all about running safely after dark.

 

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