On one particular day recently, when I felt sluggish and low on energy but had planned to do a workout, I put myself to the test. Despite my head trying to coerce my body into a mid-morning doze on the sofa, I decided to ignore the messages and crack on with some training anyway. Opting for a pretty challenging bodyweight workout, it wasn’t going to be an easy test but 45 push ups, 90 lunges, 90 burpees and 180 squat jumps later, I felt so much more energised and the feeling lasted for the rest of the day! I proved to myself that I can push through those weary moods and actually turn it around by doing the last thing my body thinks it wants.

It got me thinking about my 24hr Challenge: how would I feel if the pre-event nerves sabotaged my sleep the night before? What if the event landed on a less than ideal day of my menstrual cycle? How do I make sure I don’t have one of those days where I’m on the verge of passing out with the simple act of standing up (a fairly regular issue for me)? Of course, I’ll be spending the next six months getting as much expert advice as possible around rest and nutrition in order to feel my best on the day, but on doing a bit of reading, I found a great article by Olympic Medalist, Courtney Thompson. It was entitled “8 Reasons No-one Cares You’re Tired” and as a volleyball player, Courtney explained that playing in a team means it’s not just about you so you have to get over how you feel, go out there and give it your all regardless of how much “all” you have at the time.

Reading Courtney’s article explaining that getting through a training session or game required selflessness, a commitment to show up and the ability to embrace the fatigue of pushing to your limits was inspiring. I may not be doing this challenge as part of a team but I am doing it to raise money and awareness for a charity and committing to support the gym and community who are facilitating the event. That makes me accountable – to all those people and myself – so I need to show up and push through for that team of people!

Courtney’s article goes on to highlight the power of the mind and how we can train our brains to overcome our physical feelings. It also reminds us to be realistic and understand that we won’t be able to perform at 100% every day but not to let that worry us and instead, focus on maximising what we are able to give. There are so many factors that can impact our energy and motivation but I am determined to give this challenge my 100% wherever possible – that includes the fundraising, training, promotion of the gym, event and supporters and, of course, the challenge itself.

The eighth and final point in the article was “Remember: the pain of not going all out is much bigger than the pain of holding back.” It was a great reminder that regardless of winning or losing, the real satisfaction comes with knowing that you gave it everything you had to support your teammates in reaching your shared goal. I will be keeping that thought at the forefront of my mind throughout my training and the event day – however I feel, I have made a commitment to achieve something and I’m damn well going to do it… for everyone!

I haven’t been a member of a Crossfit gym for a couple of years now and although I’ve continued to base my training around functional fitness, the access to Crossfit ‘virtually’ has really made me realise how much I miss the ‘physical’ community that comes with being part of an affiliate. Plus, you know, with a 24hr Crossfit Challenge on the horizon, joining a gym and getting some proper training in is probably a good idea, I guess!

The Open workouts were tough (as expected) but despite the seriously unhappy tummy I suffered with as I began to pile the pressure on myself before each workout, I really enjoyed the challenge. It was also good to put myself through the pre-workout nerves, my insecurities around having to video myself and pushing myself a bit harder than usual… partly because I think it’s important to get out of your comfort zone but also because I proved to myself that I could do it – two very important factors for the success of my 24hr challenge.

I wasn’t especially pleased with my performance, it was a bit sloppy in places and I could definitely have done with a scaled version of the equipment free workouts so I felt a bit of a fraud submitting my scores, even though I wasn’t going to be anywhere high enough in the rankings for anyone to look at my entries. But, it did help me to learn a lot about where I need to make improvements with my technique and work on my strength in certain movements. I also learned to focus on each section of a workout at a time rather than thinking about completing the whole thing so that it didn’t seem so overwhelming, and to tell my self that it is just 15 or 20 minutes of my life, it won’t last forever so why not give it everything and see what I can achieve.

The Open reminded me of the importance of recovery too. With a busy life as a working Mum, I am sometimes guilty of finishing a training session without worrying about refuelling or doing a decent amount of stretching, only to leave me feeling faint a few hours later and aching the next day. However, finishing each of the workouts for the Open, lying flat on the floor, heart pounding and hands shaking was an excellent prompt to get some good energy back in my system and take some time to stretch my muscles out. That said, the fully body DOMS I experienced after the final workout lasted three days!

I feel a bit lost without Dave Castro’s workout email this week but I have spent some time thinking about how I will plan my training in future to ensure I work on my weaknesses and technique. My main takeaways from the Crossfit Open that I will remember as I prepare for my 24hr challenge are to pace myself so I don’t fatigue too quickly, try to relax and enjoy workouts with less of the nerve enducing pressure I put on myself, remember I am capable of more than I think and to recover well.

Here’s to the gyms reopening soon, getting stuck into some hard work and making sure I’m more than ready when the date of my challenge rolls around!

However, I do believe that balance is important too. You’ve got to live, enjoy yourself, indulge a little and have some fun, right? So yes, that sometimes involves having some chocolate, I’ll have a couple of drinks most weekends (I can’t handle more than a couple these days) and I’ll have a little treat if we go for a coffee sometimes too. I also refuse to be the person that says no to the birthday cake (despite cake not really agreeing with me) because, well, it’s someones celebration… eat the cake!

Last week though, I decided to try a more consistently ‘clean’ way of eating. After buying The Happy Health Plan by the Flynn brothers, mainly to broaden my plant-based recipe options, I thought I’d actually give their plan a go to see how it made me feel. The idea is to stick to plant-based wholefood and avoid animal products (no problem), stay away from processed or refined food and any oils… and no calorie counting or portion control! I was definitely up for the last one – as I mentioned in a previous post, using calorie counting apps have definitely proved useful and interesting for me but my goodness, it’s laborious and time consuming!! So, the theory is that if you stick to the rules, you can eat as much as you like. Hmm, is this really such a good idea??

I started on a Monday (because, obviously – that’s when all ‘diets’ start) and quite honestly, by Tuesday I felt amazing!! I think this was partly due to feeling rather smug about only putting healthy, super nourishing stuff in my body but I genuinely felt more energised and ‘well’ straight away. As the days ticked by, the feeling good continued but I also realised that I wasn’t eating loads despite being allowed to and I was only craving healthy food. I wasn’t actually interested in refined foods, I didn’t even crave my evening chocolate treat – just a banana and some moon milk for me thank you very much! Not only that, last week was the week before my period was due, a week when normally chocolate is a staple and sugary treat foods are just part of getting me through the week. To top it off, I had virtually no PMT symptoms or cramps and hardly felt any of the wiped out sluggishness I usually have this time of the month. It also turns out that it’s really easy to cook without oil and, in turn, the lack of oil in my food definitely left me feeling much better and not at all bloated after meals. Bonus – I actually lost a few pounds in weight too.

So, to summarise, my ‘clean eating’ experiment was a resounding success! Feeling this energised, healthy and generally well gave me such a buzz that although I will still have days when treats are included, I fully intend to stick to this way of eating. Surely anything that makes you feel this good is going to be pretty easy to stick to. Thanks Happy Pear – you are legends!

“Where do you get your protein” is the age-old question asked of many people on a plant-based diet and I’ll admit to worrying about getting enough sometimes too. However, making sure that I include plant-based protein in all my meals seems to be sufficient and I can always fall back on a protein shake if I feel the need. I also need to focus on having a better relationship with carbs, not seeing them as the enemy when it comes to my weight and concentrate on getting enough energy to train…. or even just to get through a busy day of working and parenting! I’ve had far too many days when I feel wiped out and dizzy and realised it’s due to restricting my carbs too much. And of course, when I’m low on energy, those pesky sugary snacks call even louder!

On the whole, not being an expert, I think I eat a healthy diet. I stick to natural, whole foods as much as possible, try to get a good balance of macros, eat lots of veggies and drink plenty of water. My typical go-to foods include nuts, seeds, oats, sweet potato, grains, tofu, beans, pulses, milk and yoghurt alternatives, lots of veggies and fruit. I love a bit of good quality peanut butter and generally stick to 70-90% dark chocolate. That said, “Friday Night Pizza Night” is non-negotiable for our family. We make the bases at home and include veggies in the toppings but having a bit of a blowout night once (maybe twice) a week is so important for relaxing, enjoying food with my family and also maintaining balance – something I want my son to learn as he grows up. And yes, I have a Friday night beer with my husband most weeks too.

This week, I’ve been experimenting by having slightly smaller meals with a couple of healthy snacks in between and also trying to mix up my recipes a bit so food isn’t just a calorie focused, monotonous necessity. It’s been a success so far and the berries and yoghurt or apple and PB snack have definitely kept the afternoon sugar craving at bay. Spreading out my nutrition and calories throughout the day instead of just having three main meals seems to help me feel more energised and more likely to make healthy choices. I think I’ll need to look at speaking to a qualified nutritionist closer to my challenge to make sure I fuel myself well for the event but it’s fun playing around with different foods and ideas myself for now.

I’ve used My Fitness Pal a lot in the past and it’s been really interesting to learn more about the food I eat, understand portion sizes and judge my calorie intake against what my Fitbit tells me I’m burning. However, I’m aware the information isn’t always accurate and that we are all different in the way we metabolise foods so although it was initially useful, I’ve moved away from logging food – the knowledge does NOT make up for the hassle of weighing every flipping carrot and lentil I eat each day! One thing is certain, I won’t be trying any of the fad diets. I truly believe that understanding what ‘healthy’ means and eating a sensible diet that works for you as an individual, so that it can be maintained as a long-term ‘normal’ is the way forward. Denying myself certain foods and even knowing I’m ‘on a diet’ just makes me focus on food more and crave what I can’t have – a recipe for disaster if I’m honest!

I promised myself that I’d get back on track on Monday and so far, so good. More FIIT workouts, Body Combat, Crossfit, Joe’s PE sessions with my son and dog walks have all contributed to a good few days. With the spring sunshine and longer days too, I’m certainly feeling more happy and positive! My husband is away again this week but I’m trying to get some early nights instead of sacrificing sleep by staring at the telly for virtual company. I’ve really appreciated the difference good sleep makes recently – as well has having more energy, I make much better food choices, feel a lot more positive and ultimately have the capacity to train better. Win win!

However, one thing I’m still not very good at is taking rest days. I hate not being active and feel like something is really missing from my day but I do appreciate the value of having a day off. I’ve forced myself to have a training-free day today, partly because I can’t remember when I last had a rest day but also because I am just SO tired. You know that feeling when your face just won’t wake up? My Fitbit statistics are a really handy reminder to have a break too – my resting heart rate normally sits in the low 50s but it’s been up at 60 or higher the last few days which is a sure sign I’m worn out. I also know that the rest will leave me with so much more energy so I can put more into (and get more out of) my training tomorrow. So I’ve walked the dog and done some yoga – well, it’s not all about sitting on the sofa! The fresh air and time with nature always does the world of good, even more so during these days of lockdown, and yoga gives me a lovely sense of calm and happiness too.

Boris has told us this week that the gyms should be opening again soon and I’m super excited. Like a lot of people, I’d settled into home workouts over these last 12 months during the pandemic and wasn’t sure I was bothered about getting back to the gym but I now realise how much I’m missing it along with the people and sense of community. But, for now, back to the resting….. and hoping the Smarties that my son had earlier and that I couldn’t resist (tiredness overriding willpower again) will give me some additional fuel for my training tomorrow :0)