Month: July 2013

Cough cough

Hey peeps, hope you are all well. I seem to have some kind of summer lurgy so not feeling so great. On Monday it was so hot so I just went on a short 3 ish mile run- I ran through the fields near me to a shaded path, and ran up and down the path several (3 or 4) times and then headed back.

The next morning I appreciated a cool breakfast- muesli with almond milk, peach, and strawberries and raspberries from the allotment, plus a drizzle of nut butter (think that was meridian peanut but not sure!) plus an iced mint tea.

On Tuesday at work we had sports day practice so I was out in the sun all morning (as I was on playground duty too)- the classrooms are so hot now (mine was 23C this morning which is cooler than it has been) and by the time I got home I felt awful- so hot and achy and a bit sick. I was planning on having a run but I was sensible and lay on the sofa instead.

I didn’t feel like getting hot in the kitchen, and Andy was cooking himself some spaghetti, so I had some of that with some balsamic tomatoes and some avocado. Random but it was quite summery and the flavours went well, although a bit of basil would have been good.

Wednesday was actual sports day, which is always a super fun day. But again pretty tiring. I even ran barefoot for a bit! At the end of the morning we have a staff race, and this year it was a three legged race. I had slip on pumps and my partner had sandals so we both ran barefoot- it was actually quite fun and in the end we even got into a rhythm!

I had to rush home to do some on-line training, and then it was time for Sweatshop run. I was feeling pretty tired, so I headed up early which meant I could run/walk instead of run the whole way there. One of our members has completed 50 runs in 52 weeks, so he gets a Garmin! He also got to choose the route, which thankfully was a short one with quite a bit of shade. I still found it tough and didn’t catch my brother up until 1.5 miles- normally we run together for a bit before he slows down.

The guys in the shop had bought a cake to celebrate the 50 runs! I was offered a slice but as I had to run home I took it in some tissue to have after dinner.

I didn’t fancy much so I had a veggie burger (this was a Goodlife spicy bean burger- bought some last week for lazy dinners) with some spinach and some cherry tomatoes roasted in balsamic. I had a little almond butter on it as I fancied something a bit salty.

Since then I have been coughing like crazy- I had such an early night but have been feeling ropey today- really achy, especially my neck. So I gave pump a miss this evening and we went out on a walk in the evening sunshine instead.

But, the weekend is nearly here, so let’s look forward to that! We have a 10K race on Sunday, I am hoping it won;t be too hot. I still really want to get a sub 60 min time, and this course is flat, but also in the open (no shade) so if it is too warm I will be kissing that goal goodbye. Or of course if this cough continues. What are you looking forward to this weekend?

Fuel breakfast giveaway!

I was recently contacted by the folks at Fuel to hold a reader giveaway- how exciting! They make breakfast protein shakes, granolas and porridge pots.

Fuel are a range of breakfast products aimed at people who are on the go. They are inspired by a book “Outliers” which has a theory that to become an expert at anything you need to do it for 10,000 hours.

I am not sure that I have done many things for 10 thousand hours just yet!

One lucky UK based reader can win a two week supply of their products. All you need to do is answer this question and leave a comment with your answer- If you had 10,000 hours to spare, what would you work towards?

I would love to learn German, so if I had all that free time I think that is what I would do. Maybe when I retire!

Entries will close Monday 15th July at 7pm. I will then use a random number generator to find the winner. Good luck!

They have also sent me some samples to try which I will post on here at some point- I had the granola on my acai bowl at the weekend and it was very tasty.

Hot or iced tea?

So the weather is just gorgeous, but it is not so good being hot and sticky at work. I always take a big bottle of water with me to work, and often re-fill it at lunchtime. But I have still been having a cup of tea when I get home- for some reason having something other than water seems to be more refreshing when I have been having water all day. Saying that I have not been having as many cups as I usually do! Today we went to Wimpole Hall (a National Trust place)- had a lovely walk around the gardens, and went to the tearooms but would you believe it, both of us were too hot for a cup of tea!

instead we stopped in town on the way home (I had to get my glasses and sunglasses adjusted yet again) and shared an iced chai. Refreshing.

Last night I made up some mint tea to go in the fridge (all I do is cover a mint teabag with boiling water- maybe half a cup full, leave it for 10 minutes, then take out the teabag, pour the tea into a jug and top up with water)- that was so refreshing this morning. I had it alongside an acai bowl of sorts.

For two of us I whizzed up one frozen banana, some frozen blueberries and cherries, a small peach, acai powder and a little of the Rude Health almond drink. We had it with strawberries (from our allotment), blueberries and some granola. It melted very quickly this morning!

Anyway back to the tea. I was sent some different Earl Grey teas by Twinings, and I have been enjoying them hot and iced.

I love “normal” Earl Grey tea anyway, so I was very excited to try some new varieties. The Earl Grey with lavender is lovely- the lavender flavour is not too strong, and I found I had to leave it to brew for a little longer otherwise I couldn’t taste it really.

I love the pretty packaging too.

The orange blossom was much more subtle- I think the orange blossom just emphasised the bergamot, similar to having some lemon in there. I have some of this brewing for iced tea as I type, I might add a few lemon slices in there too as I think it will be perfect.

I was not such a fan of the jasmine, partly because of the green tea I think- this was black tea, jasmine green tea (15%) plus flavourings, although I do prefer this to “normal” green tea. It is quite nice iced as the jasmine flavour really comes through- it has a sort of perfumed but refreshing flavour.

The individually wrapped teabags means that it is a bit of a waste, but it also means I can put them in my bag for work, and I think they keep the flavour for longer too. Often at home at the weekend we make a big pot of tea, using loose tea, but you can’t beat a teabag for convenience!

Are you a fan of Earl Grey? Do you prefer teabags or loose tea? Have you tried iced tea? Do you drink warm drinks when the weather hots up?

*I was sent this tea and asked to write a review, but all opinions are my own 

Sunny Saturday

Wow the weather is gorgeous here!

Suncream and sunglasses on, I headed to the park as I was helping out again at Parkrun. As I was there early I was sent to marshal at one of the further points on the course. I got to wear a high viz jacket- so official 🙂

I was all set up at about ten to 9, so had a little time to find a shady spot and take some pictures.

The route is pretty flat, but this little steep bit is super tough on the way back- it is short but my head was lower than the bottom of that bin I think- it is steep!

There were loads of runners heading through the park, and quite a few people stopped to ask me what was happening, and what the run involved- think I may have signed up a few more people! They ran down towards me and my goodness me the front runners are so speedy.

The park was so busy with people walking dogs, cycling etc, but I managed to snap a few pictures while it was quieter.

Photo: Parkrunners in the distance

I could see the runners in the distance as they then all go around the lake 3 times before coming back up past me before the final stretch. I think there were about 200 of them- impressive!

I loved being a marshal- there was only about ten minutes (if that) between the last people going past me down, and the first runners heading back. I was trying to be encouraging, and it was lovely when the runners said thanks (or just nodded/ smiled- not always easy to speak when you are running fast). Once the last few people had gone I walked back to the start, and a lot of runners said thanks to me on their way home, which was just lovely and very unexpected. Hands were sore from clapping by then!

It was such a beautiful day so I went for a walk around the lake.

Ducklings! They are my favourite. There were loads of cygnets and goslings about too, but the ducklings win the cuteness factor for me.

I was totally baking by the time I got back to the car, so I headed to Starbucks for a cool down. I had packed a bottle of water but it was warm after being sat in my car all that time. Then I was off to the school summer fayre where I was helping out.

When I got home it was time for a late lunch- sourdough with almond butter on one piece and lemon curd on the other, plus a peach and some lychees, and a lavender earl grey tea. I used the new Rude Health almond drink – it is very creamy and very sweet tasting- it doesn’t have added sugar, apparently the rice in it adds to the sweetness.

Last night I picked another tub of fruit- this is strawberries, raspberries, loads of blackcurrants (going to make a cheesecake for tomorrow) and a sprinkling of redcurrants. I am going to potter around at home, and head out on a run later on when it is a bit cooler (maybe?).

How has your Saturday been so far? 

Magic Mile!

Hey peeps!

As you all know, I am a little obsessed with Marathon Talk. I am nearly all caught up again after being behind for so long (long runs with Andy meant I chatted to him instead of listening to them so I had rather a backlog).

For the last few years they have launched a Magic Mile challenge for the summer. Basically you sign up to run one mile as fast as you possibly can. Previously they have had Team UK, Team USA and Team Rest of the World (all against each other) but this year it is good old fashioned boys v girls. But taking part is worth more than anything else- they don’t care if you run a 4 min mile (in my dreams!) or a 12 minute mile.

You can sign up here– it’s just for fun! I’m in, are you?? (Edit- it seems to be taking me to the 2012 competition, but according to their facebook page it will be up and running this evening).

In 2011 I signed up and was shocked that I managed to run a mile in 7.53– that may be normal running speed for some of you, but I think at that point I had only just scraped under 9 minute miles for 5K’s. So this year I want to beat that time. They are going to be talking about specific training sessions on the podcasts, but of course you don’t have to do those if you don’t want. The mile time has to be logged between the end of August and the start of September so you have a while to get up to speed.

This evening was a Sweatshop run- we had not been on The Hill route for a while, and it showed- apparently I was much slower going up it (according to the guy from the shop) but overall I managed my normal speed which I was glad about after finding I had such stiff legs on my run yesterday.

Anyone else up for the challenge?

Do you prefer short and sharp workouts or long and gentle ones?