Firstly I apologise for not bringing back sun with me from my training camp last week.  I was in Lanzarote at Club La Santa with Havering Tri and the weather could not have been more different to what we were faced with as we landed at London Gatwick – that was a shock to the system!

I went on the same training camp last year and signed up again for this year.  It was an intense week but also very beneficial, with an awesome group of people so I was excited though also not feeling 100% going into it.  I had thought about pulling out as I wondered whether having a knee injury and plantar fasciitis was not the best way to train in Lanzarote especially given that you are pretty much mostly going up hill wherever and whatever you do.  That and the fact that since my injuries my confidence in all areas is pretty much at an all time low.  However, I was persuaded otherwise by clubmates and decided if my knee and foot had other ideas there were a million other options to fill my days.

I kept my runs to short loops around the lagoon of just over 2 miles and at an easy pace and my foot felt ok.  My knee on the other hand did not feel right on every hill and I was more than a little nervous about making it worse so between that and the fact that my chain kept coming off my bike I ended up adapting the training plan anyway.  I missed a club ride but managed to complete that ride the following day so didn’t miss out and it meant that I got the chance to have some much needed time with the husband which even included a stop at a vineyard for lunch and saw the opportunity for some photo taking.  We are both always so busy and with him being a cycling coach he is helping others so I was quite pleased to be selfish and have a day with him just helping me.

If you have never been to Lanzarote then when people say it’s windy you may think oh ok a bit of wind, but the wind on the island can be savage and more than a little scary especially if it is a crosswind.  I had an accident on my bike from wind a year and a half ago and ended up in an ambulance so wind is something I am far from comfortable cycling in but there is very little escape from it in Lanzarote.

I knew before going to Club La Santa that some of the ladies I follow on social media from CrossFit were there training and so was pretty excited to bump into Sara Sigmundsdottir and even more excited when the resort put on a mini triathlon and Samantha Briggs beat my husband.  The final stretch of the run leg is around the running track and I was honestly confused who to cheer on out of my husband and Briggs.  She was very funny and joked with my husband as he crossed the line.  These ladies were at the resort with Emma McQuaid and the effort and dedication put into their training for their sport is something i am left in awe of!

I was sad to see the week end but got some great training in and big thanks to Kate Percy’s Go Bites that fuelled me through the week and Optimum Nutrition for their whey protein powder that I used post workouts.  It was good to share some of the Go Bites with my club mates as an alternative to gels – after a week of training even those who swear by gels were craving savoury!

Club La Santa I will see you again next year!

I have never had a broken bone (probably shouldn’t tempt fate by saying that) or suffered any proper injury until last year.  Towards the end of last year, at the end of September, I suffered a knee injury whilst cycling.  I should note that it was not because of the cycling in any way just bad timing that it happened whilst on the bike.

Just a few miles into a 100 mile bike ride something went in my knee, and after being taken off by an event ambulance I was told they suspected a tear in my medial collateral ligament and that they thought I had displaced my kneecap.  All I knew was that it was painful and I am not ashamed to say I cried – on the side of the road as other participants cycled past and I did not care!

My husband has private health care, that I also benefit from, and so within a fortnight I got myself an appointment to get to the bottom of it and find out what was actually going on with my left knee.  I was booked in for an MRI and the results showed that luckily there was no tear therefore no surgery was needed – this was good news!  That didn’t mean it was all good news.  The MRI showed damage that the consultant said was as a result of a trauma – it was told to me in a way that I actually felt bad that I had traumatised my own knee, the poor knee.  I was given a letter with my results and I won’t pretend I understood anything that I was being told (the medical terms sounded like a foreign language and I actually asked what it meant in English).  The long and short of it was that by the kneecap displacing I had caused significant damage to the medial collateral ligament (one of the ligaments that assist with stability), there was damage to the articular cartilage of the patella, there were cysts present and damage to the overlying cortex.  But as I said the good news was no fracture or actual tear.

I had already had time to RICE (rest, ice, compress and elevate) so now this meant I was given the all clear to continue training if I was sensible about it.  Cycling was allowed as it was low impact.  Running was allowed following a structured run/walk plan over a period of 14 weeks.  Swimming was allowed but not breast stroke because of the movement in the knee as it could aggravate it.  And most importantly if anything hurt I was to stop.

I had several physio sessions (it’s so good but my god so painful sometimes) and had a cortisone injection (again cried like a baby and spoiler alert it hurts like a bitch).  I was given ‘homework’ by way of different exercises with the intention of building up the movement, strength and circulation in the muscles on the inside of my knee to help re-align everything.  It was explained to me that an MCL injury can make a difference to the stability of the knee for a long time and so the recovery and rehab phase was important to be done properly to ensure the ligaments returned to their original elasticity.  I was told this would be a minimum of six to eight weeks.  Say what?

I was shown how to tape the knee which resulted in the tape acting as a brace and giving some much needed support during the recovery process and yes I did order some pink tape (of course).  You may also notice that post exercise I smell of joint ace gel – only yesterday I met a friend who asked if I had put joint ace on as she could smell it – its my new scent (I don’t think it will catch on!).

I was determined not to let this get to me and so started to look into what I could do until I was back to normal.  The obvious was to focus on other parts to train and so there was a lot done at home, upper body stuff in the gym, lots of core work and a change in my training plan.  I did have to pull out of a couple of events, which was hard but absolutely the right thing to do.

So what I have learnt in dealing with an injury (purely from my experience so far) would be:

1. Don’t self diagnose!  If you are not a doctor, don’t try to be one.  And certainly don’t google and try and work out what is wrong as it will not help in the slightest.  Obviously if a minor injury I am sure common sense can prevail but if you need to get medical advice to find out if you are hurt or have an actual injury and take on board their instructions for rehabilitation as it will benefit in the long run.  Huge difference between being sore and being in pain.
2. It takes time – the recovery is a process and takes patience, often where your expectations may end up being very different from reality (mine were – I am an impatient cow).  If you know the cause then easier to not repeat in future.
3. It hurts – don’t think you can exercise your way out of an injury as you will more than likely only make it worse.  Physio can play a huge part, if needed, though is not always pleasant but a necessary evil!  I found I have done more stretching and yoga that I should do more regularly anyway.
4. It’s frustrating – the road to recovery is long but it is worth it to avoid future set backs.  It can be hard seeing people around you training and doing events you would like to do, but switch sides and be the supporter (it’s actually a lot of fun).
5. Adapt – as I found I could do some of the training I did before but amended in a different way like following a run/walk plan and actually I am not hating running now whereas before I had a real love/hate relationship as I struggled through most runs so there is a silver lining.  Be creative!
6. Rest is also a huge part of the recovery process and without it can make healing much longer.
7. Stay positive! It is so easy to feel defeated and I found I had a massive confidence knock after my injury, which can be normal and will need to be worked through.  Set small goals – I booked a future event that is timed for the end of my rehab run plan so I had some forward focus.

It is now four months on and my knee is still not 100%.  I had no idea it would take this long but it is what it is.  Certain exercises really cause issues such as lunges are an absolute no no for me but that’s ok as I never much liked them anyway.  But there is always an alternative, especially if you are in a gym or class or situation with a qualified trainer as there will be an adaptation you should be advised to follow just be sure to let them know of your injury at the outset.

Trust the process.  It is difficult but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

Last night I went to a screening of a documentary called Embrace, about body image and confidence, in conjunction with This Girl Can and Active Life as they launch their new #shesready campaign which is aimed at getting women involved in volunteering and training in physical activities.  This Girl Can is a campaign that celebrates active women who are doing their thing no matter how well they do it, how they look or even how red their face gets.  I would like to caveat that this is not a subject just for females, it effects men too.  Body demons can take hold of any of us and all too easily too if we let them, I know I have fallen foul to this and sometimes still do, which is a sad, but honest, reality.

The name of my blog is Fat Girl Fit and I am on a journey to get fit and lose weight so naturally the issue around body confidence is something that I can relate to personally though I I think the majority of people can if they are honest.

We live in a society that almost tells us how we should look, the ideal body shape and size, faddy diets to get them and worse.  It is something that for many strikes a chord and can all too often quickly spiral for some and not always in a positive way.  We all automatically assume that this is referring to overweight people but that is also not the case, it can have a huge impact also on those who are underweight and many other physical attributes too.

There are two quotes that you may have previously heard that hit the nail on the head in my opinion:

J K Rowling said ‘Is fat really the worst thing a human being can be?  Is fat worse than vindictive, jealous, shallow, vain, boring, evil, or cruel? Not to me.’

Demi Lovato said ‘I’m not going to sacrifice my mental health to have the perfect body.’

You will have probably also heard this or something similar ‘You are not fat.  You have fat.  You also have fingernails, but you are not fingernails.’

And the above quotes are so true!  More importantly I don’t want to brush over the topic of mental health and the link with this topic and associated consequences are extremely important and we should all take time for self love.  It’s been refreshing to see so much over recent months on social media to increase awareness around mental health and I hope it continues.  If you are nodding your head in agreement right now then virtual high five to you!

Why not try this – whenever you criticise yourself instead think of something you love about yourself.  It is perfectly acceptable to love yourself, it’s not selfish.  Take care of yourself and make your happiness a priority.  Your attitude determines your direction so why not be body positive and it will create more positivity that your body will react to.

So I would like to take a moment to celebrate women and men of all body shapes and sizes.  Hands up to those who are trying to love themselves in a world that is constantly telling them that maybe they shouldn’t be.  And more to the point why are we trying to be perfect?  Who is perfect?  No one and that is ok – embrace the imperfections as they are what makes you you!  Why not focus on what your body can do rather than just physical appearances for instance I have stretch marks (like I’ve been attacked by a lion) all over my stomach but I have a son and will take those stretch marks for that in a heartbeat – I carried another human being and that is pretty amazing.

Also think about those around you and what impression this leaves with them.  Young children who will take note about whether it is good or bad to be short or tall, smaller or bigger, what colour eyes or hair you have.  Remind them that it is all ok and that there are many parts of us all, that you cannot see, that make us beautiful.  Speak to their hearts and give them that confidence too!

It’s that time of year again when I can look back and see what I got up to and take some time to reflect on what I have accomplished.  I, like many others, set goals at the beginning of the year and life always chucks some hurdles in that change the direction you are heading.  It is easy to get disheartened when this happens and I have been guilty of this after suffering an injury in September BUT when I look back I can also say I am proud of what I have achieved too.

At the beginning of this year I set out some goals in a blog post and whilst writing this took some time to reflect on them.  These are what I listed as goals:

• Not be so scared of the weights section of the gym and with the help of a good friend of mine I spend more time in that area of the gym than any other and actually really enjoy it so long may that continue.
• Reach my goal weight OR be comfortable with my body shape.  I really wanted this but that did not happen and in fact after an injury and putting weight on I managed to lose that and some more but there is still a lot to go.  I am not letting this get to me and I am more determined than ever.  I am also trying to not take too much notice of that number on the scale and instead have started taking measurements – with the sort of training I am doing there are changes that won’t show on a set of scales alone but that does not mean progress is not being made.
• Take part in all the Nuclear events and earn my Mudallion medal.  I completed all the events run by Nuclear this year and my Mudallion was worn with pride.
• Complete the Vatternrundan 186 mile cycle ride in Sweden.  This was my main event this year and I cannot recommend it enough – beautiful country, beautiful scenery, beautiful people and beautiful bike ride with amazing friends – seeing the sunset and sunrise during this event was stunning.  I will do this one again in the future for sure.
• Get through a week at the La Santa training camp in Lanzarote and not die on a mountain somewhere.  I am writing this post so clearly managed to not die, I also got up all the climbs and even took part, as a relay, in my first triathlon.
• Enjoy myself – always do.
• Smile – my event photos this year have beaming smiles in each and much fun was had.

As I travelled with my husband for his events I have taken my bike and got my training in by cycling the bike course of his triathlons meaning I have experienced this in various countries.

I have surrounded myself with positive people and that is such a mental boost – I believe in them, they believe in me, positivity is contagious and inspiring.

And although I finish 2017 with a knee injury I am working on strengthening that and so my goals changed slightly and means some of those for next year will do the same.  My priorities will be to recover from that injury properly and build up the confidence I have lost as a consequence – I have started on this already and want to say a huge thank you to some who have been massively helpful in this respect even if they do not realise it and they are my friend Emma, Tracey from Nuclear especially with the Wild Forest ladies classes, Scotty from The PT Barn who is just awesome and I will look forward to visiting his new location for some sessions that I am sure will help me even more, my cycle club Romford CC, all the fab people from Havering Tri and last but by no means least my husband.

I have many events planned for 2018 already so watch this space….

I debated writing this but it’s not always sunshine and roses and that’s ok so figured why not?

I suffered an injury to my knee end of September and have not been right since. It was no major incident when it actually happened, in fact quite underwhelming and almost a bit of a boring story. Long and short is that following an MRI it was found to be an injury through previous trauma (though I don’t recall anything happening).

Anyway it put me out of action for a few weeks and anyone who regularly trains to go to nothing feels completely alien! I adapted though and found things I could do without having to put any weight on my knee like weights and arms and ab workouts – where there’s a will there’s a way.

When I felt able to I started to take part in events again but was super sensible and skipped any obstacles that may cause pain or aggravate my knee.

I’ve been on the bike a couple of times and apart from a few twinges nothing to report there though not tried hills and that may be a different story altogether. I have attended a few spin classes though told the instructor about the injury and again was sensible.

I’ve also tried to run again – I’m not the best runner at all but this is like going back to scratch. My knee is not loving it and it in turn makes a very grumpy Lisa!

I should note I’ve never really been injured before so this whole waiting to rest and recover is not something that I am good at – I’m way too impatient! Since the injury I’ve been careful but that in turn seems to have developed this very strange lack of self confidence. I did not anticipate an injury to result in such a crisis of confidence. Is that normal?  Having never been through this before I don’t know?

Some obstacles I’ve done numerous times before I’m now scared of doing, I seem to be unable to will myself to move on monkey bars and when I do I am not all that successful.

I was scared to get back on my bike in case something happened again even though I know it was not the bike that caused it and doctors said my knee could have gone at any time. I’m wondering when to try some hills in case that makes it worse?

I recently visited Ultimate Ninja with friends Emma and Dave and left feeling totally deflated, not because it’s not awesome, because it is, but because I was just a bit useless. I will admit I had a little cry then (you can laugh, they were tears filled with self pity – hardly first world problems in the scheme of things I know). My friend Emma had the idea of visiting a park with money bars etc and I did them and we had fun and that put a smile back on my face!

I’m lucky to be surrounded by lots of people willing to help, offer advice and support and who are patient! And as I said before where there’s a will there’s a way.

So here is my plan:

• Start a couch to 10k running plan to slowly build up strength in my knee and get some running fitness back.
• My husband (benefit of him being an awesome cycling coach) will write me a plan for the turbo trainer to follow and again build up the strength and endurance.
• Continue working out with the best PT (and friend) Emma who is like gold dust and helping me get back to where I was and better and also my muddy partner in crime!
• Continue attending the ladies only OCR class at Nuclear Wild Forest Gym for hints, tips, experience and practice on some obstacles with the awesome Tracey.
• Attend the PT Barn family weekend and conquer some fears – Coach Scotty is amazing and his tips (including breaking down the obstacles) are invaluable!

In the meantime if anyone does find my self-confidence can you send it back?

I am loving overnight oats at the moment.  They have become my go to breakfast for most days. Don’t get me wrong I’m not a saint and there’s many days I wake up and just want a bacon sandwich. Doesn’t everyone have those days?

I eat breakfast at work and so take in my cute jar that’s been in the fridge overnight – you can make the oats in anything but I use a jar simply because I think it’s cute. I’m sad like that.

I like the fact that they are ready for me to just pick up out of the fridge and take with no prep in the morning and quite honestly I love breakfast. I don’t really get people who don’t eat breakfast – I don’t really get people who skip meals. I plan my days around my food. That’s my problem.

There are many variations of overnight oat recipes but the basic that I use is:

• 40g raw rolled oats
• 3tbsps fat free yoghurt (though I do sometimes use oat milk instead)
• Fruit of my choice

The method is pretty simple in that I mix the oats and yoghurt/milk and put the fruit on top and then I put in the fridge overnight. You can add protein powder also if you wish although once I had a trial sachet I used and that turned my oats green which was odd?

I have also used the Lean in 15 recipe using quinoa which is also very good.

Overnight oats provide energy, fiber and help you control your appetite, resist food cravings, and boost your metabolism. Sadly it doesn’t mean the more you eat the more your metabolism works.

I use whatever fruit I have to top off mine and swap daily just to keep it interesting.

Do you make overnight oats and if so hit me with some flavour/topping ideas!

At the weekend I spent the afternoon at The PT Barn getting a private session with the amazing Coach Scotty with a group of lovelies.  I loaded some of the pics and received a lovely message from a lady telling me that I was doing so well and inspired her to try new things and she was asking for some advice.  My advice always is to just try because that is what I do.  She had her reservations about being no good or slow etc and it made me want to write a blog post.

I’ve done a post before about my support network and always add posts following events or achievements and have even done them when I am in a funk.

I am on a fitness and weight loss journey and that in itself comes with a lot of ups and downs so whilst I try to be positive I am human and I have my ups and downs like everyone else – it is not all smiles and laughter.

But I am doing it.

I am not the quickest on the bike but I cycle.

I am not the fastest runner but I run.

I am not particularly good at obstacles but I take part and complete many obstacle runs.

Maybe one day I will be quicker, stronger and better but that is not what spurs me on – what spurs me on is getting fitter and enjoying it.  For me I have to enjoy it.

Enjoying it is also partly down to the people I surround myself with who make it enjoyable.

I won’t harp on with lots of cliches but I will say there will always be someone quicker than you, always someone stronger, always someone you could compare yourself to whatever level you are but does that matter?  Everyone has something different that drives them and I can only speak for myself but I just want to see an improvement in me.  I am not in competition with anyone else.

I had the lucky opportunity to go to a training camp earlier in the year with Havering Tri and there are many amazing athletes there but their support helped me to better myself.  However, at the start of that week I cried at my husband as I felt totally overwhelmed by the whole experience but I got it done.

I also attend a track session where most are quicker than me but their support helps me.  I am always nervous about going to track but in the environment we run in you are never more than 100 metres from someone.

At the session I had at the PT Barn at the weekend learning obstacle techniques I had a total wobble at the top of a vertical cargo net climb but it was the support and patience of Scott and the rest of the group that got me through including getting myself up and over a six foot wall which I had never even come close to previously.  I left that session with a huge smile on my face though later when I reflected and realised again most people there were better than me I had a moment where I asked myself why I was bothering at all?

You know what who cares?  Everyone starts somewhere and if I didn’t do anything because of someone being better than me I would never do anything!

I am doing this for me and my achievements are no less or more than anyone else’s and neither should yours.

Enjoy your journey and do so unapologetically.

So just try because what is the worst that could happen? Speaking from experience if I had not tried many of the things on my journey I would not have achieved all I have so far nor met all the wonderful people I now know and call friends! Putting yourself out there and trying new things can bring the most amazing experiences.

This Girl Can and so can you!