Last legs

The weekend was very productive. I went out for a 9 mile walk in Swinley Forest on Saturday with my very lovely friend Dave after a suitably stodgy lunch, followed by a suitably stodgy dinner. It was the first time I got to use my Garmin properly so that was fun. It was a pleasant day, we didn't get mown down by any mountain bikers and narrowly missed getting splattered by film crew lorries. I fell asleep in front of the rugby afterwards but woke up in time to see England thrash Wales so that was nice.

Sunday was a 9 mile run. If only my legs were involved I feel as though I could run almost indefinitely but shoulders, lungs and other vital parts come into play too and so it wasn't easy but I did it. I didn't eat properly afterwards so effectively wiped myself out for the rest of the day. I was forced, yes, *forced* to lie on the sofa watching back-to-back QI all afternoon. Shame.

Getting out of bed on Monday morning was fun, as my legs gave out and I almost toppled head first into the wardrobe. If that's after two days of "stuff" what's it going to be like after 6?! I think I shall try and do something similar this coming weekend. I'll have to do lots more stretching too before I ramp down the training.

All medications and snacks are now bought. Just need to pack it all. Oh and in related news Shruti will now be doing her trek in June. She's climbing Snowdon this coming weekend so I'll be thinking of her, not least because I'd rather like to be doing it with her :)

All by myself

25 days to go! Back into the gym tonight and a long walk planned for the weekend (route and destination unknown as yet). I'm really looking forward to a run later.

Was chatting to a friend of mine at the weekend who has signed up to do the Reading half marathon with his brother and sister. Just so happens I'm signed up too so I'll know a couple of people running which will be great... more people to get competative with provided I don't get injured on the mountain. Definitely want to get some longer runs in now. I'm hoping to get a time of sub 2 hours. If I can get 1:45 that'd be totally brilliant.

And now the reason for the title of this post. Unfortunately Shruti will not be joining me in Tanzania. There's been some fundraising issues and so she's been told she won't be able to participate. It's not completely unexpected but it's still a real shame, especially as all this was her idea to start with! Don't get me wrong, I in no way shape or form wish that I hadn't signed up to this, it's going to be a crazy and wonderful thing. I was just looking forward to sharing the experience with her and having her enthusiasm to help get me up there. I sort of know a couple of other girls but it won't be quite the same.

So I'll need even more encouragement and cheering on now!

Scaling the heights

It's now just under a month until I jet off. This week hasn't been the best in terms of training for a variety of reasons with only 3 instances of exercise possible, but next week promises to be much better. I suppose you can have too much of a good thing.


I did go climbing this week. The vertical sort of climbing, albeit indoors. I've tried it once before and really enjoyed it and it seems it doesn't take much to get hooked. I had one of the best nights, climbed my first overhang and got scuffed knees to show for it. I only did up to level 5 routes but was happy enough with that. Can't wait for an excuse to go back. Quite fancy doing the beginners course but I really should try and wait until I get back from The Mountain. It'll get added to the List of Things I Enjoy Scaring Mum With.

Fueled by Audio

Some time ago The Times did an offer where by you could download two music tracks from a company called AudioFuel for free. These tracks are designed to help you in your running, whether outside or on the treadmill in the gym. They come in two main flavours, pure - just music, and coaching - with some added spoken instructions to help you find the pace and to motivate you. I think the free ones were one of each. I downloaded them and promptly forgot about them.

The other day I got an email from one of the many newsletters I'm signed up to. Can't remember if it was the London Marathon one, Reading Half, or even the AudioFuel one itself. Anyway it mentioned the addition of some new tracks and a survey, which if completed would give me £20 to spend on music. Always keen to take advantage of a useful bargain or freebie I completed the survey and have downloaded my £20 of music. For me this meant one 60min Pure compilation and one 40min Coaching compilation. I've listened to both and they are awesome. I used the free tracks in the gym last night and really enjoyed working out to them. The music is original, the coaching subtle and finally I have a solid block of music that's the right tempo.

They have quite a lot of different compilations, in different intensities and lengths and you can make up your own if you like. Yes you could get some gadget to analyse your own music for BPM but I've not found anything that does it well yet. In the mean time this is a great quick fix. I've been listening to the tracks at work which is making me want to go to the gym so much. This might be the motivation I need to get that intensity up. As most people know, music is very important to me.

I've managed to get to the gym every day bar one for the last 8 days. I'm very happy with that. This has had the effect of making me want to eat all the time. Still need to get more outdoor walking miles under my belt but an hour of fast-paced CV every day has got to be good right? Also, doing weights every day has resulted in me getting some of the definition back in my arms. Haven't had that since I did Body Pump!

Keep on keeping on

As Donna, another girl tackling Kili, has mentioned, there's only 45 days to go! The briefing is tonight in London but I can't make it so Donna's kindly going to report back on anything I need to know. We've started talking about what we're going to wear for the gala dinner after the climb. Girly, yes, but exciting too.


Did a couple of hour/two hour walks in the snow on the weekend and so far this week have managed a weights session and two proper gym sessions. The gym is filled with people trying to keep their new years resolutions... very frustrating for those of us who are just trying to keep going. Might have to try going later in the evening to see if it's any quieter. I've still not managed to give my Garmin Forerunner a proper try due to the continuing snow and slush.


I almost incurred injury the other day too. Walking out of my apartment complex I slipped, stacked it and now have several bruises in inconvenient places and a very sore, raw patch on my ankle where I took the skin off. I'm hoping to go for a long walk with Shruti at the weekend so it's on with the compeed to protect the wound.


I'm really looking forward to the walk with Shruti. I'm not bad at self-motivation but this month has been especially tough so far; it's the time when I most need to keep going though. I would still really like a personal trainer to help push me or a training partner to help with motivation. I'm not sure if I am actually any fitter, how much or if I've improved my strength or endurance. I am thinking that when I'm back home properly that I'd like to join the local running club. It's something I enjoy doing (with hiking, biking and swimming) and I've got some events in mind or already booked that it would help me to train for. I'd like to experience the social side of sport and see some improvement. A friend of mine plays football several times a week and always has stories about how they beat this team that they didn't last year or how he's improved; I'd like to experience that and running's pretty accessible. I've signed up for the Sherunsheruns/Sweatshop 10K in Bluewater again this year... want to get a new PB on the course :)

Eight weeks and counting...

It's a new year but the same old challenge. There are 8 weeks left until head off to Tanzania (the Visa arrived so they should let me in) and there's a whole lot of training still to do. My plan of exercising everyday over the Christmas period failed miserably, which was to be expected I suppose, but as of tomorrow I'm going to be back on form. The problem will be trying to get my self motivated again. I could really do with a training partner.

I got a new Garmin 405CX and a purple 16GB iPod nano for Christmas which I'm itching to try out on the go, so I'll need to go running or walking outside very soon. Need to plan some routes around Cardiff! I do need to do aomething every day now, whether it's swimming, gym, walking or pilates. I would love to go for some bike rides but I don't have my bike in Cardiff so that'll have to be limited to the odd weekend at home. Training will give me a good excuse to cut down on the drinking and help shift all those mince pies I ate over Christmas. Actually I had one just now so I've really got my work cut out ;)

I'm really excited now. Last things to do, get Malaria tablets, pack and weigh kit, keep fit and get myself on a plane! Hurrah!

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

So I got the down jacket from Howies (lovely lovely people) and it fits very nicely between my fleece and waterproof for those really cold days. I'm looking for excuses to wear it already and seeing as I happened to have a whole weekend in Wales without plans I thought it might be a good opportunity to get out and about for a walk. It's been pretty snowy across the country and was still bitter today so I layered up, packed several litres of water and a few mars bars and headed over to Brecon for a wander around on the Taff Trail. It was too snowy to even attempt Pen-Y-Fan.

It was so stunning out there. Only 2 degrees but I didn't need any layers other than my Merino (THE best investment I've made) and my fleece. I started off with the down jacket but didn't need it after the first 10 mins so I'll probably be fine on top of Kili.

I soon learnt to tell the difference between snow and snow covered ice... some of that ice hid mud and water. Not fun. Still walked for about 4 hours (inspired by Clare) and now feel suitably achey and tired. I've resolved to do some sort of training every day between now and Kili whether it be a run, a walk, core work of whatever. But now, time for a bath and some food. I'll leave you with some pictures.