I hope that everyone's training is taking shape and settling into a good pattern.
Putting put the base work into this year's walk now can only help later.
I have been getting out as much as possible, no matter the weather. This morning was absolutely lovely walking across Douglas promenade on a beautifully clear morning as the sun came up. The drawback (there is always one) - ice, frost, bitter cold. I found that I was tiptoeing around for most of the walk as I was petrified of slipping on the ice. Douglas promenade was sheet ice in places!
My mindset has suddenly switched back into full on training mode and I am finding my food routine has settled as a result after Christmas.
This does come with its own problems for me. I am focussed on “the plan” and therefore any deviations really stress me out. I am finding that I am struggling to allow myself to have those odd treats and days off, even though I know that they are needed for my sanity. Again, this is a daily battle but I am mindful of the issue this year and I am getting better at relaxing (I think).
The key for me at the moment is to try and concentrate on my posture. I found in last year’s Parish that I naturally swing my left arm across my body. This meant that I had issues in my shoulder from about 10 miles in and it was not comfortable for the next 75 miles. However, you don’t walk on your arm and shoulder so it was a case of - shut up and get on with it!
So this year I am trying to sort this by relaxing and trying to concentrate on swinging my arms more evenly during training.
This week I also managed to get a horrid blister across the end of one toe from a treadmill session in a hotel in London. I followed my usual pattern with a blister and left it alone. It has now burst of its own accord and healed within a few days so it’s all good again.
Now I will probably keep banging on and on about this, but the entries for the Firefighter's Memorial Walk opened this week. GET YOUR ENTRIES IN!
The walk takes place on Sunday 19 April this year and basically follows the Parish route from Peel to Ramsey. It is 50km (about 31.5 miles) and is a perfect long training walk for the Parish.
1. It lets you become familiar with the route
2. It is a great long training walk - you will not walk this far otherwise I would not think
3. The timing is perfect to put effort in and then have plenty of time to recover for the Parish in June
4. This is the chance to test trainers, socks, clothes and (most importantly) food in a really decent long walk.
Also, it is a really friendly and sociable event. It is a highlight of my year!
The link to the website is
Following on from my last post, I thought that I would go into more detail about my nutrition and food - during training, into carb loading and then during the actual big events.
So, what does a typical day of food look like for me during the normal training phase? This the pattern that I basically follow from now until May, unless I am travelling or on holiday.
As I explained in my last post, Angela Clucas of Next Level Nutrition provides me with invaluable nutrition advice. As time goes on I realise how vitally important the food side of things is.
I am currently on around 2,200 calories of intake per day - made up of 200g of protein, 196g of carbs and 70g of fat.
I have learned that the protein level is the most important element of this mix. This builds lean muscle, repairs the damage from training and fuels you on an on-going basis. The carbs help with fuel but they are not my focus.
The protein amount is a target - I have to hit this each day. The carbs and fats are limits and I try not to stray over these levels unless it is a heavy training day.
By monitoring everything carefully I have found that I end up eating much more than I would have expected whilst being on a “diet” and I really enjoy my food as I think more about what I am going to eat. Whereas previously it was a case of throwing something together with whatever was in the fridge.
At the moment, a usual day of food would be as follows:
Breakfast
- 80g porridge oats - that is a double portion according to the side of the packet!
- 250ml semi-skimmed milk and about 125ml water to cook the porridge
- Then add 120g Fage 0% Greek yoghurt
- 1 tablespoon of honey
- 20g protein powder (MyProtein Cinnamon Danish or German Gingerbread are the current favourites)
- 60g blueberries
That is a massive bowl of food that really sets you up for the day! I find that this keeps me full all through the morning and I that I sometimes have to remind myself to have a snack.
Morning snack
- Lean protein - usually a 120g roast chicken breast
Lunch
- Tortilla wrap
- 120g flavoured chicken from M&S or Tesco
- Salad leaves
- Chopped sweet pepper
- Spring onions
Afternoon snack
- Protein bar - Fulfil or Barebells are the best that I have found, being more like a chocolate bar rather than a polystyrene block - I buy them online from www.proteinpickandmix.co.uk as you can mix and match the flavours rather than buying a whole box of a single flavour
Dinner
- Lean protein focussed but tasty - so chicken curry, sausage casserole, harissa salmon and chicken or prawn stir fry are the current favourites (obviously not all together)
- Piles of green veggies
Supper
- 400g Fage 0% Greek yoghurt
- 65g frozen berries - defrosted in the fridge during the day
- Walden Farms zero calorie blueberry or strawberry syrup
That lot will always come in at or below 2,200 cals. So you can see, there is no starving on this regime and it is a lot of food.
This is what I stick to throughout the year until I get into the days before a big walk - then it is time for carb loading. The fun few days!
I was sceptical about carb loading but with guidance from Angela and my own research I have found that it definitely works.
It is not just a case of eating as much pasta as possible the day before the walk and it does involve quite a bit of planning to try and get the best mix of high carb but low volume foods.
The last thing you need it to feel too full on the start line and, even worse, you don’t want to be constantly stopping at the delightful port-a-loos at the side of the road!
All of the articles that I have seen note that you should take in around 8-10g or carbs per kg of body weight in the few days leading into an event. So if I am sitting at 85kg of body weight then I want to be getting 680g to 850g of carbs - that is a huge amount, believe me!
My intake in the three days before the 2019 Parish Walk was
- Wednesday - 2,965 cals, 171g protein, 334g carbs, 101g fat
- Thursday - 3,634 cals, 187g protein, 285g carbs, 100g fat
- Friday - 5,374 cals, 223g protein, 711g carbs, 178g fat
The day before the Parish and the 100 mile last year involved eating
- Breakfast - porridge, honey, yoghurt, banana and dried apricots
- Lunch - double portion of microwave white rice, chicken, sweet chilli sauce
- Dinner - big bowl of pasta and a chicken and chorizo sauce that we have made up over years
- Supper - more porridge, yoghurt, honey and raisins
- Snacks through the day - blueberry muffin, flapjack, carb drink, chocolate bar, slice of cake
It is crazy and the only time that you can get away with such a “bad” day.
Then on Saturday I had my usual massive bowl of porridge, a pile of toast with jam, marmalade or peanut butter and a massive glass of orange juice.
You cannot get to that start line feeling tired or hungry!
The last bit is food during the walk itself. I have practiced and tried lots of things and I have settled on the following main list.
- Small sandwiches - jam, marmalade, ham
- Crisps - various flavours that are salty
- Chocolate covered pretzels - great mix of sweet and salt
- Small flapjack squares
- Small boiled potatoes - covered with loads of salt
- Watermelon - I hate watermelon but during walks it is the nicest food in the world!
- Muller rice - this is saved for later in the walk (post 45 miles usually) when I do not want to chew food and just need the carbs
- Ice lollies - the best thing on a hot afternoon
The key is that I avoid anything too fatty and energy gels, bars and drinks whilst I am walking. I rely on “proper” food as my body seems to react better to these foods.
I do not eat sweets or chocolate either as I find that I get a massive sugar high followed by a crash.
Then when it comes to drinks
- Flat coke - masses of sugar and helps keep the stomach settled
- Shots of dioralyte - this coupled with salt sticks fight the cramp and replace the electrolytes lost through sweating
- Loads of water
I eat and drink little and often. Everything is in very small pieces - just a mouthful size. So this basically means eating every 2 miles or so from about 10 miles into the walk. I just want to keep topping up the tanks, although you will never eat as much as you burn across the full course. Last year my watch noted that I had burned 12,000 calories during the 17 hours of walking!
So that is my food regime. Nothing too fancy but just researched and thought out, with a lot of help from Angela.
Having spoken to a few other people now, they were also sceptical on the carb loading theories but they, like me, have tried it and they find it works just as well as I do.
The next few weeks will involve plenty of training for me before we head off on a family ski trip and a week of welcome rest. When we get back the time will slip away quickly and before we know it the Firefighters Memorial Walk will be here.
Hopefully I will be able to post again before the ski trip and that will be some explanation about how I deal with my feet and the taping process that I use. This has seen me get away with no real blisters for the last few years.
As usual, if there are any other bits and pieces that anyone would like me to cover then please let me know.
Happy walking everyone!
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