I work in IT. We are "agile", so our projects turn around quickly and we deliver a minimum viable product in no time to our internal customers. Not! Projects can take quite a lot longer than you initially thought - and endurance. This is what I find hard at times. Keep going, do it. We will reach the goal soon. Kind of like doing your laundry, it never ends.
Realistically I can't see that changing easily, so I thought let's practice. Let's have a personal one year project to train endurance. I like sports, so the decision was 12 races in 12 months. Every month one race. I wanted to prove to myself that I can do it and especially that I can do it on my own. No followers, no people to follow.
Let's be honest, this was hard. You need to arrange yourself and plan. I can be a very good planner and I enjoy running. This project tested me and I had times where I didn't like running and sports that much anymore. Also living in the UK, most Weekend races start at 9am. No more lie-ins. Some races I planned nicely as I didn't do all of them in the UK and I did enjoy them, especially the big ones. Some I arrange a week or a few days before and looking back, that is not good practice. How did I find these races? There are lots of racing websites where you can find really fun and cheap races, also speak with friends who enjoy this for recommendations. Someone always knows something. You might now think why did you bother as it sounds like you didn't always have fun. That is true but finishing it was important to me and overall I did have fun and I want to share how to do this if you ever fancy doing it. Don't be fooled, such a project is not cheap. Now the races I did, what I learned, costs and the fun side of it.
Let's start in January 2018. Despite saying that this was all for myself, I tried to find companions for one or the other race. You share this experience with someone else and that is fun. My partner at that time signed up with me but stood me up. The first challenge, am I still doing? I did. I was very upset with him but I did it. Starting the year easy with a 5k in Richmond Park. And you always find companions on the way. It was cold, it was a very fun atmosphere, very well organised and about 15 GBP entry fee. Don't forget to think about transport. Not a personal best (PB) but a good experience.
#beastfromtheeast makes it to London in March 2018, just in time for my race. I felt very fast that day and for a moment had the vision of standing on the podium. I did not. But it was fun anyway and I made it into the top 20. Not bad at all for a snowy 10k. I always wanted to race in Hyde Park which I did that day, so another box ticket. Battling the winter is hard and I was proud to have made it through three races already.
Stayed in London for the sixth race and attended the 1 HOUR. NO LIMITS. race organised by Adidas. The concept was that you run as many loops as you can in one hour. Again lapping ... Apparently, I didn't have enough of that yet. One lap again 1 mile and I managed 10.5 km on the London tarmac. I fall during the last lap and my knee was bruised and swollen after the race and my hands had scratches from catching the fall. Otherwise, I was fine. I was neck and neck with another runner and we must have tripped over one of the measuring cables along the way. One of my friends did the race too but in a different wave and she was supporting me afterwards. Cheerleaders are awesome, regardless if you know them or not. That race was expensive, guess it was the branding. But the photo made it worth it all the same.
It's July. I managed six races already and I feel tired again. My bike gets stolen, I am super sad but I take up all my energy and beat the odds. With the help of friends, I manage to get it back! That story another time but friends from work collected for me to get a new bike. That was so kind that I felt I need to do something special this month. I was looking for a charitable race and not just something for myself. I found imovelondon: one month non-stop relay that collected money for young people that might have ended up on the wrong path. I felt that was very fitting and I took all the money I had from the collection, gave it to the group and attended the relay. This was very special and I can totally recommend giving that a go in case they organise this again.
The temperatures are rising still and you hear phrases like "I am melting!" or "It's boiling hot!" on a daily basis. My big race of the year - The London Triathlon - starting very early at 7 am in the morning so I should make it through before the heatwave of the day. Triathlon means swim, bike, run and depends on the format of the race the distances will vary. I signed up for Olympic distance which is a 1.5 km swim, a 40 km bike ride and finished with a 10 km run. In terms of costs that was definitely the most expensive race of the year with an entry fee of 89 pounds. But the organisation was superb and if you actually enjoy racing, that is quite alright. As I don't own a car and live in the south but raced east, I left my gear at a friends place. I probably should have stayed over. I got up at 5 am, had some light breakfast and made my way to my friends place to collect everything. People were still coming home from the night before and one dude asked: "Coming home or up already?" Well, I was already up and he told me proudly about a race he did in 2011! Wow, how relevant. Got my bike and other gear and made it to the Excel Centre for the race. I was late! Damn it. And I didn't write down my race number. A tip here always do that otherwise you'll stress out which I did. I got all my chips etc. and ran to my place to set up my station. I was very rushed and that was not good at all because I couldn't soak in the racing atmosphere as much as I wanted to. In the end, I stood in my wetsuit in the women's wave ready to swim and chatted with some of the other ladies that had to run to the starting line too. The swim was awesome and I felt so much better than I ever did swimming open water. Getting out of the water, running through the hall and found my bike. Hopped on it and all the way to Westminster and back. Still in good shape, off the bike and running shoes on. I invested in a tri suit which I wore throughout the race and I need to say gearing up is good. I know there is quite a lot of all the gear no idea going on in such races and surely I contribute to that. But a little bit of investment will make it more fun and you normally use that stuff more than once. Again laps. Man, it must have been a lap year. After four of them in the burning sun I was happy to end up in the cool Excel Centre. A colleague of mine was racing too and it was super fun to hung afterwards and congratulate each other on our performance.
I attended a swim camp that year and decided I can challenge myself a bit further than just running. Running can be tough, so don't take this as ohh running is so easy for me. No, but swimming is tougher for me personally. So I took up the Serpentine challenge in September. One mile swim in Hyde Park. It was stunning. The organisation was so smooth from dry to wet change to hot tubes at the end of the swim. I did half breaststroke and half front crawl. I am still not strong enough to do front crawl all the way but no one cared. For anybody that wants to try, even backstroke is allowed at this race! Fabulous as that's not often the case. I definitely needed that hot soup after the race and all the respect to the people without wetsuits.
Rise - freedom from domestic abuse. Time to support others again as I have experienced so much support for my 12 months, 12 races project. I went to Brighton for my 10th race for an 8k race along the cost and support an organisation supporting people that have experienced domestic abuse. I felt very strong and I was. I finished within the top 30 which was great and reached the finish line after 44 minutes. I cheered for the young girls along the way and took a deep breath full of sea salt. It was beautiful. My May racing buddy did that race with me and we received the biggest goody bag ever. That race was again medium expensive as I decided to stay the night before.
Will I make a half marathon or not? Not in 2018. Something I want to tackle in 2019 again. For November it was a 15k in Windsor. Again I was not prepared well and forgot that public transport outside of London might not be as smooth as in a city with millions of people. So I reached the station early in the morning and there was no bus or anything to the racing place. I took a taxi for 30 pounds... That's what I meant by getting organised. You can always make it somehow but you'll end up pay for it. The Windsor Annual Autumn Race took place in Eton, the location of the rowing competition of the 2012 Olympics. It was certainly impressive to see the Olympic rings and run around there. As I am cheap at times, I walked back after the race to take the train and to get a glimpse again at the castle.
Last one. It's December and I know I can do it. I am visiting a friend in Munich for my second away from home race. We do a 10k in the Olympic park in Munich and it is super stormy. It was super fun to finish this one year challenge together with a good friend and we even got a hat - no medal though 😊 As I learned early, not so important. Some people dressed up in Nikolaus costumes as it was almost St. Nikolaus day. And we got Christmas cookies after the race.
I made it. 12 months, 12 races. I felt proud. I know I will not do that challenge again in 2019. But I made it. I spend quite a lot of money, not entirely sure how much but with fees, new gear, transport and accommodation where needed I guess I could have reached 500 pounds. And if you do Ironman you won't even find this number shocking. I came out stronger from this challenge and my main learning was if you have a project that is longer than just a few months, you need to get organised. If you know when to be where and how to get there, you will enjoy everything more. You won't feel rushed, you have time to chat with people and you can take in the surrounding before it starts. Now onto the next challenges.
Realistically I can't see that changing easily, so I thought let's practice. Let's have a personal one year project to train endurance. I like sports, so the decision was 12 races in 12 months. Every month one race. I wanted to prove to myself that I can do it and especially that I can do it on my own. No followers, no people to follow.
Let's be honest, this was hard. You need to arrange yourself and plan. I can be a very good planner and I enjoy running. This project tested me and I had times where I didn't like running and sports that much anymore. Also living in the UK, most Weekend races start at 9am. No more lie-ins. Some races I planned nicely as I didn't do all of them in the UK and I did enjoy them, especially the big ones. Some I arrange a week or a few days before and looking back, that is not good practice. How did I find these races? There are lots of racing websites where you can find really fun and cheap races, also speak with friends who enjoy this for recommendations. Someone always knows something. You might now think why did you bother as it sounds like you didn't always have fun. That is true but finishing it was important to me and overall I did have fun and I want to share how to do this if you ever fancy doing it. Don't be fooled, such a project is not cheap. Now the races I did, what I learned, costs and the fun side of it.
Let's start in January 2018. Despite saying that this was all for myself, I tried to find companions for one or the other race. You share this experience with someone else and that is fun. My partner at that time signed up with me but stood me up. The first challenge, am I still doing? I did. I was very upset with him but I did it. Starting the year easy with a 5k in Richmond Park. And you always find companions on the way. It was cold, it was a very fun atmosphere, very well organised and about 15 GBP entry fee. Don't forget to think about transport. Not a personal best (PB) but a good experience.
It's Sunday, the 4th of February and I convinced two friends that running is a great idea! And they turned up - even better. Quite a fancy location, running a 10k in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. We had to do laps during this race and one of the guys admitted it was very tempting to stop after the first. All of us kept going and I finished in under 55 minutes. Not bad. Runthrough was the organiser and I need to say I really enjoy their races. The price is always fair but you are likely to lap. So consider that if you find that tough. Good, chunky and colourful medals guaranteed.
From a red, frozen nose to running in a top, a very different environment in April. I had a business trip to Barcelona and took the opportunity to race abroad. First things first, prepare better and in more detail when you race away from home! Yes people will always help but you need to be able to actually ask them and I don't speak Spanish or Catalan. I signed up for Cursa Bombers Barcelona, a race celebrating firefighter and their service to the public. Some of the folks ran in full uniform including oxygen tanks. So much respect to those people as it was easily 23 degrees. I had to collect my kit the day before and luckily could ask my colleagues for directions etc. the emails were in Catalan only, no English translation but hey what is life without a bit of adventure. That was surely one of my most expensive races that year as I had to pay for local transport, accommodation and the race. The total was easily 100 euro. I didn't get a medal for that race and was first disappointed by that. Later I watched a video from Simon Sinek about us Millenials (1:58 minutes, I didn't come last 😆) and had to laugh about myself and the obsession with medals. I survived that race quite well without one. I added one thing to the before race checklist: pins. Not everywhere they give them out, better to always have some in your pocket.
Back to London and a much cheaper race but longer distance: 10 miles (1 mile = 1.6 km). Again organised by Runthrough and excluding transport, I was in for 18 pounds. After 1h 35 minutes, I reached the finish line. I was exhausted. That race took place in Lee Valley VeloPark which is a fabulous location but means you need to lap 10 times! You also need to count yourself but I never expired such a well-organised event. They had everything from a one-miler family race up to a half marathon. I kept circling in the heat which by now had reached London too. I was incredibly thankful to all those wonderful cheerleaders along the way handing out water and shouting encouraging message saying that we can all make it.
It's July. I managed six races already and I feel tired again. My bike gets stolen, I am super sad but I take up all my energy and beat the odds. With the help of friends, I manage to get it back! That story another time but friends from work collected for me to get a new bike. That was so kind that I felt I need to do something special this month. I was looking for a charitable race and not just something for myself. I found imovelondon: one month non-stop relay that collected money for young people that might have ended up on the wrong path. I felt that was very fitting and I took all the money I had from the collection, gave it to the group and attended the relay. This was very special and I can totally recommend giving that a go in case they organise this again.
The temperatures are rising still and you hear phrases like "I am melting!" or "It's boiling hot!" on a daily basis. My big race of the year - The London Triathlon - starting very early at 7 am in the morning so I should make it through before the heatwave of the day. Triathlon means swim, bike, run and depends on the format of the race the distances will vary. I signed up for Olympic distance which is a 1.5 km swim, a 40 km bike ride and finished with a 10 km run. In terms of costs that was definitely the most expensive race of the year with an entry fee of 89 pounds. But the organisation was superb and if you actually enjoy racing, that is quite alright. As I don't own a car and live in the south but raced east, I left my gear at a friends place. I probably should have stayed over. I got up at 5 am, had some light breakfast and made my way to my friends place to collect everything. People were still coming home from the night before and one dude asked: "Coming home or up already?" Well, I was already up and he told me proudly about a race he did in 2011! Wow, how relevant. Got my bike and other gear and made it to the Excel Centre for the race. I was late! Damn it. And I didn't write down my race number. A tip here always do that otherwise you'll stress out which I did. I got all my chips etc. and ran to my place to set up my station. I was very rushed and that was not good at all because I couldn't soak in the racing atmosphere as much as I wanted to. In the end, I stood in my wetsuit in the women's wave ready to swim and chatted with some of the other ladies that had to run to the starting line too. The swim was awesome and I felt so much better than I ever did swimming open water. Getting out of the water, running through the hall and found my bike. Hopped on it and all the way to Westminster and back. Still in good shape, off the bike and running shoes on. I invested in a tri suit which I wore throughout the race and I need to say gearing up is good. I know there is quite a lot of all the gear no idea going on in such races and surely I contribute to that. But a little bit of investment will make it more fun and you normally use that stuff more than once. Again laps. Man, it must have been a lap year. After four of them in the burning sun I was happy to end up in the cool Excel Centre. A colleague of mine was racing too and it was super fun to hung afterwards and congratulate each other on our performance.
I attended a swim camp that year and decided I can challenge myself a bit further than just running. Running can be tough, so don't take this as ohh running is so easy for me. No, but swimming is tougher for me personally. So I took up the Serpentine challenge in September. One mile swim in Hyde Park. It was stunning. The organisation was so smooth from dry to wet change to hot tubes at the end of the swim. I did half breaststroke and half front crawl. I am still not strong enough to do front crawl all the way but no one cared. For anybody that wants to try, even backstroke is allowed at this race! Fabulous as that's not often the case. I definitely needed that hot soup after the race and all the respect to the people without wetsuits.
Rise - freedom from domestic abuse. Time to support others again as I have experienced so much support for my 12 months, 12 races project. I went to Brighton for my 10th race for an 8k race along the cost and support an organisation supporting people that have experienced domestic abuse. I felt very strong and I was. I finished within the top 30 which was great and reached the finish line after 44 minutes. I cheered for the young girls along the way and took a deep breath full of sea salt. It was beautiful. My May racing buddy did that race with me and we received the biggest goody bag ever. That race was again medium expensive as I decided to stay the night before.
Will I make a half marathon or not? Not in 2018. Something I want to tackle in 2019 again. For November it was a 15k in Windsor. Again I was not prepared well and forgot that public transport outside of London might not be as smooth as in a city with millions of people. So I reached the station early in the morning and there was no bus or anything to the racing place. I took a taxi for 30 pounds... That's what I meant by getting organised. You can always make it somehow but you'll end up pay for it. The Windsor Annual Autumn Race took place in Eton, the location of the rowing competition of the 2012 Olympics. It was certainly impressive to see the Olympic rings and run around there. As I am cheap at times, I walked back after the race to take the train and to get a glimpse again at the castle.
Last one. It's December and I know I can do it. I am visiting a friend in Munich for my second away from home race. We do a 10k in the Olympic park in Munich and it is super stormy. It was super fun to finish this one year challenge together with a good friend and we even got a hat - no medal though 😊 As I learned early, not so important. Some people dressed up in Nikolaus costumes as it was almost St. Nikolaus day. And we got Christmas cookies after the race.
I made it. 12 months, 12 races. I felt proud. I know I will not do that challenge again in 2019. But I made it. I spend quite a lot of money, not entirely sure how much but with fees, new gear, transport and accommodation where needed I guess I could have reached 500 pounds. And if you do Ironman you won't even find this number shocking. I came out stronger from this challenge and my main learning was if you have a project that is longer than just a few months, you need to get organised. If you know when to be where and how to get there, you will enjoy everything more. You won't feel rushed, you have time to chat with people and you can take in the surrounding before it starts. Now onto the next challenges.
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