Squats and biscuits

I am quite regularly asked what I do in training and what I eat. Or similarly people comment on what I do in training and what I eat. It's a big part of my life so I understand why people ask. It's also a compliment because I must be doing something right if people are wanting to know for themselves.

So here it is.. A rough idea of the sorts of workouts I do and the same for what I eat. 

Workouts 

Firstly, I don't exercise. I train. I think that makes a big difference training to compete in a sport (in my case athletics). Secondly I've trained from the age of 11 so it's more than a habit, it's a lifestyle which does make it easy to maintain compared to New Years resolution type promises. 

Now what I like and what I need to do to be a successful long jumper don't always match up! 

Here's an example of what I like: 

Tempo running: round a football pitch - run the straights or diagonals fast and jog/walk the ends. I do 4 lengths and then rest then repeat 3 times. 

I also like to add circuits in to this type of running. E.g running drills, jumps or body weight exercises then run 150-200m and repeat up to ten times with walk back recovery. 

Another session I like is 6x150m at 80% with 2-3 min recovery. Not quite long enough for full recovery so this one hurts especially when you ignore the 80% bit like I'm always getting told off for. 

I also like  gym. I love lifting and when not injured can lift reasonably heavy. I'm talking cleans, snatch, squat etc. in sets of 3-4 reps. A good pb session is 3x80%1RM followed by 1x1RM+ repeated three times. 

I mix up kettle bells, weights, body weight, plates and gymnastics exercises to keep things interesting!! Below is a sheet from my training programme when I was in Loughborough, coached by Emily Parker. Probably my favourite programme I've worked under. Tons of circuits and lots of sweating!!

So you get the idea. I like to run longer sprints and lift weights. Anything that gives a good set of abs is up there too (Guru circuit!). 

Now is probably a good time to say that the majority of the time I don't make up my sessions, my coach does. So please no credit to me for the above (or below). 

Sessions I do but am not a fan of are:

Short sprints (10-40m) - I'm not the fastest off the line

Plyometrics - I'm a wimp and scared it will injure me

Technique work (any) - I get bored if I'm not working up a sweat

But as long as there is variety and I can see progression I'll generally cooperate. 

Now. Food!

I love food. Some days I swear I only train so I can eat! I do my very best to see food as fuel and therefore make good choices but I'll admit it - I'm human, and today I ate one and a half pizzas. Oops. Luckily I'm naturally lean. Leanness not body mass is how I determine whether or not I am comfortable with the way I look. I don't like to be 'soft'. 

I do seek advice from a nutritionist who understands my needs and likes etc because like most things I find something easier to do if I'm told to do it. Any way Bo (nutritionist) helps me with healthy food ideas, particularly snacks as well as reinforcing why it is not beneficial for me to hit up McDs on the way home from training. Like I said. I'm human (and I love chicken nuggets). 

Here's an idea of foods I regularly eat: 

I should probably mention here that the other caveat is that I dislike cooking and am a little bit fussy on top of having a busy schedule. 

Turkey Fajitas - my no1 meal as anyone that knows me will testify. If I'm trying to eat less carbs then I'll ditch the wrap for a salad. I like guacamole and no cheese. 

Turkey chilli - I recently changed from beef mince to turkey for this dish and it worked so well (healthier and cheaper too). I use the ole del paso chilli mix and chuck in loads of extra veg e.g courgette, spinach, mushrooms, pepper. Serve with brown rice or salad and guac! 

Sweet potato wedges, grilled salmon and green veg - really boring but simple, healthy and tasty. Lots of seasoning on the salmon and wedges!! I try to have fish once a week for the good oils :)

For snacks I like to have 

Total 0% Greek yoghurt 

Carrots and humous

Nakd bars (choc orange my fav)

Fruit

Cashew nuts

Tattle scones (since I moved to Scotland) 

So there we go. There's even an example of my shopping list to prove it!! Of course I have weaknesses so biscuits, Doritos and alcohol may occasional find their way to the cupboard too! Bad decisions are much less likely to come if I plan though so on Sundays I try to plan out my meals and then go and shop. I also tend to batch cook so eat a lot of the same in a week!

I'd really love to be more adventurous with food. Blogs, Instagram and Pinterest are so inspirational and I'm so envious of people that make these amazing healthy dishes!! Over the next few weeks I hope to try out some baking of protein snacks rather than buying so will post a blog about that! I'm also dying to try out some recipes from 'a lifestyle choice' an insta account of an athlete I know, Gemma Dawkins. Check it out - guiltless food porn. But for now that's me.

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