Pretty Muddy – Training Support

You may know that my late mother had breast cancer before she died. It had spread through her lymph nodes into her bones and to her liver. She died at aged just 48 years old. I was months away from reaching 21 and my little brother was only 14. It was less than 6 months later that my Nan also died of cancer. So when Brioche Pasquier asked if there was anyone who wanted to join their team for Race 4 Life I gladly applied.

Race 4 Life Pretty Muddy 5K

Having previously walked the Race 4 Life to celebrate what would have been my mom’s 60^th birthday I wanted to do something a little more challenging. When Emma from CrazywithTwins asked if I would do Pretty Muddy with her then I knew that this was just the thing. I have to admit that it isn’t really the mud I am worried about though. See I like my fast food – I am a partial to a place with golden arches. That and since having a car and seemingly very little time I do not get a lot of exercise. I am totally unfit. In fact until I was sent a Microscooter for the school run I probably didn’t get any exercise at all! Not really. When Emma told me that there was a whole team of us (including Julie) and that we were RUNNING that’s when I worried. And finally the penny dropped that there would be obstacles (I have NO upper body strength!). Does anyone know how I get home again all covered in mud either?!

Changing My Lifestyle

Brioche Pasquier

I have been pretty lucky in that lots of lovely brands have been helping with my training, and general lifestyle. Brioche Pasquier have given me the incentive to train by donating £50 to my JustGiving Sponsorship Page sent me t-shirts to wear, a water bottle and some very yummy Choc chip super seed breakfast Brioche. As well as tasting delicious Brioche Pasquier are offering 400 free entry places for Cancer Research UK’s Race for Life Series (this excludes Pretty Muddy). PLUS there’s a chance to win a further £500 sponsorship.

Tesco’s Vegetarian Kitchen Range

I know that I should eat more vegetables and have even started utilising frozen veggies so that we never have the excuse not to have any. I try to do far too much – with blogging and looking after 4 children (and all those after school clubs) so often end up skipping lunch and/or grabbing convenience food (such as those golden arches again). So when Tesco told me that they were releasing a new chilled vegetarian range I was interested to try it. Reasonably priced at 3 for £6 (or £2.30 each individually) I was surprised and delighted with the results. Not only did the dishes not take long to cook (most were microwavable on 5 minutes) but they were a decent size and taste absolutely delicious. In fact they taste so good that even my son with Sensory Processing Disorder ate them (and he doesn’t like things which are unfamiliar!) Not only that but he SAW that the Vegetable & Cheese Crispbakes had peas in, said that he didn’t like peas, and then ate it anyway! There are even options I think would make suitable alternatives for vegetarians at a barbeque (such as Tesco Mushroom burgers, Tesco Spicy Bean Burgers & Tesco Cheese & Leek Sausages). Also in the range are: Tesco Mushroom & Ale Pie, Tesco Mushroom Stroganoff and Rice, Tesco Butternut Squash & Spinach Lasagne, Tesco Vegetable Tikka Masala & Rice, Tesco Three Bean Chilli & Rice and Tesco Vegetable Moussaka.

More Drinks

My boys are disappointed that they cannot join me on the Pretty Muddy course but are keen to support me. In fact so much so that my 11 year old son is interested in finding out which races he can join so that he can play his part in helping raise vital funds. He is helping me by encouraging me to go out for a 5k walk – and even getting me to jog a bit of it. This time together has been fantastic as it is not easy getting quality quite time together in such a busy household. It has given us chance to discuss all manner of things and just generally make him feel that he can talk to me if there’s anything on his mind. What has really motivated him though is his love of More Drinks. These are low calorie vitamin flavoured spring water drinks. It was in fact the bottles of Little More, which are vitamin-enriched drinks designed especially for children, I brought back from Blogon.

Originally I picked up some Get More Minerals* drinks up because I knew that I needed to up my water intake. I also keep feeling really fatigued and so was interested to see if the added Minerals and Vitamins would help with this. Packed with 15% of the RDA of calcium, magnesium and only 9 calories in each 500ml bottle. The calcium works to keep bones strong and healthy, whilst the magnesium battles tiredness and fatigue and the potassium helps to maintain a normal blood pressure. It was really tasty and even my 18 year old sweet toothed son asked for several bottles! He usually only ever drinks squash, soda stream or hot chocolate!

The Little More** range is a natural blend of fruit flavours which has been “designed to help kids achieve an optimum benefit from their daily diet, in a tasty and convenient way.” Perfect for children who do not enjoy fruit and vegetables as they help children achieve their daily vitamin intake. The bottles are small and easy to carry with a convenient sports cap – making them suitable for those aged 3 and over to enjoy.

VivoBareFoot

Finally I needed to think about what I was wearing. The most important part being taking care of my feet. I was interested to hear from Vivobarefoot who challenged my son and I to try their footwear that does not support you. This was completely the opposite of my usual trainers which have custom-made soles from Profeet to fully support me.  Vivobarefoot know that the most complex of movements can only be done barefoot. Feet have the technology needed to perform and do not need any cushioning or padding that we have come to expect from modern footwear. Walking around barefoot begins to reconnect your brain with the sensory information coming from the soles of the feet.

Vivobarefoot’s patented Pure Barefoot Technology includes ultra-thin soles, wide toe boxes and fully flexible shoes (you can bend them which is also great for storing them!). This allows feet to behave as nature intended. Vivobarefoot are concerned about the dangers of children wearing ill-fitting shoes whilst their feet are developing – which will result in bad movement habits and increased risk of injury.

I am bare foot as often as can be. As soon as I come into my house I take off both my shoes and my socks. There are soles for every terrain and I opted for the Trail Freak which are designed for connecting with the great outdoors and described as perfect for the “muddiest trail” – so you can see these were just perfect.

I was warned by LOTS of people NOT to run in these shoes – as it suggested in the information that comes with the shoes (not until you know how to run properly). I have to admit the first time I wore them I was on my feet all night and my legs and feet hurt! I have since worn them regularly and jogging in them felt amazing. My little boy, however, his feet hurt and now only wears them for a short period of time. We are not sure if this is because of the design or if his feet are slightly too big. They come in half sizes – which is fantastic for kids. I also love the fact that they slip on and off – this makes them nice and snug on my feet, and no worrying about doing up laces (or them coming undone). They were great on a variety of surfaces as my feet were just able to grip them.

You can Sponsor me for the PrettyMuddy 5K I am taking part in on July 11^th – or any member of the Fast Food Fighters. We appreciate every penny – and thank you to everyone who has sponsored us so far.

* Get More Minerals will be exclusively available at selected Tesco stores from 9 March 2014, priced from £1.45. Get More Vitamin A, Get More B Vitamins, Get More Vitamin C, Get More Vitamin D and Get More Multivitamins are priced from £1.45 and currently available at selected WH Smith, Tesco and Asda stores nationwide.

** Available from Tesco stores across the UK from £1.09 includes: A Little More Vitamin C, A Little More Multivitamins and A Little More Vitamin D.

I received £50 Sponsorship, t-shirt, water bottle and Choc chip super seed breakfast Brioche from Brioche Pasquier; £10 Tesco Voucher to purchase their Vegetarian Range; A good supply of More Drinks for myself & my son to train; and a pair of Vivobarefoot shoes for myself and my son. All words and opinions are my own.