A week living the dream with Organicoach

Time. There is never enough time. If you want to become good at something you need time, experience, mileage.  There is the well known 10.000 hours rule, 10.000 hours performing a certain task before you can call yourself a specialist at it. This means you have to be doing that task for 20 hours/week for 10 years to become a specialist at it.

I started the sport late in life. I was in my early thirties when I teamed up with a coach for the first time. When I started triathlon properly in 2009 my body had no mileage. There are articles from athletes and coaches who say you can perform well with less mileage and higher intensity programs but when you look a bit deeper into the athletes they use as examples you will soon realise that these people have been doing some sort of sport at high level from their early teens. When I started chasing the elite athlete dream, I tried to cheat time because being in my thirties, time was the one thing I did not have left. I fooled myself into thinking if I just trained that little bit harder, better and longer than everyone else I would make up for my lack of experience and mileage and beat the 10.000 hrs rule.

An organicoach training camp is much more than clocking up mileage

When I first started training I was living in Singapore and Alister Russel was my coach. He taught me how to swim, ride and run. He taught me how to do this repeatedly, week in, week out. He taught me what I was capable off. Every race was a time trial. “If your legs are not burning you are not racing” are words I still repeat in my head in his voice during a race. I moved to Sydney and signed up with Olympian cyclist Matt Randall. Matt taught me how to be a competitor, how to dig deep, suffer and win. Matt taught me how to believe. When I moved back to Europe to pursue my athletic career,  I started working together with Nicolas Lebrun, a multiple world champion in Duathlon,  winter triathlon and XTERRA. He got to glue back the broken pieces after life got in the way of my big athletic master plan.

Pushing myself out of my comfort zone

Coaching is very personal to me. Every single one of those 3 coaches know me better than anyone, they know what makes me tick. It is all in the head after all. I don’t believe in a magic recipe in relation to a training program, I belief in a connection between a coach and an athlete. I personally also enjoy it much more when my achievements are shared with someone who has worked hard at getting there  together with me. And Nico with his coaching company Organicoach offered me exactly that and so much more. With a similar look on life he became a close friend as well as my coach. When things turned ugly we made a pact that we would stick by each other until I would cry from happiness after a race rather than frustration.

It was a joy to train in the sunshine

Nico always stressed it was important for me to spend some time with him and his wife Alex in Digne so he could see me running, riding my bike, and watch me in the pool. When the opportunity arose I left the dark cold day's in Scotland behind and travelled to France.

This trip for me was not about clocking up mileage like most triathlon camps in winter. It was about connecting with my coach, to learn from his experiences and understand what he wanted from me when he asked for a certain specific task. I also learned about nutrition, stretching, recovery and anything to do with maintaining a healthy body and soul in the organicoach style.The decision to come to Digne was probably the best decision I had made in my whole sporting career. Nico and Alex did not leave one stone unturned.

Learning from the master

The mountain bike was a big focus and I rode a top of the range Enduro bike with big suspension to really learn how to balance and ride steep drops, rocky steps and climb up things I never thought possible. It was not about how much power I had in my legs, it was about skills, control and a big smile at the end of the ride. Nico pushed me to try hard and use every muscle in my body to ride things I would usually walk. “Mountain biking is like dancing" he said "you always move your body to find the rhythm”

                                           5min vertical speed test on 30% incline hurts

To improve my running we did a few tests including a vertical speed test to be able to work on my hill reps more specifically and get a bench mark of where I was at. We worked on downhill and technical running, something I had a huge area of improvement left. In the pool we worked on my stroke with the help of video footage. Everything  we did was about improving our communication, understanding each other, understanding what was asked of me and understanding where my weaknesses lay and how to work on them.  I had always felt that we spoke the same language, even if his native language was French and mine was Dutch and we communicated in English! This connection only got reinforced by spending time with him and his lovely wife Alex. I realised he had been able to help me so much in the last two difficult years because of the same way our brains worked.

Living the dream in sunny Digne Les Baines

I spend 7 days living the dream, eating, sleeping and breathing all aspects of the sport.  It was the perfect way to reconnect with my passion for this part of my life again. The fulfilling feeling you can get from little improvements on the bike, on the run and in the water. Working on myself as a person in relation to where I was, what I wanted to achieve and the underlying reasons why. 

Big bikes give big smiles

Organicoach and its philosophy is a great platform for like minded people who have a passion for the outdoors, for sports and who want to live a healthy balanced lifestyle. I would highly recommend Nico and his wife Alex to anyone who would like to improve and learn on the MTB, trail running, in the pool or attempt an off road triathlon for the first time. They accommodate for all levels and abilities. With Nico’s extensive experience racing at top level and Alex’s knowledge of nutrition and health their world of knowledge is second to none. On top of that they are wonderful people to be around with a great sense of humour and the day always finishes with a smile!  

Great group of people who share the same philosophy

A big thanks to Organicoach and its people for a great week of learning, laughing, suffering and relaxing!

"a great teacher takes a hand, opens a mind and touches a heart"


http://www.organicoach.fr/ENG/

Back in the game : The Kielder Off-Road Duathlon

Winning is hard. Whatever level you race at, there will always be someone who can run, bike, swim just as fast as you can and is just as hungry for the win. Although I have not got a lot of victories behind my name, I had to learn how to do it, how to attack that podium, how to race in the zone, its a real skill. Learning how to channel thoughts, handle doubts and negativity. How to eliminate demons. But when it all falls into place there is no better feeling. My first female overall win was in the Highland Fling 50km MTB race in Australia in 2012. I can still visualise every corner, every move, recall every thought in my head and feel every muscle acing when I think about that race. It was magic. Winning is magic. Strangely enough I don't really like competition, I have always thought that I lack what it takes because I will not thrive in a competitive environment. It affects my confidence. That is why I often train alone and like my space before a race. In my opinion I lack the self believe and certain amount of arrogance you need to keep on performing week after week. To keep on bouncing back from losses. To deal with the highs and lows of racing. What I do love about racing is getting it right, getting the most out of my body in the best possible way regardless of where I end up in the field. It is then, when I relax through a race that I can excel and perform. It is then that I can challenge that podium, and when a solid performance gets rewarded with a win, magic has happened.

Over the last 6 months I just run when I felt like it, most often with dog Fynn

January arrived and I was so keen to start looking again at my familiar training calendar with Nico's humoristic comments on a weekly basis. It had been 6 months. I was mentally ready to start again. I had not done any structured training for a long time. An athlete on the side line. I became the un-fittest I had been in over 5 years and I felt like a hairy, chubby race horse coming back from a spell. In December I started slowly "moving" again and I started to think about what I wanted out of 2016. I searched off road races in Scotland and the UK. I found a perfect one in the first week of January. I heard a lot of good stuff about the organisers http://www.highterrainevents.co.uk/ so I signed up for The Kielder Off-Road Duathlon. 8km run, 25 MTB, 7km run. A bit to early may be? No, for me it was perfect, as I was unfit with absolutely no race speed I would have no expectations and just go do my thing. The way I liked it. It was described as a flattish fast fire road duathlon which I thought would take me around 2 and a half hours. Perfect. Nico wrote on my training program "although your unfit, be energetic and race with fighting spirit" That was the plan.

Partner in crime : my dog Fynn and I with our http://www.bigbobblehats.co.uk/collections/all

January threw a bit of a curve ball though with the worst flooding North-England and Scotland had ever seen. The weekend had snow and ice forecasted but I was determined to race. I needed it. So of I went with dog Fynn by myside. I wanted to show up, race, and go home. Un noticed, un known, racing purely for me, without any pressure, just the way I liked it. I layered up with the merino layers from http://flareclothingco.com/collections/womens-clothing which kept me as warm as was physically possible with the conditions we were presented with!!! Good friend Jantiene send me some awesome arm warmers from her web shop http://www.altijdsporten.nl/ which I was very thankful for!!!

Relaxing into my own pace

The weather forecast had not been kidding! I hit heavy snow driving to the event centre on race morning and whilst getting ready for the race it turned into heavy rain. The conditions were freezing and a cold gale force wind made an appearance. I felt sorry for the volunteers who had to stand still in this nasty weather! I am always surprised to see so many people show up for a race in these conditions! My planned 30min warm up was shortened to 5 minutes to keep as dry and warm as I could before the race. Standing on the start line there was the usual friendly banter and I got a bit worried when one of the guys told me my lips started to turn blue! I had not even raced yet!! There was a mention of a change of course from previous years in the race briefing including more hills. Damn.

Finally the gun went off, I shivered through the first run, struggling to warm up, struggling with the front pace and struggling with the steep, muddy, icy, rooty underground. I started to doubt my existence as an athlete. Negative thoughts flowed into my brain. Then I thought, NO. I eased up the pace until I was running a bit more comfortably, and I was surrounded by other friendly athletes cursing the conditions, I relaxed. I was here to have fun. I picked up the pace again in the last km and I was ready for the bike. An embarrassing long transition followed. I had only brought one pair of gloves which I wanted to keep dry for the bike, therefore my hands were so frozen I struggled putting my MTB shoes on and did not manage to tighten them properly! This resulted in me pulling my heel out of the shoe everyt time I tried to really push on the climbs!! Not ideal!

I found flow on the MTB, best feeling ever. The course was not technical but smooth and flowy with some real cool single track and sharp climbs. I was on a mission to catch as many people as I could. It was not quite technical or hilly enough for me to really put the pressure on the faster runners but I was lucky I could see a human dot in the far distance at any point in the race so no gale force head winds and heavy hail was going to stop me from chasing. I had no idea where I was in the race, I had lost count of the people I passed and with mud in my eyes I could not always work out if I was passing a guy or a girl! The volunteers on course were awesome! Rock stars! What a day to be out standing for 3-4 hours to support crazy athletes. Bitter cold!!

Last little hill into transition

On the final run. I was surprised to find I had legs left, it had been since August I last run off the bike. This was good. I stuck with a small group of guy's. "this is good" I kept on thinking "this is good". I had done all the passing from the MTB leg onwards and had not been passed. This is good! The 2nd run was about 1km longer than planned and I started to feel my lungs from the cold and wet weather. The 2nd run was as challenging as the first one and I was happy to see the finish banners, I finished. I was satisfied. "A good race" I thought. A lovely lady at the finish congratulated me "huge achievement" she said. "did I win?" I thought but I was scared to say the words out loud, I looked around me and could not see any other girls. I looked over at the time keeping people, but again I did not want to ask. I wanted to hold on to the happy feeling of having finished a great race and for me at that point in time it did not matter where I had come in the field. For anyone finishing in these tough conditions was a great achievement. Wet and freezing cold I quickly grabbed all my stuff and headed for my car where Fynn patiently awaited me. I generally like to stay for prize giving to show respect for the organizers and fellow athletes and these guys definitely deserved a lot of respect today! But with the bad weather forecast and a 3hrs drive back by myself (and dog Fynn), I decided to hit the road as soon as possible so I could drive most of my journey in day light.

I did play in my head a lot on the drive home, did I win? could I have won? Why was I so stupid not to ask!!. It was a long wait for me for the results to come out to see where I had placed. Best feeling ever : I WON. Magic had happened.

"it's not who you are that holds you back, it's who you think you're not"


race photo credit granddayoutphotography.co.uk

http://aloharacing.com/

http://www.nicholsons-cycles.co.uk/

2 years in Scotland, Christmas lights and new plans for 2016

Suddenly it was October again. I had been in Scotland 2 years and what better way to celebrate my anniversary at my good friend Will and now his brand new wife Patti’s wedding. My UK journey began with a cycling trip to France with Will and his best friend Sam before starting my job almost exactly to the date of his wedding day. I also got to meet the lovely Patty on this trip. I embarked on a holiday without knowing either Sam or Will very well at the time but it ended up one of those adventures of a life time, one which I will treasure forever in my heart. Friendships for life were formed and a blog was written;
http://marathonmtb.com/2013/10/29/cingles-du-ventoux-a-bucketlist-experience/

Sam, Will and I on top of Ventoux for the 3rd time that day after which we belonged to the Cingles Du Ventoux tribe

It has become so easy to feel anonymous the way I have meandered around the world. For many years now I have had no physical place I call home or can come home to,  although not short of friends I have never belonged to a core group of people who share history, heck I don’t even really belong to a nationality! To be part of such an important day in Will and Patty’s life felt therefore very special and for me it proved that opening up a little to the right people at the right time could give a certain feeling of belonging. A lesson Scotland had taught me well in the last couple of years.

Delighted to be invited to Will's wedding together with Michael and although Will and I meet each other generally in sports gear, this time I left the lycra home and wore a dress

On one hand it was hard to believe that it had been 2 years since I left Australia to pursue my dreams. http://marathonmtb.com/2013/03/28/taking-the-next-step-going-pro/
Where had time gone? On the other hand it felt like so much had happened, so much had changed, it had been such a roller coaster ride, had it really only been two years?
Will and Patti's wedding must have been one of the high lights of my year after which way to quickly November and December rolled in. 
The day's had become colder and darker, there was snow on top of the hills, the sun had started to play hide and seek (although this is a common occurrence in Scotland) and Christmas had taken over the radio, shopping centres and our living rooms. I am one of those people who would rather skip this time of the year. Straight to January please. Whilst I am writing this blog I am looking at our Christmas tree in the living room and festive decorations on the mantle piece. There is no escaping Christmas living with an idealist like Michael. I am sure he still believes Santa will drop down the chimney on Christmas Eve to bring us presents. There are many people out there who for personal reasons struggle with Christmas and I am one of them. But Michael, and all the lovely people I have met in Scotland the last two years have made it a hell of a lot easier!

With a lack of a family home, for me, home is where the heart is

It is that time of the year again where we reflect, accept and make new plans for 2016. This year was another tough one for me; I am not going to lie about it. After a disappointing racing season in 2014, 2015 was going to be my year, but once again it fell to pieces. After spending the last 3-4 months unstructured training, "moving" would be the better word, I am really eager to start again. Unfortunately my body is still really struggling with fatigue which I have found hard to deal with. My mind and body are not on the same page. Where normally I would push through, reluctantly I have had to back off. If I want to beat this thing then the only answer is rest, and for someone like me this is extremely difficult. I look at pictures of me racing back in 2013 and I wonder, will I ever be that strong again.

Coming 5th Elite female in the Xterra European series in 2013 seems like a distanced memory now

I have found it even more frustrating and difficult to explain it to people around me who try to comfort me with comments like "you are getting older" and "may be it is time to settle down and start a family" I understand it is not maliciously intended but not all people are blessed with that option or is it something they inspire to do. It definitely makes me more stubborn to prove the non-believers wrong, I will be back, age is no barrier unless you make it one yourself.

                                   

                                                           Back to snow on the hills!

What are my plans for 2016? I am very happy to be part of http://aloharacing.com/  again!

Aloha is an off-road female only team , with which we try to inspire females to jump on a bike, go for a run, feel the water and give racing a go. We are bunch of off-road athletes scattered around the world connected by a passion for the outdoors.

I feel very lucky to have http://flareclothingco.com/ making me look good again for 2016, their colourful MTB clothing make a nice change from all the lycra, plus the girls on the team are plain awesome!!

                                       

                                                  The cool colours of Flare

I am looking forward to spending time in the French mountains with coach Nico at the end of January, where I will as he puts it be 'reborn'. Other than a great coach, Nico has been a great friend to me, we have made a pact that we would stick by each other until there are tears of joy after a race rather than tears of frustration. I love the philosophy of his coaching company http://www.organicoach.fr/ENG/ and after two season's hopefully 2016 will be third time lucky!!

The most important thing for me next season is to feel physically normal and strong again. I will have to be careful not to push myself back in that hole of overtraining. I started the sport very late in life and I suppose I tried to cheat time, make up for the lack of experience and lack of mileage in my body by training as much as I could around the hours of being an equine veterinarian.  This did not work, I have learnt a very hard lesson and I am determined to not let it happen again. I am a racer though so off course I have goals for 2016. I would love to make it back to the start line of the UCI MTB Marathon World Championships which are held in France next year, I also have a few Xterra's on the calendar including the  Xterra World Championships on Maui, but it will all depend on how I recover. As airy fairy as it sounds, I have to  find a way to re-connect with my body again!

Dare a little

I am very lucky to have some amazing friends all over the world but especially the ones I deal with on a daily basis and stand by this chaotic roller coaster life of mine. After bad performances

they would patiently comfort me by saying things like “you should be proud of being able to reach the start line of a World Championships representing your country regardless of the results, many people can only dream of that.”  and stubborn me would immediately dismiss their kindness in my head by thinking “they don’t understand.”  But as I am getting older (although I don't like to admit this) and slightly wiser I am also starting to be a little kinder to myself and try to be proud of what I have achieved rather than always concentrating on what I haven't been able to. In the scheme of things when I look back on the last 12 months, really what do I have to complain about? A few pictures to reflect another adventure filled year.

"strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will" Ghandi

Becoming part of Team Flare and making great friends

                                        

                                        

                                                           Showing form on the MTB

                

                                   

                                    Spending numerous adventures with this amazing man

                

                                                        

Being back in Europe meant a long weekend in the Alps in March!

My passion for horses and my passion for sports is equally strong

My first podium for Flare coming 2nd in the overall Bowhill Winter Duathlon series

My first UCI MTB Marathon World cup in Belgium in May, one of the most competitive cycling countries in the World where I raced my heart out and walked away with an 18th place and a ticket to the World Champs in Italy

Slowly reconnecting with long lost family, my cousin Theo supporting me in Belgium and who now has bought a serious race MTB, two Oostra's racing watch out!!

  Teaming up with the lovely Marie Meldrum in Ten Under the Ben and taking out the women's race a week before MTB Worlds

Confirmation from the Dutch MTB Federation representing the Netherlands at the World Champs in Italy was a magic feeling

What an experience racing World champs in the Dutch colours

The most brutal race I have ever ridden, I was disappointed with a bad race for 57th but when I think about it I would probably not have been capable of riding this course two years ago, I have come a long way in the marathon discipline

one of my few podiums spots in a road triathlon, Glencoe half ironman

The mighty Inferno, the memory still makes my heart bleed. You broke me but I will be back for you

Catching up with one of my favourite people in my life, Lexie. If only you lived closer

The first thing I did after cutting my racing season short thanks to great friends I could smile again

Scotland with all your wilderness, I love you

 Fynn, picture speaks a thousand words

Racing the Dutch National Marathon champs after a month off the bike, loved it

Getting to know this super star, Jantiene

what better way than trying a new sport during the winter! picked up a 2nd hand cx bike after Will's wedding

Doesn't matter I am not very fast at this cx business! Thanks to Flare, Aloha and http://www.bigbobblehats.co.uk/ at least I look good!!

                                    

Learning new bike skills, I did manage to ride that towards the end of the race!!

Lucky to have colleagues who are also my close friends

"as soon as I met you, I knew an adventure was going to happen" Milne

Racing a national round of the cyclo cross series : A new addiction

 In the lead up to the MTB Marathon World Championships I got in touch with speedy fellow Dutchy Sanne Van Paassen.  Sanne was an absolute champion in the world of cylco-cross, making her way back to the top after 2 years of being injured. I started reading her blog, got intrigued by her passion for the sport and before I knew it I found myself watching the first Cyclo Cross World Cup of the season in Las Vegas on live streaming.
“I have bought a cyclo cross bike on ebay” I heard myself  say to Michael who looked at me with a surprised expression on his face “I thought you meant to be resting this winter” he replied. “yeah, but this way I won’t ruin my MTB in the mud and snow on winter rides” I defended myself. I was back to owning 4 bikes. Two weeks later I found myself entering the second round of the Scottish National Cyclo Cross Series. When I told Michael, my excuse was that the race was only an hour away from home. “I won’t be training for it” I reassured him.

Picking up the bike on the way back from Will Hayters wedding weekend

I had managed 3 rides to get used to my Canondale CAADX bike before the race and I was hooked. Although I had been sitting on the fence for a long time in relation to cyclo cross finding it a bit of a strange sport, being a mix between mountain biking and road cycling. I never understood what people liked about it. And then I rode my cx bike for the first time. I absolutely loved it. I had bought an introductory bike which I am sure felt a lot heavier than my MTB but it rode like a treat and I was very excited about finding my way into a new sport.

How you suppose to look on a cx bike : Sanne Van Paassen

Race day arrived and I was nervous for the unknown but very relaxed in every other way. I was not a sprinter by any means and the 45 minutes of racing was going to be about 4hrs to short for me. I felt, for me, very unfit and knew I was racing girls from a descent level coming from top road backgrounds (including Common Wealth Games cyclists) and MTB back grounds. Some of the girls were very experienced in this discipline. Finishing last was very possible and I was ok with that. I met Lizzy Adams before the race who so kindly brought a spare tube for me after I discovered the night before I had a flat and no spares to replace it with! Through her I got introduced to the lovely Cathy Wyse  another machine on the bike and not much later we run into the bubbly Marie Meldrum. I got given pointers and advise in the warm up of which I was very appreciative and the girls explained the format of racing to me. I felt ready for the start!!

How I look on a cx bike

Whilst riding the course I discovered that my nearly slick tires which came with the bike were less than ideal but it made me giggle slipping through corners and having absolutely no control in the mud! At one point in the race I was going full bore on a flat wet and muddy bit of grass and my bike was actually not moving forward!! New tires have been ordered.

Getting off and on the bike fast is a challenge!!

I can’t remember the last time I had so much fun racing!! I loved every minute of my first cyclo cross experience and almost felt disappointed when the race was over. I felt like a kid again!! It was twisty and fast, up and down, tree roots, little drop off, hurdles, off camper mud, mud and more mud! I gained a bit more confidence every lap, cornering a little tighter, getting off and on the bike clearing the hurdles a little faster. I learned so much in 45 minutes of racing!! And very excitingly I did not finish last!!

Marie and I went for an easy 20 minute run post race which felt so refreshing. Like always it was lovely to catch up with Marie, comparing our experiences of the 2015 season with our highs and lows and making new plan’s for 2016.

wearing my Flare top was perfect for this race

It would have been so easy to fall back into the trap of training hard because this race definitely stoked  up my fire again to become fitter and faster. But I am fully aware that that was not part of the plan, and it would not do me any good looking ahead. Instead of clocking up serious amount of hours on the bike, I will be sticking to my plan of staying mostly on the couch this winter. And instead of getting faster by fitness, I will try and improve by  working on my skill’s, racing that little more efficient, that little (or a lot) smoother and going that little faster. The nicest thing about it all is that it will be completely without pressure or expectation's I put on myself.

“Will you come to the next round” asked Lizzy after the race “Hell yes, I had so much fun!!” I answered with probably the biggest smile on my face post race I have had in a long long time. At the end of the day, I am a racer, I love it, it is in my blood. Fit, unfit, fast, slow, good or bad, there is nothing better than the feeling of improvement within a race at whatever level.

“Today you are YOU, that is TRUER than true. There is NO ONE alive who is YOUER than YOU” Dr Seuss