Hello everybody! Welcome back to my blog. The purpose of this blog is to help people find their way to a healthier lifestyle. I mostly talk about exercise and its science, which is my area of expertise, but I also talk about nutrition, sleeping habits and many other subjects related to wellbeing and healthy lifestyle.
Last Saturday the 5th of February, Harry and I ran another famous race in Sydney, the Sun Run. The start point was Dee Why beach and the finish line was in Manly beach, passing by Curl Curl and Freshwater beaches. 10 kilometres full of hills and little challenges for the body and the brain. It was an amazing race, with great views, the weather couldn’t be better, and despite how much I suffered, I also enjoyed quite a lot. Unfortunately, the results weren’t that good overall, but from every experience you get good lessons. These are the lessons I got from this 2022 Sun Run!
- If you don’t train, not only won’t you get results, you will also suffer more.
This might sounds obvious, but it is not. Even though I didn’t have high expectations about the results of the race, I tried to make it in the same time as the Real Insurance in December last year. I thought to myself that, if I barely trained for that one and I barely trained for this one, the results would be similar, however, this is not always the case. There are many factors to take into consideration, starting from the psychological. In my head, I am capable of running at a certain speed because that is what I used to do when I was an athlete, but I tend to forget that I used to train at least 4 days per week plus the competition on the weekend. Something I really need to work with!
My solution: if I want to get results, I need to train for it, and if I can’t train as much as I used to, I shall not expect the same results, and that is totally fine.
- Whatever you eat the previous days before the race does matter.
Another obvious lesson, especially considering that I am about to finish my certificate in Nutrition, but again, something that paid off in the middle of the race. As I hope you know, I don’t get too obsessed around food. I eat very healthy because I like healthy food, and from time to time, I have my treats and cheat foods. On Thursday I didn’t organise my lunch before going to work, and I never got the chance to go find something to eat. I fasted for much longer than the 16 hours I normally fast, and so I ended up eating pretty bad when I got home. On Friday, I didn’t organise myself either, and I ended up eating out something that I would have never eaten before a competition in the past. On top of that, I overate for dinner. As a result, my stomach wasn’t feeling well on the day of the race. Luckily it didn’t stop me from running, but I could feel something was odd, especially after the race.
My solution: quite simple, I should organise myself a bit better to avoid that binge eating or that unnecessary or unhealthy eating out, especially leading up to a competition.
- Hill races need hills training.
I don’t know how many hills there are in that race, but it’s not just the one at the beginning. Once you are already tired because you have done half the race, a little hill seems the world. When I was an athlete, I used to train hills or similar once a week. I think I underestimated the power of this type of training to be prepared for the competition.
My solution: including some hill training from time to time. It’s also a great way to incorporate different ways of training.
- A week’s worth of toothache and painkillers pays off.
I have had some issues with one of my teeth for a while now. It turns out I need root canal therapy, which will get done hopefully this week. In the meantime, until you get your therapy done, the pain you get is absolutely terrible. It wakes you up in the middle of the night, and won’t let you sleep unless you take something. Painkillers can negatively impact your stomach, leading to irritation, heartburn, constipation, among other issues. A whole week taking painkillers can really damage your stomach, especially when taken without food. I try to avoid taking any medicines that my GP has not prescribed, unless the pain is unbearable.
My solution: getting my root canal therapy done ASAP, and keep track of my overall health. Sometimes we focus on just one aspects of our health, forgetting that we are a whole. Check my post about what health is to find out a bit more!
- I used to race walk faster than I run in the Sun Run 2022.
Even though I have tried not to think too much about this, I can’t help saying it. My speed in the Sun Run 2022 was slower than my PB in race walking. It makes me feel sort of proud of my PB in race walking, but not precisely about my fitness level.
My solution: like I said in point number 1, I can’t expect to have results without training. Without getting obsessed with the result and focusing more on having fun, I need to train in order to improve and do better next time.
- Sleeping good goes a long way.
If you follow me from the beginning, you know how important I believe sleeping well is. On the link below, you can see the specific posts about sleeping hygiene I have published so far, have a look at them!
https://sanchisayslifestyle.com/category/sleeping-habits/
Because of my toothache, I haven’t been sleeping properly in the last week. The night before, I woke up one and a half hours earlier than I was meant to, which was going to be very early anyway! Although I felt surprisingly fine in the morning and part of the race, I could feel that lack of sleep half way through, and I totally crashed on the sofa when I got home, plus I had a really long sleep at night. Sleeping properly is one of the most important factors not only to perform better in a race, but to have a healthy life no matter what you do.
My solution: even though from time to time we all have a bad night, I should make sure that all the actions that affect my sleep hygiene are taken care off, ensuring a good night’s sleep. Find out a bit more in one of my post popular posts, the three must do’s to be healthier: sleeping well.
- I truly fricking love this kind of events.
Simple as that, I love them. They make me suffer, they make me think about the past, but they make me want more. I love knowing that next month there will be another event coming up, and I am grateful for having the basic capabilities to participate in them. This is the most important lesson for me, given that it’s been a long time since I participated in running events. I am enjoying it a lot.
I would like to highlight my husband’s influence on me in that race. He was my strength when my head was trying to play tricks on me. It’s not a lesson, because I already knew he has that effect on me, though it gave me a lot of information about how I talk to myself, and how the way you talk to yourself is a game changer. But that is a subject for another post!
That’s it for today! I really hope that you enjoy it. If you like what I do and you want to support this project, follow me on Instagram and Facebook, like the post and comment! If you want to give me ideas for others posts or give me a feedback, contact me in sanchisayslifestyle@gmail.com
Thank you!
Sanchi Says Lifestyle 