It always amazes me how Londoners will go for fashion over function when it comes to shoe choice. I know I am neither trendy or cool, especially in an urban sense. But where I grew up, when there was 2 feet of snow , you would wear warm tall boots. The first winter we were in London, it snowed a few wet centimetres. As we had just came from Michigan and still had our gortex winter boots. We met friends for coffee and they were in Nike trainers with frozen feet. We may not have looked cool, but our feet were warm and dry.
Brand new OOFOS. I need a pedicure STAT!
After races, people often change out of their running shoes (cuz those are only for running in) and throw on flip flops. I can’t wear most flip flops because the design often lacks arch support and cushioning. With my history of plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendinitis, it causes me a lot of pain to wear flat shoes for long periods of time. Usually I will leave my trainers on after a race or bring another pair with me to change into.
This summer, I was fortunate enough to have a pair of OOFOS Recovery flip flops (OOriginal in Fuschia, of course) to product test after my races. I wore them after the Dublin Half, between laps at Spitfire Scramble, after the Berlin Marathon, and while I was awake on the bus during the FitbitFifty. The OOFoam technology is a little cushy, yet supportive. The shoe design also has an arch built in. Usually my narrow feet don’t feet in sandals were the straps are not adjustable (the straps would be above my feet making it hard to walk), but my feet fit in oofos just fine. The shoes are light, making it a no-brainer to take them travelling. The color selection means they can compliment many outfit choices too and there are a range of designs too. I felt great the day after the races where I tested them out, while during the relays I was able to keep going. You can even throw them in the washing machine to spruce them up.
Easy to wash, but because mine are a ligher color, there were still a few areas of wear.
Fast forward to colder weather……
Muddy dog walks are now bareable due to warm dry feet
In the summer, I wear trainers while I wear gortex shoes from September to May in London. It rains a lot here and I hate having wet feet. Walking Oldland in the park through long grass, there is still a chance my jeans and socks will get wet. I have some budget wellies from decathlon but they are really heavy and my socks always fall down (do you ever have this problem?). I also had to invest in insoles for the wellies as there was no support in there at all.
At a recent press event, I was introduced to Bogs Footwear. They specialise in waterproof shoes, from wellies to walking shoes. Most recently, they launched a leather range but this is only available in the USA so far (good thing I am going home for Thanksgiving in two weeks). I have been using the Crandall Tall wellies on my dog walks and while out watching Guy Faulkes fireworks. My feet have stayed toasty warm. There is a soft lining and handy holes on the sides to pull the boots on with. The heel has plastic higher up which allows you to take shoes off using other foot without ruining the Neo-Tech waterproof insulation. The design is sleek enough that I would wear them out to a country pub but I don’t think I would wear them on a night out, unless it was a bonfire or haunted hay ride.
Both shoes are fit for purpose and stylish enough to wear outside of race recovery and dog walks. I am so glad I can finally have shoes that are comfortable and look good too rather than having to pick function over fashion.
What is your shoe of choice after a tough race or while on a wet walk through the woods? Do you go for fashion over function?
Bring on London wintery weather!
OOFOS and Bogs Footwear were kind enough to gift me these shoes to try out. All opinions are honest and my own.
Between the election results and pouring rain this morning, I did not want to get out of bed. It was dark and cold outside in the world, where I was safe and warm in my bed. However, I needed to get up because today, Her Majesty, the Queen, was coming to my place of work.
You may not believe it, but I have what I call ‘a real job’- one not related to health and fitness. I am a lab manager at a large scientific laboratory in Central London. Today, the building had its official opening with HM, the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, and Prince Andrew in attendence. Of course, everyone at work was super excited about a chance to see royalty up close and personal.
The day had a strict schedule, with the royalty in the building for only one hour. There were several stops for them along the way- to meet scientists, see the research labs, and attend a short lecture in the auditorium. A raffle determined which employees were able to meet HM and also to attend the lecture. Unfortunately, I did not win either opportunity.
Instead, I thought I would get small bouquet of flowers in case the Queen happened to walk by me. It ended up being slightly controversial as my workplace had already selected a few local children to give the Queen flowers. I assured the stewards I would not approach the Queen or interfere with the procession when they walked by. I would just stand by and smile.
Here is a video of the Queen entering the lobby of our building and taking a lift up to see the science labs.
On the way back down, the lady-in-waiting came over to me (eek!) and suggested I be moved over to a different spot so the Queen would walk by me and I could present her my gift. OMG! The only things going through my head were ‘I wish I wore a dress’ and ‘I hope I don’t get in trouble’ (which I often do at work for being over-enthusiastic).
Unfortunately, the royal party were already behind schedule and the Queen was quickly ushered passed me into the auditorium for the lecture.
Waiting patiently
The royal security team then moved me to the exit of the auditorium, right in the sight line of the Queen so she would see me when she exited. I was so nervous to be waiting there for her to exit. None of my friends or colleagues were standing in this area, nor could they move over there. The head of our security tried to keep me calm by talking about the weather in America, but I was sweating.
Once again, the Queen walked by me while talking with the director of my institute. The lovely lady-in-waiting came over though and said she was sorry and she had tried for me to meet the queen. She then asked if she should take the flowers for me, to which I curtsied a thank you. (Are you supposed to courtesy ladies-in-waiting?).
There was then a short speech by the director, after which the queen unvieled a portrait and the official building opening plaque. It was a whirlwind morning, followed by champagne and lunch after HM, Duke, and Prince left the building.
So, instead of remembering today as the day Trump became the 45th president, I will instead remember it as the day I nearly met the Queen. Twice.
Big thank you to Lady Susan Hussey, Baroness Hussey of North Bradley for rooting for me today.
Between the election results and pouring rain this morning, I did not want to get out of bed. It was dark and cold outside in the world, where I was safe and warm in my bed. However, I needed to get up because today, Her Majesty, the Queen, was coming to my place of work.
You may not believe it, but I have what I call ‘a real job’- one not related to health and fitness. I am a lab manager at a large scientific laboratory in Central London. Today, the building had its official opening with HM, the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, and Prince Andrew in attendence. Of course, everyone at work was super excited about a chance to see royalty up close and personal.
The day had a strict schedule, with the royalty in the building for only one hour. There were several stops for them along the way- to meet scientists, see the research labs, and attend a short lecture in the auditorium. A raffle determined which employees were able to meet HM and also to attend the lecture. Unfortunately, I did not win either opportunity.
Instead, I thought I would get small bouquet of flowers in case the Queen happened to walk by me. It ended up being slightly controversial as my workplace had already selected a few local children to give the Queen flowers. I assured the stewards I would not approach the Queen or interfere with the procession when they walked by. I would just stand by and smile.
Here is a video of the Queen entering the lobby of our building and taking a lift up to see the science labs.
On the way back down, the lady-in-waiting came over to me (eek!) and suggested I be moved over to a different spot so the Queen would walk by me and I could present her my gift. OMG! The only things going through my head were ‘I wish I wore a dress’ and ‘I hope I don’t get in trouble’ (which I often do at work for being over-enthusiastic).
Unfortunately, the royal party were already behind schedule and the Queen was quickly ushered passed me into the auditorium for the lecture.
Waiting patiently
The royal security team then moved me to the exit of the auditorium, right in the sight line of the Queen so she would see me when she exited. I was so nervous to be waiting there for her to exit. None of my friends or colleagues were standing in this area, nor could they move over there. The head of our security tried to keep me calm by talking about the weather in America, but I was sweating.
Once again, the Queen walked by me while talking with the director of my institute. The lovely lady-in-waiting came over though and said she was sorry and she had tried for me to meet the queen. She then asked if she should take the flowers for me, to which I curtsied a thank you. (Are you supposed to courtesy ladies-in-waiting?).
There was then a short speech by the director, after which the queen unvieled a portrait and the official building opening plaque. It was a whirlwind morning, followed by champagne and lunch after HM, Duke, and Prince left the building.
So, instead of remembering today as the day Trump became the 45th president, I will instead remember it as the day I nearly met the Queen. Twice.
Big thank you to Lady Susan Hussey, Baroness Hussey of North Bradley for rooting for me today.
What a whirlwind this #fitbitfifty journey has been. The Coach magazine article was out a few weeks ago and the next issue of Cyclist will delve deeper into the experience. It was truly an unforgettable experience and I will try do it justice below. Grab a cuppa as it will be a long post.
Ready to go!
I applied for Fitbitfifty in the summer when I saw an advert on Facebook. It seemed like a once in a lifetime opportunity and I never thought I would be even considered. I know so many more athletes in London alone who were better qualified than myself. Then I was shortlisted and had a phone interview. Then I was made a reserve in case someone became injured in the six week lead up to the event. Days before the Berlin Marathon, I got a call that one of the athletes was injured and Fitbit requested me to be their replacement.
I was buzzing all weekend in Berlin and petrified too that I would be the weak link on my team. My worries were that I don’t cycle with clips, I was just coming back after a month of marathon training with limited cycling incorporated into it, and I don’t consider myself to be a fast runner. But there was no way I was going to pass up an opportunity like this.
After returning home from Germany, I only had a few days to unpack and repack. Participants were given a long list of what to bring with them and I quickly realised I was missing a few key items for cold weather cycling. The good folks at Altura kindly sent me ax express care package that contained my night ride kit (long sleeve jersey, sleeveless baselayer, a waterproof jacket that I slept in). All my running kit fit into my Workplay Bags Goddess II and my cycle kit went into my Adidas bag. My fuel (MyProtein energels,Energy Bits, and various granola bars) went into my ruck sack.
A photo posted by Mollie, the Happiness PT (@ptmollie) on
All athletes, Andy Cook and his team, reps from FitBit and Dennis Publishing met at the hotel Thursday night and shared a meal together. After dinner, the teams decided we would work together for the duration of the challenge, rather than competing against each other. Riding four-up seemed easier than two-up. We matched our pairs into fast, medium, and slow (guess which one I was on?). These groups were perfectly matched, both in terms of ability and personality which made the entire challenge remarkedly calm (no drama, no breakdowns).
Breakfast was served at 4.30am on Friday morning and we headed over to Buckingham Palace by 5.30am. A bunch of people from Dennis Publishing and FitBit met us on the Green Park side for a few photos and for official start. We aimed for 10 min miles but everyone was so excited, it was a bit faster than that. The route was 12 km, winding through London streets to the Olympic Park Velodrome. There, the tour buses awaited our arrival. The group of four gentlemen would start off on their bikes while the rest of us would be transported in the bus to the first transition zone.
All my stuff in my bunk
Life on the bus was cramped. There was lots of kit and tons of food. The loo was smelly and for liquids only. The bunk beds were comfy and dark, but a bit small for the taller guys on the team. We started off being modest when changing kit but by the end, it just didn’t matter anymore. We were tired, sweaty, and short on time when it came to transitions.
The majority of the #fitbitfifty was on the bike and for me, it was hard. I don’t cycle with cleats, instead I used my Salomon trail shoes with toe baskets. However, after this experience, I vow to learn how to use my clip-ins. In the past, I have fallen off one to many times and was worried about doing it again during this challenge, especially while riding in a group. I just fantasized about a giant crash in the middle of nowhere.
My view of Ozzie’s Angels
Even though I found the rides challenging, I am so happy I still have the Forza Stratos RC23 wheels that Merlin Cycles let me review during this year’s Ride London. My cycling is so much more effortless with these wheels even though my bike is entry level. My teammates had super fancy bikes, but my BTwin got me to through it.
During the first ride regment for my team of four (‘Ozzie’s Angels’- Ozzie, Natalie, Elise, and myself), we only tried changing leaders a few times. Elise had never drafted before and Natalie had just learned. Elise also wasn’t that confident riding in traffic, so Ozzie was kind enough to let us ladies draft him the entire segment. On the flats, we were able to stay together at a good pace but hill climbs seperated us out as Elise and I were able to climb but Ozzie and Natalie loved a fast decent.
After we made it to the Scottish border, Ozzie switched with Jer so our trio of ladies came ‘Jer’s Gems’. We kept the same order and strategy, and experienced similar disconnect of pace on the hills. I was loosing my ability to climb by the last 2 cycle segments. Exhaustion was setting in even though I tried to sleep as much as I could on the bus.
My group did a lot of run-bike segments. It was hard, but it was also to match us with short flat cycle segments. I was usually bringing up the rear of our group. I didn’t mind as I have a fair bit of experience cycling on open roads and I can’t hear very well on the bike so there wasn’t any point in me being close to the other riders for a chat.
Meal by FitHQ
Fuelling on this adventure was tough. I knew I needed to eat but my body clock was off from lack of a routine. We had meals from Fit HQ (which I ate most of) and sport drink powder from SIS. There were also crisps, candy bars, ginger biscuits, and full-fat Coke. Every stop we made, we ended up doing a bit more shopping as people experienced different cravings throughout the weekend. I enjoyed chocolate milk after my segments, along with toast, Nutella and bananas. I was never starving and often times forces myself to eat something. It was tough to figure out what to eat and how much that would allow you to fall right asleep and be ready to workout only a few hours later.
Here is a breakdown of each of my segments (hopefully the formatting isn’t too weird). You can also check out my Strava page for the routes we took and other nifty stats. My Fitbit Surge did a great job picking up GPS quickly no matter where we were and gave me the actual and average speeds which was really helpful on the bike segments. I also kept an eye on my heart rate but did the best I could with each effort regardless. It is only when my heart rate gets up to 160+ that I feel like I am going to die.
Discipline Time Day Distance Elasped Time Elevation Average Speed 1. Run 6am Friday 7.4 miles 1:24:41 103 feet 10:21 min/mile 2. Bike 10am Friday 34.5 miles 2:22:14 817 feet 14.9 miles/hour 3. Run 8pm Friday 6.6 miles 1:06:32 42 feet 10:04 min/mile 4. Bike 9:20pm Friday 26 miles 1:43:24 270 feet 15.5 miles/hour 5. Bike 5:15am Saturday 23.9 miles 2:08:08 1623 feet 11.7 miles/hour 6. Run 11am Saturday 5.9 miles 59:35 86 feet 9:57 min/mile 7. Bike 12:30pm Saturday 29.7 miles 2:19:56 1560 feet 13.6 miles/hour 8. Bike 9:50pm Saturday 27.1 miles 2:07:25 809 feet 13.5 miles/hour 9. Run 2:05am Sunday 6.0 miles 1:20:44 0 feet 12:48 min/mile 10. Ride 3:30am Sunday 28.8 miles 2:03:22 37 feet 14.8 miles/hour 11. Ride 9:40am Sunday 31.9 miles 2:27:43 937 feet 14.2 miles/hour 12. Run 4:30pm Sunday 7.3 miles 1:18:27 150 feet 9:46 min/mile
Waiting for the fast boys to join us for the last run.
I really hope that our team of 12 can continue on with other events over the next year. We are a diverse group that demonstrates the average/part-time athlete is not something to mess with. We train hard but play hard too and have kept in touch since the epic weekend (God bless Whatsapp).
If you have any suggestions on events or races we should attend in the UK, please leave a comment below.
Big thanks to Coach Magazine and Fitbit for this unforgettable opportunity. All opinions are honest and my own.
What a whirlwind this #fitbitfifty journey has been. The Coach magazine article was out a few weeks ago and the next issue of Cyclist will delve deeper into the experience. It was truly an unforgettable experience and I will try do it justice below. Grab a cuppa as it will be a long post.
Ready to go!
I applied for Fitbitfifty in the summer when I saw an advert on Facebook. It seemed like a once in a lifetime opportunity and I never thought I would be even considered. I know so many more athletes in London alone who were better qualified than myself. Then I was shortlisted and had a phone interview. Then I was made a reserve in case someone became injured in the six week lead up to the event. Days before the Berlin Marathon, I got a call that one of the athletes was injured and Fitbit requested me to be their replacement.
I was buzzing all weekend in Berlin and petrified too that I would be the weak link on my team. My worries were that I don’t cycle with clips, I was just coming back after a month of marathon training with limited cycling incorporated into it, and I don’t consider myself to be a fast runner. But there was no way I was going to pass up an opportunity like this.
After returning home from Germany, I only had a few days to unpack and repack. Participants were given a long list of what to bring with them and I quickly realised I was missing a few key items for cold weather cycling. The good folks at Altura kindly sent me ax express care package that contained my night ride kit (long sleeve jersey, sleeveless baselayer, a waterproof jacket that I slept in). All my running kit fit into my Workplay Bags Goddess II and my cycle kit went into my Adidas bag. My fuel (MyProtein energels,Energy Bits, and various granola bars) went into my ruck sack.
A photo posted by Mollie, the Happiness PT (@ptmollie) on
All athletes, Andy Cook and his team, reps from FitBit and Dennis Publishing met at the hotel Thursday night and shared a meal together. After dinner, the teams decided we would work together for the duration of the challenge, rather than competing against each other. Riding four-up seemed easier than two-up. We matched our pairs into fast, medium, and slow (guess which one I was on?). These groups were perfectly matched, both in terms of ability and personality which made the entire challenge remarkedly calm (no drama, no breakdowns).
Breakfast was served at 4.30am on Friday morning and we headed over to Buckingham Palace by 5.30am. A bunch of people from Dennis Publishing and FitBit met us on the Green Park side for a few photos and for official start. We aimed for 10 min miles but everyone was so excited, it was a bit faster than that. The route was 12 km, winding through London streets to the Olympic Park Velodrome. There, the tour buses awaited our arrival. The group of four gentlemen would start off on their bikes while the rest of us would be transported in the bus to the first transition zone.
All my stuff in my bunk
Life on the bus was cramped. There was lots of kit and tons of food. The loo was smelly and for liquids only. The bunk beds were comfy and dark, but a bit small for the taller guys on the team. We started off being modest when changing kit but by the end, it just didn’t matter anymore. We were tired, sweaty, and short on time when it came to transitions.
The majority of the #fitbitfifty was on the bike and for me, it was hard. I don’t cycle with cleats, instead I used my Salomon trail shoes with toe baskets. However, after this experience, I vow to learn how to use my clip-ins. In the past, I have fallen off one to many times and was worried about doing it again during this challenge, especially while riding in a group. I just fantasized about a giant crash in the middle of nowhere.
My view of Ozzie’s Angels
Even though I found the rides challenging, I am so happy I still have the Forza Stratos RC23 wheels that Merlin Cycles let me review during this year’s Ride London. My cycling is so much more effortless with these wheels even though my bike is entry level. My teammates had super fancy bikes, but my BTwin got me to through it.
During the first ride regment for my team of four (‘Ozzie’s Angels’- Ozzie, Natalie, Elise, and myself), we only tried changing leaders a few times. Elise had never drafted before and Natalie had just learned. Elise also wasn’t that confident riding in traffic, so Ozzie was kind enough to let us ladies draft him the entire segment. On the flats, we were able to stay together at a good pace but hill climbs seperated us out as Elise and I were able to climb but Ozzie and Natalie loved a fast decent.
After we made it to the Scottish border, Ozzie switched with Jer so our trio of ladies came ‘Jer’s Gems’. We kept the same order and strategy, and experienced similar disconnect of pace on the hills. I was loosing my ability to climb by the last 2 cycle segments. Exhaustion was setting in even though I tried to sleep as much as I could on the bus.
My group did a lot of run-bike segments. It was hard, but it was also to match us with short flat cycle segments. I was usually bringing up the rear of our group. I didn’t mind as I have a fair bit of experience cycling on open roads and I can’t hear very well on the bike so there wasn’t any point in me being close to the other riders for a chat.
Meal by FitHQ
Fuelling on this adventure was tough. I knew I needed to eat but my body clock was off from lack of a routine. We had meals from Fit HQ (which I ate most of) and sport drink powder from SIS. There were also crisps, candy bars, ginger biscuits, and full-fat Coke. Every stop we made, we ended up doing a bit more shopping as people experienced different cravings throughout the weekend. I enjoyed chocolate milk after my segments, along with toast, Nutella and bananas. I was never starving and often times forces myself to eat something. It was tough to figure out what to eat and how much that would allow you to fall right asleep and be ready to workout only a few hours later.
Here is a breakdown of each of my segments (hopefully the formatting isn’t too weird). You can also check out my Strava page for the routes we took and other nifty stats. My Fitbit Surge did a great job picking up GPS quickly no matter where we were and gave me the actual and average speeds which was really helpful on the bike segments. I also kept an eye on my heart rate but did the best I could with each effort regardless. It is only when my heart rate gets up to 160+ that I feel like I am going to die.
Discipline Time Day Distance Elasped Time Elevation Average Speed 1. Run 6am Friday 7.4 miles 1:24:41 103 feet 10:21 min/mile 2. Bike 10am Friday 34.5 miles 2:22:14 817 feet 14.9 miles/hour 3. Run 8pm Friday 6.6 miles 1:06:32 42 feet 10:04 min/mile 4. Bike 9:20pm Friday 26 miles 1:43:24 270 feet 15.5 miles/hour 5. Bike 5:15am Saturday 23.9 miles 2:08:08 1623 feet 11.7 miles/hour 6. Run 11am Saturday 5.9 miles 59:35 86 feet 9:57 min/mile 7. Bike 12:30pm Saturday 29.7 miles 2:19:56 1560 feet 13.6 miles/hour 8. Bike 9:50pm Saturday 27.1 miles 2:07:25 809 feet 13.5 miles/hour 9. Run 2:05am Sunday 6.0 miles 1:20:44 0 feet 12:48 min/mile 10. Ride 3:30am Sunday 28.8 miles 2:03:22 37 feet 14.8 miles/hour 11. Ride 9:40am Sunday 31.9 miles 2:27:43 937 feet 14.2 miles/hour 12. Run 4:30pm Sunday 7.3 miles 1:18:27 150 feet 9:46 min/mile
Waiting for the fast boys to join us for the last run.
I really hope that our team of 12 can continue on with other events over the next year. We are a diverse group that demonstrates the average/part-time athlete is not something to mess with. We train hard but play hard too and have kept in touch since the epic weekend (God bless Whatsapp).
If you have any suggestions on events or races we should attend in the UK, please leave a comment below.
Big thanks to Coach Magazine and Fitbit for this unforgettable opportunity. All opinions are honest and my own.
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