Well, you should really watch the video to see how we got on. But here is a quick blow by blow:

• 1km Ski – we discussed how we would split this one up. I have the better cardio of the two of us so I would “attack” the first and last 250m whilst Kiaran takes on the middle 500m. Did well and on to the next…
• 50m Sled Push: 102kg (W) / 152kg (M) – This really took it out of me in my solo attempt, we split it around 60/40 with Kiaran taking on the extra (its far too heavy for me!). Unfortunately I didnt listen to UK.HXR and forgot to heel lock, meaning my trainers kept slipping!
• 50m Sled Pull: 78kg (W) / 103kg (M) – much better, splitting 50/50 – Kiaran was definitely faster than me though and I got a warning for going over the line (I didnt even know this was a thing!
• 80m Burpee Broad Jump – A nasty workout – we split it 55/45 – I am smaller and shorter so slightly easier for me to complete compared to Kiaran.
• 1km Row (on Concept2 Rower) – Split 50/50 – was good to have a bit of a recovery compared to the BBJs!
• 200m Kettle Bells Farmers Carry: 16kg (W) – 24kg (M) – I took the first 100m here (walking) whilst the monster took over and ran the second 100m
• 100m Sandbag Lunges: 10kg (W) – 20kg (M) – Another tough one, I probably did 110m – again, being shorter to the ground is an advantage!
• 75 / 100 reps Wall Balls: 4kg (W) – 6kg (M) – Another nemesis of mine, I am a little short and with the arm strength of a 12 year old girl. I was literally leaping for each rep. Kiaran took the majority – probably 60/40

We finished overall with 1:25:25 – Well under the 1:30 we set for ourselves before hand, but we can definitely hit sub 1:20 with a little more work. Had a few no reps on the Wall Balls which would have itself brought the time down

 

Doing another Hyrox event?

Well at the moment, I don’t have any booked, PLUS tickets so sell out pretty quick! So nothing booked at the moment….

Did I enjoy the event? Yes, so much better in doubles than singles – I am pretty much the wrong shape for a Hyrox event (doing it solo at least)

Would I do another Hyrox event? Yes I would, however, Fitness racing would always come second to Road running or obstacle racing. 

Hyrox London Gallery

Want to know more about Hyrox?

Hyrox – uk.hyrox.com

Want to know more about fitness racing? Follow UK.HXR on instagram.

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• Half Marathon PB – To be honest, this has been on the list for a while – 2019 went a little wrong (AKA learned a lot) whilst in 2020 I did not run a half marathon distance. I have booked Wrexham Bakery Half Marathon, scheduled for February and working towards this. Fingers crossed it’s on!
• World’s Toughest Mudder – So this is a goal / focus but I am also just 50/50 on this. The ticket is quite a lot of money, whilst travel is a little limited at the moment. I went to WTM back in 2018 (read the post here) but wasn’t 100% fit and ony managed 20 miles. Again, I learned a lot – and now being in Laughlin, Nevada, it may just be that little warmer!
• 100km+ in my next 24 hour Ultra – Really proud to run Equinox24 in 2017 and hit my 100km target. However, after more experience under my belt and a few more miles on my legs, I think I can go further. Not sure how much further – 110km would be my first target and we shall see where we go from there.
• 5km PB – someone described me as a diesel engine rather than a petrol – I think the anology is about right – can’t really sprint off the line, but once I am up to speed I can keep going. But at some point in my training, I would love to have a go at beating my 5km PR (currently 22.20 or something). I’d definitely be aiming for sub-22 and see where we go from there. My 10km PR is now 44:01 so sub 22 should be on the cards at some point in 2021. It’s got to be in a race or Parkrun as I really can’t TT outside of race conditions!

There you have it, my goals of 2021. Let’s see what this year and a “post-pandemic” world has to bring to my OCR and race season! If you want to check out my 2021 race schedule – you can see it here

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Below is a list of podcasts I listen to. I’ve split into two categories – running/obstacle race podcasts an then everything else. I’ve then ordered them into time I have been listening – oldest first.

Running / Obstacle Racing podcasts

• UK OCR – THE podcast for obstacle racing in the UK – Of course, I would say that as I am co-host of “Who’s Hot” – However the “Swift Half” released on a Friday with Allan and Ian is my favourite show.
• Obstacle Racing Media – Podcast around OCR and running. Entertaining and informative guests, whilst the latest edition of “Davis & Chace Discourse” is a fresh take on the news of the week
• Badboy Running – A British based running podcast which adds humour and irreverance in between (usually) interesting guests.
• The Running Public – New to me (2 episodes in) but seems to be interesting mostly talking about improving running for all runners – Elite to Newbie
• World’s Toughest Podcast – the first OCR related podcast I downloaded. Based around World’s Toughest Mudder and Tough Mudder. In most recent times, the podcasts are few and far between with Will Hicks concentrating on The OCR Report. I don’t listen to this as I found it was too North American centric
• The Nitty Gritty Training – A bi-weekly podcast with Faye Stenning and Jess O’Connell who provide training content on strength, running, and obstacle racing.

All other Podcasts

• Kermode & Mayo’s Take – My first ever podcast and have listened for several years (yes I am an LTL). Even if you don’t go to the cinema often (I don’t) its a great, entertaining listen.
• Comedy of the Week – a different sketch every week – honestly hit or miss – but there have been some gems!
• Friday night comedy – Mostly topical panel shows like the “News Quiz”
• More or less – behind the stats – short and sweet podcast (around 20 minutes) delving deeper into finding the truth behind statistics which may have been spouted by a politician in the week’s news
• Chequered Flag Formula 1 – Usually more interesting than the F1 race themselves! Normally 4 episodes per race which includes preview and review
• This week in tech – A long podcast (around 2 hours) rounding up the tech news of the week.
• Stuff you should know – Just for interest, I don’t listen to every episode (I dont need to know everything!)
• Freakonomics Radio – Another really interesting stats podcast
• MoneyBox – Financial podcast based on topical news
• The Which money podcast – Financial podcast to help people understand their own money finances and how to improve their situation
• Off Menu – A really entertaining podcast in which guests are invited to talk about their dream meal.
• Beyond Today – A deeper delve into a daily headline of the day. In the world of “short form” its good to get a 20 minute exploration.

That’s my list – what do you listen to? Are there any in the list you like/hate? Do you have any suggested Podcasts that I should be listening to?

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So that’s pretty much all of my favourite photos and moments from 2019. Actually that’s a lie, this is just a handful of my favourite pictures, there are so much more, but I can keep boring you with all of them! Here#s to more favourite moments in 2020!

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1. Marathon is just a generic word for running – A ot of people mentioned they “ran marathons”, I quickly learned this is a generic term for any running race – 5km, 10km, half or full marathon.
2. Incredible choice – Maybe this was Chennia, or maybe because it was Winter, but there was a road race every weekend whilst I was there. The first weekend I was too late in booking though
3. Great value for money – Each race included a medal, t-shirt and goodie bag. The most expensive race I booked was £11, whilst they averaged around £5
4. Choice of distances – Each event usually had the full gammut of distance – The half marathon I chose, also had 3km, 5km and 10km race distances for all abilities
5. Pick your bib up the day before – Each race had a bib pick up the day before. None gave me the choice of picking up on the morning of the race. For me this was a bit of an inconvenience as it was a 45 minute cab ride to the location as well as the cab ride to the race the next morning.
6. Early morning start – Whilst it was winter in Chennai, it still averaged 25 – 30C each day. To beat the heat and sun, the races typically started around 6am. Add this to the 40 minute cab ride to the venue = a very early start!
7. Awesome warm up – ZUMBA!!! The warm-up was always high energy with the vast majority of particpants taking part. Loved it!
8. Followed by a long introduction – Unfortunately after the great warm up, there was then the messages of thanks and sponsors. For both the races, this took 10 minutes plus and sucked all of the energy out of the great warm up. They need to switch this around! To be fair, this happens a lot in British races too!
9. Not quite the distance – The 3km run turned out to be several laps (most people only completed one) whilst the 10km run over the two laps still only mensured 8.9km. Not a huge deal to me, I was running for fun, but if you were going for a PB or needed a specific distance it is a little annoying.
10. Lots of water stops – The heat and humidity (even so early in the morning) meant that water stops are vital. The 10km race had 4 water stops and the scheduled half marathon had 10!
11. Selfie finish – No official photographers along the route, but there was always a finish line selfie bord for you to take your own pics for memories!
12. Incredible atmosphere – You could tell everyone loved running! With the choice of race distances, brought runners of all ages and abilities. Families taking on the shorter distances, elites racing and everyone having a smile on their face.

OK, so I only ran two races and had one cancelled. Some of these lessons may change as I enter more races in Chennai. My work has an office in Chennai, so I know I will be returning and I am excited to see what other running adventures I take on next!

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I finished the race in 1:45:53, 7 minutes out of my personal best and around 8-9 minutes off my target time. Reflecting on my long drive back home, here is a short list of five things I did wrong, in the hope that I (and perhaps you) will learn from the mistakes ready for Manchester.

The five things I did wrong

1. Forgot my gels! I know that a lot of people do not use gels, but I am used to taking 2 along the way (around 7km an 14m). The Project E2 Hydro Gels help to give me a bit of an energy boost of which I was definitely lacking around the 12km mark….
2. Headwind – The weather plays a big part in the conditions and Newark Half Marathon had far from ideal conditions for PB – it was hot and humid but there was also a massive headwind for about 3 miles in which there was no shelter. I should have taken account for this, instead….
3. I powered on through – Still on pace early on through to about 10km, but this included the 3 miles (ish) of headwind and the long climb to the top. I should have slowed down a little bit and use the tail wind and descent to my advantage. But by then I was too “gassed” to keep pace.
4. Not enough hydration – I ususally start “topping up” on Project e2 Hydro from Thursday and have a bottle with me to drink through Saturday, but for reason 5, I didn’t do this and always felt thirsty, even with the five water stations Newark Half Marathon had.
5. Too busy – Going home for the weekend is great, but I had 4 stops to do on the Saturday including to (large) meals. Not ideal prep for Sunday morning race and it wouldn’t be how I normally prepare the day before.

And the four things I got right

1. Reframed – Once I felt “gassed” and my heart rate wouldn’t come down, I decided to re-frame the race by taking the PB target off the table.
2. This allowed me to enjoy the race a little more and once I got to the last few kilos, I stepped up the gas again for a fast(er) finish
3. Didn’t stop – I was tempted to stop and walk several times, but I beat the “demons” and kept moving (slowly) forward
4. Forget it and move on – After writing this blog, and having a chat with my coach at Runstrong, I will put this in a box and move forward. Every race cannot be a PB and not all conditions are going to be perfect to achieve that perfect time

All I can do, is put these learnings into practice and prepare for the next race. A PB will come, it just didn’t happen today.​​​​​​​​​​

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My gadget essentials

• Gimbal – smartphone / action camera stabilser – Essential piece of kit for my phone and action camera. Even though they both have electronic image stabilization, the gimbal helps to smooth out the footage a tad more.
• Extending & floating selfie stick – This is mulit- use – for road racing and has an added advantage of floating, so in obstacle racing, if I maage to drop the camera (not done so yet) it wont be lost! The selfie stick folds out so can be around 1m in length whilst also has a screw on tripod stand – really useful for stable shots to camera
• Waterproof action camera light – I purchased this for use at WTM and ETM – uses the action camera batteries and is capable of charging iva USB so there is no need to take up any extra charging space. Waterproof, various brightness, and has the added use as a fill in light for any photography required.
• CrossTour Action Camera – I try not to go for brand names, this action camera is fully loaded (4k, Slow mo, image stabalisation) and comes with a ton of accessories, all for only £90. For me this was a much better value proposition than the brand leader. All my race videos have been captured with this camera- the footage speaks for itself!
• Action Camera batteries – Be warned, batteries last around 30 – 45 minutes so carrying spares
• Lapel Microphone – Useful addition when you are doing some Instagram or Facebook live videos (especially when you’re outside with a lot of ambient noise). I aim to upgrade to this RODE microphone soon
• Anker Headphones – not for capturing, content, but great for listening back or just blocking out unwanted noise (especially useful when camping and needing sleep)
• USB cables – because you need to connect and charge everything!
• Aftershokz Trekz Titanium headphones – I do find it difficult to do any length of distance running without music. These babies allow you to listen to music (or audio of choice) without blocking the outside world. ou can hear your surroundings and keep safe. On the other hand, these are terrible in the gym, use the anker headphones instead.
• Mini tripod – Your flexible friend! The legs are sturdy enough to stay in place, but can “grab” on to any surface – trees, fence etc to ensure you get the shot you want
• Portable Charger – The Aukey charger I have is 20,000mh – thats enough for 6/7 full charges of my Moto X. Has a quick charge feature and fits USB, micro USB and USBC (and probably Apple too)
• Stryd – OK – so this is a bit of a weird one as I am not quite capturing “content”. The Stryd is a footpod which connects to my phone or garmin and gives “power” readings and other feedback about my running. The theory is that running to Heart Rate is not as accurate as running to “power” whilst “power” feedback is immediate and heart rate takes some time to “catch up” with the change in running. You can read more about my initial thoughts here
• DJI Spark – One of my most ambitious purchases! This little drone has a 12mp camera giving 1080p video. With the addition of some automatic functions, its a great way of getting some quick footage

• Mobile phone tripod – essentially doing the same job as the flexible tripod above, however this one has a useful grip (much like a gun) making it much easier to run with
• Bluetooth speaker – Running around a Tough Mudder course can take up to 3 hours. Music is a great way of helping to liven up proceedings whilst keeping the adrenaline pumping. For this, a loud and waterproof speaker is essential. Back in the “office” I can link my laptop up to the speaker to listen to playback.
• Moto X4 (not pictured) – Current phone of choice. I have been a massive Motorola fan. The X4 is waterproof, has long battery life (with quick charge) whilst also takes 4k and slow motion video for any additional content I create without the actiom camera. BTW also a great selfie camera with flash!
• Microsoft Surface Pro 2 (not pictured) – My current surface pro is powerful enough to create videos “on the fly” without the weight of a full blown laptop. The keyboard (additional extra) is essential!

That’s it – my list of gadget essentials. My nearest addition – the DJI Spark doesn’t always travel with me, but pretty much everything else goes where I go. Is there anything you ALWAYS travel with and I have missed? Catch up in the comments below.

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Here are 3 reasons why you should volunteer marshal at least once!

• Makes races cheaper (especially OCRs) – As already mentioned, the number of marshals required for a race is bewildering. The vast majority of marshals at a race are volunteers. If all of the marshals were paid for their time – even at minimum wage – the costs of the race would sharply rise (and most likely not be economical). Volunteering will help keep costs down
• Makes it cheaper to race – As a volunteer marshal, you generally get a number of benefits as a “thank you”. This usually involves a free (or heavily discounted) race, free parking / camping, food & drink on shift and discounts on merchandise. Tough Mudder volunteers get a great package – discount on the race (£30 for a race if you do a half day shift) camping and parking (worth £30), T shirt and hat, fed and watered before, during and after the shift and 20% discount on all Tough Mudder Merchandise.
• You will have a huge amount of fun – I really enjoy volunteering, its a great way to save on money (see above) but to see so many people having fun and enjoying themselves is a reason in itself. I’ve volunteered mostly as Tough Mudder as I am there for the weekend, but have volunteered at many other races and the gratitude from the runners and race directors is no less.

Go volunteer, save some money, have fun and enjoy a different side to racing.

Volunteering at Muddy Maniacs and pouring water over the runners

The post 3 reasons why you should be a volunteer marshal at an Obstacle Course Race appeared first on Wil Chung.

I spent most of my days playing csaino slots and claiming online slot bonus offers, it’s not just for entertainment, I do this for a living purpose and cause I’m pretty good at it. But then I decided to do something different. Ya hear me? Something different. Earlier this year, I was looking for new jobs. My friends told me that for each job I applied for, I had to apply for a TV show. Well I got my job (yay!) but also a call from Lucy, one of the production crew from Big Heads to discuss my application.  We dicussed what was on it – fitness, work, OCR etc. and at the end of the call, she invited me to the first set of auditions in Manchester. After the formal part, we discussed Tough Mudder and admitted that it was my enthusiasm for OCR and “craziness” that got me through to the auditions.

Manchester was pretty crazy and came up very quickly. There was around 40 in this one and the production crew confirmed they were going around the country and doing the same thing over the week. So far over 3,000 had applied for the show and they were auditioning around 500 in these local auditions. They said we had done well to get this far, but are looking for 50 competitors all together –  40 for the show and 10 on stand by.

The audition was pretty straight forward – first showing us the concepts of the show and the first dummy head – “Pedro”. Then a bit (read a lot) of paperwork and then a small game for us all to play in groups – think school obstacle course – egg and spoon race, beanbags on the head etc etc. This was a chance for the production crew to see our “personality” in a game #competativenotcompetative. We were then individually  interviewed on camera for a few minutes discussing the application as well as trying “Pedro” on and moving around in it. I did burpess! (#Aroo!). And that was it for the audition – relatively short in all – maybe one and a half hours in total.

So a couple of weeks later, I received another call from Lucy and I got through to the show! My filming was on a sunday evening, they would pay for my hotel and travel expenses and I could invite friends and family to the filming to support.

Filming Day

Filming took place at Elstree Studios, Borehamwood – and more specifically at the George Lucas Studio.

Wow – it was such a long day – we were there for 8am to begin and was expected to finish around about 11pm. Filming Big Heads was from 7pm, whilst the rest of the day we had different bits of filming to do including our introductions, interviews, skits and transformations.

The first part of the morning we managed to introduce ourselves and talk about other experiences – a few had been on TV shows before – Come Dine with Me, Coach Trip, one had even won £50,000 on the Cube!

We then had more paperwork to fill in as well as a thorough reading of the rules. We were then introduced to our handlers for the day. They were there to be by our side, to take us to each filming location, feed , water and generally take care of anything we required. My handler was Biloil. He actually works with East Enders but does this from time to time.

So my day looked like this:

• Costume and Big Heads fitting – and getting to meet who I was going to be for the day – Ed Sheeran! The rest of my costume was pretty straight forward (jeans, t shirt, check shirt). I also had a “Jerk Vest” fitting – basically a jacket with harnesses which are used for

stunt professionals to be clipped in to various things. This would be used to connect Ed’s Head to me.

The Big Heads Show

We went for a walk through of the Big Heads games around 5pm. And at that point I knew the first two games – travelator run to the doors and grabbing a microphone) would be a little pot luck. The shark paparrazzi game looked difficult whilst the sumo suit race to the podium seemed fun.

Filming Big Heads started at 7pm, with my family and friends in the audience. The result? Well unfortunately I was one of the first out – I didnt get through the VIP door and out in the first round. I was tripped over 3 times and I was finally taken out by a giant microphone. Visibility is basically none existent when the head is on. Think letter box slot and that is pretty much it. No peripheral vision (so didnt see that mic coming) and nothing above or below you – hence not seeing people on the ground tripping me up! So that was that!

What you didnt see on TV was having to wait around 10 minutes in the game whilst they were trying to fix “Rhiannas” eye – the head broke in the game and they couldn’t fix it – hence the plaster you see for the rest of the show. You also didnt see a bit of “gamesmanship” on the shark game between “Taylor Swift” and “Rhianna” who were basically hopping and pulling each other back – both against the rules! A bit of booing from the crowd did occur – all cut from TV.

So after I was knocked out I had an interview in which I talked about what I thought happened and who I thought would win (I was wrong!) and that was it. All done. The guys in the green room said I was unlucky, but my wipeout was awesome – When I saw it on TV, they were not wrong. It was so epic that I even got a mention on the Mirror website – http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/bigheads-viewers-hysterics-after-ed-10331116

It was a great laugh and I would encourage everyone to apply for some sort of game show – whether a quiz show, game show or something active like Ninja Warrior – the whole audition and filming process is a real eye opener. The 1 hour on tv (well say 50 minutes after ad breaks) took nearly 4 hours to film!

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