Always More to Learn

What a great training weekend! Before the camp, I wondered how much I could get from going back to the same camp again for a second year. The answer is "there's always more to learn." Many thanks to Raf Baugh of our local "Running Centre" for organising this event for the 2nd year.

Even with the same speaker back for the nutrition talk (Steve Skivinis), I still took 3 pages of notes. New highlights for me include: cut back on the green tea - it has a lot of tannin, which interferes with the absorption of iron (and I'm a vegetarian girl, so iron's pretty darn important). Fizzy drinks (not that I ever have them) cut oxygen supply in the blood. Yoghurt suppresses cortisol production. Non-natural peanut butters are hydrogenated to make them smooth spreading (hydrogenated = trans fats; so it pays to get those ones that naturally separate). Steve gets the same "lighter" feeling after eating gluten free products that I get.

The physio (Damian Oldmeadow) was brilliant. Hugely experienced and evidence-based. It's very nice to know now of two excellent physios in Perth. And I got a good strength exercise for my adductors.

I also know a little about what pilates is and may explore it some more.

Steve Moneghetti. A world-class, extremely accomplished athlete and one of the most authentic of people. He spent time with me personally looking over my training programme and questionning my goals (when he wasn't cooking or doing dishes or helping someone else). Incredibly valuable experience.

I was honoured the whole weekend to be surrounded by athletes who set themselves great challenges and strive to improve themselves. Another of the most memorable moments for me was being with an athlete who experienced what was probably a stress fracture in his foot within an hour of the camp starting, yet pulled together the mental strength to stay at the camp the entire weekend and participate, adapting his training to accomplish what he could. That's mettle.