New Year’s resolutions: Setting goals that will WORK

Following on from the blog I wrote last year on New Year’s resolutions, we are once again at that time of year.

This time, as a NLP practitioner, I am able to help you set even more realistic, specific goals that WILL work.

How to Qualify for the GB Age Group Team

Unfortunately (or fortunately, it depends how you look at it!) if you are considering qualification for this team, you currently live in one of the strongest triathlon nation in the world. Great Britain is usually the largest travelling team to any championships, and was on outnumbered in recent years by the Australians when the triathlon world championships were on the Gold Coast in 2009.

Building fitness: it's not what you think!

The Keys To Building Fitness: There is no secret!

Building fitness and muscle mass comes from:

To cross country race or not, that is the question..

Tough decisions today. The league race, but it was an hour away, plus, I had no team, oh, and a very sick cat. What to do...?

Powerbreathe: the trial is over and the asthma is cured!

So 12 weeks have come to an end, and wow, what a change has occurred.

When I started this trial I was an athlete and an asthma sufferer. Now, quite simply, I’m an athlete. You think I exaggerate? No I don’t!

BBC Sports personality of the year: the alternative vote!

Much controversy surrounds the BBC Sports personality of the year this year:

unbalanced representation of sports

no women in the line-up

no Para-athletes in the line-up

North Herts Cross Country

This week was rest week. This means I should feel all refreshed, yes? NO.

I think I have been working a little too hard lately, which means long hours, and shorts night’s sleep. The current job is quite stressful too (soon to change) all meaning I do not have as much time and energy as I would like. All this plus running the business Ryding2Health and you can see why I may run out of energy!

Games Maker London 2012 uniforms revealed

So this is what I and the other 70,000 volunteers will be wearing eh?

It’s kind of got the odd purple twist of Wimbledon in it, they say it is inspired by the historic Grenadier Guards uniform, with influences from the 1948 Games, Wimbledon and Henley Regatta.

Powerbreathe blog week 14: I forgot the inhaler on purpose

This week, I am beginning to realise that I in fact do NOT need that inhaler at all. Up till now I have always taken it (just in case) but this week, I went to the track WITHOUT it on purpose. Coach is not holding back on me at all, and I am learning to permanently hurt!!

Biggleswade Cross Country; not just about going faster!

Today was a true NLP challenge for me. There was only one reason I actually decided to complete this race, well, actually 2.

1)    I am the cross country secretary and have all the race numbers and paperwork!

2)    I wanted a true mental toughness challenge!

Powerbreathe trial week 13: oops i forgot the inhaler!

Yep, the inevitable happened this week. I was in a rush, work is hectic, I had to go to the track to meet my coach directly from work. I forgot the inhaler. Normally that means that coach goes easy, because he is always afriad of me having asthma trouble and not being able to help me. Today was different.

What are the benefits of cross country or off road running?

Don’t you just love to hate cross country? I do!! Despite it being ultra tough at times, and not at all like  a triathlon why on earth do I do it?

Week 16: Clinical Psychologist report.

I have been looking forward to this day for a while. I good old black and white assessment on how I am doing. Head injury is a funny thing. You lose all grasp on what symptoms are the head injury and what are just you and life in general. It is such a fine line and sometimes no line at all. You also do not ever reach a time when you think ‘ah, I’m better now’. Neither can you say when you start feeling better, it all happens incrementally over time.

A strange thing happened... NLP Practitioners course

I KNOW NLP works. I have tried it myself. I was keen to learn more, and find out how it all worked. The course at Mind Training Systems came recommended by a NLP master practitioner friend Kim Ingleby, so I thought I would go ahead and take a look.  

40th Birthday bash

Magical mystery tour

I tried my hardest to stick by the theory I had about this birthday quite some months ago... go to bed on Friday and get up on Monday, thus passing it by completely and hoping no one will notice!

Nope... it didn’t work! I was dragged out of the bedroom at 10am on Saturday being ordered to get ready, we had places to go. Where? Who knows! As I am not the naturally curious ‘spoil the surprise’ sort, I didn’t ask any questions.  

Mountain biker gets taken out by an Antelope

Mountain bikers are just some: no obstacle is too much. However, there are still surprises. as Evan der Spuy found out during a mountain bike race at Albert Falls in KwaZulu-Natal. Watch this video... 

Interview with BBC Northampton breakfast

BBC radio Northampton

I was approached by BBC Northampton, as the schools had gone back, and they were doing a little bit of research on helmet safety. Tom Percival, the reporter who called me said that he had noticed that many school children did not wear a helmet when they cycled to school. He wanted my take on it, and could we do it on air? Sure.

Powerbreathe trial week 12: level 7 here I come!

This week sees the return to full training after my two week end of season break. 5.30am is very dark you know, specially now half the street lights are strategically turned off!!

Up to level 7 now on the powerbreathe. The other day when I started my 30 breaths I thought it was blocked or something, as it’s getting very tough now!! (it wasn’t blocked, it was just me being a wuss!) it was also my first track session since my head injury.

Head injury week 11: the clinical psychologist

Been back at work for a couple of weeks now. The load is still proving to be a challenge. I am not sure how much is me and how much is the fact that I do in fact have more work to do. It’s hard to separate the symptoms. I do know that my memory is proving to be a challenge though!

Helmets Save Lives

CONTACT ME TO ADD YOUR ENDORSEMENT TO THIS MESSAGE, or YOUR STORY

I always wear a cycle helmet. do you? Mine is more through habit than safety though, till Saturday 16 July 2011, when I was found by a passing motorist. I was lying unconscious in the middle of a roundabout.

A helmet saved my life that day. I came to discover that I wasn't the only one. Cycle helmets DO save lives Here are our stories:

11 stories / personal accounts have been added, to date.

Michael Downes

I started racing triathlon in 2008 after my elder sister finished one and I was jealous. I'm a swimmer so I hadn't been on a bike since I was a child and I certainly didn't have any kit. Now I'm a little accident prone so a helmet was a must.... Since then I've had two hospital trips where my helmet prevented things from being a lot worse. The most recent of these was in June 2011.

Ben Madden

I recently learned of this awfully tragic story involving a teenage cyclist and a deer. It just goes to show, ANYTHING can happen, and its not just the traffic that can pose a danger to cyclists.

RIP Ben.

Please please please, wear a helmet. 

Head injury: Week 10 – the return to work

I thought I was doing ok to be honest. I managed to get to China and back, all seemed to be moving in the right direction, yes? Well, no.... at least in part.

Don’t run before you can walk

To be fair, I was actually quite nervous about the return to work. It has been two months, my workload has changed dramatically, what if I can’t cope? What will people think of me if I forget stuff, or repeat ask questions in conversation? I went to see a clinical psychologist this week. I am still wondering why the brain injury team has sent me there.

Team acknowledgements: the journey to Beijing

On the surface, this would seem like a story about a one woman mission to achieve. That is not the case at all. I would like to acknowledge the people along the way that helped in the TEAM EFFORT to get me to the start line and round that world championship race, enabling me to achieve my original top 20 goal. Without them all, I would not have made it to Beijing.

Powerbreathe blog week 11: World champs story

The journey to get me to this start line was way more challenging than any other race I have done. A severe head injury and 6 weeks layoff directly beforehand meant that being at this start line at all was in the balance for a long time.

World Triathlon Championships 2011, Beijing

The journey to Beijing

The journey to get me to this start line was way more challenging than any other race I have done. A severe head injury and 6 weeks layoff directly beforehand meant that being at this start line at all was in the balance for a long time.

I only firmly decided if I would travel about a week before hand, and was forced to set myself a whole new set of goals.

Originally, I had decided I would like a top 20 finish, managing 31’st place last year in Budapest, it seemed a reasonable ask. In actual fact, I wanted it closer to the top ten if possible, so I was forced to completely evaluate.  

Newmarket Duathlon: I think I prefer TRIATHLON!

On Saturday afternoon I was asked by JustRacingUK if I would mind representing them and going over (along with hubby who also volunteers to work for them,) to Newmarket Duathlon to take the bike racking that they had hired.

No problem, I thought. Then I was asked did I want to do the race while I was there? 2.5k-14mile-2.5k - seemed ok, so I took the spare bike and some shoes (the argon already packed for China!)

Racking set up - race organiser says he has a number for me, then I realise that in reality it was 2.5miles-14miles-2.5 miles. Oh! Now that's a whole new ball game!

Powerbreathe trial week 10: World Champs preparations

It's been a roller coaster ride of training since I started this trial. From smooth preparations and training all going to plan, to head injury and completely housebound, and back again (almost).

It's been six weeks since the cycling accident and I wouldn't say I was out of the woods yet. Not by a long way. But, I am getting on that plane to China  (5th sept) and will be in the aquathlon world championships on the 7th, and the triathlon world championships on the 10th, and I will consider myself lucky to be alive and very lucky to be a least partially back to fitness and able to wear that GB suit proudly, knowing the even tougher road I have had to get to that start line. http://www.Facebook.com/melryding and twitter (@nuuutymel and @ryding2health). You can find the world championship coverage on http://www.Beijing.triathlon.org

I predict it to be a great elite race and am looking forward to seeing Great Britain's Alistair Brownlee and Helen Jenkins both take the world titles (I hope!)

Originally published on the Powerbreathe blog: http://www.powerbreathe.com/blog/category/powerbreathe-user-trial/melanie-ryding

Top 10 mistakes triathletes make in training

I have been on quite a journey, from 15.5 stone overweight, incredibly unfit and never ever excercised, to consistently qualifying to represent Great Britain at World and European level for three years now.

I have had to learn an incredible amount, through self education, coaching and trial and error, in order to get to this level.

I do not believe that I am special, I was harbouring no hidden talent, I simply learnt how to make myself one of the best in the country.

Do you want to know how I did that? Do you want to know how YOU can do that?

Contact me info@melanieryding.co.uk or reply to this blog with your email contact details including where you are in the world and I will share with you the top 10 errors that I have made on my journey in training. You will then be invited to learn how YOU can be the best in YOUR country too.

I look forward to hearing from  you.

Melanie

http://www.melanieryding.co.uk/
http://www.ryding2health.com/

Head Injury Week 5 and 6: getting there?

It wasn’t till I reflected on the past few weeks that I remembered and realised that there have been more small improvements. There are still a string of frustrating side effects though: I am now at the point that I tend to forget that some things could still be related to the head injury.

Beijing (the world championships) is now frighteningly close, only just over a week away. I feel completely unprepared. I have to work hard to focus on the fact that my targets and goals are very much changed from their original, and that I am still in fact lucky to be alive. I am still going on my reverse pacing plan, start easy, finish up running for my life, so to speak!

The new athlete eating plan week 5: Eat pizza and lose weight!!

Well, not really, but in actual fact, coupled with the correct outlook and methodology, it’s true.

I’m getting the hang of this athlete diet from Martin MacDonald. I am not saying that means it gets easier, but I am getting the hang of it. I understand now, through doing it wrong last week as well as doing it right, that my body needs the correct fuel mix to perform. I have stuck strictly to the plan this week. I do find it tough still at times, I still haven’t shaken off my sugar addiction completely!

UNIQUE CAPTURE: who knew photos could be so much fun!!

I had the pleasure of meeting Chris from Unique Capture per chance when I stood in for someone at a local business meeting. He mentioned he was a photographer, and had cool business cards, so I decided to have a chat (not being that shy of a camera myself!)

They said they hadn't had a triathlete in their studios and invited me over to have some shots taken. Don't mind if I do... ;) I was told to bring over the bike, turbo trainer, trisuit, wet suit, and any other gismos, and was informed that it was ok, he had a paddling pool and they could get me all wet! (jeez I thought, what am I getting myself into here hahahah)

Powerbreathe trial week 9: ramping up the intensity!

still recovering from the head injury, so I feel all behind with my preparations. Still, nothing I can do about that i guess. 

 

The problem I currently have is related to change of pace and oxygen demand, so starting and stopping is hard work. I have upped the intensity of the training  a little this week, to introduce intervals and track sprints.

The new athlete eating plan week 4

Still quite a lot of pace change related dizziness this week from the head injury, so the injection of pace is limited.

The new way of thinking is still proving to be quite hard, although I have trained myself to reach for cashew nuts instead of cakes! It is tough though, when hubby is still eating whatever he wants to, whenever he wants to!!

Powerbreathe trial week 8: Learning to hurt again!

With the good progress following last week’s race, coach and I decided that it was perhaps safe to increase the intensity of the training somewhat. I have also been giving the World championships some serious thought, and have come up with a set of weekly goals to help me decide. I only have a few weeks left…

I WILL go to Beijing!

I have had a tough ride these past few weeks, mostly mentally, may I add. Dealing with a head injury has proved much more of a challenge than I could ever have imagined. Imagine all training and fitness ability is removed from you in an instant, only 6 weeks before the most important race of the season: the World Championships. It's very hard not to spiral into a downward depression realising all your season goals have just been taken away from you.


NLP has taught me a few valuable lessons though. You need to deal with the now. What's the point of fretting about yesterday? Or tomorrow? Or what everyone else thinks? I have not found this easy though. I simply couldn't work out the value and purpose of going to a race where I knew I would pull out a sub par performance. I reached the point where I was investigating how much of the money I could claim back and where I might find a consultant willing to write the letter.

The New athlete eating plan week 3

I have to record my weight every morning. This makes me all too aware how I am doing – like a slap in the face! I felt terrible at the end of last week, like I let Martin my nutritionist down. He was taking longer to reply to me so I knew he was cross. I had better do something.

Someone once said to me ‘you are always in control of what you put in your mouth’. That is so right. So I decided to try harder. I still find the new rules very tough, but I need to get a grip on this. I have never had a good relationship with food, so come on Mel, in reality this was never going to be a walk in the park now, was it??

Thoughts this week:

The New athlete eating plan week 2

Oh dear oh dear. I am finding this rather tough. It is a drastic change, very drastic. I complained to my husband about how impossible it was, how it was NEVER going to work, I could NEVER keep this up... his response has been ringing in my ears ever since.

He asked me why, when I was so disciplined with the training my coaches gave me to do (which I always do without failure and without question) was I not applying the same logic to this? Eating different was a new discipline, and I just simply had to learn it.

That told me didn’t it.

Things I am finding hard:

Head injury week 3 and 4: Project regain fitness begins

I have come to realise that a head injury is a little known and little appreciated thing. Why? Because I wish I had £5 for each person that has said to me this week ‘oh, gosh I am glad to see you have fully recovered now’.

I spoke to another head injury victim today. He was not a cyclist, it was completely different circumstances. However there were similarities. Natural assumptions. The problem with a head injury is all the symptoms are inside my head so how do YOU know how well I am? You don’t. You aren’t expected to. Therefore you assume. We all do.

The current symptoms:

Coping with Injury

The physical side of coping with injury is easy, right? You can’t physically do it, so that’s that... yes? No!

After my recent head injury, it wasn’t the lack of training that was worrying me, after all, I couldn’t even stand up, let alone swim, bike or run. It was the games that my mind was playing with me that was the issue.

How did I cope with the mental strain of injury?

Desford Sprint Triathlon: the head tester!

This was a pool based sprint triathlon held by Race Time Events in rural Leicestershire. For me it was a rehab exercise, and rather ambitious too, only 3 weeks post head injury, so I intended to enjoy it. It was a lovely sunny day, if not a little windy. I simply wanted to see if I could complete it without mishaps.

It was based in a village community college, ample parking, easy enough to find, and even warm showers afterwards (ok, I was in the first wave, so by the time the last competitor finished, maybe they weren’t still warm!)

Powerbreathe trial week 7: Project regain fitness commences!

SCAT concussion test round 3 started my week, and I am pleased to report that I was declared 'almost back to normal' whatever that means!

The dizzy spells are intermittent and getting more so, which is a good sign. All that remains, symptom wise, is that I am still unable to tilt my head or bend over to reach low down objects, which is a little irritating but MILES better than it has been. 

Pwerbreathe trial week 6: up and running, Kinda!

The forced go slow and new scatter brain that I seem to have developed is becoming very frustrating. I just can’t think or do as fast as I used to be able to do. Its like a need a pause button while my brain processes stuff. The number of times that I have had the ‘well?’ kind of looks from my husband – its getting quite regular.

The new Athlete eating plan: week 1

Just before my head injury, I planned to reduce my body fat, as a result of seeing this picture after the European championships in Spain in June. Although I am aware I am by no means ‘fat’, I felt like I looked that way standing next to two lean athletes.

It has been a tough road, let me tell you. There is so much to learn, I hardly know where to begin. I enlisted the help from Martin MacDonald, a well renowned nutritionist that came highly recommended. I was instantly ordered to:

Phil Glenister: Helmets save lives

Helmets save lives, and without them, they don't.

It actually relates to my wife’s cousin, a teacher, whom was cycling to school several years ago, without a helmet on, on the last day of summer term.

Head Injury Week 2: up and running (sort of!)

The forced go slow and new scatter brain that I seem to have developed is becoming very frustrating. I just can’t think or do as fast as I used to be able to do. Its like a need a pause button while my brain processes stuff. The number of times that I have had the ‘well?’ kind of looks from my husband – its getting quite regular.

HELMETS SAVE LIVES: BBC Look East interview

This is the interview that BBC look East put out on the 29 July. It was repeated several times during the day.

If you have not done so already, please visit my helmet appeal campaign page, and read some of the other testimonials that are on there.

Thank you, and keep safe.

Andrew Neill: Helmets Save Lives

In March 2010, I was hit by a car whilst training for a charity triathlon.

My back was broken in 2 places, amongst many other injuries.

The only part of my body not marked or injured was my head. Purely because I was wearing a helmet.

I wrote a diary of my time in hospital, purely to keep my mind active whilst being immobile. www.bhit.org (a charity that promotes the use of cycle helmets for children).

Powerbreathe Trial Week 5: small steps

After last weeks accident it has been a rather eventful week to say the least.

I spent the weekend in hospital and was discharged on sunday evening. Head injury is no fun at all, and for 3 days my head felt like a fizzy pop bottle that someone had shaken up really hard. Dizzy did not even begin to describe it! 

Melanie's narrow escape inspires helmet warning

Published in the Herald and Post, Thursday 28th July 2011

A TRIATHLETE is keen to pass on the message – wearing a cycle helmet saved her life.

Melanie Ryding, from Wellingborough, a secondary special needs teacher at Rushden

Community College, recently woke up in hospital after being involved in a cycling accident.

All Mrs Ryding can remember is she came off her bike during a routine ride through Little Harrowden when she was approaching a roundabout but beyond that everything is a blur.

She was found by a driver lying in the road but there were no witnesses and no one knows exactly what happened.

Matthew Hunt: Helmets save Lives

My accident occurred around 1130 a.m. in the 2^nd week of the Easter holidays 2011, on 18^th April 2011, 40 miles from home.  It was a training ride with my friend, Neil and we were working well, keeping (or so I thought,) a sensible distance apart. 

The weather was perfect for riding, bright, dry and minimal traffic around.  The ride was going really well and apart from Neil losing his balance at a junction while clipped in and performing the slow motion, cringe-worthy side ways fall that happens when you don’t unclip quickly enough, we were going well.  About 10 miles later, he’d had an unfortunate incident with a bee in his helmet, but had managed to stop safely before getting freed from the stinging insect.  So far, I’d been unscathed by this series of unfortunate incidents that were happening to Neil, surely nothing worse could happen today?

Tim Ellis: Helmets save lives

During the winter of 1990 I was involved in a 'hit & run' accident in Blackheath London - the bike was a right off and I, luckily suffered only minor injuries which is a miracle considering I was only wearing a baseball cap. This was my first 'wake up call' to the real dangers of cycling on the UK's roads. The driver who deliberately caused this accident was never caught despite Police efforts and I could have been dead.

Andrew Holgate: Helmets save Lives

Although I was knocked off my bike a month or two ago (see below) the helmet did not directly save me that day, however it has protected me several times over the years as I’ve been knocked off, come off on ice etc..... a helmet did directly save my dads life twice.

Melanie Ryding: Helmets save Lives

I have always cycled with a helmet on, don’t get me wrong. It was, I think, more habit than anything else. I was taught to always wear one when I started back cycling again, because Northants Tri, (and hubby) both insisted on it for safety reasons. I have to be honest, I felt like an idiot at first but you get used to it and it becomes habit.

Likewise, the fact that I have a number called ICE (in case of emergency) saved in my phone was also just habit. I learned about ICE on a first aid course I did with my triathlon club. I was told that the emergency services first responders will look for ICE in a mobile phone as a point of contact. I thought nothing more of it actually.

I didn’t give the helmet second thought till this weekend, when it saved me from at the very least, a very serious head injury. ICE enabled the emergency services to locate my next of kin easily and quickly, which enabled them also to quickly identify who I was.

What actually happened? Here’s my story;

10 Important things about life

We often forget the simple things in life. My accident this week reminded me of some things that we usually just take for granted:

1) Life is FAR too short to be sad.
2) It IS good to be alive, don't ever forget that.
3) Be grateful for every day that you have, every day that you have the choice to do whatever you want to do.
4) Don't take training for granted you never know when it may be taken away from you.
5) Family and Friends are precious, you don't realise how much so till you need them, don't forget that.
6) Remember there is always someone else that is more worse off than you. Be thankful you have what you have.
7) There is no time in this life for self pity.
8) Things in life are sent to try us, it's how you deal with them that makes you stronger.
9) You can do ANYTHING you want to do, if you want it badly enough.
10) Life is what you make of it, so what are you waiting for?

Melanie Ryding



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Triathlete saved by bicycle helmet

Published on Friday 22 July 2011


A sportswoman who was thrown from her bicycle in an accident says her safety helmet may have saved her life.

Great Britain triathlete and teacher Melanie Ryding suffered severe concussion and cannot remember what happened after coming off her bike during a routine ride through Little Harrowden.

Head injury: 1 week on

Flashbacks…

The light flashes on: I am in the back of an ambulance: There’s a person outside the open door, I cant make out who, and bustle all around, noises, people, its all confusing. The light is not on long enough for me to work out what is happening. Blackness again.

A curtained cubicle. I am lying flat on my back. I sense someone to my left. I can’t make out who it is. A man is talking about having to cut off my top. Blackness again.

A donut shaped machine: there is a whirring noise, I can see the machinery moving above me. A voice tells me that I must remain very still. I feel terrified. Then blackness.

Powerbreathe trial week 4: a difficult week

This week started really well. I think the progress on POWERbreathe is good, and I am securely on level 4 now. BUT – the mind progress is less! I still carry the inhaler to the track, and I did another tough session with coach on Tuesday, chest hurt but I wasn’t wheezing. I think I took the inhaler through habit rather than necessity, and on the final sprint rep, didn’t take it at all, breathing was fine, chest was fine, I was fine, and heart rate was lower than to be expected.
All in all, it seems progress is still being made, and I need to get used to not relying on that inhaler as much!

However, the POWERbreathe use was halted on Saturday, when something mysterious happened when I was out cycling. I cannot remember a thing about the incident, but I was found in the middle of the road unconscious, by a passing motorist. I woke up in hospital and was admitted for observation. A shock to say the least.

Powerbreathe trial: week 3 - back to tough training!

This was the start of the hard work training again. After a week of recovery post European champs, it was right back to tough hard fast training. I had my first track session in about 8 weeks with my run coach this week on Monday.

I forgot my asthma inhaler in the rush to get there in time. This made coach nervous but it would be a perfect chance to see if the Powerbreathe was making any difference. I ran a hard tough track sprint session, almost to the point of feeling unwell. It was very tough on the lungs, and although I got the pain in my chest that usually comes before wheezing, I didnt get any wheezing. When I checked my data I was working right at the top end of my heart rate zone 5, the maximum heart rate zone.

Nutrition: its all upside down!!

Following a photo that was taken of me with other athletes in Pontevedra while at the European championships, I suddenly realised that my coach Steve Casson had a point when he said I could probably improve my power to weight ratio. So I went in search of a nutritionist.

I was recommended Martin MacDonald, by more than one person on twitter including Becky White, a nutritionist and fitness professional who i know quite well. I decided to give him a go.

Training with heart rate Zones

Someone recently asked me if I could explain what the benefits of heart rate training was, so I thought I would try and explain, from my own personal viewpoint.

First what are the heart rate zones?

Zone 1: Energy efficient / recovery zone: the easiest workouts, used for recovery after harder workouts, or long slow runs / rides

What can metabolic assessments do for you?

I always knew metabolic assessments as ‘VO2 Max tests’. The first time I came across them was while on holiday in Austria quite a number of years ago. At that time, I knew very little about what it could tell me. As an obsessive for numbers, I hooked on the Vo2Max number, and pretty much ignored the rest of the information. Yes, it told me heart raze zones, but so what!?

Powerbreathe trial week 2

I went to the European championships this week. I did take the POWERbreathe with me, and hoped to be able to continue fitting in my 30 breaths twice a day, but knew it may be a logistical challenge. I did manage at least one of them per day.

Powerbreathe Trial; Week 1

Powerbreathe model: powerbreathe plus: fitness

Activity level: high – I am a Great Britain Age Group triathlete and train twice a day, usually around 10-12 hours per week (plus the day job!)

I was interested to take part in this trial because I am asthmatic. I have been for around 15 years. Nowadays it causes me little trouble and I do not take any regular steroids, however I mostly notice chest pain and breathing trouble when I am training hard, and that is when I need my blue inhaler.

Melanie in the running to carry Olympic torch

A county teacher and triathlete has been nominated to carry the Olympic Torch.

Published in the Northants ET, 
30 June 2011



Members of the public are being encouraged to nominate the person they believe most deserves to carry the Olympic Flame as it tours the UK and Melanie Ryding, of Wellingborough, has been one of the first to be picked out.

ETU European Triathlon Championships, Pontevedra, Spain.

Mel and clubmate paul Jennings, who went on to win a silver medal

Where do I start? It was a whirlwind journey to the start line of this race. For the two weeks leading up to it, I was nursing a medial ligament strain in my knee, so had not really been focussing on the race as such, and more on getting it as recovered as possible.

My original target was top ten, but with two weeks laid off the running leading up to the race, I realised this target maybe too much of a challenge. I decided to not worry about anything, and simply do the race to the best of my ability. I didn’t even look at the start list, and only looked at the course maps on Thursday. I think I got the NLP balance wrong in the opposite direction this time, but more of that later.

MCL Rehab

Its been a roller coaster couple of weeks to say the least. It took a turn on saturday 11th when an examination from my sports masseuse determined that I had to pull out of the race that I was due to compete in the very next day. This was the first time I have been told to pull out of a race, and the first time I have sustained an injury that has halted training.

I cried. Then I pulled myself back together and went to find one of my coaches and formulate a plan.

Strength rehab

David Sutton, my strength coach and I, met on the sunday. He said that although the ligament strain was relatively superficial, it was clearly still enough to cause a lot of pain and discomfort, the area was warm, therefore swollen, and a HUGE pack of ice was attached for the duration of the session. We worked on lower body strength, mainly working the other leg. By the end of the session i felt like I had been through a single leg marathon!

I visited the gym to see him again a few days later. The sessions were returned right back to basic plyometrics. I was told that unless I could hop and hold, single legged, there was no way I could run. Red rag=bull... I worked my butt off. By the second visit to the gym, I was asking him to make the sessions harder, and by the end, was able to step up onto a gym weights bench / seat, single legged, with a 20kg bag slung over my shoulder.

Cycle rehab

Cycling was restricted to the turbo trainer, so that if I had any trouble, I did not have to cycle back home from wherever I had got to on the road. After a days rest, I was told to try it out, very easy, and stop if I felt any pain. I built the cycling up over the next few days, from easy 20 minutes to a full Sufferfest training session, all be it still on medium effort and load. The main trouble was twisting my foot out of the cleat, but otherwise it seemed to be not too bad. Because the main pain was at full extension, it seemed to be ok with cycling, as the leg never fully extends when peddling. Ice was applied or a cyro wrap applied as much as I possibly could in between training and every day life and most of my spare time was spent on ice!

Swimming - business as usual.

Running

Running was of the cards completely, and I spent the allotted time on the cross trainer in the gym. Very boring, but necessary, and wise I would say. still ice every time i trained and every time i had some time spare. I iced the knee regularly for about a week. 8 days after the original injury I tried a very easy run and it seemed to be ok. on day 9 I tried a brick session, fullly expecting to have to bail after the bike. Not only was it ok, but the pace was much better than I thought, nothing lost at all, in fact, I may be as bold as to say I am running quite well! My first full tilt training session (brick, with pace intervals) was this morning. day 11 after the injury was sustained. The session went very well, almost as if I have never even had any time off.

And now?

I am looking forwards, not back. Who knows what the difference is, who knows if i am slower, or in fact faster, for having altered the training. I did not stop, i merely adapted training to my circumstances. It was only 10 days, I will not have lost much, and maybe the difference did me good?

Europeans this weekend, and now I can turn my attention back to that confident that I will be ok, the knee will be ok, and I will be able to do my best. As always.

European Preparations

I started this year’s race season with trepidation. I had four races in four weeks, with only a one week gap before competing in the European championships in Spain. Not ideal, to say the least!

So, when I qualified for this year’s Worlds in Beijing and next year’s Europeans in Israel in the first qualifiers respectively, I was pretty pleased to say the least. This meant that I did not have to race all races and could, instead prepare properly for my A race. A week’s recovery paced training followed by a week of training including short race paced intervals in all three disciplines will take me into the European Sprint Championships in Pontevedra, Spain, next weekend.

Usually, I use the GB team travel company, and stay in the team hotel. What this usually means for me is I get the atmosphere of being with all the team members, right in the thick of it. I love that, but what it also means, however, is that I am immersed in amongst hundreds of people all preparing for a very important race, and being one that prefers to train solo, it can also cause me stress. 

Travelling and accommodation

This year I have chosen to stay in a different hotel, still nearby, and get a hire car. I will never be far away from the action, but with the ability to separate myself. I found when I raced the Beaver and my husband was away for the weekend, that if I am alone before a race, I stay much calmer, chilled and more focussed.

Pre race expectations for a GB athlete

PARADE OF NATIONS, Euro champs, Athlone, 2010

The race is on Saturday, and I travel on Thursday. People often ask me why so early before a race? Well, as a GB triathlete, there are certain expectations of you. The opening ceremony is on Thursday evening. You are also given a couple of specific time slots (assigned for each country’s athletes specifically) in which you MUST register and collect your race pack. My race is on Saturday, so on Friday afternoon I will have to go and rack my bike at a certain time, no negotiation. Then there are also the team meetings with the team manager, so the days running up to a race can be pretty busy. I usually take myself off in between and do a bit of sight seeing. It’s a shame to get to all these lovely parts of the world without actually seeing them other than during a swim/bike/run!

Home comforts

My pre race breakfast, religiously, is Oats so simple porridge. I usually take that with me so I can be sure I will get some wherever I go. As well as that, I will take all my race drinks, gels and nutrition with me in single pouch format (the airlines get a bit twitchy about large quantities of powder!) I like to be self sustained, and not have to rely on finding things at my destination. Due to airline restrictions I am not allowed to carry gas (for quick tyre inflation) so I usually take a mini pump and get gas when I arrive, if I feel the need. Too often I have bought it then not used it and had to leave it there, which is a waste! I will probably take some green tea bags too, my new favourite drink!

Racing Abroad

Triathlon is triathlon. It’s much the same wherever you go. At ETU and ITU level the preparations, facilities and courses are all of a very consistently high standard. The changing factor is the crowd and the weather. That said, there is an immense sense of pride every time I pull that GB suit on. It is a feeling I really can’t describe, and you need to have done it to fully appreciate what I mean. The first GB representation for me was at the World championships in Australia in 2009. I was terrified, excited, elated all at once. I was in pieces at the start line, so nervous of racing at that level for the first time I was almost in tears. I am able to control that better now, but each time I stand at a start line with the GB trisuit on, I think of all the people that I had to beat to be standing there, how I am part of a team representing my country. I feel very proudly patriotic each time I am able to say that. I could, if I wanted to, wear that suit at every race I do. It’s special though. I choose to only wear it at European and World championships. That means that the twice a year that I pull it or the GB tracksuit on makes it all the more special for me.

I will never get bored of the incredible feeling I get racing abroad, representing my country. The result almost doesn’t matter, because for me it was all about the journey to earn the spot and get to the start line. Everything else is a bonus.

I race for Great Britain, I am incredibly proud to be able to say that, and even more proud to say that I have met people that are now also on the team because they read my story and I helped them to believe that they too could do it if they tried.

I will go to Spain next week and do my country proud. Wish me luck J

Melanie Ryding

Rother Valley: The race that wasn't

It’s been a tough weekend, and not in the traditional sense. My season started fantastically well, with two races and two qualifications. Having pre-entered all four qualifiers, I then had to decide whether to race the other two.

I decided not to race QE2, the race that would have occurred on a third consecutive weekend, but kept Rother Valley in mind, simply as a good quality training session.

The events that happened at the lake on Thursday were to change the complexion of my weekend completely.

Swim disaster
I went for a swim at the local lake, easy recovery swim, nothing too strenuous, having had a sports massage that afternoon and a race coming up at the weekend. I was on the first of 3 800m laps round the lake. This lake is navigated by means of a series of buoys which you swim through, roughly following the cable pulley that is use by the water skiers. At the top of the lake, I was heading for the buoys to navigate the turn. I could only see one. I soon found out why. I crashed head first into the other one, which was fully submerged under water. Normally this would not be too much of a disaster, but these buoys are fixed onto wooden posts, not chains, like you would normally expect. It took me by surprise, to say the least, and I felt my right knee jarring as I was knocked sideways unexpectedly. I completed the swim, (all three laps) and thought nothing more of it.

When I got up the following day for my taper brick session, the knee felt a little sore. Hmm, I have pulled a muscle, I thought. I carried on. As Friday progressed, it got worse. It became sore to fully extend that knee, and it was at this point that I began to grow concerned.

On Saturday afternoon I called my sports masseuse and asked could he have a look at it. I am not usually one to panic over a bit of pain; however I am also very rarely injured, so I do take pain rather seriously.

Verdict

Phil Croney my masseuse, was kind enough to squeeze me in for a quick once over at his home on Saturday afternoon, which I very much appreciate. To be honest, I feared the worst. I knew, deep down, that this was not just a little pull. He told me that I had strained the medial colateral ligament, and that racing on Sunday would be foolish. A tear rolled down my cheek. Although expected, I was still devastated.

I sat in the car and cried. I had to try really hard to get my thoughts back under control. All I could see was injury, you can’t run, you can’t race. With the European championships in two weeks, I struggled hard not to go into blind panic.

Context

I have never until this weekend, had to pull out of a race through injury. I guess you would call me lucky. All it means is I am finding this a real struggle to deal with, and right now am not feeling terribly lucky at all. This knee is also what I call my ‘wibbly wobbly knee’, by which I mean it is the knee that has had an ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) reconstruction operation almost 15 years ago, and therefore less stable at the best of times. For those who do not know, a ligament reconstruction operation involves replacing the torn ligament with a tendon graft. That means the joint will never perform 100% as it used to, and I have to work hard on muscle strength to keep that knee working at its best. It is also an operation that I was told had a 10 year shelf life, after which it will begin to loosen again. I know, therefore, that I must now be very careful with it indeed, in order to get the best possible recovery.

What now?

I sat with frozen peas on it all evening, 15 on, 15 off. By 10pm the ice was beginning to feel quite normal and not at all cold! I have been advised that I should not run on it for a few days, so I called my strength coach David Sutton and made an appointment to see him for some strength coaching on Sunday morning. He reassured me that he is experienced with MCL rehab, so I look forward to further instructions and advice.

I am trying my best to stay positive. I could have ignored Phil and gone to that race anyway. He said he apologised that I had gone to him on a wasted trip. Not at all. I went for advice, and the crucial question, will racing make it worse? The answer was yes, so there really is only one option from there. That doesn’t mean that I can’t also get upset. I am, I am devastated.

I have always been the one to read, research, and seek/follow good advice. I believe that is what has kept me relatively injury free all this time. I don’t intend to change that now.

I will do as I am told, recover well, and I WILL BE BACK!

Top-10 target for Melanie in Beijing

Published Friday 3 June 2011

Wellingborough athlete Melanie Ryding has qualified for the World Triathlon Championships in Beijing.

She finished fourth in her qualifying group at the Eton Sprint event where she managed to hit one of her best results.

Despite the weather causing havoc, she finished fourth and beat two others also trying to qualify – rounding off a result which means she should make the age group squad for the third year in a row.

Ryding said: “The conditions were really challenging, the weather was absolutely horrendous, the crosswinds made life very difficult.”

With the European Championships taking precedence for her before Beijing, Ryding is targeting a strong finish to proceedings.

She added: “I turned 40 early this year which means I’m in a new age category so hopefully I can break into the top 10.

“I’m hoping to finish where my nearest competitior finished in last year’s event, so around eighth.”

After losing four-and-a-half stones in just four months Ryding began triathlon training in 2007 – making the World Championships team for Great Britain two years later where she has been a permanent fixture ever since.

Regularly posting on her website and blog as well as holding down a full-time job, Ryding admits that the routine she keeps is intensive.

She said: “I get up at half past five every morning and train before going to work.
“After that I come home and do some more before sitting down in the evening.
“It’s much easier to do in the summer when there’s a lot of light and it’s a bit warmer.”
Belvoir Castle was the venue for the National Sprint Championships last weekend where Ryding claimed a place in the top 10 in her age group.

She admitted: “I expected not to do so well after last weekend’s success.

“I was more than impressed with an eighth place overall and for the first time I managed to hold my position throughout the run.”

The European Championships take place in Spain later this month with the World Championships in the autumn.

For sponsorship you can get in touch with her on her website http://www.melanieryding.co.uk/ where she regularly blogs and keeps people updated about her regime and competitions.

Speedy Beaver: Race report (World / European Qualifier)

National Sprint Championships, National ranking event, World and European Qualifier (no pressure then!)

To be quite honest, racing this on the back of the Eton World Qualifier last week was a lot to get my head round. During the weeks training, I wasn’t sure if I was peaking or tapering, it has all been a bit intense. I couldn’t get my head around thinking about another race so soon, and I still felt tired and achy from the last one till at least mid week!

I didn’t look at the course or anything till Friday, and decided not to camp over with my husband, staying home alone instead. I wanted and needed some quiet ‘me’ time to get my mind back in focus. I felt calm, chilled and ok. I think it worked out well for me. I formulated my race plan, and NLP plan, ignored the long lists of competitors I knew I would have to race and went to sleep feeling alright.

The weather was dry, windy, but in comparison to Eton last week, this was a mere breeze!

The Race:

SWIM:

For the first time ever, I was in the ‘old ladies’ wave, which in actual terms meant my age group was the youngest in this wave. I figured therefore, that all I needed to do was pick the right start spot and I would be ok, with all those young whippets off in an earlier wave! I opted for far right, lined up behind a person that looked like she meant business, and actually had a clear, scrum free swim, where I think my line may have been the most direct one to the first turn. A much better choice than last week! Shame about the marathon jog up the field to T1 though!

BIKE:

The bike course was 1 lap, with the long straight fast stretch into the headwind. As I set off, feeling good, it took me a good few miles to get my TT ‘chase her’ head back under control! With focus regained, I settled into my own rhythm, heart rate where it needed to be, nutrition plan under control, and focussed on good pedal strokes and aero lines, especially on the killer hill, which is where I caught some of the men from the previous wave, some of which were walking!

RUN:

The run was a simple out and back, up the back drive out of the Belvoir castle grounds. It was up all the way out, which thankfully meant that it was down all the way back! I wanted to do better at my mental focus here so I worked hard on keeping form and remembering all my NLP techniques. I had a small eye on anyone who came past, and noted when I was almost back to the field where the finish line was, that no ‘H’ runners had come past me to this point. I didn’t have a clue how I was going position wise, but as I approached the final few hundred meters, a person marked ‘H’ came past, with her supporter cheering ‘come on Katie, don’t let her get you back’. I knew immediately that this was a person I needed to beat, so I gave it everything I had, to get back past her. There was still 100m to go once I got past, and I felt sure she would attack me back, a quick check over my shoulder and she was no longer there. I had done it! This was the first high calibre race that I managed to finish on and win the sprint finish, and this was also the first race in my career so far where I did not lose a single category position on the run section.

Reflection:

When I crossed the line, being in the last wave, several people I knew were waiting for me, or milling round nearby. They all asked me how I had done. My response was ‘I don’t know, and to be honest, I am not sure that I care!’ I meant every word of it too, and I have never been able to say that before. I can completely and honestly say that I had done everything I had planned to do, executed the race plan as I wanted to, focussed throughout as best as I was able, and did not care at all about how it turned out, because I knew that I had given it my all, and there was nothing more I could have done.

Positives:

·        Chose absolutely the right line on the swim, went with my convictions and ignored what everyone else was doing

·        Kept focus on the run, throughout, remembering all the mantras my coach chimes at me!

·        Recognised and quickly rectified the fact that I was not sticking to my HR race plan at the start of the bike leg

·        Won the sprint finish and crossed the line at peace with myself, not caring at all what the result was!

To work on:

·        Start the bike leg in a focussed and controlled manner rather than like a bat out of hell, then fixing it a few miles down the road!



·        Find and keep the 3mile TT feeling and focus on the run. I can now focus my mind, so I need to now focus my body!

Mel Ryding and Helen Russell (35-39 bronze medallist and fellow TriUK team member)

RESULT:

Today I was racing many people who usually finish way in front of me. There were many established GB age group athletes, whose names I know. The field was big and the competition stiff. 8 people were racing for those 4 European places. I managed 8^th overall (top 10 in a national ranking race / national championships – I’m pretty impressed!) and beat several people that are usually WAY ahead of me, and finished up 5^th Qualifier, beating three other people who were trying to qualify. I also, for the first time, managed to hold my position throughout the run, not losing any places, which is a first. The biggest honour came when Malcolm Westwood (BTF board member, now in charge of all the age group team managers) spoke to me and said how he had just been talking about me, noting how I am getting better and better, and quicker and quicker. I feel really proud, I feel like I had a great race, with plenty of positives to go forward with.

2 qualification races, and 2 successful qualifications, I couldn't really have hoped for a better way to start my season!