£25 voucher to be won!

Don't forget the competition to win a £25 voucher to spend at Sport Pursuit.  Just follow the three steps below:-

1. Sign up with them, using this link here or by clicking on any of the images in this post and signing up through there.
2. Post a comment on this post, telling me what your most favourite bit of sports-wear is; brand, function, sport and why it's your favourite.
3. Come back to my blog on Monday 5th November to see if you've won! (I'll be choosing a winning comment on Sunday evening, so closing date for entry is 6pm GMT on Sunday 4th November 2012).

Cutting the cost of taking part (win a £25 voucher!)

Photo from www.b2psports.com

[competition at the bottom]

There's no doubt that taking part in triathlon can cost quite a bit of money, if you let it.  Things like bicycles aside (you can often get a bargain on last year's models at the end of the season) and although race fees can sometimes be eye-watering, the majority of the cost isn't actually racing itself but the nutrition and sports kit you get through while training.  Good quality sports clothing really is very expensive and you can't get away with a cotton t-shirt and old rugby shorts from 10 years ago if you're going to be doing more than a jog a week as you'll run into problems with being wet while you exercise (cotton is great at absorbing water but it doesn't wick it away from your skin into the air) and then either cold or chafed or both, plus the risk of bacteria growing in particularly sweat-prone bits of the garments.  However, if you are a bit clever and let a couple of companies keep you informed on discounts of up to 70% off swim/bike/run gear and build up a good collection of decent quality kit that will keep you warm, dry, cool and protected  from sun, wind, rain and chafing with good freedom of movement for years without breaking the bank.

One company that has been coming to the fore recently, in cutting the cost for the athlete (Yes, you! You're an athlete if you do regular sporting activity!), is Sport Pursuit.  It's a members only web site - i.e. you need to sign up and create an account with them and they'll send you email notifications of upcoming/opening sales - which has timed sales on top brand sports kit.

"We love buying sports kit.  In fact, we’ve scientifically proven it’s not possible to have too much.  But we got enormously frustrated at how difficult it was to discover great sports products at great prices; not just brands we already knew and loved but also those innovative cutting edge, hot off the pro-circuit, show off to your mates brands that no one else has.  

So, with no other option we decided to go out there and build it for ourselves, our friends and all our members.  "

"Pop-Up Sales from Winning Brands: New sales from top sports and outdoor brands start on SportPursuit every few days and typically last for 7 days. We’ll drop you a quick email to let you know when new sales are starting.
Exclusive Prices: SportPursuit gives you the chance to trial and discover great products and brands at the lowest prices anywhere - guaranteed. Our exclusive members-only site gives brands the confidence to discount, and we achieve the best prices for our members by ordering in bulk at the end of each sale."

This means that when you order, you have to wait until the sale ends before your stuff is shipped.  But it does mean that you get some pretty hefty discounts and you generally don't have to wait too long.

The range of brands is pretty impressive, with pretty much all active sports covered (not sure they have darts-wear ;o)) and there's a countdown on the main page that gives you an idea of when the sale ends...

And it's not just clothing and accessories, but there are nutrition sales as well...

When an item is sold out of the number they're planning to buy, you're not left hanging on the product listing page to click through to a product that's no longer available as they're clearly marked "sold out", which is handy.  And you can filter by gender, size and price which can really help when you have a set limit of what you can/are willing to spend on any given item.

That Polar RS300X with footpod is £55 cheaper than on Wiggle even with a Wiggle 12% Platinum discount!  So if you move quickly, you can get some really really good bargains but even if you don't, you're looking at 40%+ discounts on stuff. 

What I'm finding particularly useful, and it's the reason I first went to Wiggle years ago, is the range of women's gear.  It's great, there's loads of it with decent choice and proper sizing charts so you don't run the risk of being drastically wrong with sizes.

So, all in all they're pretty darned useful to help make life a bit less horribly expensive while enjoying the sports you love!

Now, here's the bit where you can win a £25 voucher with these guys.  All you have to do is three tiny things:-

1. Sign up with them, using this link here or by clicking on any of the images in this post and signing up through there.
2. Post a comment on this post, telling me what your most favourite bit of sports-wear is; brand, function, sport and why it's your favourite.
3. Come back to my blog on Monday 5th November to see if you've won! (I'll be choosing a winning comment on Sunday evening, so closing date for entry is 6pm GMT on 4th November 2012).

So, good luck, get your thinking cap on and let's see who I can make happy with a little extra spending money for their sport habit!

Competition winner

We have a winner for the Vitality Show Giveaway #1 - the weight loss bundle.  And it's....

LNR - (Eleanor Blair)

Congrats on winning what is possibly the heaviest prize so far on this blog; almost amusing in that it's the weight loss bundle.  Email me your postal address and I'll get it sent off next week for you to enjoy!

Weight Loss Giveaway - VItality Show Bundle #1

Don't forget to enter  (<- click on the link and comment on that post, like it says :o)) - by 10pm tomorrow to be in with a chance of winning the goodies below:-

• The 'Calorie, Carb, Fat Bible 2011' - seriously handy book, choc-full of nutritional info!
• KitKat Caramel snack sample
• Alpen Light snack sample
• Raisin Oats sample
• Oaty Bakes 'caramelised onion' snack sample
• Tropical Wholefoods flyer with promo code
• Half Spoon sample

One more free Vitality Show ticket for Thursday

I have two tickets for tomorrow's show and I'm going.  First person to comment on this post (who wants to go and can get there on Thursday) gets the second ticket and I'll meet you there!

FREE Vitality Show Tickets!

Don't forget to enter my Weight Watchers competition before friday; you could win free tickets to The Vitality Show 2011 and a bag of health and beauty goodies! (also details on how to get reduced rate tickets if you don't win).

Vitality Show Free Tickets - Weight Watchers competition

Having seen adverts on the tube and had a bit of a look at the web site, I was thinking of going to The Vitality Show this month.  It looked pretty interesting (and not just because James Martin is booked as a chef on the POM stand!).  It's all about health, fitness, good eating, good lifestyle, pampering and style.  So, when Weight Watchers approached me with a suggestion for a competition in partnership with them for people to win tickets to the show, it seemed perfect.  Right up my street.  So, I'm pleased to open the competition for one of you lovely people to win a pair of tickets to The Vitality Show...

What: The Vitality Show

Where: Earls Court, London

When: 24^th - 27^th March 2011

Are you ready to be WOWed? Weight Watchers are exhibiting at The Vitality Show 2011, from 24th- 27th March, at Earls Court London!  The Vitality Show is the UK’s largest health, beauty, fitness and wellbeing event for women. We have a pair of Vitality Show tickets and a gorgeous goodie bag, filled with health and beauty treats to give away.

All you have to do to enter the competition is answer the following question:

How many companies are attending The Vitality Show this year? 

A.     Over 300 

B.     Over 50

C.     Over 25

Don’t forget to visit us at the event on stand E130. Come down to sample our delicious range of Weight Watchers Foods, from scrumptious Muffins to refreshing Wine.  You can also pick up our April issue of the magazine, trial our iPhone app, and chat to our Leaders.

And for those of you who don’t win the free tickets we have an exclusive offer for you – get two tickets for £20!* Click here to book tickets http://www.vitalitylive.co.uk/the-show and enter the code 'BLOG' to redeem the offer. 

So, to enter the competition, all you need to do is send me an email (blog@totkat.org) with the subject line "Vitality Show Competition", including in the email your answer to the question (A, B or C) and a way for me to match your email to your screen name, then leave a comment on this post telling me that you have entered (if you're on Facebook, you can also "like" my Facebook page :o)).

Entry closes on 18th March 2011 at 10pm and the winner will be drawn at random on 19th March and announced once I have the winner's email address and postal address for Weight Watchers to send the tickets and goody bag.  The winner must send me their postal address by 6pm on 20th March in order to be able to get the prizes delivered in time.  In the event that the first person drawn is unable to provide their address by the deadline a second name will be drawn and the prizes offered to them.  Please make sure that you will be able to let me have your address in time after the winner is announced.

*Saving based on door price. Booking and transaction fees apply. To book tickets, visit www.vitalitylive.co.uk or call 0871 230 5569 and quote ‘BLOG’.

I won!

Yes. Me. -I- won. -I- won a physical competition!

I'm so very happy about this. I've never won anything like this before. 37 years old and I've won my first physical competition.

Remember back in December, I did the UK Challenge taster challenge at my local gym? Well, I found out today that I was the fastest woman. Details and full results will be emailed out to competitors tomorrow, so I'll be interested to see how close it was. I don't really care about the prize (though I won't be turning up my nose at it, for sure!) it was all about how far I've come in the last 6 months since I started doing some proper, regular exercise. And I can honestly say that I'm proud of how far I've come and it's great to have it verified by winning this challenge. Yes, there's still more work to do and there will always be work to do; of course there is. But I often lose sight of where I started from and the distance I've travelled when I do this kind of thing. It was the same when I lost weight; the numbers on the scales and on the labels on my clothes didn't -mean- anything to me.

So.

Anyway.

YAY!

Potential new trainer

Michael is a sprinter. Michael is built like a small brick privy. Michael likes the idea that I want to lift heavy and be able to do pull ups. However, Michael seems to be a little hung up on lifting heavy will make me bulk up (which it won't unless I eat protein for England and take hormone supplements) and, as he's a runner, a little hung up on cardio too (but I've told him that I don't do treadmills as I get sea-sick afterwards). But still, he'll have a new routine for me for next Monday and we'll run through it together. He does get that I'm competitive, driven and don't really need/want someone standing over me for motivation. I think he might be a good replacement for the trainer I had before. We'll see next week.

We'll also see how I've done in the Virgin Active UK Challenge taster competition. The competition ends today, the draw for the bike happens next week and the results of who was fastest woman and fastest man will be announced. *fingers crossed* I was still in the lead on Monday this week! I don't really care about the prize, I just want to win a competition that involves physical prowess, dammit!

Today went like this...

For brekkie, I decided to try coconut and chocolate with my yogurt and blueberries:



Not as tasty as I'd hoped, so I won't be doing that again.

And for dinner, a trusty beef chilli with shaved courgette, sliced onion and some toasted pine nuts sprinkled in:


Nom, as usual!

Exercise - 50 minutes weights (HRmax 184, HRavg 161)

B - Greek yogurt with 1 scoop chocolate whey, desiccated coconut and frozen blueberries
S - Dorset Cereals, 3 Berries and Cherries bar
*gym*
S - 1 scoop whey in skimmed milk
L - salad - spinach, sweet peppers, tomatoes, spring onions, capers, prawns and lemon juice
S - tangerines
S - carrot and caramelised onion houmous
S - mini Babybel Light
D - beef chilli with courgette, onion and toasted pine nuts

Calories (kcal) [kcals to maintain weight (inc. exercise)	1644 2210]
Protein (g)	139.0 (34.2%)
Carbohydrate (g)	129.4 (29.8%)
Fat (g)	64.0 (35.4%)
Fruit & Veg	15.4