Isolation Tips From Personal Trainer and Badass Mama of 2, Karla.

WHY TODAY?

I’m guessing some of you will be in the same boat as me, business is running at 80% less than it was before, you are now at home with children, pets or hubby and wondering what the F to do about it…

You’re training is down the pan and the races and events you had planned out to do are no more… pretty much like 70% of the UK population at this time. But I’m ever the optimist and will always look to a silver cloud up there in the sky.

Previous to the lock-down I would run 14-16 hour days, with limited family time, whilst always telling myself my long days were what enabled me to pay for things for my family, holidays, presents, birthdays and more, when the reality was I simply wasn’t there.

The same could be said for my training, my long days meant I was limited to the time I could spend doing the things I love to do; I love to weight lift, I love to run, I love making my body hurt because the physical and mental reward after was sooooo good! But my long hours meant this was a second thought… my priority is and always has been to help others, even if it did mean sacrificing what I love doing…and maybe this isn’t the right way to do things…so why today? What do I write to you today? I’m writing to help give some advice to those at this moment who feel lost with their training plan and try to help find a way to build your silver cloud in readiness for the lockdown curtains to come down.

LOOK FOR A NEW ANGLE

Believe me when I say I know how you feel right now, with your running plans and events down the tube…my sporting background was swimming, as a 15 year old I set Welsh records that stood for 15 years. I was set to be one of the youngest athletes at the Victoria Games in 1998…my chart that I had as a 10 year old listed the milestone events to achieve;

  • County Competition

  • National Competition

  • European Competition

  • Commonwealth Competitor

  • Olympic Competitor

I had ticked off every milestone on my chart at home and was ready to tick off Commonwealth Competitor…until Glandular fever struck and it had other ideas for me! Dream crushed, 6 years of 25 hours a week training gone in one week. All of the sacrifices I had made, not living the life of a teenager but a professional athlete, gone…my chart came down, I was isolated, alone devastated, worried, anxious, confused and lost!

For the first time ever I had no plan. At this time I had no future in the sport I loved. I wasn’t sure and the doctors weren’t sure how I would recover…my world went dark, very dark. I’m not sure to this date if I have ever really written this down on paper and it’s pretty emotional re-writing this after almost 18 years retired from the sport.

I suppose what I’m trying to say is that I’m pretty sure this is how many of us are feeling right now…we have little direction…little to focus on, little to help guide us through an event we have no control over, pretty similar to my glandular fever…someone forced this one me and what the hell was I supposed to do now? So I chose to look for a new angle… I chose to be a better athlete than I was before… I started to look at what would make me better, I started to look at what might give me the edge, I started to give myself focus and find those new angles.

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WHAT WOULD MAKE YOU A BETTER RUNNER?

So, I’ve been asked to give my advice to a wonderful group of women to help them through a time when training is not as it used to be and how we can make the best of a bad situation.

Reflecting on my previous experiences and learning how to adapt, I would love to share some pearls of wisdom on how to turn this sorry state of affairs into a moment of inspiration, positivity and the dawning of a new age to create some magnificent runners in the months to come.

WHAT NEEDS TO IMPROVE?

Core Stability? - Can you hold a plank in a variety of positions?

Strength - Are you as strong as you would like to be?

Pelvic Floor - Do you leak when running, jumping, laughing or coughing?

Balance - Are you unsteady on your feet when on uneven terrain?

Power - Do you find it hard to kick into that final home straight?

Coordination - Are you better on one side to the other?

Flexibility - Can you touch your toes?

Mobility - Are your joints stiff and achey?

Weight - Is your diet where you want it to be?

Illness - Do you suffer with constant colds and infections?

Mindset for Races or Training - Do you struggle to focus and motivate yourself or do you lack in confidence?

WHAT’S NEXT?

STOP…Stressing on the things you cant do.

STOP… Comparing or worrying about the next phase in your training and how its all going to be interrupted.

STOP… Trying to do it all! and…

START…

START…Asking yourself some of the questions above.

START… mapping out a new training plan.

START… prioritising what your weaker areas are and make them strong.

START… Focusing on the things you CAN do

START… Today!

What could you now spend the time working on that you’ve always said you would do but lack of time has always been a barrier?

Once you know what this is then its time for the fun to begin…We constantly strive to achieve things that are tough but manageable and generally we move away from things that we find uncomfortable or too demanding. Time to change, time to make yourself a better you, no more worrying about the ‘what if’s’ and the ‘what about’…it’s time to focus on the lets do! Lets get shit done!

This situation will be with us for a while to come so lets make it count, let’s make it our time to shine!

Much love to all, you’re all amazing runners! Keep positive…better things are coming for you!

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MEET KARLA…

This is me…

Mum of 2 beautiful children

Business owner at @PBFFitness

All round crazy person who tried to do too much!

I run a small business called PBF Fitness, it stands for ‘Pretty Blooming Fablas Fitness’ and yes I know the way Fablas is spelt is incorrect, but here in Wales when we say fabulous we miss out the ‘u’ and the ‘o’ and substitute it with an ‘a’ … simply perfect!

I run Personal Training sessions and group fitness classes local to Newport in South Wales. I love my job and people ask me quite frequently why I do it? I simply answer; because there is no greater feeling than when someone achieves something they never though possible and says ‘thank you’. It’s simple things in life for me like when a client says they get out of bed in the morning pain free, when they finally slip on those jeans that have been hanging in the wardrobe for years, when they say they can do their wet suit up to go surfing because their range of movement is better, when they run their first 5k… I am quite simply humbled.

Follow Karla on Instagram here or check out her website here.

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