Hello and welcome to another episode of Run Till You're Done.
For this episode we have the privilege this time of
interviewing the 200 and 400 metre V-35 British Women's
Champion of 2025. She is just recently back from
the European Championships and we cannot wait to hear how she
got there and how she got on. So welcome to the podcast,
Lauren Jobson. Oh, thank you so much.
Thanks so much for having. Us well, Lauren, there's going
to be loads of questions because what you do is definitely it's
almost like a different sport than what we do.
So we'll we'll get on to what it is.
But to begin with, how did you get into running?
If running is the same type of running?
If we do, we all do the same thing.
We all run. We all forward motion.
How did you get into it? Well, obviously I'm from the
Northeast and we have the very iconic Great North Run here.
And I think when you've got the Great North Run on your
doorstep, it's, you know, amazing.
It does get a lot of people into running and a lot of people
involved. So I signed up for my first
Great North Run, I think in 2012.
So was sort of, you know, later to running.
And at the time I worked with a pharmacist who ran for Blythe
Running Club. And he kept saying was, oh, you
should join, you should join us, you know, And I kept saying, oh,
Kevin Freeman, he was in, he was called.
And I kept saying, oh, I want to run on the times that, you know,
at a time when it's convenient for me, I don't want to be tied
down to sort of club running times.
And really what I meant by that was I'm going to run a few, you
know, casual 10 KS and then try and rock up and run a half
marathon. It wasn't, you know, I wasn't
kind of doing any, any structured training at all.
And then it was the summer of 2013 and I signed up to do
Edinburgh Marathon in 2014. And it was at that point that I
thought, actually, I'm going to need some help here.
You know that you could wing 1/2, but I definitely couldn't
wing a marathon, so yeah. So then I joined Blythe Running
Club and then have done every distance from 100K to 100
meters. So it was the Great North Run,
your very first race that you'd signed up for.
No, so before the Great North Run I've done like a warm up run
and it was Blythe's run. Actually, it was Blythe 10K is
run, so it's a 10K and I ran it with my sister and we were, you
know, and I should have known from the early science here that
I was a short distance runner. We sort of ran it and we've got
a four mile lane and I'm going to complain to my sister
stomach. My back hurts, my legs are
hurting, my knees are hurting like and I was hating everything
about it. So my sister slows right down,
you know, jogs with me and then I knew that we'll come to the
finish and I thought I feel great and I was like, let's go
for it. My sister was like, Oh, she
hasn't got that speed in her legs and I just left her after
she's, you know, staying with me, you know, the whole way
around. We've got the 400 meters and I
was like, well, I'm going to go now and just forgot it off the
flag. 10K was my very first run and then the Great North Run was
my very second, like my second run.
So yeah. What?
What kind of times were you getting back in those days?
So I think we're around the Great North Run in 214.
So it was kind of that that made me think, you know, this sub 2
is sort of, you know, a lot of people's dream for 1/2, isn't
it? And I was like, well, I ran 214
and I only really ran, you know, a couple of 10 KS before that.
If I actually train, you know, I could get that under 2 hours.
So it was sort of that that I guess it kept us going and
spread us on to run another half.
And I got under on my second run, I got under the two, but
just I just scraped the barrel at 1:59, but I took it.
It counts. It did.
And how did you find Ed and
Brahmarathon? Because that seems to get quite
mixed reviews. So I did it.
I did it for charity. So the day was very, very
special. It was I was raising money in
memory of a friend who sadly lost her battle to cancer.
And I think because of that, the day was just amazing.
I felt like the crowd very much reminded us of the Great North
Run. You know, there was people out,
it was lovely weather. You know, there was so many
people supporting a nice flat course for a marathon.
You know, it was so, yeah, I really enjoyed it.
I loved the day the training killed us, literally killed us.
But the day was special. And I, you know, it was, I
didn't find, not that I didn't find it hard, but you know, it
was, I think it was 4/17 that I ran.
So it wasn't a hard, you know, it wasn't a hard pace.
I wasn't pushing it or anything. It was just about just going
there and enjoying it and taking in the atmosphere and sort of
step by step remembering why I was doing it.
But no, I definitely enjoyed it. So when you said that you were
going to enter the half, I was like yes, yes, yes, so.
You were definitely really encouraging.
We were just chatting before we started recording.
And for those that don't know, Lauren was actually one of the
very first people that I had met and followed on Instagram before
I even started running. So Lauren is has been there for
me from the start and be one of my biggest supporters.
So it's Lauren's fault partly. I've got into this and doing
what we're we're doing just now. I've got nothing to do with the
crazy distances you do now. You you just said there, you're
you're doing the run to remember why you do this.
One of our later questions, but I'll I'll ask it now instead, is
if you remember, why is it that you run?
So, yeah, I guess in the very beginning, even my first Great
North Run, it was about raising, you know, money for charity.
And then when my friend lost about cancer, that that was the
reason why, you know, distance was never ever for me.
But I guess, you know, nobody was.
I didn't feel like anybody would want the sponsors for a 5K or,
you know, because I'd done stuff like the half marathon.
I thought I have to push myself. So I'd done another half.
And then I said, right, if I raise over, I think, you know,
the sponsor started to dry up and I got around about £1000 and
I was like, if I raise over 15,000, I'll enter a marathon.
So obviously everybody wanted to see me have that torture and
sponsored me again. So yeah, so that was definitely
in the beginning my reason why I got into running.
And now it's, I guess my reason why is it's for me, it's, you
know, I'm not, I'm not mummy, I'm not wife, I'm not Lauren at
work. It's, you know, it's my time and
it's something that I enjoy and I'm very competitive and it
feeds that, which is good, you know.
But yeah, definitely it's, it's your time for you, isn't it?
When you've got kids and working and yeah.
That's a nice I always like asking that question and when
Mike asks it because we all seem to get really good answers and
it never disappoints. So thank you for sharing that.
No, no, no problem. It is, it is nice to hear, isn't
it? Because everybody has got their
own journey on getting into running and it's always, yeah,
it's always nice and inspiring, I think to hear, to hear other
people's bye and. Before we move on to what you
do, which we can't wait to hear about, you've mentioned you've
done a 100K. Was that an event or was it,
well, crazy training run? Yeah, I'd say 100K.
We did do it. It did take 22 hours, so it was
very much a run, a run, walk. But it was after I've done the
marathon and some guys from the club were like, oh, we're going
to go and do some Cuthbert's Way.
And then like you should, you know, you should come, we should
do that. It'll be great fun.
And it was, it wasn't an organised event.
We've got, you know, there was a couple of them that went in it
little minibus and they met us at checkpoints that we had that
we had to get to. And they're like, I want to be
great and, you know, dead social and we'll just take my time and
bit run, bit walk. So I said, oh, sounds lovely.
Oh my gosh, I went from that to 100 meters.
It was literally that that just slipped it on its head.
I really, really struggled. So mentally, I don't know how
you do it, like mentally to put yourself through that torture
and, you know, not think about it or just think actually I'm OK
with it Or, you know, it was just, yeah, it was really,
really difficult. And I remember it got to sort of
2:00 in the morning more in the TV.
It's the heavens were absolutely pouring down or soaking wet.
And the guys, you know, who were in the checkpoint bus were like,
right. We really need to think about
whether or not we can continue. This is getting like unsafe safe
now. And I was just, my eyes lit up
and I was like, great, you know, just stop this now.
I think, you know, the other guys were like, it was a case of
run till you're done. And they were not done.
And they were like, I'm not stopping here.
Oh, gosh. And I just didn't want to be the
only person that said, no, I'm not.
Yeah, like I'm happy not to do it.
So I carried on and carried on and carried on.
And I did, you know, I made it. I made it.
But yeah, it was, it was the toughest thing that I have ever
done. And like I said, it was quite,
you know, casual, you know, because it was so steep and
hilly and, you know, the terrain that we're on, you know, it
wasn't where we're just kind of flat out running and we stopped
it. One of the guys, mum lived at
Wooler and we got the Wooler at 4:00 in the morning.
She had the kettle on and, you know, I had a cup of tea and,
you know, a little biscuit and got going again.
And so it was, you know, quite casual for that sort of
distance. But my, it was hard.
It was so hard and then, like I say, the next, literally the
next year, I got into track. Well, I was going to say, if
you're considering longer distances, I hate to bust your
bubble, but it doesn't get easy. No, no, it, yeah, it was
honestly. And I got home and my mum had
come to see us and she was like, my goodness, you look like you
need to go to hospital. And I was like, I feel like I
need to go to hospital, ma'am. I think I was on the sofa for a
week and there's a picture more on a picnic bench afterwards and
everybody's, you know, standing around with a celebrate.
We drink and I'm fast asleep on the bench and they're all
standing around this night. No, I'm not OK.
What year was? That how long after the was that
since she'd started running then to make that jump.
So I'd started running 2012. I ran the marathon in the May
2014 and would run the 100K in the June after the marathon, so
2014, yeah. So yeah.
Having having done that and you said it's the hardest thing
you've ever done, are you glad now that you have done it?
Oh, absolutely. Do you know, just so that I know
that it's something I'll never go back to.
No, I, you know, I think I would have been really disappointed
with myself if I, if I hadn't have completed it.
Do you know, because especially, you know, 2:00 in the morning, I
put all that work in from 10:00 AM.
Do you know, if I had a kind of walked away, I would have been
really disappointed. So I'm so pleased that I've
finished it. And you know, it's when you say
to people, Oh yeah, I've done 100K, you know, I'm like 100K,
you know, that's a long way. Like it's quite a good, it's a
good bragging point, certainly. But yeah, never again.
Yeah, it's a long way. It's a long way, so yeah.
It's only about what, 2000 times longer than your normal race?
Yeah. Only.
You, you've said you've done
that 100K that was on the Saint Cuthberts where you said you did
that. Yeah.
That was trail mostly, I'm guessing.
Yeah, again, that's totally the opposite of the sort of terrain
that you're normally running on. How how does that feel?
Did you did you enjoy the the off roadness?
No, no. Do you know what I've done it?
So I'm because I'm very competitive.
I could never mentally I can't do the training that's required
for the longer distance stuff. I just can't get my head around
it. And so then when I would do sort
of, you know, there's a Gateshead Time 10 mile trail
around here that I've done do you know, when I do those sort
of races, I can't, I can't compete or, you know, I can't
come high up in the field And because I'm competitive, that
annoys me. So yeah.
And then I've like I say, I found the track and I was like,
Oh my God, like I've got speed. And I hadn't really even trained
for it, you know, it was just quite natural.
Whereas the trail stuff and the, you know, the longer Rd. stuff
and the distance stuff was it, it just felt like a slog.
Yeah. I, I, I can totally understand
what you mean there, because I don't think that I could compete
at a shorter distance, but I've got the sort of endurance and I
feel that I can compete at the longer distance.
So it's the opposite, but exactly the same feeling.
Yeah, yeah. So how did you mate?
You've done that 100K. How did you then move on to
track? So I didn't really know a lot
about track, to be honest. And then the club was doing an
event and they're like, oh, we're going to this track and
field meeting, do you want to come along?
And I was like, Oh yeah, that sounds good.
You know, just not just thinking about athletics at school.
And I was always quite good at it.
So I turned up and they're like, oh, like you're usually running
spikes. So I thought cross country
spikes. So I turned up with me cross
country spikes with, you know, me big long spikes saying.
And I was like, I've got my spikes muddy as anything.
And they're like, oh, no, they're not for the track.
So I ran an 800 was the first, you know, you just basically
filled events in. So it wasn't really like, you
know, it was like the team just needed points and these were
where they had spaces. So I ran an 800 and they're
like, oh, take it easy because you know, it's 2 laps and
although, you know, it doesn't sound a lot, but when you're
trying to push at pace, it is. So I took the first lap really
easy and just sort of like kind of jogged it.
And then I thought, all right, OK, I better try and catch some
people on the second lap. And I, I ran that second lap and
you know, I pushed hard and I just thought, you know, I had my
Rd. trainers on. I think the ASICS at the time,
you know, very high cushioned, you know, shoes, not anything
for light or speed or anything, but I just was like, oh, that
was a bit, you know, I ran that one lap and I was like, that was
a bit of me. But then, you know, and I and I
loved it and I kind of did carry on track, but once I had the
kids, it's really hard to stick to that because, you know, the
track for me is 40 minutes away. So I've got to drive that and
drive back. Whereas, you know, once the kids
came along, it was so much easier just to put them in the
buggy and you know, away you go and run a park run and all that
sort of stuff. So this year has actually only
been the first year where I fully gave track everything.
I've always dabbled between track and road but no more than
5K when I say Rd. so. If kind of hinted at we said
that you're the female a veteran the old age of 35.
I don't know how that's a veteran and then at 200 and 400,
I think it was was that that kind of when I looked up your
results and it said 100 M that's 100 miles right?
But no, it's 100 meters. I, I, I can't get my head round.
I, I can't think that I can run 100 meters, a pace that hurts
too much, whereas I can run 100 miles.
Do you feel the sort of opposite way around?
Yeah, absolutely I do. And like I say, I just, I can
remember the pain of training for the marathon because I did,
you know, I did put training into that.
And I remember I just, you know, that it was just so I was always
just so everything always sort of heard.
But then equally, I sometimes think that people don't
understand. So we've got like our middle
distance group and then you've got a Sprint group at the track
and the middle distance group will go round and round and
round. And then they'll say us and
we'll do sort of, you know, a 1:50.
And then I'm having 15 minutes rest because I need to recover
before I go again. And they're like, oh, you know,
you're doing nothing and sitting having a cup of tea and all
that. You know, there is just a bit of
joke between 1:00. But then sometimes I think
people don't understand, I guess, the intensity that you do
need for your track sessions and just how hard they are.
So yeah, so. But I could not like, I say it
again. Yeah, distance just hurts too
much. So a normal track session?
What like how? How long does it last?
What do you actually do during that session?
So tonight was a quick session for me, but sort of so tonight
I've been and I don't will do like a lot of plyo work.
So the session itself is never probably really that long.
So tonight I ran 450 meters, then I had 15 minutes recovery
and then ran 300, and that's my full session.
But generally we'll do a lot of PLIO work beforehand.
You'll do a lot of drills, we'll do a lot of bounds, and then
we'll do some explosive gym work and then get into the session.
So the session itself is never really that long.
So Monday night I ran 63 hundreds with 92nd recovery, but
then I was at the track for like an hour and a half, close to two
hours, because it's all of the sort of prep work that you do
beforehand. So during like you said tonight
that you did one what? Was it?
You did a 400, then you had a 15 minute break.
What do you do during that 15 minutes?
Just mobilize. You're kind of just so a 15
minute we would class as so because the 450 was, you know,
almost at Max effort. You're then trying to have full
recovery. So you're just keeping
mobilized. You know, obviously in the
winter it's quite hard because it gets cold.
So you know, you've got your dry rub and just making sure that
you keep warm and then yeah, go again.
But it passes quite quick. Do you wear heart rate monitor?
Is that how you know when you recovered or is it just?
No, just going off generally, I guess kind of probably what my
coaches worked out that I sort of need to be able to then
repeat a Rep at the same speed. Do you know, I guess it's kind
of just trial and error what we've done across the season to
say right, OK, generally 15 minutes is where that works for
me. But he is quite good in that,
you know, if I'm feeling, you know, feeling fatigued, I train
with juniors as well. And sometimes, you know, it's
great because they're so fast and the, you know, the pull is
along. But, you know, I, I do have to
remember, and I know 35 certainly isn't old, but that I
do need that. You know, I might need a little
bit more recovery. Or, you know, I in Daniel, Dan
is my coach and Dan and Jay and he will, you know, make sure
that he tailors my session to fit me as a master's athlete.
So in that, as Mike says, you keep yourself warm in those 15
minutes, do you eat anything or do you have a sports drink or
what? What would you have for things
like that? Electrolytes, I just just
because I always take those Withers and then I'll snack on
cashews. But generally just because
probably I'm just quite picky. Not really that I think that I
need them, but I'm just, I know that they're in my bag just in
case, but yeah. Before, like if you were at a
track meet, Is that what you call it?
I have no idea. Do you do one event during?
Like is a meet sort of one day? How many races have you gotten
that day? So it depends really, I guess on
what I'm targeting. If it's a, so if it's a seat,
like there's certain races that we call senior leagues and
that's where I'm racing against seniors, I might only target 2
races, you know, because they're not, they're not medal races or
they're not championship races. So I might just think, right,
OK, I'm going to target 2 because they're a training race
for us. So I'll do generally the 100
meters because that's first and then I get about an hour and a
half. And then the 400 if, if it's a
championship race, I'll kind of look at the lineup, I guess, and
see who's sort of entered. I might wait and enter a little
bit later and see who's entered one, just to see what the
competition's like, because I don't want to put myself in a
race if there's not enough competition and where I'm just
going to fatigue myself, you know, maybe enter the 200 just
because, you know, but yet the 400 race, there might be a lot
stronger people in there and I want to try and save myself for
that race if I haven't got anybody to race against in the
200. Does that make sense?
But you know, championships this year I've always entered at
least two, if not 3, which would be distances of the 102 hundred
and 400. And the next question that I'm
going to ask him probably might well probably cringe at this.
And so we'll probably the rest of the population that are
listening. I hear about a thing called the
Diamond League. Now I've heard about athletics
is not my fault. It's not something I really
follow, but I've heard of that. So how do you get a place in
that? I take it that's if you're the
best of the best and all the best ones coming together and
it's quite is that quite a prestigious thing for you to get
into? Oh yes.
So that's like, yes, of, you know, Gary Lee athletes.
It's like, so I went to the Diamond League in London this
year to watch and you know what I mean?
Keeley Hodgson was meant to be in a bit cheaper out, but that
was like Noah Lyles, that was the Jamaicans there.
That was Josh Kerr. It was, yeah, it was phenomenal.
It was stacked with absolute, you know, talent, Femko ball on
the hurdles. It was just amazing.
I guess that's the difference between competing at a sort of
British level and competing at a world level.
Would that be? Would that sum it up?
Yeah. So a lot of the athletes will
target those races as as sort of warm up races to get times in
order to be able to then go into things like, you know, the World
Championships. Go back to your well, not
necessarily your session tonight, but your subtract
meets. How do you prepare in terms of
you want your glycogen levels up before you do your all out
sprints? That type of are you eating?
Are you what are you drinking? You said you had the
electrolytes on a normal session at night, but before you How do
you get into prime racing fitness?
Yeah, I'm quite a stick. Like I'm staying with the same
routine. So in the morning I always have
like eggs, avocado bagel, that is my go do breakfast if I know
that I'm going to compete because it's something that will
keep us full. I love overnight oats and I have
them religiously every morning, but on a track meeting I have
them as my lunch because it's something that I'm quite nervous
and there's a lot of adrenaline, especially if I'm running
multiple races and it's a full day thing.
It's something that's just easy to get down, you know, I don't,
there's no chewing involvement, just kind of like if I'm feeling
quite anxious and stuff, it's just getting that substance into
this. And then I have my electrolyte
and then I always have like jellies, either a little Harry
bow or something like that. Yeah, to keep us going.
But it went, that was a bit of a joke, standing joke because we
went to, I went to air for the Scottish Masters this year and
we're staying in a Premier Inn and I upgraded my room and it
was £50 just to upgrade my room so I could have a fridge because
I needed my overnight oats in. And everybody was like, that is
the most expensive overnight oats you'll ever have.
But it's just routine and I needed to keep that.
But little did I know air was absolutely freezing in July.
So I could have just had them in the car.
Whereas we're we're used to going to races and slumming it
and probably even sleeping in the car.
But yeah, as you say, just leave it outside.
It would have worked. There was no need for the
upgrade. But yeah, so that, yeah, it was
a bit of a standing joke. They were all laughing at me.
But it's just having that same, you know, and not doing anything
different. It's trying to keep that, you
know, routine as strict as possible.
Yeah, I think I might have pushed out to having a cool box
and put in an ice block or something in it maybe, Maybe
going to the supermarket and buying a bag of ice rather than
the £50 just for a fridge. I.
Know it was extreme. So that was just for the fridge
then? It wasn't even a better bed or a
bath or anything like that. No, Oh, no, no.
It's meant to be a bit of a fancy room, but I was like, oh,
have you got ATV on the one? Have you got it in the OR like
yes, yes. So this was have you got a
fridge? No.
So you speak about nerves as well before your events and as
we mentioned, you got to the Europeans as well.
How how was that before you got onto that track with the others?
How did you deal with that? Honestly, I didn't deal with it
very well at all, you know, and I listened to your podcast and
it was it with Alison Beverage, was it Alison?
Alice, Yeah. Alice Yeah, yeah.
And that just so hit home with me.
You know, it was the imposter syndrome.
And I think I've had that. I've always had that on the
track. And I think it's because I
haven't started track from a young age.
You know, my drills aren't sharp.
And I know that my shapes aren't always right.
And there's a lot of drills that I, you know, that I can't do.
And just because I haven't got that, I just can't get that
rhythm. I just can't get that
coordination right. And yeah, so it was, you know, I
got onto the warm up track and I'd already been ill days in the
days leading up to it and I was a bit of a mess.
And I got on that warm up track and I was, you know, Sweden, it
just head to toe and all of this kitten, it just I just felt so
out of place. And I'd never had to run like
heats before. So I'd never had to try and like
qualify for a final. I'd always just sort of turned
up and I had that one job and it was just run once around the
track. And it was understanding the
tactics of that, you know, don't go out too hard because you
don't want to ruin yourself for the next day, but you know, you
want the best lane draw possible that you can get.
And it was, you know, it was all very plain on my mind.
But the Europeans this year, I was never really on my radar.
My radar was to finish my season at the British Champs and we
just ended up adding the Europeans on as a little bit of
a last minute. It was after I've been to
Scotland, actually done the Scottish Champs.
We ended up saying, oh, you know, I spoke to my husband and
he was like, yeah, let's go for it.
You know, you're running well, if you're going to do it any
Yeah, this is the get into it. And I was, oh, it'll just be so
much fun. It'll be really nice.
I've had the best season ever and we'll end it on a high.
It was really, really mentally tough.
And then I finished the 1st 400 and I found out that I'd
qualified and I, it was, you know, of course that's what I
wanted to do. But then ultimately I thought,
I've got to go through all of this again.
And I'd seen a girl who had knew on the wall track and I just,
she was like E and I just started crying and I was like,
I'm not OK. Like I'm really overwhelmed.
Like I'm, you know, and it was really mentally tough.
And I don't think that. I think I thought in my head I
was going for a lovely little holiday away with my husband.
I was going to, you know, run in this, you know, GB Masters best
and wear my country's colours. And it was going to be all
great. And yeah, it was actually
really, really hard. And then on paper, I could have
been in a chance for a medal. Do you know what a bronze medal
I thought I could have kind of fought for And in order to get
myself on the track the next day for the final, I said OK,
comfortably, you can come fifth. Like that's comfortable.
Like you know that you can come 5th.
And I came off the bend and it was quite tough, the lane draw
that I was in because that was me.
And then I was an Olympian in the race.
So she was in, I was in lane 3 and she was in lane four.
And then the next three girls who I would have been able to
compete with were in the other lanes, so 5-6 and seven.
So they were bunched together and had each other to work off
where I obviously The Olympian left straight away.
Do you know? So I just kind of had an empty
lane next to me and I knew the girls in lane one and two, you
know, wouldn't have been able to kind of keep up to my pace.
So I came off the bend and I looked and I thought I'm in
fifth position. And then I just, I just let it
go. You know, I, I thought, this is
where I'm going to finish and I, I didn't fight for it.
But when I finished, when I crossed the finish line, I was
relieved. I was really, really pleased
with myself. I thought, you know, I've done
it. You know, I've overcome such a
massive barrier, you know, you know, mental barrier to be here.
And then, but then when you get home, it's the guilt and the
frustration of, you know, I got to that bend, seeing where I was
and just said, this is where you're meant to be.
And I didn't, I didn't fight for that.
And it's then the guilt of, you know, we're paid to go away.
I've left the kids for a week, which I've never, ever done
before. And and that was quite tough.
And I was really, really flat afterwards.
Yeah. Where about where you say you
went on holiday for this race? Where about was it?
Madeira. How?
How far away is that? So I think was it about three
hour, 4 hour flight Nelly? Nikki, go and ask another
question. I'm going to just figure
something out. So, and if anyone is fortunate
enough to follow Lauren and watch that was it the final that
your husband filmed and put on Instagram?
Because I remember watching it and the thing that actually got
a lump in my throat, it wasn't even watching you run.
It was hearing how much he was cheating and shouting God,
Lauren. And it was just actually it was
it was about like one of those, you know, like Alish Mccolgan
moments and you're like that. It really sucks you and you're
like, oh come on. You know, he has been at just
about every race this year. He's definitely my #1 fan and I
think it's really important that, you know, that I always
kind of say it's, it's tough when you've got kids and, you
know, and I still work full time, you know, James works full
time and he's sacrificed, he has sacrificed his own training in
order for me to be able to, you know, I said this year I really
want to try and give it a good go to see what I can do with the
track, you know, and he's really sort of put his training on hold
in order for me to get all of my sessions in.
We've prioritised, you know, sort of the kids are schedules,
then my schedule. And then James just, bless him,
would just fit in, you know, wherever.
But yeah, hearing him and the kids on the, you know, when I
come onto that home straight, it's just absolutely priceless.
But yeah, he, yeah, on all of my videos, he's obviously took a
video of every race he's been in.
And you know, you can just, you can just hear him.
And actually at the British Champs, it wasn't even, it was
live streamed. So he didn't actually.
And everybody assumed James took the video because all you can
hear was him absolutely screaming.
But it wasn't, it was like, you know, a camera guy up in the
stand somewhere. So yeah, it's he's definitely,
he's a good egg. What I was going to ask, it's
approximately 2 1/2 thousand kilometers away, How how long
was the race that you did? 400 meters.
That's quite a quite a ratio. I did three of them though, so
800 meters in total. And just following on from what
we were chatting about there about James, what's his
discipline? Is he track as well or does he
do longer distances? No, he's he's very much like
he's more into the gym than he is running and then to running.
And I remember we've done a few park runs together and I'll be
like posh, posh it and get a PB and he'd be like, actually don't
care, Lauren. You know, he loves trail
running. He loves like, you know, half
marathon that so it doesn't. But he likes to plod and enjoy
the scenery and things. He doesn't like to push himself.
You know, he likes to just sort of take it all in.
And we're doing a high rocks together last year and he was
just like, oh, it'd be so nice for to do something together.
And then he's like, this is not what I've signed up.
And that's just, you know, we're totally talking cheeks and yeah.
So. So you're the more encouraging
one, shall we say? Yeah.
Is there any distance that he like, if you were racing against
each other, both going for it, that he would beat you at?
Would that be marathon or even further?
Or would he get to the point and say I'm not doing that?
So I think he would definitely I would say anything of anything
from half onwards. I still think I would take him
on on A10 kick if I sure but. It sounds like we've got a 10K
challenge coming up. Well, to give him food, I
thought. There's lots of lovely events up
north of the border, Lauren. Right, out of all the events
that you've done, all the locations, what is your favorite
race? So my favorite sort of run, I
guess I'd, you know, if I'm looking at what I've done in
distance, it has to be Edinburgh Marathon just because of how
special that was, you know, for me and for for my friends,
family, in terms of, you know, tracks that I run on.
I guess Madeira was pretty special.
It was in the mountains. It was gorgeous, although I
didn't enjoy the race itself, but the track was beautiful, but
favorite, I guess track race that I've done.
I think a standout run for us this year was I entered my first
championship race this year and I wouldn't before this year, I
wouldn't end at any race that had the world championship in it
because I just thought, you know, I'm not I'm not that sort
of, you know, I'm not good enough to be in those sort of
races and and at a senior championship, not even a, you
know, masters. So it was racing with, you know,
younger girls and I put myself on a start line with, you know,
girls with legs that went on forever and, you know, just in
that prime and came first. And I got a massive PB in the
400 meters. And it was just like totally
disbelief that I'd that I'd done that, that I'd, you know, like I
said, put myself in that position in a race that I
wouldn't have ran when I was a senior.
And, you know, I got, you know, just so having that like the
outcome was just even more sweeter as well.
All. Are all tracks the same now?
No how? How do they?
Differ so they're very different in that I guess, you know, you
some people will walk onto a track and feel them.
So when I got to Madeira, straight away, one of the guys
was like who and you, what's the track like?
And I said, I've done a lap and I went it's all right.
And he was like, I need more than that.
And he'll go on and he'll touch the track and you know, really
wants to see, you know, is it hard?
Is it spongy? And it's you don't want as track
was pretty new, so it was very spongy and bouncy, which is
quite slow. But then we've got a track here
at Gateshead, which is really, really hard.
So then you get no traction from it at all.
So it's about, you know, it's very, it's very weird how tracks
kind of, you know, differ and you know, you can definitely
feel faster on certain tracks. But back in the, I'm guessing
olden days now you probably don't get them cinder tracks.
Have you ever raced on one of them?
No, no, I haven't. And obviously as well, you
mentioned about you took cross country spikes to your first
race, What? What are the actual spikes like
for track? Because that's something I've
never ever done. Are the spikes tiny and are the
shoes expensive? I guess like all shoes that can
be expensive, can't that? I mean some of your running
shoes now, you know, I've got a pair of weather alpha flies or
vapour flies. So when I was doing the road,
I've got a pair of those and I would literally warm up in my
other trainers because I would only want to use them for the
distance that I was running because I'm not putting any more
miles on these with how much they have cost.
You know, very much the same with spikes.
You've got, you know, I do have like the basically I've got the
alphas or the vapour flies of, of spikes, the spikes version.
And they've got like a little bubbling and the Sprint ones and
they're, you know, quite string springing, you know, really push
it on your toes. And then I've got some middle
distance spikes that I'll do like my long like Monday night
training, tonight's training in which haven't got that bubbling
a little bit flat, but honestly not a lot to them in terms of
material or anything. So, so light.
And it's a longer distance shoe. The manufacturers will tell you
you'll get 400 miles out of pair of shoe and then you must change
them. Whereas I go with like my my
body will start hurting in certain places and I'll know my
shooting changed. Is it the same with shorter
distance shoes? I got, you know, I guess so
probably, but I'm quite I like a new pair of spikes for every
season. So I've never probably really
wore them in that much. Whereas Monroe shoes used to see
me, you know, like you say, and I would look at the bottom of
the tread and there'll be nothing there and I'll be like a
few more races that can get out. Whereas my spikes because
because I guess now it is the same with Rd. shoes as well,
because it wasn't when I was running on the road.
But, you know, they bring these spikes, the shoes out and the
same as they bring the spikes out that, you know, they're
faster shoes. You know, they've got the, you
know, carbon plates in and all that sort of stuff.
And the spikes are very much the same as well.
But yeah, so if for us as well, you know, because we've got the
spikes, then we can change. We can obviously just change
those, you know, whereas obviously, yeah, a road shoes,
it's the bottoms of them as well, isn't it?
Whereas, you know, we can just change the spikes in them in the
bottom and then, you know, we've basically got new, new grip
there. Yeah, the Super shoes that you
were talking about, like the Alpha flies, Vapor flies, that
sort of thing, they've got carbon fibre in them.
Is that technology the same in track shoes?
Yes, yeah, yeah. Are they like hard no no giving
them? Do you not have the cushioning?
How does it differ? I'm not totally sure if I'm
honest, but we've got like, so like I said, the Sprint ones
have got like a bubble in, they've got like a bubble around
the bottom, but the material is just, there's not a lot to them
at all. The Sprint ones are a little bit
mind certainly are a little bit harder at the front and I guess
it's to accommodate for that bubble.
But then your middle distance spikes, I thought if you look at
them, they're pretty flimsy. You know, there's not a lot, not
a lot to them at all. Yeah, I've got one pair of
carbon shoes. I've hardly like you.
You don't want to wear them unless you really need to wear
them and they are material, holds the shoe on and that's it.
There's no comfort or anything. Yeah, yeah, I decided once I was
moving on to the trails and never doing a road race ever
again in my life. I've started using mouth for
flies and vapor flies and training as a confidence boost
to make me feel fast. I can remember actually when you
got your first pair. Yeah, I can remember that you
got them. I'm sure you were telling us
that you got them. A bargain A.
Bargain. Yeah.
Is that? Back wall in the Nike outlet.
Last pair of Masais. I've still got them so they had
a lot of fun to run in, but I'm probably the slowest runner
that's ever run in them. So when you we touched a little
bit as well earlier on what you eat during your runs and what
you eat on the lead up to your events and that with your diet
in general, are you quite strict with yourself and the track or
is it not quite as bad? Because I would imagine from my
perspective, if you're a fast track athlete, male, female,
whatever you would have, would you not have to be lighter to be
able to be faster or is that not the case?
Though I guess I'm really trying to learn this year with
nutrition and it is a minefield, isn't it?
And I don't think it matters what sort of distance that
you're running or even if you're not running, it's a minefield.
So this year I've really tried to put a little bit of focus in
understanding, you know what, what foods, you know, anti
inflammatories, what foods are causing inflammation, what's
good for us. I spent a little bit of time
tracking calories, which I don't usually, but just to see what I
needed in order for my buddy not to feel fatigued.
Because if I'm going along to do a really heavy session, it's
important. It's really important that I hit
those times. I have to get used to running
those times and I can't do that if if I'm not feeling fuelled.
So I track and I generally will try and eat around about 2500,
two 1700 calories a day. I guess if it's a non training
day, I'd try and you know, around 2500 and if I'm training
around 2700. But you know, and I do try and
have that, like I say from consumers, I try and eat, you
know, a PITA breads with hummus and, you know, carrots and
cucumber and stuff. Whereas I used to eat like a
Trek bar and I used to think that that was healthy or, you
know, I would have a lot of on the go foods that like, you
know, are labeled as high protein.
And, you know, and I guess I've really tried to understand a
little bit more about actually what is actually really good for
us. But, you know, I can't sit here
and say that I sticked, you know, my meals are always really
good. I always have my overnight oats.
I always have a pit of bread stuffed with, you know, a
chicken breast and some Greek yogurt and a bit of salad for
lunch. And then on an evening, you
know, me and my husband will always have like, you know, a
tea, We'll always make dinner. But what I snack on in between
isn't necessarily always great. So like tonight I was going to
the track and I was like, Oh my gosh, I haven't got any like
protein milk for afterwards. I haven't got any good shoes or
grapes in the fridge. So I got the Halloween Skittles.
Do you know, because I thought, well, I need something.
So I got the Skittles and, you know, so it isn't always
perfect, but it's, you know, I don't drink alcohol now.
I don't, you know, we used to have like, you know, a Friday
night would be take away night. And that was just like a dumb
thing. And I think when I started, you
know, try and get more and more competitive and I wanted my
times to come down. I thought, right, OK, when I
can't have, you know, a few glasses of Prosecco and Sydney
and Indians and then think that I'm going to, you know, work
really hard on Monday when I get back to the track, it just
doesn't work. So I've really, you know, cut
that out and stopped those sorts of foods.
But like I say, I'm not saying, and I have a cup of tea.
I don't go into the biscuit jar or whatever.
It's, it's definitely about balance.
It's but I'm trying to, I'm trying to just understand a
little bit more about food. And I know Joe Wicks brought
that thing out and I haven't seen it yet.
Was it licensed to kill? Have you seen that?
He's brought a documentary out. So he's brought it.
I think I know where you're on but.
Yeah. He's brought a bit of coach
make. Oh yeah, yeah.
The body coach, he's brought a protein bar out.
So have you not seen this? No, I think.
I've seen a little bit. And he's called called it
license to kill. I think if I remember it right,
he's called it license to kill. And he's just basically saying,
and on one side it's got him, you know, flexing and, you know,
looking great. And on the other side, it's got
him like going zombie and just saying, you know, if you eat
this, it may cause cancer, diarrhea, you know, and like
just really frank, honest. And he's just so he's done a
documentary. I haven't seen it yet, but he's
talking about all of the and ingredients in these foods that
are labeled as high protein and all that sort of stuff.
And, you know, marketed and advertised to be really good for
women. In fact, actually they're not
great at all. And he's not saying that things
aren't good in moderation. You know, he's not saying, you
know, don't ever eat these. He's just saying like have a
better understanding where I would think nothing of having a
Trek bar every day or a Grenade bar every day because I was
protein and I need it, you know, And it's just about
understanding actually where you know, understand Whole Foods and
like I say, foods that are are anti-inflammatory and not
causing issues. See.
See, when you're doing sessions, you're say you're doing three,
303 weeks in a row. All our effort, do you notice a
difference? If you're like, say you're
having your skills before your session or after your session,
is there a time difference or even just a feeling during that
session? So I think not particularly
probably, but I think after I finish a session, I always know
that I need to get something in the reason probably pretty quick
because I've got that by the time I do my cool down and then
I know that I've got 40 minutes drive back home.
Like start and crash. If I don't have anything like,
you know, like a saying and whether it's I take a protein
shake or I take like just some grapes or something that I can
just get into is that I know that's just going to keep us
going till I get back home. Otherwise I'll start and crash
and then when I get in, it will be a case of trying to grab any
sugar. I think sometimes, you know, I
took the Skittles tonight and sometimes I think it's just a
habit as well, like thinking, Oh well I must, I must have
something, you know. So yeah, sometimes it's
definitely a habit. But if I've done a, you know, a
hard session, or if I've done a hard session, I know that I'm
going in the gym afterwards as well.
I know I'm not surviving that if I don't have something.
And things like the set distances that we do, you're
taking food on constantly for a shorter race, you're obviously
not because every sort of bend that you're going to down a gel,
it's not going to happen. Would you have a gel before you
start a race? No, no.
Do you, would you even contemplate trying it?
Would do anybody, does anybody else that you know do that sort
of thing? No, not that I know of.
Well, on about the other day, you know, we're all kind of
lining our supplements out and, you know, saying what everybody
sort of takes and one of the guys said that he takes pre
workout before a race. So obviously it's just got
caffeine in and he was like, you know, just keeps us switched on
and ready to go. I used to pre workout a lot when
I was training for high rocks just because, you know, I guess
it was that morning workout was going at 6:00 in the morning.
And I even before like the actual high rocks events, I
would take pre workout. But I think that was because I,
you know, there were long events, you know, in order to
keep us going for that length of length of time, but for like 204
hundred meters. And I've never felt that it's
needed. And I don't think, like I say, a
lot of people generally would take a gel on.
Yeah, I I went out for a run this morning.
My normal Wednesday run is starting 6:00 in the morning, 10
mile run, but I've only had a banana.
I I take pre workout for that, but only because it's got a lot
of caffeine in it. I don't drink tea or coffee
because I don't like the taste, so that wakens me up in the
morning. I know that's the same for me.
I drink decaf tea. So I think it was that 6:00
getting us up and getting us, you know, and I knew that my
session would be an hour in the gym and had seen us through
that. Whereas, you know, for the 200
meters, as long as I feel right, then my body should feel OK to
get through. You know, less than 60 seconds.
You mentioned time like 6:00 in the morning, but your session
tonight was at night. Do you?
Is there a particular time of day that you train?
So my gym sessions are generally always, we do a little bit of
gym after track, but my main gym sessions are generally always
6:00 in the morning because that has no impact on, you know,
family life, kids, and it can just kind of be going go and get
back and the kids aren't even out of bed.
But obviously my sessions at the track are always an evening.
So you might have already have answered this, Lauren, We're not
sure. I just don't want to assume what
the answer might be to this. But what do you feel is your
biggest running achievement? So I guess, I guess it hasn't
came probably from a time or a medal at all.
It's probably come from, I think the money raised, you know,
again, just going back to that, you know, fundraising and and
that sort of there, that was a real big achievement from
running. And I think it's overcoming the
barriers of, you know, this year.
I said to myself, no excuses. And I've really held myself
accountable to that. And I've not let myself, you
know, in the past, I've thought you get tired, you know, you've
had a hard day. You're OK to skip a session.
You know, whereas this time I've said, I don't want to go.
I don't want to go. And I've sent my husband loads
at times as, yeah, I just can't be bothered.
And he's like, well, don't go. And I'm like, I have to go.
You know what? Like, my motivation can be
really low sometimes. But, you know, I'm holding
myself accountable because I've set goals.
And if I don't hit them and I know that it's because I haven't
worked for them and that's on me.
If I don't hit them and I've worked as hard as I can, then
that that's OK because I know that I've really put everything
that I've had into it. I think if you're really
passionate about an event or a race or a goal that you have, I
actually feel that the gill of missing that session is worse
than not doing it, so you're just better to do it.
I know, I know. Definitely.
That's, you know, 100% So, yeah. And you never come away from it.
You know, I never come back from a session and think I shouldn't
have done that. You know, like I go and I come
back and, you know, you know, you know, you're going to feel
better afterwards, don't you? You know, you're going to feel
good for it. But you know, when, when
motivation is really low, it is tough.
But this year I've said no excuses and I've meant it.
And that's, you know, a really big achievement that I haven't,
you know, that I've held myself accountable and stuck to it.
And obviously that consistency has paid off.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And you, you mentioned earlier
you did your 100K, you've done the marathon and, well, the
100K. Anyway, you were thinking, why
am I doing this? I hate this.
Yeah. Going down the distances down to
say 200 meters, You're coming round the bend.
What are you thinking about? Do you know, it's, yeah,
probably not really thinking all that much.
I think it's, you know, on a 200m race, you go out hard and
whoever wins is the person who slows the least.
You know, that there's not a lot of tactics into it.
It's get around that bend as quick as you can and you come
off and you just, it's over so quick.
So I don't, I don't like the 100 because it is too short for me.
Because I'm like, you start and you finish and people say, hey,
how was that? And I'm like, well, I don't
know, 30 seconds. I'm not quite sure, you know,
like it's just over the 200. I like, because you've got, I
like a bend And I, you know, I really love coming off a bend,
the bend, the best part of my race.
But yeah, not a lot of time to think.
You've probably got a little bit more time in the 400 and, you
know, but I'm really just checking in with myself, you
know, reminding yourself, right, relax, keep your form.
It's important not to try. And, you know, I think people
might think that the 400, although it's a Sprint, is go
out as hard as you can and hold on.
That's definitely not the thing to do because you're blown up if
you do that. So it's important not to get
carried away and go with people, but to be able to react when you
need to. So I guess I'm on the phone, but
I'm generally just thinking, you know, checking in with myself.
How's your phone? How are you doing?
You know, stay, stay focused. So is around 400 meters the the
first time that tactics become a thing?
So if somebody else is going out too fast, or maybe they're even
trying to make you go faster. Yeah, definitely.
So that was that was a race, what I've done in August where I
knew my biggest competition was about four lanes away from me.
So we're really spread apart and I thought, right, I'm going to
go out as hard as I can and this is where I blew up and catch her
up. And then I'm going to put a lot
of pressure on her and I'm coming first.
It didn't work that way. I caught her up, I blew up, she
blew up. And then we're both fought each
other to the line in in Chapiptes.
But then it was funny because then when I ran the British
Champs, I was in the outside lane, so I thought might well,
I've got, you know, everybody's kind of can see me.
I can't see them, but I'm going to go out hard so that everybody
follows us. And then I know, you know, I
knew that I could relax around the bend and go again, whereas
they would probably still be pushing to try and keep up with
us. So yeah, there's definitely
tactics in it. Not as much that I would say
that it's involved in like the 800 and the 1500 meters when you
have to break, you know, and you've got a lot of sort of
elbowing and all that sort of stuff, which I've never been
involved in because I've never ran those races competitively.
But, and yeah, there's definitely some tactics to it.
So and our the distances that we tend to run events and things
like that, we a lot of us tend to take shots at volunteering
and similar with park runs as well do.
I thought you were just going to stop a shot.
Do do you? Is it the same in the Track
World that like when there's competitions and events, do you
all have to take tons of volunteering and marshalling and
what have you? But don't know.
So you have to be like qualified to be able to volunteer at the
track. So I'm so ignorant of this.
Please excuse us and don't take what I say about gospel.
But so you do have to have done like an officiating course to be
an official on a track. So I know that much is true.
But yeah, so you they couldn't just turn up and, you know, I
would be sitting taking time. So whatever.
You can't do that. So, yeah, you have to be.
So there's generally, you know, and I mean, there's one of
Harris's, my son. Sorry, my son's one of my son's
coaches for more, Well, for more with running club.
He coaches from up with running club.
And my son just runs with their little group.
He they, him and his wife go all over.
So they were at Derby, you know, officiating for the British
champs, you know, the officials, there was officials from here.
That was over in Madeira, you know, And it's quite like, yeah.
Does it tend to be people that used to run themselves that go
into the coaching and the official shooting?
Yeah, people that used to run themselves or people that have
got their children running, you know, whether they're younger or
older, they generally kind of then get involved.
So, yeah. And it was nice to see some
familiar faces from, you know, track meetings here officiating
over in Madeira. Definitely.
And we asked about are all tracks the same?
Are all locations like you're, you're within a stadium?
Is there a bucket list that you'd have?
An ideal track, an ideal location, An ideal event,
Anything. I would like to go to so the
obviously I've done the masters Europeans that'll be again in
two years time in Finland next year.
It's the world masters and I, I wouldn't, I'll not go next year,
but I'd like to maybe go when I'm V40 or maybe it's even V45.
And it'll all kind of really just depend on I guess, you
know, the kids and the location and you know, if it's convenient
because if I was going to the world's, I would want to be
there for the relays. And do you know the two weeks
and I'll, you know, the kids would have to be there with us.
So probably be when they're a little bit older, but definitely
something that I would love to do.
And I think, you know, I've got a lot of growing in confidence
to do before that. That does.
Is there different races for say you said start AV 35 well senior
before that and then it's every five years or is there different
ones for each one? Yeah, so, so at Madeira or like
any race, like the British champs, you've got like it goes
up in the five years, but then all the events are the same for
each age category. And I have to say, and not that
I met him, but there was AV 90 for Great Britain in Madeira
running the 400 and he was called Colin Spivey.
So, and I only know this because obviously I was, we were just
sitting, me and my husband were just sitting looking at all the
and I was like, Oh my gosh, that's B 90 and I was 3 V 90s.
You know, one of them was GB. He took the gold in Madeira and
I so I googled, well, I put him in a power of 10.
He runs Park Run every week in 30 minutes. 90 year old.
A lot of life goals still beat me up, absolutely.
Like, isn't it for everybody? You know, it's it's for
everybody, Yeah. So, so yeah.
So it goes up every five years. So you would raise your age
category, but every event is the same.
So you would run the 400 whether you're AV35 or 3V50 or V-90.
Just before we move back on to the formal question set, there's
only a couple left anyway, law room, but just one that's came
into my head there. Do you ever do cross country or
anything like that? No, that was a one time gig,
yeah. But you've got the shoes.
Absolutely. No cross country looks far too
hard. When I was trying this whole
distance thing and yeah, didn't work out for us.
See when you're doing your at least 100 meters, 200 meters
probably for you starting starting blocks.
So I don't and I haven't all Yeah.
And I've had some blocks for about 5 years and this and it
was sort of said when I've said to my coach that I wanted to go
to my dairies, like we need to get in blocks.
You said you can't go to the Europeans and not be in blocks.
And we tried it for a few training sessions, but I was
more focused on how I was coming out of the blocks as opposed to
hitting the target times. And it was impacting my training
sessions because I was like, oh, you know, I can feel that I'm
not coming out right. So then I was thinking about how
I started the race. Well, how I started the, you
know, the Rep as opposed to what my job was, you know, in terms
of time or hitting, hitting those targets.
So I just said I'm like, I just, I'm not comfortable.
And I think that it probably, you know, adds to the impostor
syndrome because everybody was in blocks and especially at, you
know, the British champs and then, um, the Europeans.
The blocks are in your laying ready for you.
And when we got when I was at the Europeans and I'm saying to
the guy are can you take my blocks away?
He didn't speak English, he didn't understand the blocks.
And I'm saying no. And I'm thinking everybody's
practising their strides out and I'm standing here trying to
communicate that I don't want these blocks and my nerves are
just, you know, like, yeah, so we've got a plan.
So we're working on like a four week block at the minute.
So I've started with sort of rolling starts are falling into
them. Then I've done 3 point starts so
that's where you're going to a Crouch and one arms up and then
I've got my Crouch starts and then we'll go into blocks.
So it's kind of, I already do Crouch starts but he kind of
just wants to go back to really the beginning and go back to
basics. And when is a good time to do
because I haven't got competitions coming up.
So I've got a good time just to get some good training block in
and hopefully I'll go to the Scottish Masters indoors, I'm
hoping in February and I'll be flying out of them blocks.
So when you go to the gym, what kind of exercises are you doing?
Are you doing specific for say like calf raises to strengthen
your getting out the blocks I guess or is it just a sort of
general all round fitness regime?
No, yeah, it's better. And that's something that I've
had to, you know, get used to adapting new and adjusting this
year because I used to train with some girls in the gym, but
would do very much like, you know, probably a lot of high
rocks, you know, type training because I think that is quite
big in the gyms at the moment. It's certainly everywhere down
here. Or do, like you say, just
general fitness stuff. And I've kind of had to get used
to training solo now because nobody else is doing, like you
say, the calf raises. You know, I'll do a lot of
cleans or I'll do a lot of like quota squats, you know, where
I'm really using as lightweight to make sure that that reps
explosive as opposed to trying to go heavy into a deep squat.
So yeah, and I'll do a lot of stuff that, you know, I'll have
a barbell and, you know, on my back and then I'll have a couple
of plates and I'll just be stepping onto them.
That's all I'll be doing, you know, and it doesn't look like a
lot, but it's kind of just getting you getting those shapes
right. So yeah, it's definitely
different to what I've been used to, but I have enjoyed it.
So moving back on to the formal question set and as we say, just
a couple more left, but this is a question we really like to ask
all the guests. So is there anyone that you
would love to run with, like your bucket list running buddy,
whether it be real or not, fictional or not, here with us
or not? Yeah.
So it has to be Shelly Ann Fraser Price, no?
So Jamaican sprinter. She is an absolute icon in the
sprinting world. She is probably, I think only
one. It maybe is one of, or you know,
very few of the only female sprinter that's run through
three decades and got world titles in all three decades.
You know, she's a mum. I think she just embodies joy.
When you see her on the track, she embodies joy, but so much
resilience. You know, she's had a lot of
injuries. She's you know, she's been at
the top of a game and she'll, you know, she still comes to
raise and compete even though she's not at the level, you
know, of where the others are now, the younger ones.
But and I say that, but you know, she's still coming, you
know, high up and running incredibly fast times.
She's very much been a mentor towards the new Jamaican
sprinters that are up and coming.
And I just think, yeah, it's just quite flamboyant.
Just got, you know, she's always got different wigs on rainbow
colour hair and just radiates like you just see it and walk on
and just so much energy. And yeah, I think the mum thing
for me as well always, you know, it's something that you always
respect, don't you? When that you when there's
somebody who you know, whether it's you know, Joe blogs on the
street, that's you know a moment she's just getting up and she's
doing park when she's you know, it's just it's a lot when you
know when you've got a lot on at home and stuff.
So I just think anybody doing it but then like to do it at that
level and for that long is incredible.
One of our wigs on and. I think that's the thing that
sticks out. It's the the name.
I wasn't sure who it was I looked at, but yeah, it's the
the Jamaican runner with the bright red hair or bright green
or whatever. Whatever it is this week, you
know her if you see her. Yeah, absolutely.
Yeah, definitely, definitely. So are you going to have
Flamboyant here the next time you're racing?
I'm very much a plain Jane. It's whatever I've had time to
do in the morning. But yeah, if Shelly borrowed as
a wig, I would wear it. And it definitely wouldn't be
washed first. You have to.
No, you can't wash the lock off. No.
It's not luck, it's hard work. It's.
What graph? That's why I corrected it.
Yeah. So to wrap us up for tonight,
tell us what is next. So I am hoping that I'll do.
I've never done an indoors before and I don't know if
you've seen the tracks, but they're very different.
So that curved tracks. So you very much run on a bank
and that 200 meter track. So you split, you do a break, I
think at the 1:50 for the 400. So I'm hoping that I will run my
first indoors this year, next year, sorry.
So and I'm thinking that I'm going to target the Scottish
masters in Glasgow. I've heard that it is one of the
best tracks, indoor tracks. It's meant to be, it's meant to
be really, really good. It certainly might be, I think,
the Holy Grail of tracks around here.
So yes, I'm going to target that.
I would like to think that I can keep training going and retain
the V-35 British champ title at least for the 400 next year.
I really hope that's on a date that I can go to.
I know. Nikki, I'll be wanting a
trackside ticket. I'm sure I could probably blag
one make it's fine. Absolutely.
Well, that's brought us to a close.
Unless Nikki's got any other questions that's came in mind.
Well, thank you for an insight to a running experience that
I've never had before. I just said thank you for coming
on, Thank you Nikki for being Nikki, and it's goodbye from me.
Thanks Wardham. No, thank you both so much, it's
been a pleasure. Right.
Thank you. Take care, bye.