Pulsin bar review

I have recently had the pleasure of working with Pulsin and been receiving and trialling their range of nutritional bars that they have to offer. They are all natural , and made with completely natural ingredients. They are soya, gluten and dairy free and promote a wide range of pre and post exercise bars.

I have been testing how these bars can withstand the heat of a 20hours training week and aid pre and post exercise nutrition.

The bars I have been able to try to date are the three types of Pulsin protein bars, maple and whey crisp, vanilla choc chip, maple and peanut (post training protein bars) and I have also tested the almond and raisin (pre training).

PROTEIN BARS (POST EXERCISE)

Maple and Whey crisp:

This bar is great, it is very easy on the stomach,  doesn't repeat on you and the taste is really good. The bar isn't too sweet and has the added crisp of little bits inside to give you that little extra interest when eating. This is my favourite post exercise bar out of the three that Pulsin offer, its tasty and very easy to digest.




Maple and Peanut:

This bar is very tasty, the smell is great and for anyone who likes that peanut butter smell and
flavour this comes very close. It doesn't repeat on you and is very simply digested after exercise. If I am honest I would imagine it would be most peoples choice if it was open to a public taste test, but for me the maple and whey crisp just pips it.




Vanilla and chop chip:

For those who like a little choc (not real choc) flavour then this is the one for you! I found the taste to hang around a little in the mouth and wasn't quite as easy to digest as the two above. It is a tasty bar but for me the other two are much more palatable and easy to digest after a workout.




Pre exercise or snack bars:

I have really enjoyed the almond and raisin bar, this is a tasty and simple bar to eat pre exercise or for a snack at any time of the day. It is more carbed  based than the above so if perfect for pre exercise and fuel for training. It is by far the best tasting bar and I actually have to stop myself eating more they are that good. A perfect bar to take cycling if you are on a long ride or just fuelling yourself about an 60-90mins pre exercise! The chunks of almonds in the bar are a real treat!

Choc, cashew nut cookie sandwiches.

Ingredients:

Dry-

2 cups ground almonds 

2 table spoons flax seeds

3 tablespoons 70% coco powder 

1/4 cup coconut oil (do not melt) 

Wet-

3 tea spoons Vanilla extract 

1 egg (whisked) 

Cashew nut butter (To stick biscuits together)

Set oven to 180. In a bowl combine wet ingredients and mix well. Add the dry ingredients (but not the coconut oil) to a mixing bowl and combine. Then add the wet ingredients to the mixing bowl and the coconut oil. Mix all together well with a wooden spoon, some little bits of coconut oil will still be visible, don't worry. 

Once all combined it will make a wetish dough, then take a baking try and put some baking paper on top. Roll small balls (depends how big u want the biscuits) and pop them onto the baking sheet. Once u have them on the baking sheet (i put 9 on one and then did another batch) get a bowl of boiling water and dip a fork into it, use the wet fork to squashy down and make a biscuit. 

Pop them into the oven for 8-10 mins. They will come out looking a little white because of the coconut oil, not to worry. Leave to cook for 10 mins and then transfer to baking tray. 

Then use cashew butter (or whatever kind of peanut butter you fancy) to stick the biscuits together! HEAVEN! 

Week 2 - 4 man TTT, solo 100m tt training and coffee.

Monday morning and this can only mean that I have got 13 days till my 100m time trial. That meant I need to hammer in a killer session, a solo time trial at around 70miles, more so to see if I can actually sit in the saddle for the period of time required to finnish the race! The race will be an experience and character building at best, strangely looking forward to it, but know that I need to get this session done far enough away so that it can sink in. The race is just adding to my base ready for a few duathlons coming up in the next few months. I have lots of room to improve on the bike, so riding more is only going to help. 

Monday 

Am - 65 mile tt (not fast due to mega mega head wind, but happy)

Pm - 40min easy run 5 miles- 30mins TRX 

Tuesday 

Am - 7 mile run with efforts

Pm - 5 mile there and back. 10m time trial (actually went surprisingly well) 

Wednesday

Am - 25 mile ride (glorious pre 7am coffee stop) 

Pm - 7 mile run - 30mins effort. 

Thursday 

Am - 7mile run - 2k swim 

Pm - 60min bike 20miles - 9mile run (steady with worc AC) 

Friday 

Am - 20mile easy ride

Pm - 2k swim

Sat 

Am - 2.5k swim 

17mile hilly open tt (13th - happy with speed and effort)

Pm - 30min very light run 4miles

Sunday 

Am - 4 up TTT - 30miles (9th) crazy wind!

Pm - 45 min easy run 5miles

The week was a very old successful training week, happy with effort and the base building for the 100m tt. Trying to keep things going, then once 100m tt is done, move onto running pace! Enjoyed week two, but unhappy it is going so fast!

Roll on week 3.....and a new training program! 

Total:

Run - 35miles

Bike - 182miles 

Swim - 6k

Week 1 - miles, miles and more miles!

Week one of my holidays training has been a little bit of a mixed bag, would love to say it has gone really well and I have enjoyed endless sessions and been resting and making the most of every second. This has not been the case! 

I was working Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to pay the bills...real life never goes away. But apart from that I have been trying to get my mojo back and shift some of my lazy training excess weight but also keeping my power, hard balance. 

Monday - 

AM - 120min bike - 2x15min hill climb max efforts.

PM- swim - easy 2k

Tuesday-

AM - 6 mile easy run 

1500m easy swim.

PM - 25m TT 

Wednesday-

AM-easy 40min run

PM-easy 60min bike

Thursday-

100m hilly bike 

Friday-

AM-6mile run easy

2k easy swim 

 

Saturday-

AM- brick 6k - 15m - 6k hard

PM- 60min TRX 

Sunday 

AM - 8.5mile fartlek hard run 

2k easy swim 

PM- 60min easy bike

Totals:

Run 31miles

Bike 210miles

Swim 7.5k

22hours 

Week one is done and now to aim for week two, more consistency, rest and substance to my training! Starting with a 70mile TT effort Monday morning (racesimulation  for 100mile TT 10/8/14). 

SUMMER HOLIDAY!! 5 weeks to live like a pro!!!

I now have 5 weeks off for the summer holidays…to train like a pro! I can rest and train how I like and when I like, if I am tired I can sleep if I want to ride I can ride, coffee stops galore. I will keep the blog up to date with my training week by week for the next 5 weeks, I feel that this will also give me a chance to evaluate how things have gone week on week, and also to see how longer and more volume of training will increase performance.

I feel as though at the moment I am in limbo, to be honest not much has changed since my last post in regards to the way I am feeling, I haven’t been able to shake a strange mind set. I am doing my best to keep training and sessions have actually been successful and PB’s are being broken and everything is going well, I have been racing and even that has been successful with a few podium finishes here and there. Mid season base is being built ready for September and October races, I have also been experimenting with different types of training and methods. Most of all the sun is out so why do I feel that I am not doing anything right at the moment I can’t bounce from session to session with ease and the my diet, well that’s just a nightmare.

I have always had a constant battle with food, when I am pushing for a race I am brilliant and can control things, I can usually get away with a little more and don’t have to be so strict in my mind set. But I always have a constant craving for food, and finding it hard, I don’t always eat rubbish, its just the amounts and its starting to show. I have a constant battle in the evenings with how much should I eat, but some times I push for more and shouldn't eat it. I don’t believe in the old…I put weight on easy tlak, you put weight on if you don’t work hard enough and eat too much of the wrong stuff. My girlfriend gets the brunt of my weight issues, when I am training and keeping it under control it is ok, I still weight myself and am very conscious of what I am eating, but if things are not good then she knows because its on my mind.

A sample day looks like this:

4.45am - Wake up, espresso.

90min run - long hilly base run. (11miles)

7.00am - 4 eggs (scrambled) , 2 x table spoon of peanut butter, flax seed and handfull of chopped brazils and almonds. Green tea. 

7.15 - Black coffee

10.30am - green tea, Pulsin gluten free protein bar.

12.30pm - ham, lettuce, carrots, peppers, handful of Brazil nuts. 

4.30pm - Pulsin gluten free protein bar

6.45pm - Time trial (10miles) 10miles to and from time trial.

8.30pm - salmon, green beans, cabbage, broccoli. 500ml electrolyte drink. 

9.00pm - cup of tea, slice of fruit cake, 2 x table spoon peanut butter and handful or dried dates and brazils. 

This is the kind of day that I would like to replicate most days, but at the moment sugar has crept its way in more and more and I must do my upmost to cut it out! I am fantastic at giving advice about food and writing food plans, and even writing my own…but you know what they say, those who can do and those who cant teach!

I have decided to dedicate my summer to improving on the bike more so, but also make improvements in my running, I plan to swim 2-3 times a week just to keep myself ticking along. I want to improve my time trialing and know I need more strength in my legs to cycle faster, I hope this will also help me to improve my running. I know that being able to rest after key sessions during the summer will add a huge benefit, because as we all know you don't get stronger from training you get stronger from resting.



UPDATE:

Well what a difference a few days can make, I have been working hard on my diet and training and things have all fallen into place a little now. I am going to be back normal weight etc within a few days and have been much more focus! 

Its actually strange what a week can bring when training for multi sports! I also raced the worcester country 10k championships at the weekend and was able to finish 6th which was a great result and made me very happy. It was disappointing at the time because I only recorded a 36.43 and was thinking I would have been much faster, but everyones time was just over a min slower than their usual PB so I was actually very happy, and placed were I should have. So on wards and upwards from here! 

Press coverage!

Pain Pain Pain…….

I feel as though I am always in pain……anyone else get that feeling?

Since I have returned from the World Championships, did I mention I was 7^th in the world championships, don’t think I have said anything about it…..yeah right I don’t stop mentioning it at the moment. Any ways, since the World Championships I feel as though I am always in pain, this is the summer and it is race season so this is something I am going to have to put up with I guess. At the moment I am always looking for gains and putting myself through more pain and seems to be the only way to improve, but is it?

Do we always have to put ourselves through lots of reps, climbs and speed work to improve? The truth is I think we do! To get faster you have to run, bike and swim faster or to your fastest. You body adapts very well and if I’m honest the pain never ever goes away, we just get quicker. You don’t feel faster but the numbers on the speedometer are better and the HR is higher and the time is quicker….but is the pain worth it? At the time………never!!!

Another thing on my mind is, do we sacrifice too much for the want? Its hard to give yourself a point in which is no return, too much time spent training, too many occasions missed, too many friends pushed to one side and another early morning wake up just for those gains…is it worth it? Probably not at the time and a balance is critical. I am an age-group athlete, not a pro, not full time and not paid to compete…but man alive I love my sport. I love the feel of competing, the nerves and the build up. I love the long hours in the saddle, the climbs the time trial punishment. I love the laps of the track, the buzz on a sunny evening and a cold morning after a tough run. I love the conversations with training partners; food, training sessions, races, recovery and the endless coffee.

Then the gains start to arrive and yes the pain and sacrifices were worth it to win a race, beat a time, and beat your closest rival or even a training partner the pain is always worth it. But the key to the true success is the balance…

Never ever neglect the people closest to you as they are your foundation the people who actually help you to succeed. I have been very guilty of this in the past and must make sure that there is a right and wrong way to do things, but no magic formula and it is hard but to neglect the people around you is most certainly not the answer!

Worcester Triathlon (Dauthlon)

Due to the biting horrid bugs in the water at the top barn lake where the Worcester triathlon is hosted every year it had to be turned into a duathlon (thank god as I haven’t swam open water all year). The race had a depleted field due to the swim being cancelled but never the less still some strong local competition. The first run was only 1k and was very fast, the front group was about 5 strong and out on the bikes we went, after the first 5k I found myself in 3^rd and chasing two athletes from the same club who were suspiciously very close to one another on the bike, funny that as your not allowed to draft? Are you?

I cant into T2 in 3^rd place and started the 5k, I was gaining quickly on second place but 1^st was no where to be seen. I was able to make up a lot of group on second but my legs didn’t want to push any harder, they had had a long week (10m and 20m TT PB’s that week). I had nothing left and had to settle for 3^rd finishing around 200m behind second, another day and it might have been a different story! I was happy with 3^rd and to be part of a proud Worcester triathlon club who picked up the team prize aswell, which included my close training partner Jason Taylor!