It is a very well documented fact that the éclat office is largely motivated by cake, biscuits, pizza, chocolate, crisps or any other form of high-calorie, high-sugar food stuff. In fact, our love for our dedicated day to food – Fat Friday – is now well known amongst clients and journalists alike with enquiries into what we will be gorging on that week.
However, we need to restore some balance if we are to stay in tip top PR shape. As documented in Kelly’s blog last year, six members of the éclat team are taking on the Nuffield Health Royal Windsor Triathlon on 18th June. We have two teams entered into the race and we are taking on the Sprint distance relay. This comprises of a 750m swim, 20k bike ride and 5k run.
Now, whilst we have a combined love for food, we are also highly competitive so naturally what started as a friendly team bonding experience has rapidly turned into Girls vs Boys. And with a little under eight weeks to go, training is well under way. Well…perhaps for some more than others.
Or, more accurately, the girls are training hard; it’s a little more debatable for the boys. Encouragingly, Barry now has a bike, which is helpful when you are doing the cycle part of the relay. I can neither confirm or deny whether stabilisers will be required on the bike yet.
We’ve also had the added training benefit of our MD Dianne very kindly buying the whole éclat team corporate membership at our local gym. This has led to many early morning workouts pumping iron and evenings spent on a spinning bike whilst an instructor shouts at us to add more resistance. Other members of the team have been attending hardcore boot camps, pounding the pavements, and giving Michael Phelps a run, or perhaps paddle, for his money.
Whilst we are hoping our waistlines will benefit from this endeavour, this isn’t all for fun. We are also looking to raise money for a charity close to many of our hearts – Macmillan Cancer Support. If you would like to donate to this worthwhile cause, our Just Giving page can be found HERE.
So, without further ado, let’s meet the teams:
The Girls: STILETTO SUPREMES
NAME: Mel
DISCIPLINE: Swim
EXPERIENCE: Former triathlete – of sorts, current runner
FITNESS MOTIVATION: Alcohol
FAVOURITE FAT FRIDAY TREAT: Cheese
NAME: Kelly
DISCIPLINE: Cycle
EXPERIENCE: New found love of gym wear (and the gym). Bought a new bike after popping into my mate’s bike shop for a cuppa – most expensive cuppa ever! Also have a boyfriend who cycles a lot – does that count?
FITNESS MOTIVATION: Most food groups. Wine. Prosecco. The thought that one day I will be svelte again. The list is endless…
FAVOURITE FAT FRIDAY TREAT: Chocolate biscuits. Namely those ones from M&S shaped like a ring that seem to be more chocolate than biscuit. Yummmmmmm
NAME: Kim
DISCIPLINE: Run
EXPERIENCE: Spend far too much time in multicoloured lycra – Marathon runner and Bikram yoga fan
FITNESS MOTIVATION: Powered by Prosecco
FAVOURITE FAT FRIDAY TREAT: Victoria Sponge
The Boys: GIVING IT A TRI
NAME: Matt
DISCIPLINE: Swim
EXPERIENCE: Was a pretty good swimmer when I was 12. I’m sure I have certificates somewhere.
FITNESS MOTIVATION: Staving off the inevitable paunch that comes with constantly eating huge bags of crisps now I’m in my 30s
FAVOURITE FAT FRIDAY TREAT: Constantly eating huge bags of crisps
NAME: Barry
DISCIPLINE: Cycle
EXPERIENCE: None… on a road bike, still figuring out how to change gears. But I’m awesome so it’ll be alright.
FITNESS MOTIVATION: To be a walking, talking babe magnet
FAVOURITE FAT FRIDAY TREAT: Krispy Kremes
NAME: Richard
DISCIPLINE: Run
EXPERIENCE: Park Run runner in my Vibram Five Fingers trainers and Spurs fan
FITNESS MOTIVATION: To get off my lazy *cough*
FAVOURITE FAT FRIDAY TREAT: Buying treats for everyone and watching them eat it!
Also, don’t forget, we’re still looking for forfeit ideas for the losing triathlon team – feel free to make suggestions in the comments section!
