OMM pack - long term test

As a short female, some packs will never be comfortable on my frame. Too long or too wide and they'll not work so I'm always on the look out for well featured, capacious but relatively small packs. A bit of a contradiction in terms or Holy Grail perhaps!

This review is of a 15L pack I've had and used for a bout 4 years. Including a stint where it was borrowed by one of my clients for a testing on a running commute for a few months. As well as the pack I have the 4L chest pouch which attaches easily to the front of the back pack.

Features
From the top: The pack has a smaller zipped top section suitable for wallet and phone but please see notes about waterproofing later. This section has a key clip sewn in.

The main section has a large entry zip to allow the insertion of A4 files (although take care that the corners don't ripped the fabric if you do this every day!). This main section also has a drawstring about half way down near the side pockets so that it can be 'waisted' to hold smaller items in place.

There is a sleeve in the back which holds the sponge mat that can be used as a sit mat if you're looking to travel very light, it also helps with a bit of rigidity. You can also place your water reservoir in this area and there is a loop to secure it at the top. Whether you are left or right handed or prefer your reservoir's pipe to exit the bag at the top or waist level this bag will accommodate your needs.

On the chest strap for this bag you'll find the built-in whistle, not exactly very loud but functional. The chest strap is adjustable from both sides as is the waist strap and the shoulder straps. Great adjustability - I've managed to get it comfortable for running, walking and cycling.

Each waist strap has a pocket, one zipped, one mesh. Both have sewn in key clips. These are large enough to take a phone, small wallet, tissues etc. When the straps are adjusted on the waist the excess strap can be tucked into the sewn in elastic loop to keep them out of the way (oh boy, I hate it when the lose bits flap about!).

On the shoulder and waist straps and across the base there are plenty of places to clip further equipment via the UGR (Universal Gear Rail) as OMM call it - a length of strap/strong tape sewn on and looped every 2cm or so. I've attached carabiners, lights and the end of my Camelbak pipe to these in the past.

There are also 2 side mesh pockets for extra water bottles or to use instead of a reservoir if you prefer. The size of this pack and the way it wraps around the body allows me to both extract and replace my bottles on the move, no other pack I I have currently allows me to do this. I have 'modified' the pockets slightly (perhaps I'll feed this back to OMM too) by adding a loop of elastic to the rim of the mesh to hold my larger Osprey bottles in place.  The side pockets are not large but do stretch, they will hold a full water bottle of up to 500ml well but when empty  the light bottles move and can pop out - hence the elastic to loop over the bottle spouts.

The bag has light waterproofing and will withstand drizzle or light rain for a while but I use a waterproof liner if going any distance or in poor weather - which as I live in the West is often!

There are some reflective elements on the rear of the bag for safety too.

Chest Pack
A little extra useful for keeping snacks, keys and phone close to your heart. It has an internal mesh pocket and on the rear a transparent map pocket. You can unclip the pack from the top so that you can read your map with the pack still attached at the base of the bag.

This part also has a light waterproofing.

Overall
This bag gets used a lot. On average about 3 days per week. It gets thrown in the car, dropped on the gym floor, strapped on my back for commutes. It has performed well and the waterproofing is only now beginning to peel although I do look after it using a liner or bags to protect the inside form sharp corners of files etc.

When I originally bought it I did do a lot of research and found OMM came highly recommended for lightweight, strong, useful packs. After all - these guys developed their kit in the mountain ultra marathon arena o it should be good. And it is.

Grand fun on the Grand Union Challenge

I was (easily) talked into doing my first ultra. The Grand Union Challenge 50k along the Grand Union Canal.

I wasn't sure what to expect out of my body for such a long distance - 5 miles longer than any race I've done before. But I began to train. Then I got injured and had to stop for a while whilst the osteopath sorted out my hip.

Change of plan  - walk the challenge! Cue lots of longs walks in training once the hip was fixed. Lots of long walks in the hot sun as they were prepared me for an event that was run on a very hot Saturday in June.

The start is a short stroll from Maida Vale tube at Paddington Recreation ground. Here we registered and were given a timing chip on a lanyard, a booklet map of the course and a snap on reflective band as a minimum protection for those who would be walking in the dark. The large marquee also provided shelter from the already warm at 08:00 sun, tea, coffee, biscuits, water and High-Five sports drink. Some of the charities involved also had gazebos and there were plenty of portaloos (never seen such short queues at an event) for the number of challengers.

Runners and walkers could pay to have their larger bags transferred to their finish points and also to half way point for the 100k challengers. Runners could also have a bag transferred for free as long as it was below a certain size and weight.

The participants were started in waves 30 mins apart with a few hundred in each. A member of the guild of toastmasters performed the announcements and a trainer provided a Zumba warmup for each wave.  The course is mostly flat (apart from small rises to lock on the canal or crossing bridges form one side to the other) and not difficult to follow although there were still plenty of markers to assist the challengers. Terrain was gravel paths of differing grades of gravel - some pea others more tricky palm sized 'rocks'. The trees alongside the path provided some shade and respite form the sun.

Rest stops were provided at 15, 25, 35 and 50k (not sure about after that as I only completed 50k!).  These stops are away form the path in parks and green spaces. The intermediate stops at 15 and 35 had tea, coffee, water and sports drinks as well as fresh fruit (apples, banana, melon), salted nuts, crisps, chocolate, raw nuts and dried fruit, sports bars and gels and bakery goods.

At 25 and 50 there was also hot food. Unless this was your finishing stop however the food had to be booked and paid for in advance. The 25k hot food included burger, sausages, and chicken breast along with buns, salad and pasta. Most of the food at 50k seemed to be pasta although there was also a veg curry along with the salad and rolls.

All participants receive a medal, t-shirt and glass of bubbly at their finish.

I'd recommend events from this organisation - smooth and professional set up.

Coffee that's good for you?? Really?

Coffee is bad...isn't it?

In general yes it is.

OK so it might raise you alertness for a short while – that early morning or mid afternoon 'kick when you think you need it but afterwards you'll crash even lower.

Not only that, it has an acidic effect on your digestion causing interval stresses. Whilst your body is very good at getting rid of that acidity if you drink a lot of the stuff it may cause heartburn, digestive issues and even give you the jitters!

Now, I love coffee. I love the strong stuff – a double espresso will do me just fine thanks. But as well as the coffee crashes it also give a hot flush. So, until last month I've been limiting my coffee intake to the odd one per week whilst out with friends and made sure I was prepared for the aftermath.

Then a PT mate of mine (virtually) sidled up to me and did the 'pssst, have you tried this?' routine. I bought a months worth of coffee and tea from him to try – nothing ventured nothing gained I thought. It turned up a few days later and I tried my first cup of coffee...instant in sachets but when the water was added it had a crema like my favourite espresso. Great taste, no bitterness, no crash, no hot flush.

Could be a coincidence. So, later in the day I tried the tea. A bit weaker than my usual builders tea but as I was having it without milk that was actually a good thing. Again, no crashes, no hot flush. Out with friends at the weekend I just drank herbal (no caffeine) teas, only drinking my 'special' coffee at home.

A month on I've just gone back to real coffee and now I remember how bad the lows and highs were. I have ordered more of the special stuff as this trial has proved to me that it is the way to go for coffee lovers who don't want the downsides.

So what's in it?

Why is it different?

It has an extract of Reishi mushroom (Ganoderma Lucidum), commonly used in Eastern medicine and that's what makes all the difference. Whilst it's not for everyone, some don't like the taste and others suffer others side effects different from the caffeine induced ones I love it!

Link to benefits from coffee with this extract here:

http://ganodermalucidumfacts.org/3-benefits-that-are-associated-with-ganoderma-lucidum-coffee/

If you're interested in a 30 day trial (there is a cost) or a few free samples simply email me at michelle.day@inspiring-fitness.co.uk

Gear Review: Osprey Talon 6 waist pack

My mate Liz talked me into the GUCR (Grand Union Canal Race). I know, it didn't really take much as after doing a few multi-day races I was very much 'up' for a real ultra, even though we've gone for the short option (50K) and put ourselves down for the 'jogging' pace.

So, in my planning and training for this race I realised that I need a bigger waist pack for hydration and kit. I've used backpacks before but I get annoyed with them and they feel uncomfortable on the shoulders and hot on the back after a few hours of running. I've also used a waist pack quite a lot but my old faithful is just too small for this event but it only takes a 500 ml bottle (plenty for a half marathon) and a few gels/house keys.

I spotted the Osprey pack in our local Cotswold Outdoor store and tried it on for size. Being a smallish female not all packs can be made comfortable, often they can't be tightened enough to prevent bouncing about. This one seemed to feel OK and has lots of space for extra clothing both inside and on the straps outside, a small pocket in the centre for keys (there's a clip too), bank cards, cash, phone etc. There are also 2 mesh pockets for other small items (in my case inhaler and gloves) to be stashed on the straps.

It comes with 2x 600ml BPA free bottles which are loaded either side of the centre, so sit on the hips. They are held in place with straps that fit over the tops and don't bounce at all. This is all good except that it makes it tricky to get them free when running. To be honest they won't move much even if the top straps are taken off. I plan to walk/run so I'm quite happy to keep them strapped in, as when walking it's easy to release them. The bottles are also shaped to sit comfortably - they have flat backs.

As well as the bottle holding straps, there are compression straps on the body to pull the belt unit in and the belt's tightening elements pull towards the centre of the body rather than away. This is a feature I like as it seems to make them easier to tighten on the move. When not being worn, there is a top carrying handle.

First run - only planned an hour but filled both bottles for balance and to get the full effect. Carried a spare jacket, gloves, inhaler, change, phone - all the stuff I might carry on a much longer trek. Strapping the pack on it felt odd as my current waist pack sits much lower and tucks into the small of my back. This sits high and proud. I didn't think that I was going to get on with it for a while...

It bounced about like ‘billy-oh', hitting me in the back and annoying me something chronic. After about 20 mins of this I was not happy. I had tried tightening the straps but couldn't get them right. Time to stop and rethink. Pulling the pack fully onto my waist, I tried getting it closer to my hips, I tightened it further and although it felt that is was riding very high, the bouncing was cured. Up to this point I had avoided raising it up as I felt that it might constrict my ribcage and indeed it does sometimes feel like it might be. However, I was able to run with no bouncing about from the unit for the rest of the run.

Second run - 2 hours worth this time (bottles filled, jacket and top packed along with change etc). Playing around with the straps a bit more I was comfortable from the get-go, this time with minimal movement from the pack for the whole run. In my first run I had thought that this pack was not going to work but after today's run I'm convinced of it's worth.


 In truth this pack is designed for hiking although Osprey do say it should be comfortable if you want to break into a little jog. I think that they may be underselling themselves a bit here though as I certainly love running with it now that I’ve experimented and managed to get it to fit properly!

Pancake Day!

The great pancake test!

As pancake day is nearly here we thought we'd (well I had to get someone to help me eat the results didn't I? - Michelle) do you a service by testing some gluten free (see here for reasons not to eat gluten - http://paleoleap.com/11-ways-gluten-and-wheat-can-damage-your-health/ ) versions of these lovely little treats. Yes folks, even a 'healthier' version should still be an infrequent treat rather than an everyday item.

Most of the recipes we tried make thicker batters suitable for the smaller American style pancakes, although most could be thinned out with water, milk or your chosen dairy substitute (we used KoKo, a coconut based alternative in place of milk). We used either a hand blender (to deal with the bananas, and the thick mixtures) or a balloon whisk, and cooked all but the crepe version on a flat cast iron griddle using coconut oil. Pour a small amount of the batter on the hot griddle and flip once the batter is bubbling on the top.

Where recipes asked for milk we used KoKo (a coconut based alternative) and in place of sugar we used a little agave nectar (about a dessert spoonful).

We used the following alternatives to flour and recipe sources:

Oat bran – this one would not thicken so we made a crepe style pancake here. It is a version of the Dukan diet recipe.

Protein powder – our only concern here being whether the protein powder is heat stable, or loses some of the nutrients when cooked? Michelle's own recipe (2 ripe bananas mashed, 2 eggs, 1 serving of protein powder, milk, substitute or water to get desired consistency).

Almond flour – we used the same recipe as for the coconut flour pancake but had to increase the flour element x4 times.

Coconut flour - http://www.nourishingdays.com/2010/07/fluffy-coconut-flour-pancakes/

Gluten free plain flour - http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/american-breakfast-pancakes-141 subsitute gutlen free flour and gluten free baking powder.

Buckwheat – the simplest recipe we found http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/441110/Buckwheat-pancakes.

And the results of the test are:

Oatbran – Very runny batter, could be used as an alternative to tortillas if made thin and cooked until crisp. The results were very dry and needed some accompaniments to be really palatable. They certainly won’t roll up like traditional crepes do.

Protein powder – Lovely fluffy little pancakes, take care not to overcook, they only need a few mins. They hold together well and considering that we used chocolate protein powder and bananas they did not need any further accompaniments, although we found them very tasty with greek yoghurt and berries.

Almond flour – A little grainy in texture but nicely sweet and creamy. Would go very well with salmon and cream cheese as a savoury snack.

Coconut flour – This batter thickens well on beating and produces a very pale fluffy pancake which is slightly sweet and only a little grainy.

Gluten free plain flour - (These are the pancakes I usually serve to friends and family – even those who do not avoid gluten – Michelle)

Buckwheat – These ones have an earthy/vegetable taste and are a little rubbery (although I may have overcooked them a little – Michelle). There are some very complex recipes for buckwheat pancakes out there but we found a simple recipe so that everyone can make them with easy-to-find ingredients. On their own they are a bit tasteless but with yoghurt and berries they make a tasty breakfast!

The winner is:

The protein pancakes were the outright winner! Possibly due to the chocolate protein powder we used along with the bananas. You can of course make these with any flavour protein or the flavourless versions too.

The fluffy slightly sweet coconut ones came second and the almond flour 3^rd.

Thanks to Emma for her assistance and cooking skills – Michelle.