Adam is a runner who works hard to achieve his goals. He talks to Sundried about training and racing.

Have you always been into sport?

I played Sunday League football for years as a kid but gave it up. I eventually got back into it 10 years later playing Sunday League and 6-a-side but it wasn't until just over a year ago that I got into running.

What’s been your favourite race to date and why?

If you had asked me before February I would have said London Marathon 2019, but after running the St Peter's Way Ultra Marathon earlier this year it has to be that. They were both great races, but for me running on the trails through my home county was pretty cool and the organisers and volunteers were spot on.

And your proudest achievement?

Running the London Marathon in 2019, which was my first marathon. It was an incredible experience from the start of my training block to crossing that finish line. I was extremely proud of what I achieved.

Have you ever had any racing disasters/your toughest race yet?

No racing disasters thankfully but my toughest race was probably Pleshey Half Marathon. I thought I could get a PB and pushed hard for it, but the temperature was in the high 20s Celsius and I suffer badly running in hot conditions.

How do you overcome setbacks?

By setting realistic goals and building back up slowly.

What advice do you wish you'd been given before you started competing?

During my training block for my first marathon, I thought I had to hit every single training session otherwise I wouldn't be good enough come race day regardless of how I felt (slight niggle or illness). Now I know this is not the case and since then I have relaxed a lot about it. If I don't feel it one day then I will just either not run or switch it for an easy session, it's not the end of the world and in the grand scheme of things it makes no difference.

What are your goals for 2020?

My two main goals for 2020 were to get a sub 20-minute 5k which I managed to do in January and the other was to complete an ultra marathon which I did in February. As far as new goals are concerned, I would like to get a sub 40-minute 10k and bring my marathon time down as well.

Who do you take your inspiration from?

I am part of a running community called RunSpire, everyone in that group is an inspiration in my eyes.

What do you like about Sundried and what’s your favourite bit of our kit?

I love the ethics behind the company; if there is anything I can do to make the environment better then I will and after wearing Sundried clothing there is no compromise in quality so for me it's a no brainer. I wore the mens leggings for St Peter's Way and they felt comfortable and kept me warm for the whole duration.

Daniel is a young cyclist who can see life as a pro. He talks to Sundried about life in the saddle.

Have you always been in sport?

Yes, I've been into cycling since I was little and when I was 8 I took part in my first race. I've been involved in sport my whole life, both watching and taking part.

How did you get into cycling?

My cousins in Italy (where my parents are from) have been cyclists at continental level. My dad always liked watching cycling as my uncle (dad's brother) was a cyclist from a young age. I watched it before I was a cyclist so I decided to give it a go and loved it.

What’s been your favourite race and why?

My favourite race was my first ever road race. I did no training at all. I was racing against 12 year-olds when I was 8. I had a heavy bike, but I really enjoyed it. My family were there to cheer me on and the atmosphere was great, so I decided to keep going and see where the path takes me.

What's your proudest achievement?

My proudest achievement was back in 2013 when I won the regional championships.

Have you ever had any racing disasters/your toughest race yet?

Yes, I've had a few crashes but never broken a bone (touch wood) in cycling.

The toughest race was actually my first one as I went as hard as I could and didn’t really know what I was doing!

How do you overcome set backs?

In September 2019, I changed coach, and he's helped me a lot. He motivates me to keep going even during tough times and after bad training sessions. To overcome setbacks, l calm down and have time to myself to think about what I did right or wrong and then discuss with my parents and coach to work on it.

What advice do you wish you'd been given before you started competing?

It's not all about winning; I'm too competitive.

What are your goals?

My long term goal is to compete at world level. My short term goal is to just keep going, day by day, and see where the road takes me.

Who do you take inspiration from?

Mark Cavendish has always been my cycling hero; I like how he plays the “game” and uses tactics. I also like Cameron Jeffers. He's not as famous, but he inspires me to ride more and I can see myself leading the life of a pro cyclist.

What do you like about Sundried and what’s your favourite bit of our kit?

I like a lot of things. I like the Sundried Stealth jersey and shorts because they are plain black with “Sundried” on; plain and simple and looks very good. I also love the Sundried Cadence cycle collection; love the blue.

Andy is a cyclist who has his sights set on completing a triathlon. He talks to Sundried about his passion for this sport.

Have you always been into sport?

Yes, from a young age. Growing up, I was into every sport imaginable. Running and cycling were the two that grabbed me during those early days and I haven't lost my passion for them.

What made you decide to enter the world of triathlon?

I've always found cycling and running to be sports that I have a natural affinity with and come fairly easily. Swimming is something I have to work harder at and triathlon seems like a logical step to take. I enjoy watching triathlon and I'm fascinated by multi-event sports, as there's such a physical demand on the body and mind!

What’s been your favourite race to date and why?

No triathlons yet, but Ride London is a great cycling event to take part in. As a spectator, the three Grand Tours are epic and the Cobbled Classics like Paris Roubaix are fantastic to watch.

And your proudest achievement?

Representing England Schools in my youth as a 400 metre sprinter.

Have you ever had any racing disasters/your toughest race yet?

Plenty of times when I've run out of energy and not eaten enough throughout the race. The last 20 miles of a race where you've under-fuelled can be so gruelling. You need to get your nutrition right in order to perform! A few snapped chains have also curtailed me in the past.

How do you overcome setbacks?

By setting goals and knowing that you're always stepping a little closer to the end game. A sense of perspective always helps too and realising that my family is everything, so a setback in your training is not going to do you any real harm and it's only temporary.

What advice do you wish you'd been given before you started competing?

Give it your all, all of the time. Commit 100% to your sport, by dedicating yourself to improving every day. Also, set yourself goals, constantly.

What are your goals?

1. Compete in a triathlon
2. Ride Mont Ventoux or Alpe d'Huez
3. Take 5 KOMs

Who do you take your inspiration from?

Typically, professional athletes - Chris Froome, Geraint Thomas etc. Increasingly though, I am inspired by everyday people who are seeking to make big changes in their life by taking up sport. Couch to 5k, your first 10k run, marathon, century ride - it's massively inspiring to see people do this and it makes me want to do more!

What do you like about Sundried and what’s your favourite bit of our kit?

The Sundried kit is superb quality, yet affordable. The act that it's made for athletes means the fit is superb and driven by performance. The kit also looks good, understated, yet stylish.

Rebecca is a cyclist who went from enjoying summer cycle tour holidays with her dad to becoming a competitive cyclocross racer. She talks to Sundried about the highs and lows of cycling.

Have you always been into sport?

Yes, I have always been into sport. For as long as I remember, I have been cycling with my father and brother. It started off as casual cycling with no racing. We were in a cycling club called Pontefract Cycling Club for quite a few years; we did so much with them, from casual Sunday rides to touring around Holland and Belgium all together.

We carried on this tradition even after leaving that club. Now, every year me and my father go on a cycling holiday touring around Belgium for two weeks each summer. Then as I got older, I started racing. I have never been at a professional level of cycling, however I have tried every single type of cycling and enjoy what I do. I hope to get fitter this year and do better in the winter cyclocross season 2020.

What’s been your favourite race to date and why?

My favourite race to date was a cyclocross race that I did in October 2018, this was a special Yorkshire points race that was held at the Great Yorkshire show ground in Harrogate. This was my favourite race because the atmosphere was so different to a normal Yorkshire points race on a Sunday. There were shops in a warehouse and it was incredible to look around before racing. The course was huge, it covered quite a bit of land and the best bit was that the mud came out to play! It was so muddy and to spend this time with my good friends was great. It rained during my race, however it made it good fun as it was slippery and muddy.

And your proudest achievement?

I have so many! Some of my proudest are being my club hill climb champion for the women twice (Knottingley Velo). It has also been taking part in as many things as possible such as having new experiences such as going to the velodrome, going BMX-ing at Manchester etc.

Have you ever had any racing disasters/your toughest race yet?

My toughest race yet and my most proud to complete is definitely the 3 peaks cyclocross race, I took part in this in September 2019. To be honest, I did not do any ‘proper’ training for this, I did train for it but I went into doing this race knowing I was not at my full potential.

Nevertheless, I am so proud of myself for completing it, as it was my first ‘big’ race like this I did not even think I would be able to finish it. However, I did finish and I was ‘the last finisher’ too! That bit did not bother me at all just because I did it! I finished the 3 peaks cyclocross. During this race I had a race disaster, this was that on the last peak which was Pen-y-ghent, I unfortunately punctured going downhill, I had to then run to the nearest marshall to help me as I was full of cramp and I was cold. This cost me and my father the ‘father and daughter award’. I will be back to do it again hopefully.

How do you overcome setbacks?

During cycling, a person does have setbacks, I had quite a few during winter cyclocross last year, these setbacks can be anything from injuries to mindset. I wasn’t too well and was full of cold for a lot of the season, however the reason I did not complete the full series was because of my motivation.

I overcome setbacks by thinking about why I am doing what I am doing and why I fell in love with cycling to start with. I just remind myself my love for cycling and that it is not always about the competitive side, it is also about making memories, meeting new people and enjoying riding a bike.

What advice do you wish you'd been given before you started competing?

I wish I was given the advice to keep up my fitness more, that it isn’t all about winning and I wish I had been told not to push myself too hard that I will fall out of love with the sport. Mainly - 'To not take it too seriously!’

What are your goals for 2020?

My plans for 2020 are to get fit but not push myself too hard; to find a love for sport that I have not found before. My main goals are that I want to go back to where it started and take part in grass track racing, summer cyclocross, in order for me to get fit for the winter season so that I can hopefully start placing or having visible results.

Who do you take your inspiration from?

I take my inspiration from many people, an obvious one is from the professionals, some GB athletes I looked up to when I was growing up were Chris Hoy, Lizzie Armistead also known as Lizzie Deign, Victoria Pendleton etc. I now look up to people such as Mathieu Vanderpoel and Ceylin Carmen, the two world champion cyclocross riders. Another person who I have known growing up and who is now very well known is Tom Pidcock, he has worked his way up to elite level and has raced with some of the best riders in the world.

What do you like about Sundried and what’s your favourite bit of our kit?

I like everything about Sundried, I love it all. I could not pick a favourite piece of kit because it all looks amazing, some items that have caught my eye are the padded coat and the women's cycling and running kit.

Johnny is a personal trainer who is embarking on a triathlon journey. He talks to Sundried about training and motivation.

Please tell us about any sporting events you have completed or have coming up.

At this precise stage in my life I am all about triathlon. I do not have any races set up as yet but for me it is about challenging myself. I have run a lot of marathons, very few official but mostly just for me, by me, when I felt like it. I love the lone wolf style of training, just me on a road clocking the miles.

My longest run to date would be a 50k (32 miles) but I feel I could better this next time I get 5-6 hours free. I have competed in a number of CrossFit competitions both team and individual. I love fitness, exercise and the general feeling of being wrecked after pushing your body to its limits through whatever sport you choose.

Tell us about your journey to fitness? Where did it all start?

I started training back at school through rugby and took it up to club level. I was introduced to the gym at a young age so got hooked on achieving the body beautiful. I then qualified as a trainer and became really passionate about running, taking myself of for impromptu marathons when I was bored. I have always been keen on bettering myself and had my eyes opened when I started CrossFit. A very competitive, ego driven sport but I loved it, made a lot easier by the great community behind it. I definitely caught the bug for it. Currently I am swimming, cycling, running, lifting and just generally trying to be the best version of me.

What are your training goals now?

I am currently buzzed to do a triathlon and one day I will do an Ironman. The funny thing is that my swimming is horrendous. I think the last time I did it was back at school some 20 years ago. I am determined however and really embrace new things, so I am going to enjoy the process, nail the swim and enjoy getting pains from sitting on a saddle for way too long.

Tell us one unusual fact we wouldn’t know about you:

I starred as a background artist in 7 seasons of Game of Thrones, playing a character from nearly every different house, doing stunts and also being a stand-in for some of the lead actors.

What advice do you wish you'd been given when you first started out?

I sort of wish I had stuck with a sport and tried to master it. I do feel you need to try everything and I encourage people to do that but I suppose the curious side of me thinks that if I pumped the amount of time and energy into one sport and only that sport I could have achieved big things in it. Then again, I have no regrets.

Do you follow a specific nutrition plan? If so, what/when do you eat?

Honestly, not really. Don't get me wrong I watch my macros and eat around 2900 calories a day with a well balanced diet, but because I am training a lot I do occasionally throw in a bar of chocolate or post long run I tend to eat absolutely EVERYTHING going in the house.

What do you do to keep your clients motivated? Do you have any top tips to keep motivated?

Try to see the bigger picture. I have been training for years and it is now an essential part of my life but when I started out, it was slow, I had to learn to enjoy it. I would say just be consistent, going for the first time to anything new is always the hardest but after your first session you have done the hard bit, so just sit back and enjoy the process no matter how slow or hard you think it is. It never gets easier you just get better at doing it. The barrier always moves, that's called progression

Talk us through your training regime.

I train 6 days a week currently with a rest day on Sunday. I start each morning with a 2.5 mile run and a cold shower. I usually workout best at midday when I do a full body functional fitness style workout. Recently, I have set my goals on a triathlon so I have been incorporating 2 rides, 3 swims and 3 runs a week, on top of my strength training at the gym.

How do you keep your fitness knowledge up to date?

As with every industry, you are always learning and to do this you need CPD, Continuing Professional Development. Try new sports, try new training methods and most importantly surround yourself with people who are better than you and feed off their knowledge.

What are your top 3 trainer tips?

1. Eat well
2. Sleep well
3. Keep it 'stupid simply'. My biggest accomplishments to date have come from just doing the basics great and turning up without fail.

If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I love chocolate and I know coming from a trainer this is bad, so I would have to say sushi. I love the stuff and with its high protein and omega 3 content you cannot go wrong.

What do you like about Sundried and what's your favourite bit of our kit?

I absolutely love the training t-shirts, in the gym you can have a great level of figure hugging comfort whilst not getting too warm or cold. The cycling gear is great too

Favourite fitness quote:

"It is what it is" by definition, "This circumstance is simply a fact and must be accepted or dealt with as it exists". I always find this pushes me on with my training. Whether I pick up an injury or a workout was not as productive, I accept the current situation, address it, make changes and carry on as a better human.