Meet 4 x Ironman Inspiration - Emma Hill

I first met Emma Hill in 2019 as she became a member of the CrossFit gym I am a coach at - M Squared Fitness. Straight away I noticed what a brilliant athlete she is, she is super coachable, moves like a dream, (honestly her technique is always mega), she works hard and is super fit. As I got to know her, I found out that she had done an Ironman. Well, not 1, but FOUR Ironmans! And two half Ironmans (now 3). How impressive and inspiring is that?! And you wouldn’t have known it – she is the most humble person, just quietly gets on with it, and often undersells herself, which, to me, makes a true athlete, although I’d love to see exactly what she is capable of with a tiny bit more confidence ;) but we touch on that later on in the blog! 

In August 2021 we completed a half Ironman together – my first and her 3rd. It was an absolute honour to do it alongside her and I loved it, she was a true inspiration, and I couldn’t have chosen a better person to do it with. Earlier in the year she asked me for a running programme to help her with her training for it. She has been following this programme now for around 9 months and she has gone from strength to strength with her running, she is so much more comfortable, relaxed and of course, faster! She recently knocked 4 minutes off her best 10km time! 

She is an absolute pleasure to coach and programme for, and I have loved watching her improve. As well as being coachable, she is also just the loveliest person, and everyone who meets her thinks so too. So I thought I would do a little Q&A with her to find out more about her, as well as talk about all things Triathlon, Running, CrossFit and confidence! She is a pretty impressive person, not only has she achieved all these sporting things, she also runs her own business - MoveWell Physio & Pilates , (she’s an excellent physio for anyone in need in the Manchester area, and also gives a great sports massage!) is a postnatal CrossFit coach, AND is a mum of 2! Not an easy thing juggling all that!

Please tell us a bit about your sporting background.

I played a lot of hockey from the age of 11 to just before Uni - I played for what used to be Bowden First Team to a relatively high level, we played probably 5 or 6 leagues below the premier league although I can’t remember exactly. I didn’t play hockey at Uni, because I studied Physiotherapy, and we had lectures on a Wednesday afternoon whilst all the sports teams would be playing. So I just ran to keep fit! When I came back from Uni I started playing again & I became captain for a couple of years, however I didn’t want to play at a high level anymore I just wanted to enjoy it.

I started doing triathlon in 2008, my first one was a sprint and I did breaststroke for the whole of the swim in a wetsuit… which was hard haha! I did my first half Ironman in 2010, and then completed a full Ironman in 2012, 2013, and 2 in 2014. In 2016 and 2021 I did 2 more half Ironmans. I also started CrossFit in 2018 when my son Rudi was about 12 weeks old. 

Wow! Superstar!

How long have you been following the SwimWod running programme, and which type of programme is it?

I am doing a bespoke programme twice a week, and I have been doing it about 8 months. I started it a fair bit before doing my half ironman last year.

Why did you decide to go on the programme?

Mainly for accountability. Running has always been the hardest thing to motivate myself to do. The old classic – knowing I will feel good for doing it, but getting out the door is often hard. So if someone is telling me what to do it becomes less hard. Before starting the programme if I was going out for a run I would literally just go for a run - and I’d always do the same 4 mile route and the same distance and it just got a bit boring and there would just be days where I just couldn’t be bothered. Also if I’ve got an event, I will run leading up to it because I have to, but as soon as it’s over, I won’t run again for ages. Especially throughout the winter. So it’s partly for accountability and having someone tell me what to do, but ALSO I have seen that since following the programme my running is getting better and I like it now, whereas I didn’t used to like it. So that is motivation in itself.

Which leads nicely into the next question - what (if anything) do you like about the programme, and have you noticed any positive improvements?

I like how varied it is. Sometimes there are shorter sessions, the distances are always varied. I really like that there’s rest in it. Normally I would never give myself permission to rest in a run. If I went out for a run and stopped or walked I’d think to myself I’m rubbish. But because it’s programmed, it makes a massive difference, and actually it helps me improve because I can push harder on the intervals. So yes, I feel like my running is getting better and it is definitely getting quicker, which is nice. And I don’t hate it as much! Well, some days I do but not often, they are few and far between, and most of the time I look forward to it! 

That’s good to hear! ;) Have you entered any running events whilst doing the programme and if so, how did they go?

I did a half Ironman in august, but of course that wasn’t just running. My run actually didn’t go as well as I was hoping it would but that’s because I don’t think I did enough cycling in training so my legs were pretty fatigued from the cycle when I went into the run. But then I did a 10km race in October and I got a PB by about 4 mins! I then did another one in Wilmslow – the Festive 10km (dressed as a gold star!) and we did it as a team and the pace felt easy which was nice. 

What is your biggest achievement in Sport?

Ermmm.. that’s a good question! Most recently my biggest achievement was crossing the finish line of my recent Half Ironman with my little girl Lucy. It had been my dream to cross the finish line of a big event with my baby for 10 years, ever since I completed my first long distance triathlon, and I finally got to do it this year!

Before that, my biggest achievement was probably the first Ironman I did. It took me 13 and a half hours, and that for me felt quite fast. Another would be when I completed a half Ironman 6 months after having Lucy (my first baby). I started training for it when she was about 8 weeks old. I went for a run in Abersoch and jumped off a groyne on the beach and thought “my pelvic floor was not ready for that!” haha! Everything felt fine doing the actual event, but the hardest thing was fitting training in, I was still breast feeding and so I didn’t train that much for it.

Oh and another achievement was winning the scaled partner competition with my friend Baller at M Squared! Totally unexpected and nice! 

Definitely some great achievements to be proud of! What has been your greatest obstacle in sport?

No idea! Children? Can I say that? Hmmmm… maybe confidence? You probably won’t be surprised to hear that. Confidence definitely. I remember being little and hating doing tennis tournaments in the school holidays and only did them because my mum made me, and I was actually quite good but I just didn’t have any confidence in myself! And even though I loved playing hockey I hated the thought that if I played badly I’d let the team down, so rarely felt confident playing.

How did you overcome or how are you overcoming it?

I’m not sure I have overcome it yet! Finding a coach like you helps! Finding something not competitive for me has helped like triathlon. I love triathlon and the long distance stuff because I have complete faith that my body can get me round, and it’s just about completing the event and the achievement rather than getting a good time. 

And finding CrossFit. It sounds cheesy but I feel like I’ve found my tribe! M Squared is such a friendly gym and so encouraging. And the coaches are so supportive, and especially you who has so much more confidence in what I can do than I do! Slowly the stuff you tell me is seeping into my brain and I’m starting to believe you. And getting older and realising I don’t care what other people think has helped my confidence- it only matters what I am doing. I wouldn’t say I’m the most confident person but I’m working on it!

And you’re doing brilliantly! Ok so, what motivates you when training or competing?

That varies. It depends partly what I’m doing. With triathlon, my Dad has always motivated me. However, now it is also my kids. I want them to see me doing stuff like that, I think it’s good for them, as they grow up. For example, moments like running with Lucy over the finish line and showing her that women are strong and and capable and can do anything if they put their mind to it. 

If there’s not an event on the horizon then motivation is more for my own mental health. I know I feel antsy if I’ve not exercised for a few days. Sometimes it gets in my head too much though, you know, when you feel like you need to train and if you don’t you feel guilty. So the running programme has actually changed how I train a bit. Because you have built in rest into my training, it means I let myself go a bit easier sometimes in training if I know I need it. I now know how to adjust the intensity depending on what I need. So the interval training in my running has taught me how to be more intuitive in the rest of my training too. Just giving myself permission to do something different. I used to turn up to CrossFit and always think I should go at the top weights. But actually if I’m sore / tired / etc sometimes it’s actually better to go lighter or slightly easier. I don’t think it’s necessary to always go 100%. But anyway, that was going off topic a little bit. Training gives me headspace which is often what motivates me. That and food too. That always motivates me ;)

I love that the running training has helped you realise that. :)

How do you find CrossFit and Triathlon training at the same time? Does it work? Or do you find it difficult?

I think it compliments it really nicely. I think depending on what triathlon you are training for depends on how you will find it. If you are training for a sprint or an Olympic distance then you can maintain and probably keep progressing your strength in CrossFit. But if you are training for a half or an Ironman, your fitness would be mega, your engine would be good, but your strength will probably plateu. But when you think about all the movements in CrossFit, like squats, deadlifts and explosive movements, they compliment cycling, running and swimming, so I think the two sports work really well together.

CrossFit is functional fitness, but it’s all conditioning – which is exactly what you need. The hard thing is fitting it all in, but if you speak to certain people then there is an argument that you can still train effectively for an Ironman on just 10 hours a week of training. So it depends really! 

The thing I find hard about CrossFit and Triathlon training is that I love CrossFit and don’t want to miss out on CrossFit sessions. And usually I would only train once a day. And so having to do twice a day, for example 1 running session then 1 weightlifting session – it is harder to fit in. However it is easier now the kids are at school.

Have you got any advice for anyone who doesn’t like running, but wants to enter Triathlon?

Get a coach or a structured running programme. It depends what you want to get out of it. If you just want to complete a triathlon and you can already swim/bike/run a bit and you’re not bothered about your result then you’d be fine. But if you want to see some improvements then structured runs are better. I used to buy the Triathlon magazines and see the structured running sessions and think “who bothers doing those runs that’s ridiculous!” but actually, it does make a difference and they do know what they’re talking about ;) I did used to follow free half marathon training programmes off the internet, but it would actually be too much running volume for me. My body doesn’t handle a large amount of running that well. So having you there as a coach and telling you how much I can handle makes a big difference because then you programme according to me and tailor it to me. Having something bespoke makes a difference because it takes into account your goals. 

What about during the run in the triathlon, any advice there?

I always just think “just keep putting one foot in front of the other”. And if I can run faster than I can walk, I run, if I can walk faster than I can run, I walk. And I always walk the aid stations. Which helps. Keep drinking lots. And just keep moving! Don’t stop! And try and ignore any pain you’ve got.

Have you done any other programmes through SwimWod?

I started doing a swimming programme in 2020 and then we went into lockdown… so it changed to rowing! I enjoyed that, and my rowing has got better! I also had to isolate over summer so instead of the running I got rowing again and I liked it. 

Great! What did you like about it?

Having a focus and knowing what all the numbers on the machine mean! Haha! You telling me what I need to aim for in terms of strokes per minute or 500m pace to aim for, helps me to understand it. It makes a difference afterwards too, because I then understand pacing a lot better when I get given different distances, knowing what’s too fast or too slow. The swimming was good too when I did it but lockdown ruined that. Again, having a focus helped. Prior to that if I ever went swimming I’d just swim 40 lengths up and down no change in pace. And it was boring. So when I got your sessions it was much better having a structure and a focus to my swims.

What have you got coming up in 2022?

I’ve got an Ironman in July, with my Dad, which will be fun! It’s the same one we did in 2012 that was 13 and a half hours. It is brilliant because the atmosphere is amazing so I’m looking forward to that.

However I’m not looking forward to the night before and not being able to sleep and getting up in the morning with an underlying sense of panic…! It’s in a canal and they set us off in waves. Which meant that last time I was an hour ahead of my Dad. And I hope that happens again because if we end up being near each other we’ll end up doing it together and I’ll spend the whole time worrying about him and hoping he’s ok. I also would quite like to see what I could do it in. I was 25 when I did it last time (which is nuts!) so I’d like to see what I’d do this time, 10 years later. I’ve also got a half marathon planned with you! And some more 10kms. And maybe another triathlon together too… ;)  

 Thanks so much Em for such a great blog! You’ve achieved so much and are such an inspiring person. Your running has come on so much, I’m excited to see how you get on with your upcoming events this year, and in the future too! I know you’ll smash them, like you always do! :)