Professional Triathlete, Kimberley Morrison has spent the last two years training and competing in grueling Half Ironman Distance races all across the world. Here, she talks to us about her rigorous training regime and what she does to recover, relax and prepare for her next challenge…

Tell us about what you do and what exactly a triathlon entails?

A triathlon includes swimming, cycling and then running – one after another. These range in distance from a super sprint with a total distance of 6.75km, to an Ironman which is 226km. I specialise in the Half Ironman Distance at the moment which is a 1.9km swim then on to a 90km bike and then a half marathon (13.1km run).

In 2014 I became the European Age Group Olympic distance triathlon champion in Kitzbuhel, Austria. I turned professional towards the end of 2015. I was granted my professional race licence from British Triathlon having had success since teaming up with my amazing coach of now 2 years, Mark Pearce.

Did you always imagine you’d be an athlete when you were growing up?

I absolutely loved sport growing up and got involved in all school sport, from field hockey tours to Canada and Amsterdam, to national athletics competitions and swimming at Crystal Palace for the school nationals. I never imagined it would be my career – in fact, just over 2 years ago I was sitting behind my desk in London in Corporate Banking.

It must be incredibly demanding – what’s your training schedule?

My training schedule is what I love day-to-day. Depending on the race calendar, a typical week can be up to 28 hours of training with a swim, bike and run everyday and with strength and conditioning work built in twice weekly. I also keep on top of recovery and try to get at least 8 hours sleep most nights and have a weekly massage. The ultimate recovery for me though is the Jacuzzi hot tub we have at home (J-335™). I use this post bike and run sessions whilst enjoying my homemade recovery smoothies.

Tell us about your personal career highlights to date

Winning Ironman70.3 Buenos Aires – this was a dream come true for my first race of 2016. More recently cycling into the record books at Ironman70.3 Dubai in January 2017 and leading the race with current Ironman World Champion Daniela Ryf.

You must have traveled all over the world to compete – what’s been your favourite country and why?

My husband and I, do all our race travelling together and our favourite country has to be Sweden (mum and dad also joined us for this race). We love the people, its beauty, and the stunning likes – it’s a very relaxed and rewarding atmosphere for a race.

How do you relax after training?

Always in my Jacuzzi hot tub. I have our hot tub at home set to 38 and I spend between 30-60 minutes using all the jet options to promote circulation and aid recovery. I also invest in lots of sleep and homemade cooking. From Asian curry to black bean brownies, teff cookies, homemade granola, homemade energy balls, homemade Nutella – the list goes on. I also spend time walking with our Alaskan Malamute, Suka.

Give us some top tips to recover after an intense training session…

After my hard sessions I make sure I stretch the abused muscle groups and have some food high in Carbohydrates and Protein and then I enjoy a 30 or 60-minute session in our Jacuzzi hot tub to help my muscles recover so I can perform to the best of my ability in my next session.

What do you do in your spare time when you’re not training or competing?

Eating! I absolutely love food and we enjoy going out to eat with the family.

Ben and I love to take our dog Suka on long walks, runs down the beach and to the pub. I also love to swim in the sea and we are looking to move closer with our next house move – we currently live 12 miles from the North Norfolk Coast.

Where do you see yourself in 10 year’s time?

I see myself having achieved great success in Triathlon and sharing my journey from Great Ormond’s Street Children’s hospital at the age of 3 to an Ironman Champion. I see myself inspiring others and enjoying life with my family.

Finally… How many miles do you think you’ve swan, cycled and ran in your life so far?

(I have based this on my averages over a week and multiplied by 4 1/2 years)

So far, I will have swum enough to cross the worlds second largest ocean, The Atlantic 3,716 miles, and cycled around the World, 40,000km.

Running wise… I wouldn’t like to guess but I am sure this would have taken me around the world at least once in the past 29 year’s. (That would be an average of 17miles per week!