Victoria Pendleton
MY H E ALTHY LIFE
THEY SAID I WAS TOO GIRLY TO WIN T
hrough her cycling career she regularly topped the podium – so it’s a surprise to hear Victoria Pendleton say she hasn’t always felt that confident. ‘At school I was quite shy,’ she says. ‘I refused to speak out loud in English literature, because I was afraid of stumbling over my words in front of my peers.’ What’s made the difference? Sport – and getting older: Victoria turns 36 in September. ‘I’m a lot more settled and less uncertain about what to do next, how I should make decisions or what I should or shouldn’t be doing,’ she says. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever felt better.’ As a cyclist, she broke records and won gold and silver Olympic medals – so Victoria could have been justified in putting her feet up when she retired after London 2012. But in March 2015, she embarked on a new career as a jump jockey – although, Victoria laughs, it was a move she couldn’t have predicted. ‘I was approached to train as an amateur jockey, and I thought it was a bit mad at first,’ she says. ‘But so many elements of it really ticked a box – the routine, being part of a team again, camaraderie and something mentally challenging and competitive. I tried it for two weeks before I signed a contract, and I fell in love with it. Learning how to ride race horses as an adult is a crazy thing to do, so there was a lot of scepticism.’ But, reveals Victoria, being told that she can’t do something is a sure fire way to motivate her. ‘It’s easy to say you can’t or shouldn’t. People can make judgements on what you are capable of, but nobody knows unless you try. You can’t measure what’s on the inside either, like drive, ambition and determination.’ The naysayers inspired her, she says. ‘I thought, “I am capable, disciplined, take direction well, and I’ve been coached – so why not?”’ I’m really proud of what I’ve achieved, especially considering it didn’t seem possible.’ It’s not the first time Victoria had come up against doubts about her ability. ‘I’ve been told I’m too much of a girl to be successful in sport! You should be able to do it in whichever way you want – if you’re winning,
it doesn’t matter how you get there.’ She refused to conform in the male-dominated world of track cycling and was known for wearing mascara during the sweatiest velodrome sprints. ‘I love make-up – absolutely adore it. My beauty bag is best described as Chubby Sticks: Chubby foundation, Chubby lips, and cheeks – they’re so good when you’re on the go. But it looks hysterical – just a bunch of crayons and a mascara. One of my very best friends and I end up talking about beauty products within the first 10 minutes of being on the phone to each other. Have you seen this, have you tried this yet – we’re just a bit like that. It’s something I’ve always enjoyed. I go to the beauty counter to see what it is I need in my life. So, yeah, that’s being true to myself. I can be like that and I can still be a champion.’ For Victoria, the medals and smashed records wouldn’t have happened without her support network. ‘You perform alone, but in preparing for 2012, there were 13 people I used to see regularly to get my job done – a physiotherapist, nutritionists, psychologists, performance analyst, physiologists. They were all part of my support network.’ And then there were the friends and family members at home, not least husband Scott Gardner. The pair met in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics of 2008, when Scott was the British cycling team’s data analyst. He understands her needs, says Victoria. ‘As an athlete, you have to be really selfish about things and it’s quite difficult to manage. It’s great to have someone who knows why you have to be so focused. They put up with a lot!’ Victoria and Scott have a lot more freedom to spend time together now she’s no longer cycling. ‘Before, everything was so planned in advance that you couldn’t ever do anything on a whim. Now, I still train, but the afternoon is more freestyle. Get up early, go to the yard, do my exercise, come back and enjoy the rest of the day.’ Her diet’s changed along with her lifestyle: as well as cutting back on calories now she no longer needs to build muscle mass, she’s become vegetarian. ‘Pretty much vegan, to be honest!’ She’s in a good place, she says, and feels healthy. ‘I think healthy means looking after your body, looking after your mind, being happy – and appreciating life to the full.’ Victoria is part of Clinique’s #Differencemaker campaign, set up to inspire and encourage young women to never limit themselves.
Main picture: Victoria’s impressive medal haul from the UCI World Championships alone includes nine golds. Below, from top: picking up her silver medal for the track sprint at London 2012; with husband Scott; Victoria competes in the Foxhunter Chase for amateur riders during Cheltenham Gold Cup Day in March
Cycling superstar turned jockey, Victoria Pendleton tells healthy why she’s more content than ever – and why she’s proud to stay true to herself WORDS FRANCESCA SPECTER AND CHARLOTTE HAIGH MACNEIL
26 healthy-magazine.co.uk
Photographs Getty
LEARNING HOW TO “RACE HORSES AS AN ADULT IS CRAZY ”
healthy-magazine.co.uk healthy-magazine.co.uk 27
THEY SAID I WAS TOO GIRLY TO WIN T
hrough her cycling career she regularly topped the podium – so it’s a surprise to hear Victoria Pendleton say she hasn’t always felt that confident. ‘At school I was quite shy,’ she says. ‘I refused to speak out loud in English literature, because I was afraid of stumbling over my words in front of my peers.’ What’s made the difference? Sport – and getting older: Victoria turns 36 in September. ‘I’m a lot more settled and less uncertain about what to do next, how I should make decisions or what I should or shouldn’t be doing,’ she says. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever felt better.’ As a cyclist, she broke records and won gold and silver Olympic medals – so Victoria could have been justified in putting her feet up when she retired after London 2012. But in March 2015, she embarked on a new career as a jump jockey – although, Victoria laughs, it was a move she couldn’t have predicted. ‘I was approached to train as an amateur jockey, and I thought it was a bit mad at first,’ she says. ‘But so many elements of it really ticked a box – the routine, being part of a team again, camaraderie and something mentally challenging and competitive. I tried it for two weeks before I signed a contract, and I fell in love with it. Learning how to ride race horses as an adult is a crazy thing to do, so there was a lot of scepticism.’ But, reveals Victoria, being told that she can’t do something is a sure fire way to motivate her. ‘It’s easy to say you can’t or shouldn’t. People can make judgements on what you are capable of, but nobody knows unless you try. You can’t measure what’s on the inside either, like drive, ambition and determination.’ The naysayers inspired her, she says. ‘I thought, “I am capable, disciplined, take direction well, and I’ve been coached – so why not?”’ I’m really proud of what I’ve achieved, especially considering it didn’t seem possible.’ It’s not the first time Victoria had come up against doubts about her ability. ‘I’ve been told I’m too much of a girl to be successful in sport! You should be able to do it in whichever way you want – if you’re winning,
it doesn’t matter how you get there.’ She refused to conform in the male-dominated world of track cycling and was known for wearing mascara during the sweatiest velodrome sprints. ‘I love make-up – absolutely adore it. My beauty bag is best described as Chubby Sticks: Chubby foundation, Chubby lips, and cheeks – they’re so good when you’re on the go. But it looks hysterical – just a bunch of crayons and a mascara. One of my very best friends and I end up talking about beauty products within the first 10 minutes of being on the phone to each other. Have you seen this, have you tried this yet – we’re just a bit like that. It’s something I’ve always enjoyed. I go to the beauty counter to see what it is I need in my life. So, yeah, that’s being true to myself. I can be like that and I can still be a champion.’ For Victoria, the medals and smashed records wouldn’t have happened without her support network. ‘You perform alone, but in preparing for 2012, there were 13 people I used to see regularly to get my job done – a physiotherapist, nutritionists, psychologists, performance analyst, physiologists. They were all part of my support network.’ And then there were the friends and family members at home, not least husband Scott Gardner. The pair met in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics of 2008, when Scott was the British cycling team’s data analyst. He understands her needs, says Victoria. ‘As an athlete, you have to be really selfish about things and it’s quite difficult to manage. It’s great to have someone who knows why you have to be so focused. They put up with a lot!’ Victoria and Scott have a lot more freedom to spend time together now she’s no longer cycling. ‘Before, everything was so planned in advance that you couldn’t ever do anything on a whim. Now, I still train, but the afternoon is more freestyle. Get up early, go to the yard, do my exercise, come back and enjoy the rest of the day.’ Her diet’s changed along with her lifestyle: as well as cutting back on calories now she no longer needs to build muscle mass, she’s become vegetarian. ‘Pretty much vegan, to be honest!’ She’s in a good place, she says, and feels healthy. ‘I think healthy means looking after your body, looking after your mind, being happy – and appreciating life to the full.’ Victoria is part of Clinique’s #Differencemaker campaign, set up to inspire and encourage young women to never limit themselves.
Main picture: Victoria’s impressive medal haul from the UCI World Championships alone includes nine golds. Below, from top: picking up her silver medal for the track sprint at London 2012; with husband Scott; Victoria competes in the Foxhunter Chase for amateur riders during Cheltenham Gold Cup Day in March
Cycling superstar turned jockey, Victoria Pendleton tells healthy why she’s more content than ever – and why she’s proud to stay true to herself WORDS FRANCESCA SPECTER AND CHARLOTTE HAIGH MACNEIL
26 healthy-magazine.co.uk
Photographs Getty
LEARNING HOW TO “RACE HORSES AS AN ADULT IS CRAZY ”
healthy-magazine.co.uk healthy-magazine.co.uk 27
