Melissa was first on the Tough Girl Podcast back in 2017 where she shares more about her life, how she got into fitness and doing ultra challenges, such as EPIC 5 (the what, the how, the learnings & the challenges faced and overcome). This audio was taken from a Facebook Live I did with Mel in Melbourne from February 2019. This episode is broken down into 2 parts, with the first part focusing on ultra man and the second half focusing on her training for ultraman, we talk a lot about food, nutrition, and the mental and physical aspects of training.  Melissa also provided lots of top tips and advice for you to help you train for your next challenge.  Show notes PART 1 ULTRA-MAN - Hawaii Melissa living in Melbourne, working as a mental health nurse, 34 years old How she started doing endurance racing Deciding to focus more on herself and making sure she was looking after herself  Being inspired by her friend who did a triathlon  How she fell in love with the sport How she progressed in her running and cycling Dealing with stress Finding the right distance for you and why it matters EPIC 5 - 5 Ironman in 5 days on 5 different islands (This was covered in the first Podcast episode) Ultra-man Hawaii (Nov 2018)- what’s involved No comparison allowed!!!! The challenges on Day 1 Dealing with changes which happen on race day Not worrying about things which are outside of her control Working with a coach and having complete faith in them Working on her running strength and getting back into the gym Pace and feel training while running Keeping going when she’s not in the mood Keeping moving no matter what! Not making day 2 bike cut-off  Nutrition and still trying to figure it out Cycling and vomiting for 4 hours…. Part of the fun is figuring out your body and what works for you Dealing with not achieving the goal and how she deals with it personally (and why she doesn’t care about what other people think) PART 2 - UBERMAN What is Uberman (33km swim - 633km bike - 240km run) Where do you start with a challenge like this Why it is not ridiculous in her mind Reframing the challenge Training for a challenge like this…. Having 8 months to train Dealing with a week’s training at a time Focusing on what you need to do now Working full time and fitting in training Waking up at 4.35am…. Going at bed at 8.30pm  Trying to spend time with her husband Having company while training Night time routine and being a good napper Being a vegan - How do you get your protein? Chocolate and ice-cream….. What she eats during the day and why Go to naught snack (but no food is naught FYI!) Vegan gels…. Do you like vegemite???!! Focusing on real food while riding on the bike Refuelling while swimming  - what she has and how feet zones work Mental Preparation - how to get your head in the hame and why reflection is very important Never taking her mental strength for granted Visualisation…. and picturing the finish line Vision boards…. Biggest challenge/what she’s most concerned about  Managing sleep during Uberman and why she won’t know how it’s going to be until she’s in it Why it’s ok not to know 3 guys have done it in 6/7 days No other women have completed it 10th October start date Can we track her during the race? Follow along with Melissa  - she has a blog and does regular race reports. Mel’s top tips and advice for you!!!   Learn more about Melissa Follow her blog - https://rangamel.wordpress.com  "Slightly mental triathlete who is allergic to the sun" Follow on Twitter @rangamel Follow me on twitter @_TOUGH_GIRL