HOKA Instagram takeover with David McNamee

HOKA athlete David McNamee

Like all of us, HOKA athlete David McNamee is managing the current global situation the best he can. Based in Girona, Spain, he has followed government advice and stayed at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Follow the story below as David took over the HOKA EU Instagram account to show us what life is like as a pro athlete at this uncertain time.

HOKA athlete David McNamee weightlifting

The two-time IRONMAN World Championship bronze medallist walked us through his new normal in a country where a state of emergency was declared almost two weeks ago.

HOKA athlete David McNamee on the exercise bike

With total lockdown on any outdoor activity in Spain, it was time for David to rethink and adapt his training. For somebody whose job it is to run, swim and cycle many hours and kilometres each week, the current situation presents a unique challenge.

Running training plan for HOKA athlete David McNamee

“The main thing I’ve learned is to only worry about what I can control,” says David. With one run on the treadmill and two sessions on the bike planned during the day, David used Zwift for extra motivation knowing that others were joining him for the ride.

HOKA athlete David McNamee on Zwift

David threw the floor open for followers to ask him anything they wanted. Find out what David’s favourite session is, his three fantasy dinner guests, his best training partner over the years and more by watching back the Instagram Story Highlight.

HOKA athlete David McNamee swims indoor with bands

Every night in Spain, people gather on their balconies to applaud and show their appreciation for the front-line staff working to help combat the virus. As David pointed out, in times of uncertainty, it’s time to act responsibly and adapt our training. It will soon be time to fly again.

Photo credit: Oriol Batista and David McNamee

HOKA fan Maël thrives in epic jungle adventure

HOKA fan Mael Jouan towards the end of the Jungle Marathon

Maël Jouan is somebody who thrives on a challenge. The 24-year-old has tackled more than 70 ultra-trail events around the world and most recently completed the 230k Jungle Marathon in Peru. It isn’t a race for the faint-hearted. Here is his fearless story.

HOKA fan Mael Jouan runs through grassland

It all started with an early departure for the city of Cuzco in Peru. From my home in Paris to Sao Paulo in Brazil, Santiago in Chile and, finally, the city of Cuzco, where the Jungle Marathon would take place.

I arrived in Cuzco one week before the start of the race. For those who don’t know Cuzco too well, it’s a city located at 3,400m altitude. Great for training, though a little more difficult when you’ve had a couple of beers.

During the first week, I wasn’t able to experience Cuzco to the maximum. I didn’t sleep well, I had equipment missing and I couldn’t really acclimatise to the conditions. It was very hot during the day, but very cold in the evening. I was alone for my training and I just didn’t know what to do.


Change of approach

I decided to stop putting pressure on myself. I had built up this experience and wasn’t able to enjoy it for what it was. I decided to become the perfect tourist for just a few days.

Forty-eight hours before the departure for base camp, I met David. We ended up spending a lot of time together and became great friends as a result of our shared experience in the jungle. The great friends I made and the amazing people I met is one of my biggest takeaways from the whole experience.

HOKA fan Mael Jouan runs through the streets on day three

By the time I finally left the hotel at 4.30 in the morning on the day of the race, I was like a battery and couldn’t wait to get started. I had a lot of energy for this race – and a lot of doubters to prove wrong. Many people thought I wouldn’t make it to the end. I wanted to show them what I could do.


Trusting instincts

It felt like a relief to finally get going. I had no race plan, no strategy. It was the jungle. I didn’t know the environment. All I knew was that I had 230 kilometres ahead of me and an 11.5kg bag on my back. I preferred to trust my instincts.

HOKA fan Mael Jouan runs through the river

I kept telling myself that I shouldn’t worry about being behind the leaders early on, that the race was long. Besides, the terrain and environment was like another world. It was very different from my training routes in the mountains or on the beach.


Sharing the experience

I finished the first day with Hilary. We finished fourth and fifth, which I was delighted with considering the ankle injury I sustained early on. I strapped it up and tried to carry on as normal.

Day two started and very soon I was alone. The leaders were away and I had to start paying greater attention to the markings. All the riders who have shared kilometres with me will tell you that I wasn’t nearly as careful following the markings as I needed to be.

For some, this kind of race is crazy. For others, it’s huge. I knew I needed this kind of challenge, to get out of my comfort zone. I ended up running alongside John, a smiling, dynamic Irishman who became my teammate. We crossed the obstacles together, little by little. We shared our lives, our work, our interests with each other. The mountains are the perfect place for conversation.

HOKA fan Mael Jouan crosses the jungle with company

I met people from all over the world and had the opportunity, thanks to ultra-trail running, to share experiences I would never have had the chance to otherwise. There was Martin from Denmark, Frode from Norway. Misha, the Hungarian, who must have been a whole head taller than me, always smiling, always ready to help and always there to chat. It was one of my most beautiful encounters in the Jungle Marathon.


Solidarity in ultra running

Despite the rain that poured throughout day three, I stood, sheltered, and appreciated the simple fact that I was there. I allowed my breathing to slow and admired the environment around me. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to live the moment twice.

There were complicated passages, mud that looked like quicksand and that went down the shin to the knee. The paste stuck to our legs, so much so it was sometimes difficult to get out of it. Solidarity is a special word in this kind of race.

HOKA fan Mael Jouan sits and takes a breather in the Jungle Marathon

I never really saw the sky because of the vegetation above. Insects were everywhere. I ended up swallowing one that stung me in the mouth. It was perhaps a spider, maybe a fly. In moment, it didn’t much matter.

I took on spider’s web after spider’s web. I ended up taking a piece of bamboo to probe in front of me because the webs and spiders became unbearable. But on the stick, there were a lot of ants eating my hand. In short, it was a hell, as Christophe le Saux had told me, a ‘green hell’.


Final flourish

I wasn’t ready for my Jungle Marathon experience to end. I had spent four years preparing for the race, for that finish line moment. But by the time I reached the final stages, suddenly, I wasn’t ready for it all to end.

HOKA fan Mael Jouan approaches the finish of the Jungle Marathon

Despite the swollen feet, the sprained ankle, the spiders, the insect stings, the hunger, tiredness, tears and anguish, I wasn’t ready for the moment to be over. I was joined by kids on the final run in, some of them on bikes, some of them with football jerseys. I reached the bridge and all but two of the kids continue with me to the end.

My final thought as I entered the finish, passing the flags, the party, the announcer, the brass band, was that this moment was for my grandfather. Without him, I would never have accomplished what I did. I thought of my parents and my big sisters, who worried constantly during this race. The doubters no longer mattered. I did it. The jungle was over.

Photo credit: Mikkel Beisner

Emma Pallant’s top tips to run stronger

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant runs tall in Carbon X

From building the foundations to developing strength and increasing intensity, get ready to combine the tools you need to run stronger. In partnership with Digme Fitness, check out HOKA athlete Emma Pallant’s top tips below. You’ll be stronger, conditioned and ready to test your limits.

Close up of HOKA athlete Emma Pallant at press conference

Running is very much like dancing…

In terms of rhythm, if you are rigid and stiff, you won’t be able to flow, so mobility is a super key part to your running. Relax and feel the flow, then your mobility work will be able to functionally get involved in your running.

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant in full flight in the Carbon X

Be alert…

When you’re doing your strength training, if you aren’t thinking about the right movement patterns, then you don’t build those neuromuscular channels. Take time to do your gym training. Do it when you’re fresher and find it easier to concentrate too, then it will be so much more beneficial.

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant in action at the 2019 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Nice

Get the right muscles to work…

The easiest way to get the right muscles to work is to fire them up before you head out. Activation doesn’t take that long, but it can make all the difference to good running form, to prevent injury and increase speed, so invest that little bit of time pre-run to get into good habits.

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant ties her shoelaces Carbon Rocket

The best runners run from their hips…

But this means you need really good core engagement. Injuries mainly come from overloading the lower limbs, so combine a good strong core with good muscle protection over the legs, then you can spend more time running.

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant uses the foam roller

Get out of the grey…

The ‘grey zone’ of training is that uncomfortable pace that people do so much of their training in, but where the real benefits don’t lie. The real benefits come from the balance of running easy and hard. The really nice, easy runs help you get into good habits, which then allows you to do the super-hard key sessions to the best of your ability, unlocking the speed that will keep pushing up your VO2 max.

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant in full flight in Clifton 5

Run your easy runs easy and focus on efficiency…

The more efficient your style, the less energy you waste, the faster you go and the more fun you have. So really slow things down and feel your running when you run easy. Check for dead spots and eliminate any areas throwing you out of pattern.

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant performs a pull up

Take intensity to the next level…

Now the fun begins. When you are well conditioned, you can let loose and start to love the pain. Learn to embrace and teach your body to hold a hard rhythm and pattern when it is hurting the most. Intensity is a lot about breathing out the pain and being strong in the mind.

HOKA athlete Emma Pallant ties her shoelaces

Test your limits…

The deep, dark place in training is the place of growth. Now you can find your limits, record them and keep coming back to challenge them. Sometimes you will win, sometimes you will lose, but never give up. Failure is only quitting. Not getting through a current limit just means you have to come back and try again.

Photo credit: @thatcameraman and Activ’Images

Time to get together at our elite athlete weekend

HOKA athlete Thibat Garrivier runs across the beach

It was a case of sun, sea and all things HOKA ONE ONE last weekend as more than 50 of our elite athletes came together at our annual training camp in Mallorca.

HOKA athletes run across the beach

Our annual HOKA elite athlete weekend is the one opportunity in the year when our athletes from across road, trail and triathlon can come together to learn more about the brand and each other.

HOKA athlete Sam Proctor dives into the pool

Hotel Viva Blue on the north-east coast of the Balearic Island was the choice of venue for the third year in a row as the HOKA family took advantage of familiar trails, good weather and fantastic opportunities to train.

HOKA athletes out on a group run

The weekend kicked off with a group run by the lake, with trail specialist Marie Perrier leading the way alongside HOKA legend Ludo Pommeret and German marathoner Frank Schauer.

HOKA athlete Lucie Lerebourg sprints round the bend

Our athletes learned more about Time To and the inspiring stories behind the people featured, including Sam Holness and Sophie Power. As well as learning about the patented elements that go into every shoe we build, the entire team was introduced to the latest HOKA products and exciting innovations.

HOKA athletes enjoy a drink

New athletes, including triathletes Anne Reischmann, Thomas Davis and Elliot Smales, were exposed to the story behind HOKA ONE ONE. They heard how radical change often comes about in trying to solve a simple problem – and how redesigning a shoe that helps an athlete tackle 100 miles in challenging conditions can actually help all runners perform.

HOKA athletes Manon Genet and Arnaud Guilloux at the athletics track

Breaking out of the classroom – and on to the track. Some of our athletes, including Manon Genet, Arnaud Guilloux and Lucie Lerebourg, headed down to the local track on Saturday afternoon to put in the kilometres before settling down to watch the US Olympic Marathon Trials and HOKA NAZ Elite athlete Aliphine Tuliamuk’s success.

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Teamwork makes the HOKA dream work. It’s Time to Fly.

Photo credit: James Poole

HOKA fan Tom inspired to stop smoking and run

HOKA fan Tom Pullinger tied up his Carbon Rocket shoelaces

Tom Pullinger aka Inspired Runner was inactive and seriously unfit. He smoked frequently and was reliant on his inhaler to get him through the day. One day, inspired by his long-distance running father, Tom stopped smoking and took up running in an attempt to lead a healthier lifestyle and be a better role model to his family. From short runs to marathons to IRONMAN, Tom challenged his personal limits and succeeded, with his father by his side every step of the way.

As a teenager, I used to watch from my bedroom window as my dad set off for his regular runs. As soon as he was out of sight, I’d be round the back of the house, smoking.

My dad’s marathon training was regular as clockwork, an hour or two in the evenings and two to three hours on Sunday mornings. Every cigarette I smoked was preceded by and followed by a couple of puffs from my asthma inhaler.

HOKA fan Tom in front of the camera

My asthma was really severe. If I had so much as a laughing fit, it would end in me frantically searching for Ventolin. I was using so many inhalers that I would routinely tell my doctor I’d lost another one so that he’d give me another. In reality, I was getting through inhalers at an alarming rate.

This carried on through my twenties. I wasn’t active at all. I worked, I played video games and I smoked.

Taking the first step

Every year, we would go as a family to watch my dad run the London Marathon. Every year, I’d vow to stop smoking. At age 26, my wife and I were married, and as I hit 29, we decided to start a family.

The time was right to stop smoking. At the same time, I started running. Those first tentative steps were terrifying. I couldn’t run 200 metres without vice-like chest pains – more Ventolin was the only way to ease it. The first run was almost half-a-mile in total, mostly walked. Over the weeks and months, this became a mile, then two miles, then three and always carrying my inhaler.

HOKA fan Tom does up his shoelaces

At this time, my dad recognised that we were thinking of starting a family and dropped a bombshell on me. He had a condition called Huntingdon’s disease, which would slowly but eventually take him from us. As a scientist, he had researched how to fight the condition and keeping fit and active could delay its onset, so he ran marathons.

Huntington’s disease

As a hereditary, terminal condition, Huntington’s disease is passed on to one in every two children, so my two sisters and I were faced with the fact that out of the three of us, at least one would likely be carrying the faulty gene. If you carried it, it would be terminal. It didn’t kill you, but the weakened immune system, onset of pneumonia or uncontrolled shaking and swallowing difficulties would definitely do so.

My two older sisters and I had to undergo a series of psychological interviews before the blood test, to ensure we could deal with the possibility of a positive result. I wanted my two sisters to be tested first as I felt this gave them the best chance. One after the other, they revealed the fantastic news that they were both clear of the gene, which meant that the Huntington’s disease would progress no further down their family lines.

HOKA fan Tom with his father on a bicycle

Thrilled to bits for them both and their families, I couldn’t help but think that if they were both clear, I was bound to test positive. Results day came and I was completely shocked and stunned to hear the news that I was also clear of the gene – Huntington’s disease in our family ended with my dad – although it would and did take him from us, it progressed no further – my dad had beaten the 1 in 2 odds and not passed it on to any of his three children.

Running together

It was 2002, a couple of years of running had passed by, my wife and I had a young son and I entered my first half marathon, with my dad. We ran together for 12 miles, at the back of the pack. My dad’s condition was taking its toll and he was wobbly, shaky and unsteady on his feet – we had a first aid car behind us the whole time, constantly pulling alongside to ask if we were OK.

By 10 miles, I was done. My longest distance, although running at a slow pace, had tired me out. My dad, although clearly showing signs of his advancing condition, was still so much fitter than me and together we got to the finish line.

HOKA fan Tom with his father and family

Five years later, I was running my first London Marathon, with my dad supporting me just past the halfway point. I stopped and hugged him and carried on in tears.  I was a 5-year non-smoker now but still asthmatic and carried my inhaler at all times. I finished in 5 hours 45 minutes, utterly destroyed and my dad told me with glee that I was two hours outside his 3:44 marathon PB! I told him I would beat his best time eventually!

Making the grade

It was 2014 and I had a few marathons under my belt now. I took to triathlon to help with injury prevention and cross training, making my way up to half-IRONMAN distance, where I qualified for Team GB and a place in the 2015 European Age Group Middle-Distance Championships in Italy. To have my dad and my family, including my wife and two boys, supporting me in Italy was amazing. My dad was in a wheelchair now but would come to support at every race he could.

HOKA fan Tom in triathlon action

During the build up to this race, 10 weeks earlier, I had fallen off my bike on the ice and broken my back. Eight weeks in a back brace and with only two weeks to train for a half-IRONMAN distance race meant it wasn’t my finest performance. I finished in 5:49, but I couldn’t turn down the chance to race for Team GB, with my family, including my wheelchair-bound father, watching.

Fighting for every breath

It was now 2017 and my fifth London Marathon. I had already improved my PB to 3:28 and my dad wrote me a handwritten card detailing all his PBs, and said how proud he was of how I had turned my life around. He was still in a wheelchair, still fighting for every breath and fighting for every day.

My father came to watch me run in London again. We stayed in a hotel close by but he was taken ill the night before the marathon and had to be rushed to hospital. He didn’t get to see me run the next morning but I ran anyway, knowing it would have been what he wanted.

My dad died shortly afterwards, but he saved my life by motivating me to give up smoking, giving me goals, dreams, ambitions and he also saved our family by beating the odds of his condition and ridding our family of Huntingdon’s disease. The way he battled for every day of his life motivates and inspires me constantly, hence my Instagram name – @Inspired_runner_.

Photo credit: Tom Pullinger