G.A.S - Girls Adventure Squad

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G.A.S - Girls Adventure Squad

2 Endurance Coaches that support women with Adventure Race Training Plans and Navigation Clinics. See you out there soon!!

We are 2 qualified Coaches who love all things Adventure Racing! Between us we have completed many different adventures from Coast2Coast to Boxing and many other things in-between. The Girls Adventure Squad is set up to support women to accomplish goals, help them have some me time and show them what they are made of!

30/09/2026

💪 READY TO GET STRONGER FOR YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE?

Our Women’s Strength Series starts next week!

9 weeks of strength, fitness + mobility designed to help you build the strength and confidence you need for your Spirited Women lead in, summer adventures and everything in between.

Train at home or in the gym, follow along in the app, and get stronger without having to figure it all out yourself.

If you've got an adventure coming up, this is the perfect place to start.

👉 Come join us - let’s get strong!

Send us a message or find all details here: https://www.girlsadventuresquad.co.nz/upcoming-events

24/09/2026

Happy Friday! - All the best to those epic adventure ladies who are are racing or adventuring this weekend.

You've got this - keep the positive self talk going and go have some fun! 😎

23/09/2026

Let’s do it Canterbury ladies 🗺️🧭😎 - these are awesome Spirited Women training and a whole lot of fun!

22/09/2026

PART 3 - Strong Bones, Strong Adventures for Life

This time, we're shifting our focus slightly… Let's talk bones.

Our bones are living tissue, constantly adapting to the demands we put on them.
Most of us are already doing plenty of awesome movement - walking, running, hiking, biking, lifting weights and getting out there doing the things we enjoy.

But here's the bit I want you to think about:
Bone responds to loading and impact - not just movement.

That three-hour hike is fantastic for your fitness and overall health, but it doesn't necessarily give your bones the same stimulus as something that creates a bigger, sharper load through them.

And this becomes particularly important as oestrogen starts to decline.
During the menopausal transition, bone loss can speed up, with women potentially losing around 20% of their bone mass during these years.

That's a pretty big deal.

But here's the good news: We can stimulate bone adaptation at any age.

So even if you've never done much heavy resistance training, or you've spent years mostly walking, hiking, biking or doing endurance exercise - you can start now.

Think small doses of loading and impact, done consistently.

For example:
Add some impact: Jumping, hopping, skipping, running and landing.

Or lift heavy: Heavy resistance training is another great bone stimulus.
And remember from Part 2 - heavy is relative.
Squats, deadlifts, step-ups, lunges, loaded carries and other weight-bearing movements can all help. If jumping isn't your thing, progressively increasing the load you're lifting is a great option.

And don't forget the other side of the equation… Your bones need fuel too.

Eating enough to support your training, along with adequate protein, calcium, vitamin D and other nutrients, all play a role.

Load them.
Fuel them.
Give them a reason to adapt.

We're not just training for the next race or adventure.
We're building a body that can keep taking us on adventures for years to come.

Strong bones. Strong body. Strong adventures - for life.

💙 Check your emails for the full version of Part 3.
https://www.girlsadventuresquad.co.nz/upcoming-events

18/09/2026

Here's what we have coming up ladies - bring on the Spring time fun!

All details here:
https://www.girlsadventuresquad.co.nz/upcoming-events

Spirited Women - All Women's Adventure Race

14/09/2026

PART 2 – Do I REALLY need to lift heavy to build lean muscle? 💪

There’s a lot of messaging around women needing to “lift heavy” – and I love that we’re talking more about strength.

BUT… I don’t want you thinking you need to walk into a gym, head straight for the squat rack and start throwing around the heaviest weights you can find!

Heavy is relative to YOU.

It depends on your strength, your background and your ability to move well with good technique.

If you’re new to strength training, your “heavy” might be a bodyweight exercise, resistance band, light dumbbells or a machine. Start where you are.

And here’s something I want you to remember: You can build muscle across any rep range.

What matters is that your muscles are being challenged. I want you finishing a challenging set with around 1–3 reps left in the tank.

If you finish a set thinking, “Yep, I could easily do another 10", it may be time to increase the load or make the exercise harder.

So why include some lower-rep work? - Short Answer = Strength + Power.

As we move through midlife, we can see changes in muscle power, strength and muscle mass. Maintaining and building all three becomes increasingly important.

Power is particularly useful for the things we do outside and moments where you need to produce force quickly.

So yes, we want to include some appropriately challenging lower-rep work, and we can also include some explosive movements to help develop power.

But FORM COMES FIRST.

I would much rather see you lifting a slightly lighter weight with excellent technique than adding another 5kg and losing your form.

Then there’s progressive overload – gradually increasing the challenge over time.
That might mean more weight, another rep, a bigger range of movement, another set or progressing to a harder exercise.

And ladies – don’t forget your bones.

Strength training also provides an important stimulus for bone health – something I’ll dive into more in Part 3.

Find the load that challenges YOU, lift it well, and keep building from there.

💙 Check your emails for the full version of Part 2!

Next up: Part 3 – Strong Bones, Strong Adventures for Life

13/09/2026

Spirited Women - Our next Navigation Clinics are up! 🧭👊

Let's set Tekapo up to be an epic one! Our next round of Navigation Clinics are up, let's learn the skills now so we can take on the map reading with confidence.

4 hours of theory and practical skills - see all details and registration here: https://www.girlsadventuresquad.co.nz/upcoming-events

Reviews from our recent Clinics:
"I have undertaken 2 other courses but this one actually made sense and hopefully will be very useful in the next adventure. Thanks so much 😊"

"I’ve learned so much in such a short time. I highly recommend this to anyone wanting to learn navigation skills."

"Highly recommend attending one of these clinics. Great experience and o
opportunity to learn tips and tricks. The girls running the course are amazing and super knowledgeable."

Spirited Women - All Women's Adventure Race

09/09/2026

Women's Health Series - Part 1: Strong for Life - and adventure! 💪⛰️

Over my 18 years as a coach, I’ve become passionate about helping women understand why strength training matters - and how much we actually need.

There is SO much information out there about women’s health, hormones, menopause, supplements, protein, bone health… it can feel overwhelming!

So we wanted to put together this 6-part series to break some of it down - giving you the tools and knowledge to make good decisions for your own body and goals.

For us adventure-loving women, this is about more than how we look. It’s about being strong enough to carry your pack, climb that hill, handle your bike and keep doing the things you love as you get older.

Why does strength training become MORE important as we age?

From around our 30s, we gradually begin to lose muscle mass and strength, and this can accelerate around perimenopause and menopause.

Maintaining and building muscle can help us hold onto strength, support how our bodies use and store energy, regulate blood sugar, maintain independence, improve quality of life and support our bones.

We can’t stop getting older - but we can influence how much muscle and strength we maintain and build along the way.
Perimenopause / menopause changes your physiology, not your potential.

So… how often do we need to strength train?
1 session a week can still improve muscle connection & control.
2 sessions a week is an excellent target for most women and enough to make meaningful progress.
3 sessions a week can be useful when building muscle and strength is a bigger priority.

For adventure athletes, we also need to consider our endurance training. During a race build or high endurance-load period, 2 intentional strength sessions can be a great balance.

What should an effective strength session include?

Think:
Squat/knee-dominant • Hinge • Push • Pull • Single-leg work • Core/trunk stability

Then progressively build!

And remember: getting stronger and building muscle aren’t exactly the same thing.

More on that in Part 2…

💙 Want the full version of Part 1? Check your emails!

Next up: Part 2 - Do I REALLY need to lift heavy to build muscle?

06/09/2026

A new series on Women’s Health is coming your way ladies!

We’re talking strength training, hormones as we age, muscle & bone health, supplements, recovery and so much more!

Keep an eye on the socials and make sure you’re on our mailing list so you don’t miss the great information coming through.

We also have our 9 Week Women’s Strength Series starting on the 4th October, find all information here: https://www.girlsadventuresquad.co.nz/upcoming-events

Strong Women. Strong bodies. Strong for life 💪

Address

Christchurch

Telephone

+64211712421

Website

http://www.girlsadventuresquad.co.nz/

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