My Year of Gulps!

When I went solo bikepacking in Oman early in 2024 I noticed that being out of my comfort zone wasn’t as familiar as it used to be.

I decided to do something about it and embarked on a year of GULPS.

These are 52 things that’ll take me into the unknown, uncertain and uncomfortable. It’s a mix of things, from trying new sports to abseiling (I’m scared of heights) and more. It began in July 2024 and is due to end in July 2025.

COMING SOON - GULP CLUB!

GULP#1 SUNRISE TO SUNSET WALK (Unplugged)

My first Gulp was a sunrise-to-sunset walk in a part of the Royal National Park I hadn’t been to before. It was unplugged - no music, audiobooks or podcasts. Just enjoying the experience.

To begin it was raining, which meant there weren’t many people around and added to the experience. It was beautiful. Then the weather cleared up and turned into a sunny afternoon. It was a time to think and to be. To be present and in the moment. To explore a new place, surrounding by some of Mother' Nature’s great work. It was physically testing - tiring and my feet were very sore but I loved it.

COST: Petrol and snacks (maybe A$20 in total)

GULP#2 SPEAKING ON STAGE (Sydney International Boat Show)

Speaking is part of my work, but I think I’ll always be nervous before. And that’s ok. Compared to how I used to be - the nerves are so much less.

It’s something I really enjoy doing - always buzzing after. So I’ve just gotta keep putting in the reps. Speaking here in such a beautiful location was pretty cool. And got to be on a panel led by Katie Spithill with 8x world record holder Lisa Blair, Annie Wilmer and Laura Harding, two of our Americas cup team and Lily Peel was a privilege and fun!

COST: parking and public transport- approx A$50

GULP#3 BRAZILIAN JUI JITSU

This one was having a crack at Brazillian Jiu Jitsu, something I’ve never tried before. I did an intro session and then an all-levels class. In a nutshell - heaps of fun and a good workout despite having no idea what I was doing. 

Sometimes, with diaries already crammed full, we might only try things if we can justify it. When we can see where it might take us or the value it will bring. Rather than having a go, just because.  In which case, we might miss out on discovering new passions, meeting people we otherwise wouldn’t and potentially a whole raft of other opportunities and experiences.

COST: A$20 for the trial. 

GULP#4 RISING AT 4:30AM & GETTING IN THE WATER

For 7 days I was up at 4:30am and other than one day when I was paddling I walked down to Mahon Pool in Maroubra and got in the very refreshing water (this was during winter and the mornings were cold!).

To begin it was tough but it got easier. Being in the water, floating and looking up at the stars with an orange glow on the horizon - hearing the waves and the birds - it was heaven. So glad I did this. It helped me break the bad habits, I got some evidence I can still do uncomfortable things. I've continued doing this a couple of times a week - I love the physical and mental benefits I get from it.
This experience reminded me of the power of embracing discomfort and changing routines, even in small doses.

COST: A$0

GULP# 5 FLYING TRAPEZE

I have a fear of heights, so while I like the idea of trapeze, it scares the crap out of me. But that’s what this is all about. Facing fears. So off I headed, on a Saturday afternoon when really all I wanted to do was hang out at home.

It was so much better than I expected. Yes, it was scary - standing on the platform 7m up, one hand on the bar, being told to grab the other, at which point there was only one way off. But I trusted in the instructors and I forced myself to trust in me and jumped. I was buzzing after - the adrenaline still in my system might have had something to do with it. But it was also feeling chuffed at what I done (put a lot of that down to the instructors). So much better than hanging at home!

COST: A$80

GULP#6 SPEED DATING

The expectations were low coming into this. Surprisingly, there were some takeaways (a future husband not being one of them).

Since the event conversations about the night have led to one possible business opportunity related to online dating and separately a business idea. It was a reminder of the value of opening new doors - even those we really don’t think will lead anywhere. We have no idea what might come of it. Our brains try to connect the dots between experiences and challenges encountered sometimes resulting in creative ideas and seeing new opportunities leading to unexpected results.

COST: A$49

GULP#8 3-HOURS EXERCISE DAILY FOR A WEEK

There was lots of walking on top of paddling, cycling and gym sessions.

It was a stretch. Going out and moving when I was tired and wanted to stay in. The result was a reminder I can push myself, and take discomfort over ease. Perspectives shifted too - for one it made my normal training schedule seem easier. And then I’ve added some extra walks into my regime. It increased my trust in myself to do the harder things when I don’t want to, and gave my self-esteem a little boost. Saying that, I was very happy to enjoy a rest day and sleep-in when it was done!

COST: A$0 (nothing extra - already have a gym membership and equipment e.g. bike and surf ski)

GULP#9 GO TO A GIG SOLO

This was a great reminder to break out of routines. Normally by 9pm on a Friday night (or any night for that matter) I’d be going to bed 👵🏼 Certainly not heading off to a gig. But I was so happy I did. To be back seeing music live - something I used to do pretty regularly but stopped doing.

The shift in my energy at the start vs the end is clear. I’m so glad I went. Here’s to heading off to see music live more often.

COST: A$45 (plus bus fares)

GULP#10 VEGAN FOR A WEKK

This was my least favourite so far. I’ve been vegetarian before and didn’t find that too challenging. But it no milk, yoghurt and eggs made this tougher. The food was fine, but it was pretty much impossible to hit my macros. I’m currently having quite a high protein diet and I found this tricky on a vegan diet.

I did manage to find a protein powder that wasn’t too bad - in fact the consistency was better than my normal protein powder. I used Emrald Labs plant protein powder.

I was very happy to get to the end of this. One positive - my coffee tasted especially good when I was able to have cow’s milk once again - oh the joy!

COST: Nothing extra (there was the protein powder, but it’s no more expensive than my usual one)

GULP#11 SALSA DANCING

This was trying something new. Salsa dancing.

I hung up my ballet shoes when I was four and any dancing since then has generally been under the influence and late at night. And that was a while ago. It ended up being so much fun! There is something incredibly liberating about being a complete beginner. There are no expectations, you open yourself to the new experience and get to go, simply have fun and learn.

I made lots of mistakes, but that’s what it’s all about. This is one I’d like to keep going with!

COST: A$15 for a two-week trial

GULP#12 IMPROV

I really didn’t want to do this, this was stepping way out of my comfort zone. But, as has been the case, it was so much better than expected and actually a lot of fun.

There were about 20 of us in a small theatre. We built up gradually starting with simple movement (standing in a circle and effectively passing a clap around). Then brought in speaking with word association and building from there. The goal was to bring us into the moment, to not overthink what we were saying or doing and to embrace messing up. So good!

COST: A$15

GULP#13 ADULT KEEPER DAY - AUSTRALIAN REPTILE PARK

A trip to the Australian Reptile Park for one of their Adult Keeper Days and facing my very deep fear of snakes. It was fantastic - Neville and Jess who took us around were brilliant - learnt so much from them.

There were the cute koalas and Roos before what I dreaded - the snakes. I have never been quite so close (or ever wanted to)! But it was a fabulous experience and one I highly recommend!

COST: A$225

GULP#14 INDOOR ROCK CLIMBING

Time to face another healthy fear - my fear of heights. They scare the crap out of me. So this had to be on the list and I joined a Meet Up group at Sydney Indoor Climbing Gym.

We were shown the ropes…quite literally, beginning on the training wall. Climbing up a short distance was enough to fully trigger my fear response. We paired up and hit the main walls. First attempt and I failed hopelessly. So we headed to the kids walls to build some confidence. And had some fun! Then back to the main walls. Now we had success and made it to the top. Managed a few more climbs before calling it a day. Can’t say I’m over my fear of heights but definitely a step closer.

COST: A$37 (gym entry and harness and shoe hire)

GULP#15 CRYOTHERAPY

I’m not a fan of the cold or confined spaces. This combined the two. A new recovery centre had an opening day in Maroubra - I went in to have a look and was invited to try the cryotherapy. With damp hair having just been paddling I wasn’t best prepared, but gave it a shot. Three-minutes at less than 100 degrees Celsius. The cold kind of detracted me from the small space. What surprised me was how I felt after - my whole body felt energised and refreshed. If it wasn’t so expensive, I’d definitely do this more often.

COST: $0 (normally A$70)

GULP#16 MOTORBIKE LEARNERS PERMIT

I have spent time pillion and decided to try shifting forward and actually learning how to ride a motorbike. I have to say it was way more scary than expected, thanks to the very solid perimeter we were riding close to on the endless laps to get proficient. I had to use many of my tools to deal with fear. Overcoming fear is harder when it’s embedded in something that you can take or leave. Anyho, I got there and am now the proud owner of a learner’s permit.

COST: A$111

GULP#17 VOLUNTEERING

I’ve volunteered as a surf lifesaver for a long time - it’s been one of the most rewarding things I’ve done. So I decided to add to the volunteering and signed up to be a mentor at Success Works. They are an organisation that helps women with a criminal record to gain employment. They have a great onboarding and training process for mentors and I go paired with a lovely woman and we talk regularly as she navigates the process of updating her resume, applying for jobs and practising interview skills. I’ve also signed up to be a mentor for a leadership program being run by Outdoors NSW+ACT for women to try and get more women into leadership in the outdoors industry.

COST: $0

GULP#18 STARTING A MASTERS

I’ve thought about doing a masters for a while. Now my gut said it was the right time, so I applied to do a Masters in Global Security at King’s College London, where I did my undergraduate degree (in physiology). It’s part time and online. I don’t know how I’m going to find the time or money…

COST: A$3,400 per module (eek!)

GULP#19 COMEDY CLASS

Quite a few people suggested this - not because they think I’m funny - because it’s one of the worst things they can think of. I’d had it on the list, at the bottom, secretly thinking it was something I’d never do. But after all the Gulps, in particular improv, suddenly it wasn’t so scary or intimidating. This was a full-day class. Was I funny? No. Was it funny? Yes, it was fun day.

COST: A$149

GULP#20 20,000 STEPS A DAY FOR A WEEK

This was a tough one - harder than I thought. Turns out this is a lot of steps, particularly when it’s on top of my other training, but I got through it…

COST: $0

GULP#21 52x100m SWIMMING

This was how I started 2025. It felt fitting to begin the year with a Gulp. So I headed down to Des Renford Leisure Centre and went up and down. A lot. I used smarties to count laps - I had a smarty at the end of each 100m. Then at the end of each 1km or 1.1km I had a couple of Oreo cookies. Food of champions. Having done no regular swim training for over a year I wasn’t sure how this would go. Better than expected as it turns out. Though my shoulders were ready to divorce me by the end.

COST: A$7 swim entry

GULP#22 500 WORDS A DAY FOR A MONTH

With my masters upcoming and available time dropping I needed to get quicker at writing things like newletters and posts for LinkedIn and build up a bunch of draft articles. The daily writing made a big difference, I definitely got quicker. I might have missed a few days but pretty much hit the target. Total words written were over an average of 500 per day.

COST: $0

GULP#23 FRENCH LESSONS

I stopped French lessons when I was 15, but decided now was a good time to pick this up again. Plus my next expedition will be going through some French speaking countries. I went onto Preply.com and picked Nji from Cameroon to begin parler Francais. I’m still going with it, supplemented by Duolingo.

COST: A$31 per lesson on Preply

GULP#24 GYMNASTICS

I stopped gymnastics before I gave up French. And I have a body that no longer bounces and instead goes snap or pop quite easily. So of course, let’s try adult gymnastics. What could possibly go wrong? It began with a long warm up, core work that got my abs screaming and then some handstands and various drills and some beam work. And then we were told we could do whatever we wanted…I felt like a kid in a playground. I buddied up with another woman and off we went - to the bars, then to the trampoline, back to beam. It was SO much fun!!!

COST: A$36

GULP#25 SURFCLUB COMPETITION

It’s a while since I’ve done any surf club competition, particularly March Past. I was subbing for someone who couldn’t make the competition. While this wasn’t a major competition, I felt the pressure, not wanting to let the rest of the team down. The weekend after I joined South Maroubra Surf Club for their Club Championships. I haven’t joined them before for this, so was a little intimidated. In both cases it was a lot of fun, getting to hang out with fellow clubbies. (And being oh so slightly competitive I was very happy to be the overall winner for the masters women at Club Champs…better still, I got a trophy. I do love a trophy.)

COST: A$0

GULP#26 5KM OCEAN SWIM

My 52x100m gave me confidence in my swimming, so I decided to sign up for the Malabar Magic Ocean Swim. 5km in the pool is obviously different to an ocean swim. This would be the furthest I’d swum in the ocean. The conditions were hard, so they pulled the cans in and made it 4km. It was tricky out the back, and that made it fun. Being a tiny bit OCD I signed up to the 1km to make the day up to 5km. Got 2nd in my age group in the 4km and 3rd in the 1km.

COST: A$85 entry fees

GULP#27 ABSEILING

As mentioned before heights aren’t my things. Dangling from a rope 30m above the ground in the Blue Mountains is definitely not my thing! But I gave it a crack. It’s a long time since I’ve felt that terrified, but I got there…

COST: A$250 (included the canyoning)

GULP#28 CANYONING

After a morning of abseiling, I did an afternoon of canyoning. This included jumping into water from high up, swimming and walking through the canyon, and more. It was stunning. And finished off with a tricky abseil down a waterfall. It was slippery and like being under a power hose! I was relieved when I got to the bottom! And then it was a long climb out…

COST: A$250 (included the abseiling)

GULP#29 HUNTSMAN

Another fear is spiders. And of course here in Oz we are not short of some scary eight-legged wall crawlers. My general response when faced with spiders is to get help. While huntsmen aren’t poisonous they are big and move bloody fast. I came back from a walk to find one next to my front door. I resisted the urge to knock on my neighbour’s door and instead got a large glass and put my big girl pants on. And what do you know, I got it. And put it outside a long way from the block! I' call this a mini-gulp. Sometimes we have to grab the opportunity to get out of comfort zones!

COST: A$0

GULP#30 OUTDOOR ROCKCLIMBING

In my mission to learn to tolerate heights better, it was back out to the Blue Mountains to see I could find my inner spiderwoman. I didn’t but did (eventually) manage to make one of the easiest climbs. And then a slightly harder one, with lots of failed attempts in between!

COST: $250 for a full day of climbing

GULP#31 JUGGLING

At the time of writing this is still a (frustrating) work in progress! My hand-eye coordination ain’t that great.

COST: A$7 (cheap juggling balls from the dollar shop)

GULP#32 PUTTING MYSELF FORWARD FOR A BIG EVENT

I am building my speaking business and found an event to put myself forward for. It was a big conference and I started talking myself out of it - I’m not ready, perhaps when I’ve had more experience. And then I said no. Just go for it and so I applied and will worry about it if I get it. Too often I’ve talked myself out of things, saying I’m not ready. It’s time to stop doing that. Got to live what I preach - be BOLD!

COST: $0

GULP#33 SPEAKING UP

This was another micro-gulp - asking a question in my masters webinar. I couldn’t count the amount of times I have spoken up in a meeting or asked my question, only for someone else to ask it. And then kick myself. In my masters most people seem to be working in the industry and very knowledgeable, so asking a question felt intimidating. It’s easier to just listen, but I decided I had to step up. I focused on being curious - listening and letting my curiosity guide me, rather than ‘trying to be clever’. And it worked. Having asked one, it was easy to engage deeper in the content and ask more questions.

COST: $0

GULP#34 SILKS

Also known as tissu, the silks are an apparatus where you climb, do wraps, inversions, locks and (intential) drops. If you know what you’re doing, it’s very elegant. For me…less so… It was fun though and thanks to so reasonable upper body strength I was able to haul my way up a little way. It was like trying to do macrame with your feet at times!

COST: A$37 for a single session

GULP#35 UNPLANNED - RUDDER CABLE SNAPPED

I wasn’t sure whether to include this, but it was definitely a GULP moment, even if unplanned. Like the huntsman. One goal with this mission is to get better at dealing with real-life situations. I did ok with this, but there were many lessons. Basically my rudder cable in my ski snapped 2km into a paddle. It was ten minutes out and 40 minutes back, paddling on one side. There’s a lot I could have done better, but it all ended ok! Subject to a longer separate write-up.

COST: $0 (other than paying to get my rudder cables replaced)

GULP#36 MAKE SOMETHING TO WEAR

This was one of a few creative endeavours. I knitted a cowl from a design I bought from Etsy. It was very simple and I loved it. It was a mix of being focused and relaxed and being able to switch off to everything but the task in hand. It wasn’t perfect but has been great to wear in winter. And I have worn it out in public!

COST: Yarn and needles A$10 / pattern A$11

GULP#37 URBNSURF

URBNSURF is a manmade wave pool. There are a few here in Australia. I joined a Surf in the Bay, which was just smaller broken waves. It was fun. Cold, but fun (it’s not a heated pool!).

COST: A$39 including the hire of the board (costs are higher for the bigger waves)

GULP#38 PICKLEBALL

Having already mentioned before my hand-eye coordination isn’t great. I did play a bit of tennis as a kid but hadn’t picked up any kind of racket for a few decades. And never tried pickleball. I joined a group coached session. While I showed no natural talent, it was fun! A nice thing to do with a group of others. Like many of the things I’ve tried, if I had time, I’d do there more often as a nice social sport.

COST: Free trial session

GULP#39 SOUTH HEAD ROUGHWATER 10KM SWIM

This was a swim from Bondi to Watson’s Bay. I’d been training for over two months for this one and not just in the pool. I was getting cold-adapted with cold showers and wearing less layers than normal when outside. The currents were strong and I didn’t quite make the 8km cutoff time so had to jump in my support boat and skip about 800m before getting back in the water for the final stretch. I was very disappointed not to finish the entire event, but really glad with how I went, swimming for around 4.5 hours. Another one to extract lessons from.

COST: Entry fees A$175, support boat total costs approx A$350 plus swim squad and pool entry fees in the run up to it plus a new swim suit. Not a cheap one!

GULP#40 CONVERSATIONS WITH STRANGERS

The goal was to have short conversations with strangers. I took myself down to Maroubra with a sign inviting people to join me for a max 10-minute conversation. This was the most uncomfortable I felt in this journey (fears aside, like the climbing). It wasn’t the conversations - I was confident in having the chats with strangers - it was the perceived judgment of those who wouldn’t join me. I sat there for about 20mins and realised that while it was a perfect sport in some ways, hardly anyone walked pass, other than a surfer just out of the water who smiled (in a way that made it seem he liked the idea). The wind kept blowing over my sign and I gave up. I am going to try this one again in another spot.

COST: $0

GULP#41 DINNER WITH STRANGERS

I joined a TimeLeft evening. Their website introduces this as an opportunity to meet five strangers for dinner, matched by a personality algorithm. They operate in 300 cities across 60 countries with dinners taking place on Wednesdays. You answer a bunch of questions before, pick the area (I went with Bondi/Coogee), your approx budget and select the date. The day before you get the restaurant and the nationality of the attendees. The one I joined was at Taqiza in Bondi and I arrived to find four already there before the final one joined. We were three women, three men. It was a fun evening. For half of us it was our first time - the others had been to previous TimeLeft dinners. It’s not easy to meet people and make new friends. I think this is a great idea and I’d love to try another.

COST: A$35 (TimeLeft for one month - cheaper monthly cost if you sign up for longer), dinner A$20 and parking A$10.

GULP#42 100x100m

Not making the Bondi to Watson’s Bay swim irked me. I doubt I’ll be able to have another crack at it for a number of years, so I decided to do the 10km in the pool and punched out 100 x 100m. I was fortunate to have a friend, Phil Suriano, join me for the first 6.3km. The 8th and 9th kilometres were hard - the shoulders and lats were not impressed and hurt. While the 10th still hurt, it was the homestretch and joyful countdown to the end.

COST: A$7 pool entry

GULP#43 MAKE SOMETHING TO GIVE

This was another creative endeavour. I chose to make a handbag, macrame style. This was another Etsy pattern. The first pattern wasn’t great and I couldn’t follow it. I bought another pattern which, while the same style, was better explained. It was like doing lots of knots and I am very bad at following knots! It might not be the greatest gift, but it will be winging its way to my cousin.

COST: Yarn A$25 and pattern A$10.

GULP#44 GIVE BLOOD

For a long time my time living in the UK and having had tattoos prevented me from donating blood. Those excuses are no longer valid, and this has been something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time. I headed to one of the local moblie donation units, somewhat apprehensively. I’m not a fan of needles and the sight of blood. Just thinking about what lay ahead had me dry heaving on the way there. After running through the questionnaire, it was time to have my blood drained. I braced myself, expecting it to hurt, but it didn’t and after about ten minutes it was all done. While resting after though I did start to feel faint and had to return to chairs to get horizontal. I was fine, and it wasn’t too long before my blood pressure was back up and I was on my way.

COST: $0

GULP#45 DEATH CAFE

In a world with so many of us searching for more certainty in life, a lot avoid contemplating the only certainty we have… This is a space to talk about that one certainty. A Death Cafe is a facilitated discussion of death with no agenda or objectives. It is a discussion rather than a grief support or counselling session. And there’s one rule - there has to be cake! It was a wonderful 2hr discussion facilitated by Isla, a celebrant. There were six of us and we talked about everything from experiences of losing loved ones, to burial vs cremation, things on our mind, support that’s available. There was tenderness, laughter and lightness. It was a gently profound session and I left feeling lighter. I am SO glad I went.

COST: $10 plus parking

GULP#46 MAKE SOMETHING TO PUT ON THE WALL

This is the third of the creative ventures (the others being make something to wear and make something to give). I went with a macrame wall hanging…and as someone who struggles with anything more than a simple knot, this was many levels of frustrating. If there is a knot version of IQ I rate very low. Anyho, it kept me focused for a lot longer than it should - a gift that kept on giving. I did enjoy it, but might stick with knitting out of these three creative attempts…

COST: Yarn A$25 / Pattern A$12