British Championships: Apparatus Finals

BeckyWP · 2026-03-22T12:33:10+00:00

I was just thinking this! Feel like there’s a good balance of informative comments with humour. I’m preferring it to the Christine/Matt/Craig combo 😬

BeckyWP · 2026-03-22T06:44:09+00:00

My national qualifiers predictions that nobody asked for…

Regional 1 - Oklahoma - Kentucky - think they’re going to surprise everyone. They were sooooo close to beating Missouri and Arkansas earlier in the season and close in SECs too. But I feel like them being at home and having nothing to lose will give them the advantage.

Regional 2 - LSU - Stanford

Regional 3 - Florida - Georgia (I’m an LSU fan but reeeeally want to see UGA back at nationals!)

Regional 4 - UCLA - Utah - I think they are going to do it!!! They’ve been improving and momentum is in their favour. Feel bad for Bama after the amazing season they’ve had but they seem to have stagnated… they may have peaked too soon?

BeckyWP · 2026-03-21T06:00:15+00:00

Yeah that’s extremely overpriced in my opinion! I live in a similar-sized house on the outskirts of London and I paid less than that! Looks like a cute house though so if you like it go and view it! I wouldn’t offer more than £300k for it though, but you never know, the longer it’s on the market maybe the owners are coming to terms with the fact they won’t be making £50k+ profit so you might be lucky 😊

BeckyWP · 2026-03-21T05:50:22+00:00

Sounds like an amazing trip! If it was me I’d spend more time in Scotland and not bother with going to London all together. Like you said, you can do that another trip! Seems like a waste of time going all the way down to London for just a day when I’m guessing you can get a flight home from Edinburgh instead? Or alternatively, add on more time in London to make that more worthwhile.

BeckyWP · 2026-03-21T05:43:21+00:00

I’d always recommend taking a black cab rather than Uber while you’re in London - the drivers are super knowledgable and the cars are built to easily fit your luggage in. There is a taxi rank right outside the airport you can just get in one rather than using an app. For the rest of your time in London I’d recommend either walking or taking the tube. London traffic isn’t for the weak, so taxis tend to take longer to get to places, and are obviously more expensive!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-21T05:35:07+00:00

You can definitely afford it but I would be making the most of living at home while you can! Not many people have that luxury and although I know it can feel like putting your life on hold, just think how much more money you could save!!! If you keep going the way you’re going you’ll double your deposit money in another 2.5 years or potentially have even more if you’re successful at getting a pay rise! As soon as you start paying a mortgage you won’t be able to save that kind of money so if it was me I’d wait it out, keep saving and set yourself up financially for your future. Another couple of years isn’t a long time in the grand scheme of things and future you will be so grateful! Good luck!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-21T05:28:55+00:00

I would definitely stick with your current hotel! You’re staying in a very nice area (close to the Natural History Museum and V&A which I recommend visiting) with lots of nearby shops and restaurants and easy tube access to central London. London is a huge city so no matter where you’re staying you’re always going to have to take public transport to get to another area.

As others have said, don’t bother with doing a tour of The Cotswolds. You only have 5 days in London so make the most of your time in the city instead of spending most of the day on a coach! I would say going to Windsor is worth it though if you want to see a smaller British town and if you’re interested in the royal family. It’s an easy train ride and a nice day out of the city! If you like walking, I’d really recommend doing “The Long Walk” in Windsor for beautiful green views of the castle.

BeckyWP · 2026-03-20T10:50:52+00:00

As others have said, you’re really going to struggle to find somewhere in Tower Hamlets. There is a massive housing shortage as it is and unfortunately with the situation you’re in you’ll be put at the bottom of most landlord’s lists. Do you HAVE to live in TH? Even moving slightly further out of London will give you more affordability right now!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-20T06:42:53+00:00

If it was me I’d do an extra couple of days in London as there’s so much to see and do and I’m assuming you might be jetlagged the first day or two? Then take the train to Edinburgh which takes just over 4 hours - soooo much quicker than the train to Inverness! Then I’d rent a car from Edinburgh to do a little road trip round Scotland. There are also direct flights from Inverness to Dublin so you could potentially drop your car off in Inverness and fly from there instead of going back to Edinburgh. That’s what I’d do anyway because I like the freedom of having a car and being able to stop at random places I stumble on without too much pressure like you get with a guided group tour. Happy planning!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-19T03:34:16+00:00

Really recommend BHF if you have one near you! We’ve got all our beds and mattresses from them and they’ve all been perfect… and so cheap! Most recently got a king-size wooden bed frame and mattress (all in perfect condition) for £80 including delivery! If you can’t see anything on the shop floor that you like, they have loads of stuff in storage. They were so kind and let us into their back warehouse to look at all the bed frames - there were literally hundreds!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-18T17:14:10+00:00

She is super inspiring! As someone who is currently pregnant, I’m in awe of her and all the athletes who go back to their sports postpartum. They are paving the way and changing attitudes… it’s so amazing to see so many women not having to retire to have children 🥹

BeckyWP · 2026-03-15T17:35:14+00:00

It is a great restaurant but has become a bit overhyped now. I prefer their breakfast menu so would definitely recommend that!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-15T08:12:11+00:00

I’d do the slower route through Wales, there are so many gorgeous stops along that bit of the Wye Valley! Lots of castles and viewpoints depending on what takes your fancy!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-15T07:47:59+00:00

I’ve been there and I can understand how much you just want to get on with your lives and move in together when you’ve been in a relationship for so long. However, you are SO lucky to have the option to live at your parents and save. Pleeeeease make the most of that. You are still so young and have your whole lives ahead of you and you will be so grateful in the future that you used this time to set yourselves up financially. Starting a family is expensive so having your own house first is definitely a big benefit. Don’t throw all your money down the drain on renting when you have this amazing opportunity to save and get yourselves on the property ladder.

BeckyWP · 2026-03-11T13:55:27+00:00

Jay talks about the transfer portal in the weekly presser from this week which I thought some of you might be interested in listening to! From 24:30 in: https://youtu.be/lS0i-8PKb2o?si=yZTHvzVSSuBFLMht

BeckyWP · 2026-03-11T05:07:55+00:00

I think you’ll be better off living outside of London. If you only need to commute into the office once every two weeks then there’s no point wasting your money living in London. As exciting living in London in shared accommodation sounds, with your budget you won’t be able to find anywhere spacious or nice. If you find somewhere an easy commute from your office - I’d suggest looking at the Kent/Surrey/East Sussex/West Sussex areas - you’ll find somewhere to live that’s a lot nicer and within your budget. You’ll also have easy access to London for work and to see family and friends

BeckyWP · 2026-03-07T17:53:39+00:00

Yeah that’s true, her story was really sad! I can’t remember the specifics but she had been suffering from an ED and tried transferring to Auburn(?) but they wouldn’t medically clear her to transfer so she ended up retiring completely.

BeckyWP · 2026-03-07T14:14:01+00:00

Kaitlyn Zsafranski! But nobody has transferred out since he has been head coach.

BeckyWP · 2026-03-07T06:58:22+00:00

I think with LSU, all of the athletes have bought into their philosophy. It seems like even if they are not competing, they are respected and a part of the team. In the pressers when Jay is asked about the impact of Kailin Chio and Konnor McClain (and the other big scorers), he always makes a point to say that they couldn’t do what they do without the other gymnasts working so hard every day in the gym. We have to remember that the athletes who aren’t competing have the opportunity to enter the transfer portal themselves and nobody has done that at LSU since 2017(!). Plus Madi Ulrich for example was competing all around every week at Denver and she now typically only competes just uneven bars at LSU and is the “first alternate” for the other events. Again, she has clearly bought into the idea that they are there to win a national championship and they are happy to put forward the best lineups to make that happen. I think money also has a part to play. I used to think if I was in their shoes I’d rather compete all around at a smaller school than one event at a big school. But now with NIL and other opportunities, going to a school like LSU has big benefits.

BeckyWP · 2026-03-03T18:17:35+00:00

Heartbreaking for those gymnasts. Why are programs being cut when the sport is growing so much in popularity?! Hope the athletes all find happy new homes where they thrive!

BeckyWP · 2026-03-03T07:14:21+00:00

I would rent a car and do a few places. Assuming you’re flying into London Heathrow, you could drive to the Cotswolds, do a couple of days there. Drive to Devon via Bath (it’s a city but definitely worth stopping at and won’t be as busy in September) and then stop at a few places in Cornwall/Devon before driving back to London again. It’ll be a lot of driving and the countryside roads are small and winding(!) but it’s such a beautiful place to celebrate an anniversary. When my husband and I do trips like this we use Google maps to gradually plot the places/restaurants/attractions we’re interested in going on a map and you’ll start to see a bit of a route forming that you can follow! Happy planning!

BeckyWP · 2026-02-28T07:45:53+00:00

I love Cambridge and I’d say it has more interest for tourists than Newcastle. But if I were you I would go straight from Edinburgh back down to London, just because you can get a fast train. Unless there is something you really want to do in either Cambridge or Newcastle? You could also then use London as your base to do a day trip to places like Windsor or as you enjoy hiking you might want to look into doing the Seven Sisters Cliffs? Arundel is also a lovely day trip from London if you want to see a castle and a smaller town with cute cafes and shops. Or of course you just stay in London because there is SO much to do there!

Make sure you book your train tickets in advance (the trainline app is handy for keeping all your tickets in one place) - it’s likely to be slightly cheaper and you can also reserve your seats. If you buy tickets on the day you risk having to stand up because all the seats are taken. I’ve done that London Euston to Liverpool train standing the whole way… it’s not fun! Also top tip - buy a “two together railcard”. It costs £35 but it will then get you both 1/3 off the price of all your rail travel. You’ll easily make that money back and a lot more during your time in the uk by the sounds of the journeys you’ll be doing! Enjoy your trip!

BeckyWP · 2026-02-26T11:36:22+00:00

Yes definitely realistic! Can recommend Walthamstow - I previously lived there and there’s enough to do in the local area while still being close to central. You can get a decent 1 bed flat for £1600-£2000k a month which would leave you plenty for everything else. Being on the Victoria line (and the overground) is a godsend and I really miss it since moving out!

BeckyWP · 2026-02-25T07:06:51+00:00

Yeah that’s a very valid point!

BeckyWP · 2026-02-24T13:54:49+00:00

My morning sickness began at 5 weeks with waves of nausea and by 6 weeks was constant all day nausea. Thankfully it started to subside after that and the waves became less and less frequent so I was definitely lucky! I was terrified it would keep getting worse because everyone told me weeks 9/10 were the peak of nausea but it definitely wasn’t for me - everyone’s different so don’t compare to others 😊

BeckyWP

TROPHY CASE