Saturday with Sonia O'Sullivan: 'If I’m eating out, I’m more of a breakfast and brunch type person'

Olympian and Ireland's Fittest Family coach on her Saturdays in Australia, and closer to home

Sat, 01 Nov, 2025 - 01:00

Ruth O'Connor

07.00

I’ll probably get up around 7am or 7.30am. The first thing I do every morning is have a Sisterly sachet while I’m waiting for my morning coffee.

Then I’ll have a pre-breakfast - usually something like some muesli, unless I’m going for a big bike ride in which case I’ll have some eggs.

If Winnie, our dog, sees me getting the bike out she’s not impressed. Luckily, one of the girls is usually around to take her for a walk.

Running, in my opinion, is one of the most time-efficient things you can do for exercise. Cycling usually takes three times longer.

11.00

In Australia, I love my Saturdays, especially when we are staying along the Great Ocean Road in a place called Jan Juc.

I don’t surf but I do like to swim in the sea and I have a nice group that I swim with there as well as in Cobh (not so much in London!).

Depending on how energetic I’m feeling I’ll either go to the farmers market first and then go for a run or we’ll go for a run first and then to the market to get the shopping in for the weekend.

12.00

Sometime before lunch I’ll probably get a coffee the location of which depends on whether I’m at the market,

I’m in the middle of a long cycle or I’m out walking the dog. I’ll then have a home-cooked brunch, sit outside and catch up with the Irish news online.

14.00

Later in the day, if the weather’s good, I’ll be out and about.

When I’m in Ireland, I’ll consult Rozanna Purcell’s The Hike Life and go explore somewhere I’ve never been before.

If I’m in Australia we’ll go for a drive to a different coast or trail with the dog.

My lifestyle is very flexible but nonetheless I always try to make a big effort to do different things at the weekend - I love the freedom the weekend gives to explore a bit more.

I love anywhere beside the water - whether it’s sunny and calm or a windy fresh day it gives you good energy. I like to be in one place for a decent amount of time, but then I get itchy feet.

I was in Cobh a lot this summer which is a great place to be in the summertime. I go to Melbourne in the wintertime and I also spend a lot of time in Teddington in London.

I find that when I’m at home I slot back into ‘normal life’ quite easily.

Things have changed a lot in Cobh since I grew up there, but I still have quite a lot of involvement with the athletics club and the triathlon club - it’s always important to have people to link in with when I want to go for a cycle, a swim or a run and it’s like I’ve never been away with connections like that.

There's a lot more focus these days on health and fitness for so many people at different levels and it’s how I’ve met a lot of people over the past few years.

I have the Sonia O’Sullivan race in Cobh and often do a podcast with Jarleth Regan to get people prepared for the run. It’s about creating and retaining connections too - it’s not all about the run.

Exercise is always part of my routine and at the weekend there tends to be more people available to meet up with.

If I’m in Ireland I’ll get out on the roads of East Cork for a cycle so I usually get to bed early on a Friday night.

If I’m in London we are in Teddington surrounded by some of the royal parks such as Bushy Park and Richmond Park as well as the Thames.

I’ve really noticed a huge increase in recent years in the numbers of people exercising - on early morning runs in the 90s I might not have met a single person. I think park runs have attracted a lot of people to get up early, get active and meet other people - they’re a great way to start your Saturday.

19.00

I do like eating out, but often think ‘I could do that myself’!

That’s why I like to get nice ingredients at the farmers market and take my time cooking something from my library of cookbooks.

I’m never in a rush - much to the dismay of the hungry people waiting.

If I’m eating out, I’m more of a breakfast and brunch type person.

Obviously, Australia has a reputation as a world leader in food and coffee culture, but there are great places in Ireland too, and I don’t mind driving 20 or 30 minutes to find somewhere nice to go to.

20.00

If we are going out in the evening one of my favourite things to do is to go to a sporting event.

In Melbourne we have a lot of outdoor concerts - we went to a gorgeous one in a winery a while ago. It’s not full on like the recent Oasis concerts - it’s on all day and you can turn up whenever you like and claim a spot, have a picnic and a glass of wine…

23.00

It’s usually around 11pm before I get to bed. I like to read novels that take you away from normal life.

I like popular fiction and murder mysteries. I have to read two or three pages before I go to sleep, but I’ll usually end up having to re-read them again the following night.