Tour de France, Wimbledon and do men do Pilates?

Why do YOU do Pilates?

Our Summer Solstice

The unlikely comparison between Battersea Power Station and Pilates!

What is happening to Pilates? Is it in danger of getting lost in the rush?

A busman's holiday

What does being healthy mean to you? I don't suppose any of us set out to be deliberately unhealthy. We may continue a behaviour that we know is not good for us, but we don't actively choose poor health. We may grumble that we ought to do more exercise of make some changes to our diet, but I am asking you to stop for a moment and just think - what does "being healthy" or "living a healthy life" mean to you? I know for most of us, our default opinion will be towards diet, exercise, relaxation and sleep and yet is it not so much more vast than that? What about the term "unhealthy relationships" or working "in a toxic environment" to name just two examples of things that affect our health but have nothing to do with what we eat or how much we move. I had an insanely "healthy" weekend this one just gone. I did a couple of really good training sessions, I had an afternoon nap, walked in the forest in the late afternoon sun with the dogs and ate so well that if you cut me I would probably bleed raw vegetables. When I sat down to watch some t.v. I flicked over to a true crime documentary on Netflix. Now, I am the QUEEN of crime dramas, be it reading them, watching them... I would probably be quite an asset to the SOCOS, truth be told with my eagerness to establish who last saw the victim alive and protecting the crime scene, (although the waste of single use and throw rubber gloves is of some concern - can we find something more environmentally friendly?). When I was running one of my retreats in Turkey, one of our guest's husbands was a detective actively working a murder case that week and I was only too willing to offer my extensive knowledge on procedures (not taken up, bizarrely!). Yet here I was watching this hideous documentary and finding my peaceful, happy mode deteriorate towards something quite dark and I just stopped it to wonder what on earth I was doing. I had to flip it around and instead go full immersion into a podcast on The Archers, itself quite dramatic but in a much less gruesome way (although Peggy's will is a worry but so too is her entire family's attitude - poor woman has not yet gone cold in the ground and they are doing their sums). I talk to people a lot about health and wellness. Of course I do. It's my business, a passion and interest of mine and I always feel privileged when someone chooses to discuss concerns with me and I reiterate - what does being healthy mean to you? We need consistency in our lives in order to carry us over the lows as well as the boring bits - the highs can often take care of themselves but they will always have a downhill or at least a flat bit to follow. Sometimes, the boring is good - some familiar, chugging along, recharge and just hum drum normality but the lows are what are going to be the challenge. So maybe for a change, think further away from the immediate - if you are still not sleeping well, or have that growly digestive issue or are more irritable or anxious or emotional, maybe your diet and exercise choices are not to blame but there is something else staring you in the face. I am not suggesting you choose divorce (worked for me but hey! may not be your first option) but maybe that friend is actually draining you more than you realised. Maybe work is taking up too much from you and you just haven't seen it because it has been like this for so long. We adapt to what we do and then it becomes the norm and perhaps we then don't see when it is no longer servicing us, or we forget that we change as we age and want and need different things. I am not big into meditating per se, but I am into mindfulness, gratitude, recognising what I have rather than what I don't . Those are things that have helped me. Well that and stepping away from a few relationships that were not nourishing me and were taking up a lot of battery power. What other things might enhance your life? What might your changes be? Perhaps your book club just isn't right for you anymore or actually you really do not want to continue Tuesday morning walking group- it might seem so trivial but if you are thinking and worrying about it, it clearly is not trivial. What is one thing you could cut loose and what is one thing you could replace it with? If you are fed up, sad, stressed, exhausted, cant sleep, can't stop sleeping, get bloated or gassy, have no energy... then apart from any genuine medical concerns, maybe you need to look at your global health. As the motivational speaker Mel Robbins says - "No-one is coming to rescue you". You have to fix it. Take a good look, have a good think and perhaps it is something that diet and exercise are not a part of. psst... but keep going on the exercise!

The sun is out which can only mean TEACH ON THE BEACH! (The picture above is one of the beauties who joined me this week!! ) We have enjoyed a week of classes down on the local beach and have dodged low flying and quite inquisitive seagulls, ponies coming to see what is going on and a very sweet but very annoying lost dog. I mean, I didn't think he was lost - 2 ladies were walking past and he was with them and as he continued to bounce about over us and our mats with his muddy paws, dropping his stick and waiting for us to throw it, I was glaring at the retreating backs of the aforementioned women, thinking how unbelievably irresponsible ... just you WAIT until they return... until someone in the class mentioned that perhaps he wasn't actually their dog and might be lost... which it turns out, was absolutely the case... and two other walkers passed by and said "Ohhhh he's Lara's dog".... and kindly took him with them... I don't think they actually planned to but as I said "oh MARVELLOUS, you know where is from because he has been a total pain" and they were sort of left with no choice. I hope Lara and he are happily reunited and all is well. Anyway, it continues to be an absolute treat to be able to throw a. mat down on the beach and have our classes in such a setting. I will never take it for granted and I just love seeing you walking down the beach to join me so let's hope this weather lasts (with regular overnight rain please - wouldn't that be the perfect solution). Welcome to some new members this week - I have already seen one of you on the beach and look forward to seeing you online too.

So that was a busy weekend. As Lou and Clare were coming to the end of an epic 100km run around the Isle of Wight I was settling in for an early night before taking my bike over to ride the 100km the following day. I have never seen so many bikes - the ferry we were on had only 2 cars and otherwise it was wall to wall bikes with a lot of lycra in the lounges! Bearing in mind people were arriving on ferries from Portsmouth and Southampton as well as Lymington, that was A LOT of cyclists. The group I was in were faster than I would normally ride so it was quite the challenge. When we first sat down in the ferry and I saw one of our group wearing a "Team GBR Triathlete" I felt slightly doomed and to be fair, we were pretty fast straight from the onset.... I could see my 2 little energy bars were not quite going to cut it. This was going to take a lot of gritted teeth and hoping for the best. Very early on, Lou was driving (trying to avoid the thousands of cyclists) and overtook me, so she kindly pulled in and took a little video of us going past (pic above) and it was lovely to see her. Do you KNOW how hilly the island is? They just keep coming.. and you sort of can't really enjoy the downhill as you know it will only be short-lived before you start the climb again. I knew that I would do it. If I put my mind to something I will stick to it despite how much I may overthink and worry but I knew that I would finish it, no matter what. A small achievement to many but the start of something new for me and being in a group, God forbid I held anyone up. It was actually a year to the day... it was last year that I went over to the Island to watch Lou and Clare run 50km (although I did sort of wander off and find our island member Sarah and spent a very happy afternoon in her bluebell wood eating home made chocolate brownie but I was thinking of them) but I really missed being part of the event. After so many years of running, I realised how much I missed the build up and anticipation of an endurance event: the sense of camaraderie and being in something together . It was off the back of that that saw me come home and buy my first proper bike - I mean proper as in all the others have been acquired along the way and have been older and heavier than me. I have snuck off and done a few bits and bobs here and there and of course, had the shock of how much work I have to do to keep up with the clubs I have joined but here we are - one year later and a 100km ride around the island. The Military Road is forever etched in my memory - it was only 20 miles or so from the end and my legs were tired. Somehow for a short while, I found myself out of my group and riding alone and as I tried to ride up this endless hill, cycling slower than a toddler dawdling along, I was literally shouting out loud "WHY do I do this to myself? WHAT is this teaching me about myself?".....but keep peddling I did. You see we are funny creatures - the whole psychology behind a challenge is massive. Once I knew I was into the last few miles, I allowed myself to feel and acknowledge how tired my legs were - until we realised we could make the 5pm ferry at which point I found a new energy and powered on faster and stronger than ever - I was NOT going to miss that ferry! As I say, not a big deal to lots of people who did it and nothing like the achievement of Lou and Clare (I can't even begin to imagine how deep they had to dig) BUT I am chuffed and it is the first step on the ladder. It is all relative isn't it? What is not much to one person is a massive challenge to the next - whatever it is, be it physical or otherwise, to succeed in something that requires courage, discipline and commitment is worth celebrating. We have to dig deep to push out of our comfort zone but when we do, the feeling of achievement is so self rewarding. Sometimes I think we forget to reward ourselves or give recognition for when we have gone outside our comfort zone and achieved something and we deserve to remember - a pat on the back or a mental high five even if it is not shared with anyone else can really boost our mood and if we have tried, we ought to (even very quietly) give ourselves a "well done me!" For me, meeting and chatting to like minded people who are all there for their own reasons. Some built like professional athletes, some not, all doing their best - all encouraging and supporting each other. Mind you, the ones who whizzed by at the end while my legs were falling off, saying things like "nearly there".... not so keen on them to be honest! What next? I think I need to buy a road bike now to start the collection... this could become the new passion..... will I keep going... yes of course I will... I think....