There are many positives about running your own business and being your own boss. However, there are some unavoidable bumps in the road from time to time. One of those for me was finding my beloved Labrador Bertie collapsed last night which caused me angst for more than one reason. Firstly and of course most importantly was Bertie's health but immediately I was faced with what was going to happen for everyone who was expecting to join one of 2 classes in the morning while I had to step away and deal with the immediate issue. It has taken me many, many (many, many!!) years to have the confidence to choose to prioritise me (or in this case, Bertie) and on this occasion I cancelled classes in order to take Bertie to the vet.( I will have to add to our list of functional exercises, picking up and carrying a 38kg Labrador out of the house and into my van.) However we are a community and support each other and that was demonstrated very much by a) me worrying so much about letting everyone down and looking at where I can add the missed classes back in as catch up's and b) the many lovely kind messages I have received throughout the day offering care and support. Thank you very much for that. It is truly valued. Bertie has had excellent care and the next few days will tell us more. Seadown Vets are just up the road from me and have taken the very best care of me and my fur family for decades. So.... back to the title of "Consistency is key"... although I think this links in. We all know that in order to get results we need to repeat and repeat again whatever our end goal is. I have lost count of the amount of times people say to me "I have never been able to do xxxx" to which I ask how many times they practise and the answer is always.. never! In which case... what do we expect? When I was teaching students for their Pilates and Gym instructor exams, one of my favourite quotes with regards to preparing for their practicals was "practise until you get it right and then practise until you cannot get it wrong." In order to improve, we need to keep turning up. Consistency is the game changer. There are any number of reasons why we can excuse ourselves and skip a class or training session and I can assure you, I am an expert on this. Despite popular myth, I am not a machine and there are many times I am lying in bed thinking that an extra hour under the duvet is FAR preferable to getting up to do exercise. When we do override the negative voice though and turn up - those are the sessions about which we feel the most virtuous or feel we have really achieved. I know I do. Powering on through the negative voice and turning up and doing it - those are the biggest wins. Having the self discipline to get on that mat despite really not feeling like it... that is the biggest success! What happens on the mat is secondary.... getting there when you really don't feel like it - that is achievement. The real key is to make it habit - make it a part of our lifestyle so that it is just "what we do". Why wait until Monday or January or until the holidays are over or we have more time or after we have finished painting the hall or once we have finally tidied the loft? Those things will ALWAYS be there and we will be able to add more and more tasks. We know this. One thing us "onliners" have discussed when we get together is the community spirit we feel online and I really do treasure this. We have all been meeting up multiple mornings a week FOR YEARS and really know and care about each other. It isn't just about the exercise - it is a part of our routine on one or more mornings a week. Getting up, setting up, meeting up and working out. It has become just part of our daily routine. This is what makes taking part so much easier - you know where you are, what to expect and it fits into your daily life, without you having to think about carving out the time. What is important however is not to lose momentum. Isn't it easy to skip a class because you are too busy or going on holiday and that one class quickly becomes 2 classes to a week and before you know it, rather than your regular habit, it has slid to the back of the pile. From here, it takes SO MUCH more effort to start again and pick it up. In order to keep moving forwards, just keep turning up. Easy to say? I have days (doing my own training) when the high intensity or weights session I had planned just seems too much and I want to skip. Never more so than now as there are bugs and sniffles and dark mornings and energy levels can dip. However I have learned through experience to still get onto the mat at the allocated time but I will do a stretch session or even some simple meditation and breath work. Before, I would have definitely just avoided it altogether but I have found out how beneficial it is just to keep turning up. I may not be doing what I had originally planned but I am still keeping to the plan - keeping that time for me and not quickly filling it with other things that are queuing up to take over. Skip that one session and it is incredibly easy to lose that routine. I know what we are like. We think "oh what is the point, if I am not doing much, what will I get out of it?" ... but if we turn up we are still getting some mind body connection, being accountable, sticking to the plan..... just doing half as much, and taking our time will still tick all the aforementioned boxes and we get to leave our mat feeling we have at least "done something"...even if it is a 10 min stretch. If you are not up to doing that tough abs class or do not have time to do a full hour then 15 mins stretch and mobility is still ticking the box and is achieving so much more than avoiding it altogether. No-one ever regretted the workout they did. Don't let the avoidance become habit. After the day I have had (writing this on Thursday), I can promise you that my cosy sofa is very appealing but I am now going to practise what I preach and I am heading to my mat for some gentle stretch and breath work. It isn't the tough Pilates sequences class I had planned for 8am or the Back Care work I was teaching at 9am but it will take me out of my head for half an hour, stretch me out, relax me and will keep me on the straight and narrow before Shetland on Iplayer and choccy biccies win the day and talk me out of it.