Monday Motivation

Monday Motivation

Well, after last week’s admission, I’m pleased to report that last week showed real improvement. Or, at least it did until the weekend when I was at a harp residential and I firmly fell of the healthy eating bandwagon! There were so many fantastic treats that I just couldn’t help myself! šŸ™‚ We had a brilliant time practising and learning som emew pieces and techniques, and I really turned a corner in terms of how I think about playing. It was such a worthwhile – and fun – weekend away!

So while learning the clarsach is helping me in so many ways, I also need to eat well and exercise – everything in balance! My activity last week was –

Monday – Circuits. It felt great to be back, and I worked hard. I’ve definitely lost some conditioning over the summer, but I’ll be looking to exceed where I was before. We worked in pairs, which was a shake up from before, and Jacqui mixed in some new (and old) techniques including partners wall sits, made more difficult by holding back your partner using a resistence band while they did squat jumps. Loved it!

Tuesday – a double header of Sculpt and TPP. Sculpt was up first – we used resistence loop bands to work on a variety of exercises for legs, glutes, arms, core, etc. It’s a tough workout, but I find that the class absolutely flies in! Then, after the DOMS have kicked in from Monday, and the tiredness from Sculpt, it’s time for Trigger Point Pilates which has really helped with recovery.

I didn’t manage along to JogScotland on Wednesday night as I had an appointment, and I knew I’d need to pack for my weekend away. I won’t manage this week either – so my plan is to get back to JogScotland next Wednesday instead.

Thursday – we did Round 57 of PiYo for the last time! I’ve really enjoyed this round, as it really mixed things up a bit. We even did the Bonus Flow track as well as the usual Flow track, eek! The bonus round had lots of core work, so it was tough, but great – right up my street.

I was then away Friday – Sunday, so didn’t get much chance to do anything much. Back to it today, though, with another full week of activity and healthy eating planned.

Here’s today’s motivation:

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Have a great week!

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Wednesday Wisdom

Monday MotivationĀ 

Monday MotivationĀ 

Welcome to a brand new week, how are you? I’m great. We had a quiet weekend which was definitely needed after a few busy ones.

On Friday night, we had a new experience: salsa lessons šŸ’ƒšŸ¼. We have been looking forward to these classes starting and finally, Friday arrived and so @TheWelshWookie and I set off to the village hall where we joined another 20 or so eager dance students! We started off with a ballet style warm up, using chairs as a barre and doing pliĆ©s and stretches. Next we began to learn the basic salsa step, thinking about what my feet were doing, hips, core was quite enough before even beginning to consider arms, hands and shoulders! It was ace. Roll on this Friday night for the second session. I may need to splurge on a pair of dance shoes!

Body Conditioning was back tonight, after a week off for Hallowe’en. Woop! I worked hard tonight, keeping with heavier weights for longer than I’ve managed before. We had a couple of new tracks which is always great for mixing things up. I know I’m going to feel it tomorrow šŸ™‚

Here’s a little something to remind me that health needs a holistic approach….

 Have a great week! 

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Monday MotivationĀ 

Monday MotivationĀ 

Well, last week this happened:And it was even more amazing than I thought it would be! The run was by far one of the most scenic with plenty of distractions and I loved it! It wasn’t fast, it wasn’t pretty but it was lots of fun. We dressed up in Nightmare Before Christmas inspired costumes and just went with the whole relaxed atmosphere. 

Since we got back from Paris, we did PiYo and VeraFlow and also had a short run on Saturday. This week I’m getting back into my routine with classes and runs too. I’ve also signed up for a few other runs: the Mo- Run, the Great Winter Run, the Great Edinburgh Run and the Great Scottish Run too. I also have my eye on the Rock and Roll Liverpool half marathon, too- eek! Looks like I have several runs to keep me busy for the next wee while! 

As I reflect on the Disneyland Paris half, I’m very pleased with what we did. It was our slowest half marathon by far, but I’m ok with that. I’m hoping that the shorter goals this winter might help sharpen up the speed a little but I’ve definitely made me peace that a quick pace is not something I need to be worried about. As Meb says:

 Have a wonderful week!

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Monday Motivation

Monday Motivation

Hello, there, blog readers. How are you?

This past week has whizzed in, and in a week’s time, the inauguralĀ Disneyland Paris Half Marathon will be all over. I feel that I’ve been waiting for this event for so long – and suddenly it’s approaching far too quickly!

Training last week went really well, with Body Conditioning, PiYo and another VeraFlow session. I also did a very comfortable 5k and 10k, so I reckon I’m about ready for race day as I can be.

We’ve also done all of the rest the prep: we’re packed, we have all of the waivers and forms printed and signed, Euros ordered and flights checked in. Roll on Saturday morning!

This week, I’m keeping training very light: I have Body Conditioning tonight and I’ll also do a couple more 5k runs – nothing strenuous, keeping everything gentle at this stage. I’ll be missing PiYo and VeraFlow on Thursday, though, which I’m sad about – I love these classes so much! But it’s only for one week. I’ll be back for some post-race recovery next week.

What do you have planned this week? Any training scheduled? Remember this – it’s how I think I’ll be phrasing Sunday’s run in my head:

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Have a brilliant week!

 

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Wednesday WisdomĀ 

Monday Motivation

Monday Motivation

Welcome to a wet, windy Monday here on the west coast of Scotland. After a lovely, sunny and warm weekend, I’m looking out of the window to a deluge of water and some decidedly autumnal winds. Urgh! Looks like summer may be over!

How was your weekend?

I had a lovely time – Tony’s parents were visiting, and we spent the day on Saturday at Portavadie, using the fabulous spa facilities (yes, again). It’s very relaxing, with stunning landscapes across Loch Fyne. Even the sauna has a stunning view. Needless to say, I’m planning my next trip already….

My last run was back on Tuesday, but I’ve managed to walk a fair bit, and I also had PiYo and Veraflow classes, back to back, on Thursday. You all know that I love PiYo, but Veraflow was new to me. It was our instructor, Jacqui’s first time teaching it, and it was good fun!

The warm upĀ involved latin-style dance steps, combined with some gentle stretching. Actually, that sums up the class well, too – lots of lovely stretches with funĀ dance-style routines that I’m hoping I might get to grips with after a few weeks šŸ˜‰ I’m not the most co-ordinated person, as many of you will know.

Tonight, I’m off to Body Conditioning again – I worked hard at last week’s class, so much so that my DOMS lasted though until Saturday! 😮 I’m looking forward to feelin’ the burn again tonight – though I might have to make sure I don’t take it too far. I’ll thenĀ pull on my trainers again tomorrow night, Wednesday night and again on Saturday – we’re less than two weeks away from the Disneyland Paris half marathon – eek!

Here’s a little something to get you started this week, if you are struggling:

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Have an ace week šŸ™‚