Back into Training

Well, I'm sure that we have all been there before. Start a fitness program and then life happens and before you know it everything falls apart. Start a program with the best intentions again, life intervenes and everything falls apart - again.

For me, I have started so many times in the past two years and things have fallen apart and I have some great excuses:

• Tore my calf (well - I did do that three times and swore at my physio at each occurrence)
• Tore my adductor - now that was painful
• Changed careers
• Family issues
• Travel (Lot's of travel - USA, France, Taipei, Singapore....lots of fun)

All excuses though...if I really wanted to train I could have....I heard a nice little quote the other day

 "Life will knock you down, it's up to you if you want to get back up!"

So I have started again - different program now, different methodology...no more excuses.

Started focusing on strength and base, throw in some martial arts (been 15 years), not so much running this time (too many injuries in the early stages), basketball, swimming and cycling.

So - my goal was always to complete the Hawaiian Ironman. My daughter keeps asking when I will compete again. Hard looking here in the eye and letting her know that I just don't have the passion anymore. I always loved the Ironman event, endurance racing, nothing like running down those final 50 metres...but the effort is immense. Right now my goal is just to get through the next 21 days with some form of activity....get into the habit of training. Of course, in the next month I will be travelling again - NZ, Singapore, Perth and Qld....Lot's to do with work and I have to prioritise time with my unbelievable great kids....

So, thinking out loud (well typing out loud)...

• Balance work, life....focus.
• Set goals and make them compelling - why, why why????
• No excuses

Friday tomorrow, let's begin.

Balance and Focus

I hear it all the time. How do you balance family, career, health, self?

It's a great question and many, many people struggle with it. For me, it's about focus. What should I focus on? what am I focusing on? What am I thinking about?

2010 was the year of enlightenment (It was a crap year actually, but need to focus on what I learnt). I got older and my body just didn't respond as I hoped. I changed jobs. I lost good friends. I forgot who I was and my focus was either in the past on some event or projecting into the future looking for better times ahead. I was rarely present in this moment - and that hurt. I don't know how we can simply live in our heads, looking backwards, looking ahead but forgetting where we are this moment.

How do you get out of your head and focus on now?

I use different methods, and it does depend on where I am at. A yoga teacher suggested to focus on the end of my nose. My priest suggested, and this worked wonderfully well, to sit down and just feel my body. Other activities that have helped - boxing (if your not in the moment whilst boxing your in big trouble), running, diving into cold water...Lot's of ideas. Right now, yoga helps most.

Balance is a completely different beast...this is based totally on your values and what is important to you. Family, career, fun, safety, children, sports, love....what is important to you differs from your colleague, from you husband or wife, from your friends. Again it's about focus, the question to ask yourself...what do I really care about? What is important to me? What do I like doing? All good questions, and I'm guessing questions that are not really answered all that well...it's only then that you can start to achieve balance.

Anyway, off to yoga.

M.