Bending over backwards to get fit

Firstly, let me apologise for my lack of posting but between poorly children and working away with no reception things have not lent themselves to posting!

So to kick off what I hope will be a flurry of posts over the next few days I wanted to share with you my journey over the last month into the world of Bikram (or hot) yoga.

I first came to Bikram yoga after randomly coming across a promotion for it whilst searching for local yoga studios in Bristol. I noticed they were on the lookout for new students and were offering a cheap introductory price to give it a go – so I thought, given that I am not new to yoga why not challenge myself to do it in the heat – how hard can it be?

I booked my first class and, in accordance with advice on the website, turned up with mat, towel and a suitable shorts/t-shirt outfit. What first struck me when I entered the studio, which is based next to St Nicholas Market, Bristol, is how friendly everyone was. I was asked to fill in a form as a new student and then they took me through some of the key points to remember as a beginner to this practice. For your benefit these are:

1. Make sure you are hydrated, this means your hydration started 24 hours previous, NOT downing a litre of water an hour before class or a bottle of wine the night before (ahem!)
2. Don’t eat a min of 4 hours before class and try to eat as nutritious food as possible in the 24 hours before class, try not to come hung over or after eating lots of heavy fried fatty food as this just won’t help your class.  And believe me I can bear testament to this but more on that later!
3. Don’t let your first class make your decision, you need to try at least three times in the first week before you decide

Arrive with an open mind; NO expectations. Try to accept that all you can do/ work with is what you have on THAT day – nothing more, nothing less HOWEVER this requires absolute honesty with yourself.

Hatha Yoga (the base of Bikram Yoga) requires honesty always, going to your edge but not losing your breath and never compromising form for depth. Bikram says better to do the posture 1% right than then you get 100% benefits than 1% wrong and get none of the benefits.  First class it’s about staying in the room for the 90 minutes, anything else is a bonus! So far so good.

Having been given this advice I wondered just what I was letting myself in for – this sounded nothing like a yoga class I had ever been to and this impression was further compounded by the chat in the changing room which veered from the love/hate relationship most ‘yogis’ seemed to have with the practice to advice about staying calm, breathing and just being in the room – not giving in to the ‘dark place’, which I was told would see me running from the room in a matter of minutes. Immediate fear but it was too late I was changed and standing outside the room. 

On entering the room for the first time I noticed the following:

1. I was ill prepared for the heat – it really was HOT, exactly like a sauna. In fact the room is heated to approximately 40 degrees (centigrade) with humidity of 35%
2. I will poorly attired being dressed for a run (minus the trainers) whilst all the seasoned students were in tankini style swim wear
3. Hot or Bikram Yoga obviously must be doing something as most in the room had the toned and fresh look of the healthy and content
4. The distinctive smell! It smelt like a cross between stale sweat and incense – not unpleasant but definitely unique
5. The silence – not just no talking but a genuine silence despite the 20 or so people in the room

Having placed my mat and towel in an available space (nearest the door as advised for first timers as it is slightly cooler) I sat and prepared for the class. It was hot but I tried to put it out of my mind for fear of the ‘dark place’ I had been warned about.

Bikram Yoga is a 26 postures sequence selected and developed by Bikram Choudhury from Hatha Yoga.

According to the experts it has been proved and experienced by millions that these 26 postures systematically work every part of the body, to give all the internal organs, all the veins, all the ligaments, and all the muscles everything they need to maintain optimum health and maximum function.  Each component takes care of something different in the body, and yet they all work together synergistically, contributing to the success of every other one, and extending its benefits.

These studios are built-in such a way that you always get the proper heating which helps you to do your postures optimally. Bikram calls these studios “Torture Chambers” – ominous!

Bikram Yoga has been growing in popularity in the UK for the last 20 years and is now being introduced as a cross-training method for various athletes including, as a poster in the Bristol studio boasts, winning martial arts figures.

In fact another interesting observation I made was the real mix of people in the class. Old, young, male, female – the full gambit was represented; all searching for the benefits, both spiritually and bodily that the practice claims to produce.

So the class began with a breathing exercise known as Pranayama breathing. OK so breathing – easy – or not. I noticed immediately how the combination of heat and humidity, standing and breathing slowly and deeply caused me to feel dizzy.  I struggled through the breathing but was concerned how I would cope with movement.  So began the next 25 postures, each repeated in sets of two, which for those interested in attending a class can be viewed here. Interesting, hence the title, many of the poses include deep back bends. These claim to undo the years of hunching over desks, shopping trolleys, at the wheel of the car etc and aim to realign your spine. But they do look scary – more on this further down.

The first 11 standing poses I really struggled with, despite some of them being poses in ‘normal life’ I have not had any trouble with.  I really struggled to breathe, and it felt that there was little oxygen in the room. I was hot and as I had been warned I began to talk myself into the ‘dark place’ where I couldn’t breathe and felt claustrophobic – full on panic attack was looming.  I gulped water believing this to be the cure to my pain and spent most of the first hour (which seemed like three at least!) of the class sat watching in awe as the class moved through the movements with, what I regarded as relative ease and composure. Taking the advice of the lovely teacher, Jenny, I sat and breathed deeply in and out of my nose to regulate my breathing and tried to shut out the negative thoughts that were threatening to overwhelm me.  I did try to join in with as many of the standing postures as possible but listening to my body and with the goal to stay in the room I rested as often as I could and contemplated how unfit I really was both in terms of my body but also my ability to control my mind and drive out the negatively and pain being experienced in such extreme conditions.

After about an hour the class moved onto the floor poses.  Immediately I felt more at ease, lying down bought my heart rate down and it felt cooler – I began to relax. As soon as I relaxed and controlled my breath I was able to control my mind and felt a genuine positivity to the moves.  In fact a few of the moves I even surprised myself by being able to hold them for longer and deeper than was possible outside of the heated environment. That being the case the last half hour passed relatively quickly and I could finally leave the room.

As soon as I was out I shared my experience with my fellow ‘yogis’ and was surprised to hear that many of them had struggled in the class themselves, despite looking so serene. In fact this mental, rather than physical, struggle to control your thoughts and really focus outside the body – on your breath, on the sound of the teacher’s voice talking you through the poses, is one of the key benefits of the practice in that in enables us, in a world of sound, speed and stress, to calm our minds and the constant internal chatter and really ‘check in’ with our body and be in the moment. In that way Bikram yoga is a 90 mins open-eyed meditation as much as it is a physical work out (and it really is a physical workout having burnt 987 calories according to my heart rate monitor!)

Despite the promise to myself in the room that I would never put myself through this again I found myself feeling exhilarated for just staying in the room! I felt thoroughly ‘worked out’ and had a glow akin to a day at a spa.  As I had been told at the beginning, it would need more than one class before I made up my mind if this really was a sport for me.

And so I went back, and this time I completed ALL of the poses, albeit with very little balance or grace and the negative voices of the first class, whilst still there, were slightly easier to ignore as I concentrated on the breath and the sound of the class.  I even conquered my fear of the backbends; and yes they still hurt a little as I try to push myself to go deeper into the pose however I have noticed that I am a little straighter and less hunched and that I don’t have backaches after long periods of sitting down, something that used to bother me.

Since that first time I have been back three times a week for five weeks.  So what can I share with you in terms of my progress?

• I have already noticed that my mind is quieter.  Traffic jams no longer annoy me quite so much and I am conscious of the connection between my thoughts and my movements in a way I wasn’t before
• I have had many compliments about my glowing skin (which in part I am sure is to do with my diet) but I hope has something to do with the regular ‘detox’ of sweating it out in a sauna for 90 mins, three times a week
• I am much more flexible, balanced and stronger and am able to move in and out of poses with slightly more grace and achieve many more than I could at the beginning. This has also helped me with my yoga practice outside of Bikram.
• I have met some really lovely, inspiring people from all walks of life that have made me smile even when my practice has not gone so well

I still have bad classes – as do many long-time ‘yogis’.  In fact recently I came close to fleeing the room believing I was unable to breathe and that I had someone kneeling on my chest – but once I had a word with myself and relaxed the feeling passed. I really notice the impact of alcohol on my class with my first class of the week (after the weekend) being much more of a struggle than the last one (after a week of not drinking).  I have discovered I really can’t eat before a class – vomit inducing. And I have learnt that each class should be approached as if it is your first, with no expectations and only finishing it to be your own goal.  Being very competitive this was a hard concept to understand, particularly if I made progress in one class only to not be able to do the pose in the next. Learning that you are different each and every second of every day and that only you set yourself up for failure by setting expectations is something I want to take forward outside of the ‘Torture Chamber’ so that I can enjoy myself more in my other sports instead of constantly judging myself for not running further, not swimming faster.  I know I still have a long way to go, in fact I am not sure where the end is so it is probably a never-ending journey, but I am glad to be on it and each class I notice something different – whether it be the breathing, the poses or just my ability or not to be overcome by the mind.

Bikram yoga is practiced all over the UK with several studios in London as well as Bristol. Before I end this piece I wanted to share with you a little interview I did with my teacher, Jenny – who constantly makes me smile with her glittery outfits and her approach to the class, which is to enjoy it for what it is and not dwell on what it isn’t.

Why did you decide to become a hot yoga teacher?

 It was probably less of a “decision” in the end and more of a mission or calling. It reached a point where if I didn’t go to teacher training I would not find peace within myself. This yoga has helped me so much, physically but more emotionally for me, it has helped me find the acceptance in my appearance (which I am still on the journey with but much closer than I ever thought I would ever be). Before I started the yoga I used to train 5 times a week, high cardio hating my body and how I looked, pushing my body to the limit powered by the hatred of the reflection that greeted me in the mirror each day. The constant guilt as I went to bed every night about what I had eaten (which was very little) and that I had not run a fast enough minute mile on my 8 mile run before work that day etc. I know I sound very self-indulgent, but it was simply the place I was emotionally. It was not driven by vanity either; I just wanted to feel like I “fitted” in. Walking along the road I would have my head down and just try not to be noticed. After my first class (6.45am) I felt like I may just have found my cure!! I kept coming back and have practiced an absolute minimum of 4 times a week for the past 2.5 years. It is as much a part of my life as eating and since I stopped hating myself I am starting to accept the image that greets me in the mirror. I wanted to become a teacher in the hope that if I could just help one person change how they feel about themselves then that would be perhaps my Karma Yoga! I had a successful job as a sales manager selling telecoms which I loved, but the teaching was something I just HAD to do.

And what do you get out of teaching?

I am literally living my dream every time I step on the podium to teach. It’s so special seeing students progress in their practice but also in their confidence and love seeing them grin when they go a little further into a posture. One of my favourite things about teaching is after class when everyone has what I call the “yoga chat” there are always a different group of people sat around putting their shoes on, going back to the changing rooms to get all the things they forgot because of “yoga brain”, buying coconut water, exchanging stories about juicing, dating, their class, things they felt in class, how it was too hot!! I love it when anyone asks me questions about postures and I can actually answer the question and help them (I don’t always know the answers but it’s then a challenge to find out) I genuinely love people, I always have, love hearing their stories, hearing about their lives and hope that sometimes people leave my class feeling like they can do anything, not because of ME but because I have helped put them back on the right path and perhaps improved their state of mind.

Do you have to be super fit to do hot yoga?

Bikram says : “It’s never too late, it’s never too bad, you’re never to old or too sick to start from scratch once again”

I agree with this statement, although the teachers don’t always say it, the series is a BEGINNERS series therefore ANYONE can do it. No matter what their ailments.

I notice someone in the class is pregnant, how can you do hot yoga pregnant?

It’s a tricky one this, I personally would say if you have been a regular Bikram practitioner then there is no reason to stop once you get pregnant as its part of your routine. By regular I mean a min of 3 times a week, strong practice with little or no missing of postures and have been practicing a bare min of 6 months. But this is my personal opinion. I think when one is pregnant you should do what you feel is right for you, if you have never done yoga I don’t personally believe it’s the time to start hot yoga, however normal yoga when pregnant I think is essential for the body and the mind. There is a dedicated Bikram pregnancy system which can be found in all studios. 

Namaste

A tribute to courage and sacrifice

Irena Sendler

Died: May 12, 2008 (aged 98)
Warsaw, Poland

During WWII, Irena, got permission to work in the Warsaw ghetto, as a Plumbing/Sewer specialist. She had an ulterior motive.

Irena smuggled Jewish infants out in the bottom of the tool box she carried. She also carried a burlap sack in the back of her truck, for larger kids.

Irena kept a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi soldiers let her in and out of the ghetto.

The soldiers, of course, wanted nothing to do with the dog and the barking covered the kids/infants noises.

During her time of doing this, she managed to smuggle out and save 2500 kids/infants.

Ultimately, she was caught, however, and the Nazi’s broke both of her legs and arms and beat her severely.

Irena kept a record of the names of all the kids she had smuggled out, In a glass jar that she buried under a tree in her back yard. After the war, she tried to locate any parents that may have survived and tried to reunite the family. Most had been gassed. Those kids she helped got placed into foster family homes or adopted.

In 2007 Irena was up for the Nobel Peace Prize.
She was not selected.
Al Gore won, for a slide show on Global Warming.

Please join me in honoring the sacrifice and courage of this fine human being who gave so much and saved so many.

Namaste

 

Dear friends

As the end of the week draws near I want to thank all of you who are following me, thank you for making this process so cathartic and giving me an outlet for my thoughts, hopes and dreams. This week we have looked at what I put in (and take out!) of my body as well as some tasty recipes, spiritual moments and of course we’ve dabbled with greasy hair! I’d love to know what you thought of the posts, as well as your experiences so please do leave comments.

So what lays before us as we enter another week of opportunities?

I will share with you my visit to a burlesque workshop and will try to strip this growing fitness craze bare in a reveal all article! Plus you can expect more healthy and sunshine filled recipe’s, reviews of recent products (unsolicited) plus is it really possible to live in a chemical free house?  I try it for a week: will I switch or ditch?

All this plus loads more ideas and of course I hope something that will make you smile and keep you reading.

I’ve shared a peace of my life with you, thank you for taking the time to share yours with me

Namaste

Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.

Metta Bhavana

Meditation is for the mind what yoga is for the body. When our mind is peaceful we are free from worries and mental discomfort. We experience true happiness. If we train our mind to become peaceful through meditation then we can theoretically experience happiness all the time.

Metta Bhavana

Sit, kneel, lay down or wherever you want to be in order to be comfortable and still. Close your eyes (or keep them open if that feels right) and clear your mind. Concentrate on breathing in and out through your nose.  On every ‘in’ breath repeat the following mantras, each one for at least a minute before moving onto the next one.

May I be happy

May I be well

May I be free from suffering

May I make progress.

Once you have explored these for yourself, taking at least a minute to repeat each one using your breath as a marker you can move on to sending these positive affirmations to friends, loved ones or perhaps someone you are experiencing difficulties with – maybe even the whole world!

Content courtesy of chilloutretreats.com. I am not a meditation expert (as my last post will show) and I have chosen to post this practice specifically as it worked for me. For more information on how to meditate you can check out several books including:

• Teach Yourself To Meditate: Over 20 simple exercises for peace, health & clarity of mind: Over 20 Exercises for Peace, Health and Clarity of Mind Eric Harrison
• Meditation For Dummies®, Mini Edition [Kindle Edition] Stephan Bodian
• Meditation For Beginners [Hardcover] Jack Kornfield
• Running with the Mind of Meditation: Lessons for Training Body and Mind [Paperback] Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche (a personal favourite when running!)
• Guided Mindfulness Meditation [Audiobook] [Audio CD] Jon Kabat-Zinn

 All of these are available from Amazon.

Namaste

Chill out and discover a new you

They bill it as “a family run business which offers you, as the name suggests,. the opportunity to relax, revive and restore yourself in in the most breathtaking and serene locations both the UK and abroad” so I was prepared for some much needed R&R as I packed the car up for a weekend  at Brooklands, West Sussex with Chill Out Retreats. What’s more I was promised a rare weekend in the UK – a full weekend of glorious sunshine – it was obvious something special was going to happen.

Those hopes were momentarily dashed as I sat cursing in rush hour traffic only 3 miles from my destination, so achingly close and yet as the time ticked on, even closer to missing that all important welcome and first yoga class to really get you into the weekend.

This was the first time I had been on ‘retreat’ and there was a part of me that worried I would be surrounded by a bunch of hippies ‘ohming’ all weekend in hemp clothing, smelling of wee (apologies to all you proud hippies out there but that’s where I went in my head – it was a long drive!). However when I did finally arrive, a little hot, tired and stressed out I was pleasantly surprised to meet 12 normal people looking for a chance of some rest and a bit of a giggle at the same time.

The weekend began with a real treat – an open air yoga class led by the wonderful Nat who with her patient and soothing tone eased all of the tension the last 3 hour drive had built up and set the tone for the whole weekend. Nat has yoga and healing in her blood as we discovered later that day, coming from a long line of spiritual healers and yoga masters – in fact her family history is so interesting it was the subject of a BBC documentary back in the 70s. She counts spiritualists, surfing champions, inventors and award-winning academics amoungst her closest relatives – a real hotpot of creativity, intelligence and spirituality stemming from her Grandpa’s (Pa) desire to leave his comfortable life as a doctor in Harley Street in the 50s/60s and enable the family to learn more traditional healing methods and lead a more self-contained life. But this is not my story to tell so I shall get back to the yoga!

I have never practiced yoga outside but what an experience – the smell of the countryside, the sounds of the birds, the blue of the sky  took me to a place I haven’t visited for the last five years – a time before children, a demanding job and a hectic life, a place I like to call my bliss! And this continued as we began our first of the weekend’s meditation practices.

Let me clarify; I have NEVER meditated and find the whole thing a little cringey so I was prepared for giggling and scepticism. Nat talked us through the first practice where we counted up to ten and back down again using our breath as a marker and trying as best as we can to clear our minds. I don’t know if it was the sunshine or the lovely surroundings but I did find myself just being in the moment and despite a little giggling as we closed the session with the optional ‘ohm’ (I am happy to say the giggles weren’t from me but they made me smile!) I thought perhaps I hadn’t given meditation credit and perhaps this wouldn’t be as ‘hippy’ as I thought. Being in the moment I may be but my stomach was definitely looking to the future and the promise of a delicious meal if the smells coming from the kitchen were anything to go by.

Before dinner was served we were free to explore the beauty of Brooklands and I unpacked in my spacious and beautifully decorated bedroom, which would be my home for the weekend.  Now as I have mentioned to many of you my diet has been a little ‘strict’ recently  -between trying to control the IBS, the intolerances of the family,  losing weight and getting healthy there has been a lot of food ‘dumped’ and this has led to a tricky situation when it comes to eating out. However despite this I hadn’t bought any fall back food with me (not even wine and chocolate!) so I had to hope the food served met the following criteria: wheat free, dairy free, unrefined sugars, free of chemicals and additives and packed full of nutritious vegetables and fruit.  Would I regret not bringing dinner with me?

Food for the weekend was under the strict control and delivery of Nat’s equally lovely sister Lucy.  I could dedicate a whole blog to her food and still not do it justice but instead I will keep it to this. Not only was it delicious, filling, meeting all the criteria described above but it was cooked and presented with a smile, care, warmth and (I may be getting a little romantic here) a genuine love for food and people. I enjoyed every meal and it energised and healed me in equal measure so a wholehearted thanks to Lucy – I even enjoyed the prunes ;  )

So back to the retreat.  Night one was spent getting to know everyone and not surprisingly all bar one of the ‘retreaters’ were women and it was nice to hear the yoga experience from a male perspective. What I was happy to share was the number of us with young children and on night one it was clear that we were all here for the same reason – to unwind from the stress of family life, enjoy each other’s company and have a good time.  That said we did dedicate a lot of the first night’s conversation to our beautiful children who we all clearly missed.

I struggled with sleep the first night for two reasons; firstly I was so excited about what tomorrow would bring, the promise of more of what we had already experienced in such a short period of time was energising rather than sleep provoking! Secondly it was so hot; the weather forecast clearly wasn’t lying when it promised a weekend of sunshine.

The morning finally came around and we started the day with a delicious super fresh smoothie and an optional, not so delicious wheat grass shot (of which I am not convinced!)  Then it was straight to the yoga studio for an energising meditation and yoga class.

Meditation focussed on repeating several mantras (see separate post on meditation mantras that worked for me). The idea was to repeat these until you found your zen or whatever it was you needed to find. At first I struggled to concentrate as I was so busy trying to remember the words but soon I relaxed and by the time I got to ‘I will make progress’ I was visualising a long winding road heading towards the sea with my family walking beside me. As we walked along in silence I felt the soothing sea breeze on my face and could actually smell the ocean – I did it, I was out of the room, I was in the zone – and that’s when I dropped promptly back into the room and realised I had had it for a split second only to lose it as soon as I had realised. It may have only been a short few seconds but the feeling was exhilarating and confirmed me as a true meditation addict – I wanted to feel that again but I just couldn’t recreate it and when Nat chimed to say the practice was over I felt frustrated, but had discovered something new about myself.

An energising yoga practice then followed, followed by a yummy buffet-style breakfast with something for everyone (and thank god as I was famished!)  Then it was free time (what’s that I hear you ask)! 

So what to do – hire a bike, go for a swim in the private Brookland’s pool, go for a walk down by the river, explore Arundel or just sunbathe in the Mediterranean – styled courtyard. With two hours of free time before lunch the temptation to do nothing was great (particularly as I haven’t read a book from start to finish in a few months!) but I took to the pool for an enlivening swim. 30 mins later and I was laid out sunbathing and reading – good intentions and all that but the sunshine was a call too far!

Lunch was an amazing mix of salads, frittata, fruit and veggies. Then it was treatment time – something I had been looking forward to! I had chosen three treatments for the weekend. Firstly reflexology; I have never had reflexology and I plan to write a separate post on the benefits and practice (watch this space) and it was a really lovely experience. The basis of it is that your foot represents your whole body and by stimulating part of your feet you can energise and soothe your internal and external body.  I thought it might just be a nice foot massage but I was wrong. As Louise (one of the therapists and a real people person with a genuine smile for everyone) rubbed and massaged my toes I felt a shiver up my neck and across my head. As she continued I forgot it was only my feet being massaged as my entire body followed what she was doing with my feet.  And as an added bonus I had sweet smelling and soft tooties for the rest of the day!

My next treatment was an ‘It works’ wrap – a modern, plant-based fat wrap for those that remember the clay and cling-film type of old.  Louise body brushed my stomach and placed the wrap infused with plant extracts such as chestnut and then wrapped me in the pre-requisite cling-film.  I was to keep this on until the yoga class at 6pm – so 3 hours.

The ‘It works’ body wrap has been the talk of the town in Hollywood and it is now being pushed over here.  At £20 – £30 an application it isn’t cheap but then again it isn’t expensive either and if it worked would be well worth the money. According to the hype the ingredients in the applicator help with skin rejuvenation, reducing swelling and lipolysis.  What this means is I was promised a tighter, more toned stomach with little to no effort – in fact I spent the 3 hours flat on my back reading.  It felt nice – I thought it might be hot but it was more like a cold, menthol feeling and the only side effect was a constant thirst and the need to wee! After 3 hours (it can be left on overnight but I had yoga to do!) I took it off and on close inspection yes it appeared to have toned the area and it certainly looked tighter.  The measurements showed I had lost an inch on my waistline – an inch in 3 hours! – with the promise of more results in 72 hours. Whether this was down to water loss or simply sweating it out in the cling film for 3 hours only time will tell but I can see this as a perfect way to squeeze into that figure-hugging dress for that big event or just before heading out to the beach for the day for that perfect beach-bod. So all in all a big thumbs up for the ‘It works’ wrap – to buy please check out chilloutretreats.com or you can buy it on eBay or direct from the manufacturers.  Google ‘It works’ and there are loads of buying options.

My final treatment wasn’t until the Sunday – but we had one more night of open air yoga to enjoy, further group meditation (sending some of us into a deep and not-so peaceful sleep!) and another delightful meal cooked by Lucy. Unlike the night before where some had stayed up into the small hours getting to know each other, everyone was ready to hit the hay early as a day of relaxation in the sunshine caught up. I was no different and was scrubbed, coconut-oiled (see previous post) and fast asleep before it even got dark! And unlike the night before sleep found me quickly and kept hold of me for a full 10 hours!! Yes 10 hours sleep – unheard of in this household!

Day three arrived rather sadly and I promised myself to make the most of it. It started much the same way swapping static meditation for walking meditation in the grounds of Brooklands.  I struggled with this but enjoyed the feeling of grass beneath my feet and the sun on my back. Then came a full on Pilates class (as you know my favourite!) followed by more free time, which some of us decided to fill with a scenic tour of Arundel with our more than able tour guide Nat.

It was an intimate walk along the river and into the beautiful city of Arundel itself.  After a brief stop for ice-cream (or sorbet for me) and a few sweets for the children (and big child) back home we headed off to explore the cathedral – a must see if you are ever in Arundel. I love cathedrals – their air of spirituality, their reverence to a different time and the love and respect they reflect of those that still care for them today. As I always do when visiting a cathedral I lit a candle for those that have left us (my Dad for example) and to celebrate those that have just joined us on life’s journey (my little Goob and Teddles).

We then explored Arundel’s large and magnificent parks, with sweeping vistas, plenty of sheep and an electric fence or two. It was a hot walk but we discussed everything from motherhood to spirituality and in good humour and company we walked up an appetite. It was a great compliment to the stillness of the day before as well as a chance to visit outside of the retreat for those (i.e. me) who had been too lazy to visit the beach the day before. But it felt like a closing chapter on the weekend, even more so as we headed back to Brooklands to find some of the guests already leaving.

After lunch I had my third and final treatment – Reiki.  Again I would like to dedicate a whole post to this practice, particularly as I have booked another session now I am back as I found it so, well, indescribable. It felt like being in a dream state but awake, being present but not there and when I woke after half an hour I knew I had to do it again, such was the intensity of feeling and the profound sense of peace and creativity it had sparked in me – in fact it is one of the reasons for this blog!!

So that was it – over. Three of the guests (two sisters and a friend – the gigglers and a real joy to be with) had bought Nat, Lucy and Louise a leaving present of a sign that seemed to me to sum up the whole weekend if I can be just a little romantic once again.  It said ‘May our guests leave as friends’ and that certainly felt true in my case – in fact I have already been back in touch and am planning my next retreat in November!! Such a great weekend is rare in today’s bustling life – a weekend to really explore yourself amongst people that won’t judge or need you for anything other than for yourself.  But I want to focus on one moment that for me summed up the whole experience.

As we finished our last open aired yoga session on the Saturday night Nat read a beautiful poem about a bird souring on the breeze. As I listened, so sad that the experience would soon be over, I gazed up to see a lone bird circling above and for that split second I was that bird on the breeze and I knew it would be ok to go home and use everything I had learnt to create a peaceful space for me in my own nest surrounded by loved ones.

Thanks to everyone at Chill Out Retreats and I hope this post has done your fine work justice. For more information please visit chilloutretreats.com – until next time…..

 Namaste

Welcome and I can’t believe I am blogging!

This is the first in what I hope to many, many, many blogs about interesting things I have read, heard, seen, bought, visited and tried and I have many ideas buzzing around in my head so please bear with me.

But before all of that I wanted to get my first blog posted a) to see if I could actually work out how to and b) to get something, anything into print so my blog isn’t so empty and sad.

So this is what I have in store over the next few days so please keep on reading and I will update as often as I can:

Chillout retreat review – I have recently returned from an amazing yoga retreat in West Sussex and will share with you the food, yoga, meditation not to mention reflexology and reiki with links to the relevant sites if you like what you hear.

Some yummy, healthy and kid friendly receipes including wheat and dairy free chocolate cake with peanut butter icing, super summer slaw and home made wheat and dairy free children’s party food. Yum and good for the tum.

Why coconut oil is the new body must have and all of its uses (as tried and tested by me!)

Review of some of the best diets around (as tried and tested by yours truley) including some helpful tips and hints from a professional nutritionist and my own personal experience

Why hot yoga is the hottest thing in Bristol – a two week tour of the new hot yoga craze and what its really like to sit and sweat with strangers (that’s right I have even tried this out for you!)

And finally, when I get the time something on what it really takes to stay young and beautiful with expert words from a nutritionist, pilates teacher, cosmetic surgeon, beautician, yoga and reiki master – with so many opinions this I think will be a goodie!

So that’s whats planned – I better getting writing! Wow that’s a lot to do but I have done the hard bit and I have filled the first blank page, onwards dear reader onwards!

Namaste