Teasers of a Different Kind: A System of Rewarding Discipline

I used to get teased a lot when I was a kid. But this is not what this is about. It’s about discipline. And rewarding self for ones achievements.

I’ve decided I’m going to reward myself for every 2.5kg lost. Yes, I know it isn’t all about the (scale) weight – but it does serve as an indication of progress towards one of my key goals that I am committed to achieving in the first half of 2010.

The first target has been set to 75.0 kg. And my ‘teaser’ – the carrot I’ve dangled in front of my face (quite literally) is two CD music albums. I bought them on Monday afternoon but they will remain in their Sanity bag and out of my stereo, my computer (via iTunes) and iPod until such time that I reach 75 kg. I’m nearly there too – I was 75.5 kg this morning. So, it looks likely it’ll be available for my listening pleasure by Christmas.

How can I be so strong, you ask? Easy. Like I said before, it just comes back to discipline. Sure, I could easily whack the new CD’s into the CD player and put them onto my iTunes and iPod, but I’m not, because this is a commitment I’ve made to myself. And I don't want to hear about 'will power.' It's about discipline and focus and commitment. Will power might save you for 5 mins but beyond that its bullshit.

It was my 30th Birthday Sunday week ago (on the 6th) and the dinner I had on that day at Montezuma’s has been the only ‘cheat’ meal I’ve had since Monday 19 October when I recommenced keeping a daily food diary (that’s writing in it every day, not every third day or when I’ve been ‘good’). On the Tuesday just gone, I put together a little party for my family – nothing over the top, just some basic party food with the favourite thing for each of my family (Mum: licorice allsorts, vanilla and strawberry wafer biscuits, Dad: marshmallow snowballs, my brother: cheese flavoured corn chips and sundried tomato and French onion dips). And I even made my own cake on Sunday - a Lite Mixed Berry Cheesecake. The chocolate ‘happy birthday’ plaque is from the mini mud cake I bought my parents from Michel’s for their wedding anniversary. Honest – I really did make the cheesecake, it wasn’t a Michel’s one! Though it looks pretty damn good if I must say so myself! I had a teeny weeny slither with my family at the party on Tuesday and it was really nice. It was very pink! The chunky berries really made it.

I’m still giving thought to my 'schedule' of subsequent rewards. Here is my draft one:

75.0 kg – two CD music albums

72.5 kg – Lorna Jane top (one only, Jules!)

70.0 kg – DEXA scan at Body Composition Australia which involves a trip to Sydney. I’m going to go with Sarah who also wants one when she gets to 70kg.

67.5 kg – VO2 max bike test at UQ (University of Queensland) or QUT (Queensland University of Technology)

65.0 kg – Garmin GPS (for running)

62.5 kg – TBA

60.0 kg – TBA

57.5 kg – glamour photo shoot

* Body fat composition to be assessed at (around) 57.5 kg

A few other thoughts that spring to mind are:

Facial (I've never, ever had one)
½ head of foils and my hair cut and straightened
Nike shoes from Harbour Town (Gold Coast) – I want some funky flat boots for BodyJam
Flexibility Highways – a DVD by Chuck Wolf
LIVE STRONG cycling shorts and jersey

It's important to work hard, but it's also important to enjoy what you've created and achieved.

100 Small Steps Challenge: The Second Week

Day 8: Monday 7 Dec

“I’m going to strap your shoulder blades together today” says Tim, the physio. “Is that to teach them to be good?” I asked. “Yes – they’re being naughty. It’s teaching them to be in a better position. It’s for postural correction." When I feel it pulling it means I’m rolling my shoulders inwards. So, here I am, my scapulae strapped. Nice work, Tim!

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Day 9: Tuesday 8 Dec

I love Tuesdays. Tuesday nights, in particular. At 7:30PM I hit the dance floor (err, the group exercise studio) and Jam for an hour! WOOP WOOP! Here we all are – the Tues night Wynnum Fitty First Jammers. Big shout out to Rach, Jazz and TK. How special did I feel when Jazz shouted out to me a “HAPPY BIRTHDAY FOR SUNDAY, JULIA” during the warm up track? Luv you tons, Jazz! … and YAY – Rach, was so good to have you back teaching on stage, honey. I missed you. We all missed you. And thanks to you too for dedicating the track titled ‘My house’ to me. “This song is dedicated to Julia who woke up at 4:30AM and this song was in her head!” Luv you tons, Rach. You’re the Real McCoy of the Jammin’ World! Yes, yes, and I luv you too, TK! You rock! Jamming contributes to my mental health – it really does give me so much joy. I have so much fun. I was never into the going out clubbing thing, so this for me is like going out! It turns into a social thing too – I stay and chat with the Rach, Jazz and TK and a few other regulars, although tonight I didn’t stay for too long as I was really tired and needed to get to bed for some much needed rest.

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Day 10: Wednesday 9 Dec

I had PT with Gav yesterday morning at 9:30 and it didn’t take a brainiac to observe I wasn’t doing very well. I was stalling at every opportunity. I’d be talking to Gav and mucking around. I burned a grand total of 250 calories in our 45 min session. Like that is shithouse for me. I usually burn around 500-600. I was struggling for sure. Gav gave me the ‘overtraining’ pep talk not to punish me, but because he cared and was concerned that I’ll lose my passion for the gym and my training and/or get a nasty injury. I don’t want either, so thanks tons, Gav. You’ve been the best thing that’s happened to me for a long time. Anyway, the take home message from the pep talk yesterday was that it’s important I get to bed at 8:30PM each night. I’ve been going to bed at 9:30-10:00 and typically waking at 4:00AM. So, instead of fighting the early start, we need to work around it so that I get adequate rest and recovery time by going to bed earlier. And, here it is, a picture of the kitchen/dining room clock at 8:30PM. It actually didn’t happen last night as I was stubborn and went to my 7:30PM Jam class. It didn’t happen tonight either as I was grilling 3kg of chicken breast fillets in the George Foreman Grill. It really needed cooking. I also was gathering stuff together for my day at Sea World tomorrow. Time just got away, you know…

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Day 11: Thursday 10 Dec

Yes, so hear I am, back at Sea World. Last Thursday I had my Lifeguard interview which I was unsuccessful with. However, on Tuesday Sam, my bestie (best friend), calls me and says she has two (free) tickets that she was given by a random person at work who was going to be unable to use them on the specified day (Thurs 10 Dec). “Do you want to come?” AHHHHH – hell yes, I do! I rescheduled my Thurs 4:00PM studio pilates class to Fri at 4:00PM and couldn’t put a lid on my excitement in anticipation of spending the day with Sam on Thursday at Sea World! And, to be honest, because I hadn’t forked out nearly $70 for the ticket, I was more excited about spending the day with Sam than Sea World! We had a ball though. The highlight would have had to have been the Imagine Dolphin Show… and also seeing Huddy (Hudson) feeding. Everyone say “awwww – cute!” Sam had to leave the Theme Park at 3:30PM to get to her PT session at the gym at 4:30PM but I hung around and lined up on a couple of rides and browsed the Gift Shop and spent lots of money! Thanks tons, honey, for a magical day. Sam paid for my $5 entry into the Water Park and also for my lunch – a yummy chicken, salad and sun-dried tomato wrap, and also a bottle of water. You’re so sweet – love you so much.

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Day 12: Friday 11 Dec

Yesterday was my parents 37th Wedding Anniversary. Congratulations, Mum and Dad! This is the individual mud cake I got for them at Michel’s Patisserie on my way home from Sea World last night. It had a chocolate template with Happy Birthday written on it. But I whipped that off and placed four heart candles that I had found in a discount store, and two bee shaped icing decorations from a Pooh Bear collection I found in the cake decorating section in Coles Supermarket. I had got a blank card in the newsagent on Wednesday too, with ‘On Your Special Day’ on the front and some yellow flowers. Inside I wrote the following quote that I found from a website

Love is like water
We can fall in it
We can drown in it
But we can’t live without it

My parents loved the cake and the card. I love giving. And doing special things for the special people in my life. To me, this represents mental and emotional health as it gives me so much joy to brighten the lives of those close to me. You don’t have to spend $50+ to let someone know you love them. I spent less than $20 on the cake, cake decorations I added and the card. In fact, the card was $1 but because I had taken the time to find a beautiful quote and write it in my handwriting, I think it is more special than picking up a $6 card with something already printed. It shows I’ve given it more thought.

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Day 13: Saturday 12 Dec

Tim had said last Wednesday that if I’m having issues to give him a call on Monday as he may be able to see me before Wednesday. I called on Monday because my neck was still really stiff and yukky. Turned out Tim was fully booked anyway when I phoned just after 8:30AM. But it would have been 5 or so minutes later that I had a phone call from Nicole, the receptionist, saying she had had a cancellation for 2:30PM if I wanted it. “Yes please.” Although, I’m not sure why I was so excited – Tim gives my neck and muscles a thrashing. Ouch +++! I said to Nicole to keep the Wed 8:00AM appointment at this stage and see what Tim says. Clearly, I still have some underlying soft tissue ‘issues’ that we need to address as he said to me as we finished on Monday, “I think we better keep our Wednesday [physio] appointment.”

My ‘homework’ from Wednesday’s session, in addition to a bunch of stretches and exercises for my neck, was to try going for a swim before next [physio] session. “Just 10 laps, breathing both sides. That’s 500m.” Yes, Tim, I know 10x 50m = 500m! I went for this swim this afternoon at 1:45PM, at Manly pool which has only been open for a few weeks following major refurbishments. It was a 33m outdoor pool, not heated and it was shit! I had been there once or twice before. Now, it is a 25m heated salt water pool, still outdoors and it looks fantastic. I’ve really missed not being in the water. I love swimming. The last time I’d been in the water was on 15 November when I did my Pool Lifeguard Update course, and shit, did I pay for it the following day – my neck was really, really sore on the Monday morning. I saw Tim that afternoon, and I swear, had he gone near it that morning I would have punched him because it was already so sore. It had calmed down a bit though. Anyway, my swim this afternoon felt OK on the neck. I guess time will tell in the coming days if my neck continues to stay ‘happy’ (as happy as it can be!). By around 7:00PM tonight my neck and right scapula cracked it and was experiencing a weird pinching and pulling sensation again. (And it was shitty all day Sunday too, and was no better Monday morning either).

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Day 14: Sunday 13 Dec

In my second PT session for the week, it was Gav’s turn to do some talking – err, I mean, teaching/instructing. It continued on from Tuesdays discussions about overtraining (where he had me Google ‘overtraining in sport’). He wrote out a weekly training schedule for me to address this issue. He says I’m doing too much training given I’m not sleeping enough. Another ongoing concern is that I’m also not eating enough for the training I’m doing each day. So, he has instructed me to wear my Polar heart rate monitor for 24 hours today to get a baseline figure on the calories I burn on a rest day. Here is my Polar heart rate monitor transmitter belt. I commenced the 24-hour study at 7:00PM last night. Total calories burned were 2405. That was really interesting. I wonder what my HR got down to? I’m going to download (?upload) the whole 24 hour file to my computer and find out.

100 Small Steps Challenge: The First Week

Last Monday (30/11/09) I joined in on Linda's "100 small steps challenge." The aims and rules of the Challenge are clearly set out here. There are quite a number of challengers now, and you can jump in at any time - so please leave a comment if you want to climb aboard too because we'd absolutely love to have you as part of our growing group.

Note to self: This Challenge is about taking small steps towards forever change - specifically, in the area of physical, mental and emotional fitness.

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Day 1: Monday Nov 30

For those who are unaware, Les Mills have a bunch of group fitness programs, with the most popular being the strength training based, BodyPump. Every three months a new choreographed routine is released and you generally work on the new release for 4 weeks before mixing it up and going back to previous releases so no one gets bored.

My BodyJam (Les Mills' dance based program) journey started on 20 October and I've never looked back. It's the new love of my life. It's the highlight of my week - I have such a great time. The first time I did it I sucked at it - had no idea what my feet and arms and hips were doing at all. But, as time goes on, I'm getting more and more of the chorey and loving it so much more.

The 7:30PM BodyJam class at Carindale Fitness First was the launch of #51 for the regular Carindale Jammers, however my home club is at Wynnum and I had already done the New Release on Friday morning (also taught by the awesome Adam). Typically, you'll see a lot more people in 'launch week' than usual, and tonight at Carindale was no exception. The room was packed like sardines. Not kidding. And the air con may as well have been off as it was so hot in the room. I was way up the back, in the middle, and one of the other participants said it was even hotter up the front. I had seriously never perspired so much in the period of one hour in my life. I also had never felt I needed so much hydration in the hour or so following the class. I bought this Aussie Bodies HPLC (high protein low carb) bar on my way out of the gym as I knew I'd burned a bunch of calories and needed some energy replacement. * And Gav, the PT is always on my case about not eating enough given all the training I do.

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Day 2: Tuesday Dec 1

My Jam journey started by attending the 7:30PM Tuesday class at my home club, Wynnum. Rach (the senior instructor) team teaches the class with Jazz (Jasmine) and TK (whose real name is Maori and I don't even know how you pronounce it!). Jazz and TK are trainee Jam instructors and are both mentored by Rach.

Over the past 6 weeks, I have been welcomed into the Jam family and am now friends with Rach, Jazz and TK. They light up my life, and rock my world. They truly are the coolest, crazziest, funnest and genuine people I've met in a long time. And they're all Kiwi's (New Zealanders) with obvious Maori blood lines. I'm Kiwi born, but Aussie bred but I still consider myself a Kiwi at heart. Dad's side of the family are from NZ, and Mum's side from Aus.

Here is a pic of the Jam teaching team at the Wynnum launch (well, it was for those who can't make it to any weekday morning classes). From left to right: Jazz, Rach and TK. Love you guys! Peace out to my favourite Jam teaching crew!

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Day 3: Wednesday Dec 2

I've been seeing my physio for the past few weeks for ongoing neck pain. Tim wanted a photo of my sleeping posture as he suspects it could be part of the issues I'm having. I'm not really asleep in this photo! The pic was taken on Tuesday night, but I showed them to Tim on Wed morning.

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Day 4: Thursday Dec 3

I'm currently looking for casual/part time work and today I had an interview at Sea World. The position was a Lifeguard at the (small) water park. I originally thought I was applying for a lifeguard position at Wet 'n' Wild but for some reason my application was forwarded to HR at Sea World. To be honest, I would have preferred Wet 'n' Wild but tried not to over-think the whole thing by telling myself there must have been a reason it was forwarded to Sea World. I received an email the following day and learned I had been unsuccessful. However, I was totally fine with that as it was 84 km one way - a fair hike, and I was told some of the shifts may have been only four hours. I cannot justify the travel for four hours work at the pay rate I would have received. So, all good. I'll keep my eyes open for a suitable employment opportunity.

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Day 5: Friday Dec 4

Whatever Tim (the physio) did on Wednesday really disturbed my neck. It seems my original presenting injury/complaint has morphed/mutated/changed into something different. It started off as being acute, constant neck pain that was aggravated by rotation. Now, the constant pain has gone but my neck musculature is clearly 'unhappy.' Since Wednesday's physio treatment I've experienced a pulling sensation in addition to it all feeling incredibly tight and 'icky.' Tim advised to put heat on it and I use the Lockeroom Pocket Physio to dig into my 'dodgy' bits in my neck as trigger point therapy (yellow is my favourite colour, so I had to buy a yellow one!).

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Day 6: Saturday Dec 5

I've been having ongoing sleeping issues. I have no trouble falling asleep, but I'm consistently waking after 4-5 hrs sleep. Typically at around 4:00AM, although it has been as early as 1:45, or 2:30. Nothing wakes me up at that time. Sometimes my cat, Mishka, wakes me at 4:30'ish but often I wake before her. I've been keeping a log of when I go to bed, when I wake and any sleeps I have during the day. I found this sleeping log online ages ago and I finally got around to finding the file on my USB memory drive and printing a few copies. I'll transfer what I've written in my lil' notebook onto this log so as to better see what's going on.

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Day 7: Sunday Dec 6

Today was my 30th Birthday! Goodbye to the 20's - I can't honestly say I'll miss them, as the majority of the past decade I'd rather just forget for reasons I won't get into here and now. I had a fun-filled day, although it didn't start off like that (again, I won't get started on that - Chelle, you know what I'm talking about, hey). I went down to Surfers Paradise with my parents to meet up with my Aunty and Uncle who were up from the Central Coast (NSW) for a few days (not specifically for my birthday either, by the way). We met them at the hotel they were staying at, then shortly after having a hot drink (not that I had cuppa - I'm not a big fan at all of hot drinks. Never have been. I do enjoy the odd mug of Hot Chocolate though) and brief discussion of what we were going to do for the afternoon, we headed into the town and checked out a few of the ideas my Aunty and Uncle had come up with. One was a place called 'Infinity' which sounded cool and fun. Another was ten pin bowling. Also good but I can do that anytime, anywhere. What appealed to me the most out of the suggested ideas was getting dressed up in a Victorian costume and having my photo taken. And that's exactly what I did. It was so much fun - I had an absolute ball. The photographer was a bit weird though - just a bit... how do I phrase it.. abrupt with her instructions? Anyway, I had fun and I was photographed in the one costume in four different settings/scenes holding the odd prop. The three photos I chose came out so well. I don't view myself as overly photogenic, but I really do like the ones I chose (with help from the others). They were printed in the brown/white contrast (I forget what its called - something beginning with 'C', is it?) and they were ready for my collection in 15 minutes. And, it'll be something I'll have forever as a reminder of my 30th birthday. After the photo shoot, we all went out to dinner to Montezuma's - a Mexican restaurant and I had a chicken burrito. It was so yummy. It was the first meal "off-the-plan" I had had since Oct 19. And to be honest, I didn't want food to be involved in my birthday as I was doing so well with my eating. I wanted to have a party when I got to my goal weight/body composition in four months (or whenever). There's no birthday cake (yet). And I had no dessert - was far too full anyway. The burrito was divine. My only regret was not to have shared my day with my brother - he didn't want to come...

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Stay tuned for Days 8-14. I'm loving this Challenge already - thanks so much Linda. It's going to be like a photo diary.

NB: Okay, so perhaps expect me to write more than two lines on each day in the future! I'm not doing this for you, I'm doing this for me, and I'm happy if you don't want to read it - no offense taken whatsoever (I don't get 'precious' very often these days). I love writing and reflecting (is that obvious?).

The significance of today in my life

I'm unsure what today signifies in your world, but for me it's very special for at least two key reasons.

Firstly, I will say farewell to my 20's, and turn 30 next Sunday, December 6. Why be scared about it, honestly? I can't change my age. We're all ageing. Every day, every hour, every minute. So, my attitude is to embrace getting older because with it, we are learning, growing and becoming a new-and-improved-version-of-us. Or if we aren't, that is our choice. So, choose to become a better person every day in even a small way. Life is far too short to waste.

Secondly, in exactly 40 weeks today - the time it takes for a foetus to reach full term (which I thought was rather significant!) - I will, together with the rest of Team Mera, commence my epic trek and climb of Mera Peak in Nepal. How can I not get excited about that amazing fact? That's right kids, in 40 weeks today (5 September, 2010) I'll be in Kathmandu, in Nepal. I am sooooo, sooooo excited. I have tons of work (preparation) to put in between now and then, but I have every belief in myself that I can be physically, mentally and emotionally prepared for what is sure to be my most life-changing, challenging and rewarding experience to date. I have a Team of amazing people who are right alongside me, doing all they can to help me get ready for Mera Peak. I'm going to introduce you to those people very, very soon. I have long since acknowledged I cannot get from where I am now to where I need to be physically, mentally and emotionally on my own. It's SMART to ask for help, guidance and coaching. Why? Because I am so committed to summiting Mera and being in the best physical and mental condition of my life. Preparation is the key. Once I arrive, it's too late. The hard work needed to already be done. The more I prepare, the more I will gain from my climb and the more I'll enjoy it because I wont be struggling with every step. The altitude will alone be challenging enough. I'm so going to be a little ball of muscle in 40 weeks time... and an endurance athlete, ready to climb a mountain!

There is one other thing but I'm not quite ready to unleash it into the blogosphere yet. Soon though, I promise you'll hear/read about it right here. I'm well aware I could receive some feedback that may be borderline negative, hence why I am holding back at this time. But, at the end of the day, it isn't about anyone else. This is about me. I have my reasons (the why behind the what) and that is all that matters.

Enjoy today, kids. I invite you to sit down for a few minutes today and contemplate the significance of today in your life. Where are you at with your goals and commitments for 2009? What is in store for you in 2010? What worked for you, what didn't work? Are you a better person now than you were 1, 2, 3, 6, 12 months ago? I know I most certainly am in a much better head space than I was four months ago. And I am fitter and stronger too. And happier. And more focused and committed. And grateful for my family and my health. Sure, I'm always going to have my 'issues' and 'challenges' - but as long as we are committed to working on overcoming them it's all good in my book. I have a few I'm currently working on overcoming right now: my sleeping (or lack thereof), my eating (again, or lack thereof, given the quantity of training I'm doing) and my acute neck pain that has now persisted for almost 4 weeks. It's when we are stagnant that we lose the point of life. I'm the first to admit that about three months ago, I was in a very negative 'place' in my life. I don't want to go back there, ever. And I'm not about to paint a grim picture of what things were like for me then. Although you'll get glimpses of that period in my life, no doubt.

The Seven Summits

In the world of mountaineering, the Seven Summits is considered to be an achievable goal - rather than say climbing the fourteen peaks over 8000m (Andrew Lock - I totally admire you). That is, climbing the highest peak on each of the earth's seven continents.

Asia - Mt Everest, 8850 metres

South America - Aconcagua, 6962 metres

North America - Mt McKinley, 6194 metres

Africa - Kilimanjaro, 5895 metres

Europe - Mt Elbrus, 5642 metres (not Mt Blanc)

Antarctica - Vinson Massif, 4897 metres

Australia - Mt Kosciusko, 2228 metres. (Note that for reasons that probably relate to the extremely low altitude and lack of any technical difficulty of Mt Kosciusko, some claim that the highest peak for this region should be Carstenz Pyramid, 4884 metres, in Irian Jaya for the 'continent' of 'Oceania'.)

(Ref: http://www.andrew-lock.com/seven-summits.shtml)

If mountaineering doesn't excite you and isn't your 'thing' - and that is perfectly okay - what are your Seven Summits? What are the seven top goals you would like to achieve in your lifetime? The time frame is irrelevant and the 'significance' of any or all of your selected seven is entirely personal. Likewise, the 'degree of difficulty' is also irrelevant and individual. Because, as my personal development coach/mentor, Craig Harper, says time and time again: "It's about YOU." Why chase someone elses goals? Why be a copy cat? You are unique for a reason - so you develop your own ideas, opinions, thoughts and plans.

The rationale for me writing about this follows my commitment to climb Mera Peak in September next year with Nick Farr (our leading guide), Cherie Horne (my special friend/trainer in Melbourne) and eleven cool team mates who I'll meet early next month at our first team meeting. But it also comes at a time where I've had to totally re-think where I'm going in my own life. And, to be honest, I don't have any answers regarding what path I'll follow next. I decided to voluntarily walk away from my paramedic career in mid August, not having even completed half of my 12 month Graduate Ambulance Paramedic Program in Melbourne. It was the toughest decision I made this year and I sure as hell resisted it for as long as I possibly could. It literally tore me to pieces. I realised that work just was not meant to be that hard; that I needed to honour my respect for myself and that I needed more time to develop my confidence, communication, decision making and a bunch of other life skills that are not only integral to a paramedic career but also for all areas of life.
 
It's important to have goals, and I'm not going to start on how to set goals and all that stuff. However, it's important to set achievable goals, measureable goals and also goals that challenge you. Avoid setting goals that involve other people. For example, getting married and having kids are both important to me, but I woldn't want to think I'm a 'failure' if they never happen. Remember, the Seven Summits challenge is about you. Once you come up with your Seven Summits, start making action plans to achieve each, one at a time. I must also emphasise how self-destructive it would be - not to mention outright stupid - to attempt the summit of Everest without first having done some smaller peaks. You need to give yourself time to gain all the necessary skills, knowledge and experience to become 'amazing' at your chosen 'thing.' By the way, just because the Seven Summits is just about climbing mountains, doesn't mean your Seven have to be all related too. They can be seven anything's. Also note that it isn't a crime by any means to edit your Seven at any time.
 
So, what are my Seven Summits? As of today, they are (in no particular order):
 

Body composition - 57 kg* / body fat 18-20% (* body fat % to take precidence over body weight)
 
Ironman New Zealand or Ironman Western Australia
 
Mera Peak
 
Become a qualified paramedic
 
Antarctic Ice Marathon
 
Rottnest Channel Swim 2011
 
Mt Everest

I would love to know your thoughts on my Seven Summits and would love to read about your Seven Summits too. So please share or just say hello.

The Three S's of a Good Training Session

I had a PT session this morning with Gav. I mentioned that I sweat like a pig. He said that's a good thing. Then he told me about the three s's of a good workout.

1. sweat
2. smiles
3. swearing

I love it! However, maybe our session wasn't as good as I perceived? Two out of three. "Have you got a swear word out of me yet?" I asked. "No, but I will." Not today though.

The Climb

My head started churning things over (yet again) when I heard an interview on The 7PM Project between Jesse Martin and Jessica Watson. The bit that stuck out for me was this:

Jesse: What makes you think you can do this [be the youngest to sail solo around the world]?
Jessica: I just wanted to do something. I didn't have anything going for me. You just go out there and you try and blunder along and you work out a way to do it. I wouldn't be doing it if I thought it was going to be easy.

and this too...

Jessica: Whatever your dream is go for it. If you really want something you can go out and achieve it. It's going to be hard but you'll find a way.

Thanks Jess. You helped me climb out of my cocoon and start to dream and believe again. I wish you all the best on your trip too. Take care young sailor.

Life is full of peaks and troughs. It has been said many times before that it is the troughs, the lows, that test and challenge you. The test is really 'well, how strong are you?' When I've been through my lows, I have struggled to pull myself up again, and to find the strength within myself to try again and to not give up on myself and what I may have been trying to achieve. But sometimes people come into your life at just the right time, or opportunities will present themselves at a critical moment. For me, it was Jess and this blog post from Cherie Horne: Climb in Nepal with me in 2010. That was all I needed to climb out of my cocoon. I waited patiently for the next post (Mera Peak 2010) and it was when I read about the expedition on Monday night that I had already committed to joining Cherie and Nick Farr on what will surely be the most amazing journey of self-discovery, strength and courage that I have ever had. Climbing any mountain isn't for the faint hearted and this climb is serious high altitude stuff (not as serious as Everest or the other 13 peaks over 8000m).

I want to go. Now! It's been a long, long time that I have been so excited about anything. THIS IS IT. My chance to shine. My chance to challenge myself. Challenge myself to believe in myself. To build my confidence. To grow as a person. To learn about something I currently know very little about.

Thanks Cherie. Love you lots ( )