…over the May Bank Holiday started in the right way, with drinks and dinner at the local pub. Perfect way to ease into a long weekend. Cheers!
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Tomorrow something unusual is going to happen. I am going to have an evening to myself.
We are staying in London, but not going out together and I’m so spoilt for choice of what to do and who to see, that I’ve decided I can’t decide. So I’m going to finish work and then I’m going to sit in the hairdressers for two hours getting my hair coloured, without having to worry about where I need to be or what I should be doing. I can just sit there talking nonsense with my hairdresser and reading trashy mags. And then, when I emerge with newly coloured roots and a spring in my step, I’m going to go out for dinner and a glass or two of wine, with only a book and a notebook for company.
For about a week I have toyed with the idea that I could have made plans, could have met friends or gone to an event or seen a show, or done just about anything that involved making an arrangement. But the most luxurious thing I was drawn to doing was to buy myself dinner and spend some time not talking or listening to anyone else. Just a tiny little bit of time.
I wonder if the ability to find solitude is harder today, with so much bustle and connection, and it’s odd that spending time alone seems such a treat. I’m sure too, that people will assume that a woman dining alone is doing so because she has to, or is lonely, or has no friends. However, according to my basic online research, seeking and achieving even small amounts of solitude has many physical and psychological benefits.
Psychology Today magazine reports that periods of solitude allow you to reboot your brain and unwind, can improve concentration and increase productivity. Funny how the idea of sitting somewhere quietly with your thoughts and a book seems so alien that there are pages and pages of stuff about how to do it online. Anyway, I’m looking forward to experiencing something I haven’t done for ages and it’ll be interesting to see how long I can stay off my phone.
Now I just need to decide where to go.
Well, it’s fair to say my ‘30 for 90‘ plan didn’t go to…err..plan. I started with really good intentions, but it seems that even 30 minutes of structured exercise a day is too much to fit in, which is a bit sad really.
I’ve learned quite a few things though. I’ve learned that it doesn’t matter how loudly or confidently you state an ambition, that alone doesn’t make it happen! I’ve also learned (been reminded) that I’m really shit at these types of resolutions and I should perhaps be a little more realistic! That said, I’ve also learned that 30 minutes is the perfect exercise length for me, that I actually really enjoy going to the gym straight from work and that even when I haven’t been going to the gym I’ve been more active. This morning, for instance, rather than get the tube I walked from London Bridge station to Farringdon and then up four flights of stairs once I’d got there. I’d never have done that a few months ago, and the stairs didn’t kill me.
So, rather than beat myself up for not sticking to the plan, I’m taking the positives and I’m going to continue to exercise as often as I can. There’s actually still a few weeks to go and I’ve been doing more than I’ve done for years, meaning I’m much more confident to exercise now. I’m definitely going to use the gym on holiday in June. Again, I wouldn’t have even thought that before starting this, so I’m going to build on that. And when I set a huge goal in future, someone remind me that my inner rebel will only stick her oar in and tell me that going to the pub is a much better idea!
Aperol Spritz. First one of 2016 at Polpo, Farringdon.
A lovely lunch of meatballs and other tapas-y things, followed by a double-desert of ‘Panna cotta, Campari and rhubarb’ and a ‘Tiramisu’. Washed down with a lovely Old Fashioned.
I haven’t read a book for ages – not since Christmas. It seems the only time I get to do so now is on holiday, and I’m probably in a minority here, but I just don’t enjoy reading so much on my Kindle.
On my way to my Mum’s just before Easter I arrived early at Paddington so went to kill some time mooching around the bookshop. 10 minutes and £60 later, I’d bagged a haul of interesting new books to read.
I started with this biography of ‘Alexander McQueen: Blood Beneath the Skin’, which I really enjoyed. I read it pretty quickly and it stayed with me for days after, in the way that a really well-told life story can. There was so much in here that explained the complex character of the brilliant designer – drugs, abuse and sensitivity, his complex relationships and the successes of his spectacular shows. I took to YouTube to find footage of the catwalk shows referenced and I’ve now become even more of a fan of the work. The story is so sad because all the way through reading it, I already knew how it ended, and that made it more powerful in a way. Definitely recommend.
I thought I’d try something lighter next, so have started the new Jenny Éclair novel, ‘Moving’. I’ve read the first part so far, and while it was okay, it’s not really grabbed me. I found the story of ‘Edwina’ too melancholy, maybe a story about a woman on her own following some apparent tragedy (I haven’t found out what it is yet) was not the right choice after the McQueen biog. I think I was expecting the book to be funny, which was a wrong assumption to make. I’ll stick with it, hopefully it will pick up a bit.
I also started a more work-related tome, with ‘HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Teams’. I am pretty fascinated by teams – what makes them work (or not) how to improve them, the psychology and emotions of them, and how create the conditions for successful teams. This is a key part of my work, something that is essential to my role but also something I have a great interest in developing my skills in. I’m hoping this book will be good insight. The book is a collection of 10 articles previously published in the Harvard Business Review, which is perfect length for a train journey to work, and much more productive than scrolling through tweets for an hour! I’m 2 articles in and so far really enjoying it – especially as I can dip in and out easily.
Lastly, I also bought ‘F**k It – Do What You Love’ and ‘Mindfulness’. I pretty much already do a job that I love, and have a life that I love, so I’m not looking for an earth-shattering revelations in this book, but I thought there might be some interesting ideas in here. And ‘Mindfulness’, well, I’m programmed to always think in the future with my mind on the next thing – my job is entirely dependent on it and I’ve operated that way forever, so it probably wouldn’t hurt to learn some techniques to slow down a bit. Apparently I’m in for ‘ideas, tips and techniques to help you enjoy a more mindful approach to life, you’ll learn how to:
- Adopt more positive ways of thinking and behaving
- Become calmer and more confident
- Break free from unhelpful thoughts and thinking patterns
- Bring about positive changes in your relationships
- Achieve a new level of self-awareness and understanding
That can’t be a bad thing, right? 🙂
… is paved with good intentions, so they say. Well, with all the good intentions in the world to make the most of my holiday, the training plan this week has utterly gone to pot.
I started well with Body Pump on Monday and Virtual Spin on Tuesday. By Wednesday I was feeling good and strong, but my willpower had other ideas and when a few cocktails were suggested to celebrate finishing work for 6 days, I gave up the gym in favour of that option. On Thursday I went to my Mum’s to stay and to visit my Nan in hospital so didn’t have chance to do anything and Friday was filled with getting home and going shopping and relaxing. A bit of a disapointment really.
I find that without the routine of the gym near work and knowing there are classes to attend I haven’t yet got a set of things I can do when I’m not there. On Saturday I tried the Virtual Spin class at the local leiscure centre and on Monday went for a bracing windy walk locally, but I need to get my arse in gear to find ‘non-London’ things to do, either indoors or out. Trouble is, the revolting weather this weekend didn’t help with any motivation to leave the house. There was definitely more cooking and eating than training done!
Madge has ordered some resistance bands, which arrived, so I’m going to trawl YouTube to find ideas of how to use them.
So, 2 sessions in 6 days is not good. But I’m not giving up. While I might not get every day of the 90 ticked off, I’m still doing more than I was before (which was nothing) and was really starting to love how I was feeling last week, so I shall try extra hard with the exercise and eating from tomorrow. Thankfully all the chocolate has gone!
And my Mum has booked me a ticket to join her and Dad on holiday for 6 days in Antigua in June, so now I’ve got an extra reason to train hard.
I was working from home on Friday, but still got up at the usual time. I decided to do an online yoga class, as I was really, really aching and still not feeling right. There’s no way it could still be jet lag related, but I definitely still felt out of sorts. So I did this.
It was really hard. Mostly because I was aching and stiff as a poker, but also because I don’t do yoga regularly enough to be any good at it. I got properly fed up half way through and really frustrated with my inability to move and stretch and moaned to myself about how yoga is just not suited to fat people. I persevered, but didn’t really enjoy it. I was feeling a bit low, exercise-wise, and wondering if the travel earlier in the week and missing a night’s sleep then going into work was catching up on me. I didn’t feel despondent in terms of the challenge, but I did in terms of how unfit I am and how far there is to go. I also realised I need to book in for another sports therapy massage as my neck and back are still tight.
On Saturday I woke early, still aching! I felt tired and run down when I woke so decided to swim. I went and managed to swim for all full 30 minutes. It wasn’t non-stop but I did do as much as I could and pushed an extra 2 lengths, so I felt satisfied I’d done enough. It was also lovely to be in the pool floating my aching limbs in the water.
I made a bit of a radical decision on Day 6 – and decided to rest from ‘formal’ exercise. Radical, because it’s so early in the 90 days. I actually felt right for the first time all week, and had lost that weird feeling I’d been carrying since Monday. It was a hard decision, whether to push myself to do 30 minutes, but I figured that my body was crying out for the rest so I listened to it. I am hoping that is the only rest day I will have, but realistically in a 3 month period you are going to get times when you just feel a bit under the weather.
That said, I still had a pretty active day. I did loads of stuff around the house, and made sure I was squatting and doing core exercises while I was doing everything! I ran up the stairs a few times and ended up being on my feet and active for 4 hours without stopping. So, while I can’t claim it as real exercise, it was an active day and I feel pretty comfortable that there was a good 30 minutes of running around in there! I don’t feel like I’ve given in early, and I know that if I had been feeling better all week I would have been able to carry on today. I also wanted to be strong to start the week, and not go into Monday feeling weak.
So, tomorrow is another day, as they say…bring on the virtual spinning.
A Saturday at home and without any arrangements – what a joy! We popped into Brighton to have lunch with the kids, though only one kid actually turned up. I suspect the other one couldn’t quite make it out of bed in time 🙂
We had lunch at the ever wonderful Chilli Pickle and I had to rush off to get my nails done at The Lanes. They’ve had a revamp in there and it’s looking ultra stylish.
Such a pleasure to get my nails done there after the quick ‘in and out’ nail bars in London. They’re fine when you’re in a lunchtime rush, but you can’t beat proper service, proper quality products and a nice cup of tea and a chat when you’re having a a pamper. I even tweeted ahead and a selection of new colours were waiting for me to choose from. I went for a Spring frost pink called ‘Woman in the Mirror’ and teamed it with a cool grey. The name of the pink made me laugh, considering that’s exactly the shot I accidently captured above 🙂
On the way back, wandering past the shops to meet the boys, I popped into Irregular Choice and couldn’t resist adding these wonderful yellow shoes and bag to my collection. I can’t believe I’ve bought shoes in such a bright colour. They are properly cute.
Here they are in a much better, properly lit (much less green!) shot from the Irregular Choice website.
We also picked up Madge’s Easter present from Gresham Blake, a polka dot shirt with a twist.
I bought this gorgeous lemon wraparound dress from Get Cutie in Brighton four years ago, and I’ve never been able to comfortably fit into it. This year I’m determined to do so. Not just because it’s a beautiful dress, but it was expensive and I want to wear it drinking Aperol Spritz with my friends on a Summer’s day.
This dress is my inspiration.
