Me being interviewed by Tim Manns for radio Plymouth, last week- thank-you to radio plymouth for sending me the audio file to use. The images that accompany the MP3 file are photos of the two current hospices provided by Children's Hospice South West- "Little Bridge House " in North Devon , and "Charlton farm" near Bristol. ( images courtesy of CHSW) Please note there is a short break of a few seconds silence in the middle of the audio, please continue to listen to the second half.
Thursday, 17 February 2011
Wednesday, 16 February 2011
Facing fears and over-coming obstacles
Last week proved to be an interesting one for me as far as this challenge was concerned.I was put in two situations where I felt uncomfortable and would have naturally chosen to avoid, yet I got through them and I'm glad I did it. That all sounds a bit dramatic, but I was really out of my comfort zone- I had to have photos taken by the local paper for an article , and then I was interviewed on local radio.I guess some people would relish the attention, but not me. I avoid the camera as much as possible, and always pick fault with photos of myself , and well the thought of having to be interviewed - arrrrrggghhh.
Both went well, though I wasn't happy with the photo of myself in the paper,I got my head around the fact that other people would only look at it for seconds so it really didn't matter.The interview went much better than I expected,several people commenting that I sounded really confident- no idea how that happened! Most importantly with each of these things I had to remember the reason I needed to do them was to try and raise more awareness for the work of Children's Hospice South West, and hopefully increase the donations being made. What I learnt was that it really is beneficial to step beyond your comfort zone, it makes you realise what you're capable of.
The third thing that happened last week, I'd like a drum roll for please, because I'm really chuffed with this achievement... I mastered running on the treadmill without holding the bar!!! Ok you can stop laughing/ looking gob smacked in disbelief ( delete as appropriate), this was massive for me. Before starting the challenge I'd never run on a treadmill but assumed it was pretty straightforward- well not for me as it turned out. I've got a bit of an inner ear thing which seems to affect my balance in certain situations and I discovered I couldn't even walk on the treadmill without holding on, let alone jog/run. I felt really daft. But I'm determined if nothing else, and peserverance, plus focusing on my posture by holding my core muscles firm did the trick. I finally felt like a runner! The added bonus is that it also seems to have stopped the aches I was getting behind my knees.
All in all a week to be celebrated.
Both went well, though I wasn't happy with the photo of myself in the paper,I got my head around the fact that other people would only look at it for seconds so it really didn't matter.The interview went much better than I expected,several people commenting that I sounded really confident- no idea how that happened! Most importantly with each of these things I had to remember the reason I needed to do them was to try and raise more awareness for the work of Children's Hospice South West, and hopefully increase the donations being made. What I learnt was that it really is beneficial to step beyond your comfort zone, it makes you realise what you're capable of.
The third thing that happened last week, I'd like a drum roll for please, because I'm really chuffed with this achievement... I mastered running on the treadmill without holding the bar!!! Ok you can stop laughing/ looking gob smacked in disbelief ( delete as appropriate), this was massive for me. Before starting the challenge I'd never run on a treadmill but assumed it was pretty straightforward- well not for me as it turned out. I've got a bit of an inner ear thing which seems to affect my balance in certain situations and I discovered I couldn't even walk on the treadmill without holding on, let alone jog/run. I felt really daft. But I'm determined if nothing else, and peserverance, plus focusing on my posture by holding my core muscles firm did the trick. I finally felt like a runner! The added bonus is that it also seems to have stopped the aches I was getting behind my knees.
All in all a week to be celebrated.
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
From the treadmill
Obviously for safety reasons I'm not actually writing this whilst on the treadmill, that really would be a recipe for disaster!
The gym has become my second home though, and hours every week are being spent running, cycling and swimming, which gives me hours to think and at the same time not think. I realise on the face of it that doesn't make sense. I find whilst I'm exercising I can switch off to a lot of the stuff that usually fills my head- work, homelife,family, endless to-do lists etc which is great. It's almost like meditation in motion I suppose.The repetitive physical actions seem to quieten my brain, and quite frankly I'm the kind of person that needs as much help as I can get with that!
Whilst exercising, my thought processes instead of being a noisy, colourful jumble of ideas, concerns and must-dos all vying for attention, become, calmer and more reflective.Thoughts pop into my head but I'm able to acknowledge them, then let them go rather than get caught up in a mental discussion.I am able to focus on the task in hand, without worrying about what I should be doing next.What it allows me to do is live in the moment. To be truly present.
The gym has become my second home though, and hours every week are being spent running, cycling and swimming, which gives me hours to think and at the same time not think. I realise on the face of it that doesn't make sense. I find whilst I'm exercising I can switch off to a lot of the stuff that usually fills my head- work, homelife,family, endless to-do lists etc which is great. It's almost like meditation in motion I suppose.The repetitive physical actions seem to quieten my brain, and quite frankly I'm the kind of person that needs as much help as I can get with that!
Whilst exercising, my thought processes instead of being a noisy, colourful jumble of ideas, concerns and must-dos all vying for attention, become, calmer and more reflective.Thoughts pop into my head but I'm able to acknowledge them, then let them go rather than get caught up in a mental discussion.I am able to focus on the task in hand, without worrying about what I should be doing next.What it allows me to do is live in the moment. To be truly present.
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