By Lisa Marshall
I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself what a wonderful world.
I see skies of blue and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself what a wonderful world.
(Thiele and Weiss)
Recently I’ve taken to waking up with a smile on my face. It might sound strange, as most of us tend to roll over and grumble at the alarm clock as we whack it off and hope for a few more minutes of solace before facing the day, the kids, work etc. But my one year old wakes me up each morning with cooing and baby chatter and giggles and smiles, and it really has made me appreciate that if you wake up determined to be happy and grateful that you have the strength and ability to bound out of bed, then the day ahead is so much brighter.
It’s amazing how infectious a toddler’s delight and excitement can be, as they discover the world for the first time. I watched in amazement at the sheer joy and delight that Noah expressed when I gave him his first juicy mango to devour. Sure, there was juice everywhere and his clothes were ruined, but the look on his face is something I’ll never forget. I’m learning to take time to delight in the amazing world around us. It’s like re discovering life again! I no longer take for granted the stunning beaches and clean blue sea at our doorstep. Instead I relish the chance to jump in to the cold water and marvel at how lucky we are to have all this beauty around us.
Wild Women On Top has taught me to seek out beautiful places in nature and to enjoy the opportunity to build fitness, strength, mental toughness and longevity in the amazing outdoors. I want to pass this opportunity on to as many women as possible. It’s a chance to rediscover the world around you. How often I have heard someone say, as we explore a new rock walk or hidden trail - “Wow, I never knew this place existed and I live just round the corner!” Australia is a treasure chest of beautiful, wild and secret locations, and the best part is you don’t have to leave Sydney to find some of them!
So this term I encourage you not to miss a single session of Trek Training, and if you do – take the chance to do a make up session in a group you’ve never been to, in a location you haven’t visited, because you’ll be amazed at how invigorating and exciting it is to discover yet more beautiful places in your own city, whilst Wild Walking.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Listen to your body!
ROZ WARNE, on WHY DIDN’T I LISTEN...............
to my body that is!!!
I had a huge physically active year in 2009, 2 x 100km team events and 3 x marathons, this meant I was training at a hard level all year as well as living the busy lifestyle I lead as a WWOT coach and personal trainer. Towards the end of last year I started to feel a niggle in both my left hamstring and right foot, I ignored them both thinking just a niggle it will be ok.........
As my big goal for this year was Tibet and Everest Base Camp, I didn’t plan to enter any big events would just train to stay fit and healthy, don’t want to injure myself I thought totally refusing to think that the niggles were in fact already injuries!!!!! In April I went trekking in Tibet, 5 weeks later Jatbula. I noticed getting in and out of the water holes and walking on rocks in Jatbula caused me a lot of pain in the foot but I was happy that my hammie seemed to have settled.
Then suddenly, during a regular training session, I accelerated into a sprint, and BANG went my hamstring. Ouch! I knew I’d done some serious damage. Trips to physios and sports doctors, MRI’s and ultra sounds revealed a partial tear in my hamstring and a tear in my plantar plate!!! Ok so now I am broken and discovering that my body needed to be listened to when it first started talking to me.
Why don’t we listen? For some of us, we think we’re invincible. For others, we just love that feeling we get when we exercise, or the endorphins we get afterwards and we just don’t like to stop. But, we need to listen to our bodies, stretch and rest when needed.
Initially I was annoyed at getting injured until I read somewhere “use an injury as a gift”! Use the time to get yourself into an even better physical state. I am taking this on board it is helping me deal with my time out. I am seeing a physio who is helping me get my body in correct alignment. I probably haven’t been in alignment for years I’ve been told! I have changed my training doing lots of strength training, found alternative cardio workouts and my body probably looks and feels stronger than ever! I am following a rehabilitation program. I stop if my body twinges, for the first time I am listening to my sensible inner voice!! I have been told that it could take me 3 to 6 months to get back into the endurance events that I love! That’s ok I haven’t been told that I’ll never be able to do them again so I am running with the positive.........
A lot of you have signed up to our Coastrek event in March 2011, an awesome challenge. You should be starting to get your training programs together; you actually need to start training now. You need to look at your current training and build on it. If you are only able to manage a 10k walk comfortably now don’t launch straight into a 20k walk. Ideally you will add 10% per week to your distance walks. You need also to take the time for cross training such as swimming, cycling and yoga, to have regular massages and stretch A LOT!! Make sure your diet is healthy and you stay hydrated and well fueled.
We all enjoy the benefits that exercise gives, so we need to make sure we remember to LISTEN TO OUR BODIES!!
to my body that is!!!
I had a huge physically active year in 2009, 2 x 100km team events and 3 x marathons, this meant I was training at a hard level all year as well as living the busy lifestyle I lead as a WWOT coach and personal trainer. Towards the end of last year I started to feel a niggle in both my left hamstring and right foot, I ignored them both thinking just a niggle it will be ok.........
As my big goal for this year was Tibet and Everest Base Camp, I didn’t plan to enter any big events would just train to stay fit and healthy, don’t want to injure myself I thought totally refusing to think that the niggles were in fact already injuries!!!!! In April I went trekking in Tibet, 5 weeks later Jatbula. I noticed getting in and out of the water holes and walking on rocks in Jatbula caused me a lot of pain in the foot but I was happy that my hammie seemed to have settled.
Then suddenly, during a regular training session, I accelerated into a sprint, and BANG went my hamstring. Ouch! I knew I’d done some serious damage. Trips to physios and sports doctors, MRI’s and ultra sounds revealed a partial tear in my hamstring and a tear in my plantar plate!!! Ok so now I am broken and discovering that my body needed to be listened to when it first started talking to me.
Why don’t we listen? For some of us, we think we’re invincible. For others, we just love that feeling we get when we exercise, or the endorphins we get afterwards and we just don’t like to stop. But, we need to listen to our bodies, stretch and rest when needed.
Initially I was annoyed at getting injured until I read somewhere “use an injury as a gift”! Use the time to get yourself into an even better physical state. I am taking this on board it is helping me deal with my time out. I am seeing a physio who is helping me get my body in correct alignment. I probably haven’t been in alignment for years I’ve been told! I have changed my training doing lots of strength training, found alternative cardio workouts and my body probably looks and feels stronger than ever! I am following a rehabilitation program. I stop if my body twinges, for the first time I am listening to my sensible inner voice!! I have been told that it could take me 3 to 6 months to get back into the endurance events that I love! That’s ok I haven’t been told that I’ll never be able to do them again so I am running with the positive.........
A lot of you have signed up to our Coastrek event in March 2011, an awesome challenge. You should be starting to get your training programs together; you actually need to start training now. You need to look at your current training and build on it. If you are only able to manage a 10k walk comfortably now don’t launch straight into a 20k walk. Ideally you will add 10% per week to your distance walks. You need also to take the time for cross training such as swimming, cycling and yoga, to have regular massages and stretch A LOT!! Make sure your diet is healthy and you stay hydrated and well fueled.
We all enjoy the benefits that exercise gives, so we need to make sure we remember to LISTEN TO OUR BODIES!!
Monday, October 11, 2010
10 steps to change your life!
By Lisa Marshall
Welcome back, we hope you had a great break from Trek Training and are looking forward to another adventure packed term of fitness and fun with Wild Women On Top. We’re passionate about committing to goals and so we are very excited to see that there are at least 20 Wild Women On Top teams registered for Coastrek 2011, and many of you have taken on the Historic Passes, the Brooklyn Burn and the Freda Kozi Weekender as your goals for this term – congratulations!
Your Wild Women On Top coach is there to inspire you, motivate you to achieve things you never though possible, and give you tips and training on how to get fit for adventure! I’d like to ask you to take on one more challenge this term – I’ve put together a list of ten things I think will change your life over the next ten weeks if you commit to doing them every day. They aren’t big, they don’t take up a lot of your time, but if you do them they will become a habit and you will feel the benefits in body, mind and spirit..
To really commit we also know the importance of being accountable, so we're asking you to commit to sending us your daily log on our blog at at http://www.wildwomenontop.com/culture/blog
The best entry will feature in the Wild Women Weekly and win a free Wild Women On Top cap and t shirt.
This weekend I ran my first marathon ever, on a fire trail in the Southern Highlands. The route was stunningly steep and I felt totally out of my comfort zone for at least 21 kms of the run, but I finished in 4 hours and marvelled at the 61 year old man that ran along side me for much of the way and how amazing it is that human beings of all ages can be inspired to commit to big goals and achieve them. The only way I got there was to focus every day on things I could do to get me fitter and stronger and healthier. I have ticked it off my list of things to do in my life, but my passion still lies in walking and adventure. It’s much kinder on your body and it’s much more fun doing it in a team!
So get ready to print out these ten steps to wellness and paste them on your fridge, your bathroom mirror, the dashboard in your car, save it to your desktop, your iPhone and iPad, your mac, but whatever you do, don’t be tempted to skip it!
10 things to do every day for 10 weeks:
1. Wake up and spend ten minutes stretching and breathing, focussing only on the moment and keeping your mind clear of all thoughts.
2. 10 push ups, 10 crunches, 10 squats (knees over toes), x 2 rounds.
3. Drink 10 glasses of purified water a day.
4. Do not eat/drink these ten things: sugar, white flour, preservatives, bottled sauces, take aways, margarine, fizzy drinks, anything with a number in the ingredients, processed meats, anything containing thickeners.
5. Eat a selection of the following power foods: blueberries, oranges, almonds, plain yoghurt, spinach, tomatoes, fish, celery, cacao, coconut.
6. Write down your most important goals for the next ten weeks and read them every day – stick them somewhere you can’t miss them!
7. Give someone you love a hug – for at least ten seconds!
8. Exercise every day and make it count.
9. Wake up and commit to ten hours of being positive – avoid telling yourself you feel tired, angry or lazy – because that’s how your day will turn out!
10. Read something inspiring for ten minutes a day.
Welcome back, we hope you had a great break from Trek Training and are looking forward to another adventure packed term of fitness and fun with Wild Women On Top. We’re passionate about committing to goals and so we are very excited to see that there are at least 20 Wild Women On Top teams registered for Coastrek 2011, and many of you have taken on the Historic Passes, the Brooklyn Burn and the Freda Kozi Weekender as your goals for this term – congratulations!
Your Wild Women On Top coach is there to inspire you, motivate you to achieve things you never though possible, and give you tips and training on how to get fit for adventure! I’d like to ask you to take on one more challenge this term – I’ve put together a list of ten things I think will change your life over the next ten weeks if you commit to doing them every day. They aren’t big, they don’t take up a lot of your time, but if you do them they will become a habit and you will feel the benefits in body, mind and spirit..
To really commit we also know the importance of being accountable, so we're asking you to commit to sending us your daily log on our blog at at http://www.wildwomenontop.com/culture/blog
The best entry will feature in the Wild Women Weekly and win a free Wild Women On Top cap and t shirt.
This weekend I ran my first marathon ever, on a fire trail in the Southern Highlands. The route was stunningly steep and I felt totally out of my comfort zone for at least 21 kms of the run, but I finished in 4 hours and marvelled at the 61 year old man that ran along side me for much of the way and how amazing it is that human beings of all ages can be inspired to commit to big goals and achieve them. The only way I got there was to focus every day on things I could do to get me fitter and stronger and healthier. I have ticked it off my list of things to do in my life, but my passion still lies in walking and adventure. It’s much kinder on your body and it’s much more fun doing it in a team!
So get ready to print out these ten steps to wellness and paste them on your fridge, your bathroom mirror, the dashboard in your car, save it to your desktop, your iPhone and iPad, your mac, but whatever you do, don’t be tempted to skip it!
10 things to do every day for 10 weeks:
1. Wake up and spend ten minutes stretching and breathing, focussing only on the moment and keeping your mind clear of all thoughts.
2. 10 push ups, 10 crunches, 10 squats (knees over toes), x 2 rounds.
3. Drink 10 glasses of purified water a day.
4. Do not eat/drink these ten things: sugar, white flour, preservatives, bottled sauces, take aways, margarine, fizzy drinks, anything with a number in the ingredients, processed meats, anything containing thickeners.
5. Eat a selection of the following power foods: blueberries, oranges, almonds, plain yoghurt, spinach, tomatoes, fish, celery, cacao, coconut.
6. Write down your most important goals for the next ten weeks and read them every day – stick them somewhere you can’t miss them!
7. Give someone you love a hug – for at least ten seconds!
8. Exercise every day and make it count.
9. Wake up and commit to ten hours of being positive – avoid telling yourself you feel tired, angry or lazy – because that’s how your day will turn out!
10. Read something inspiring for ten minutes a day.
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