I have to say I’m pretty proud to have achieved my goal of 30 minutes of exercise every day in April, over 1000 minutes in total! I initially thought it would be physically challenging, which it was to a point. But it was more a challenge mentally. It challenged my behavioural flexibility and creativity. Muscles that should be stretched as much as possible! There was many a day I was challenged to think well outside the box due to limitations placed on me that I simply had to work around. These days especially made me proud, and they weren’t necessarily physically hard. Although, I would have to say that walking in heels is harder than one might think! I’ll take a 5km run any day!

So, I finished the month of April feeling fit and healthy, and I also finished feeling like I could take on ANY challenge I set my mind to, even if I don’t actually know HOW I’m going to achieve it. I learned that the ‘how’ will actually present itself once I set a goal. Weird, isn’t it? This has totally changed the way I think about setting goals. I have always thought about ‘how’ very early in the process, often discounting goals because I could not see the whole process and how to achieve each part of the goal. That made logical sense to me, but now I know it’s wrong.

What assumptions have you made in the past that could be challenged? And will they help you set and achieve even more amazing things?

Today the weather turned dark and dreary, and I could feel the atmosphere almost slow down from the moment I stepped out of the house. Winter is here. On a bright note, it means more opportunities to accessorise, but it was harder than usual to think ‘glass half full’ today that’s for sure. I had my gear for the gym at lunch in case there was an opportunity, but I ended up prioritising a session with one of my colleagues to debrief on a coaching session. Time very well spent, as we both got a lot out of it.

To balance things out, I left the office a little early with the intention of doing something, but I wasn’t sure what. The temperature outside was cool, and I was feeling a bit flat, so I jumped on the Wii for some obstacle course, snowball fight and Segway action. Awesome fun, and it shifted my fatigue, setting me up for an evening of being productive.

My success today is attributed to trusting that there is always a way to achieve a goal, even if circumstances make it look like it might not be possible. Having that trust, and knowing it’s possible, is all I need. I think I might trust myself more often!

It was a beautiful day for a walk in the park with my friend Priya, but with the detour in place, it wasn’t as easy to walk through the park as it usually is. Before we left I was trying to think of an alternative way to get into the park and do a similar walk to the one we did a few weeks ago, but in the end we just headed out the door and trusted that something good would emerge. Priya walking with me was great, as her walking pace is nice and brisk.

We skirted around the park, which also has a golf course (so many options), but in the end we walked on and ended up in a completely different park. This park has a walking track going around the outside with a whole array of new things to experience like beautiful trees, a trumpet player and a dog training school. And of course, it was a lovely day. I had never considered this park. I knew it was there, as I have been there before, but it always seemed a bit far away for a regular walk. Mind you, with Priya’s walking pace, even the most far off things seem possible.

6.3 kilometres later, we had completed a lap of the park and returned home within the hour, and saw a whole new part of my neighbourhood that I had not fully experienced. The unfamiliar was now looking more familiar. The combination of being pushed a little bit harder and doing something different ended up with a great new experience for the day. How else can I push myself that little bit further in something unfamiliar? How many unfamiliar things can suddenly become familiar?

It was supposed to rain according to the forecast today, but the morning was bright and sunny, so I headed to my favourite sports oval to do intervals. I know I have talked about intervals being so much like life; periods of effort followed by well earned rest, and it really is true. When it was time to go fast, I ran as fast as I could. Then, during the rest, I sucked in as much oxygen as I could and mentally rewarded myself for my effort during the sprint. The day continued in a similar spirit: after exercise, I rewarded myself with some time in the city and a great lunch. After a full on week, I am really enjoying a chance to catch up on some relaxation time. As part of that reward, it has been important to spend some time acknowledging the hard work and achievements during the week. Even the little things deserve to be counted.

Acknowledgement and gratitude are wonderful ways of rejuvenating. Resting the body is one thing, resting the heart, mind and soul is another. What are you grateful for, that if you allow yourself to feel it, would make the biggest difference for you?

I took no chances and packed my rain jacket today to ride to work.  I always feel pretty good about riding to work on a Friday, like it’s worth double points or something because it’s the end of the week. And I can ride home feeling pretty smug that I’m exercising while everyone else is drinking.

I noticed something that both fascinated and disturbed me on the way to work. My normal bike path has been completely closed due to re-surfacing work, so I was forced to ride a different way. It wasn’t a big detour, and gave me the chance to ride a different route. I didn’t think twice until I noticed there were people picking up their bikes and stepping over the fence that had been constructed and riding on the path that is pretty much dirt and mud. While I appreciate that it was probably their regular route, why did they not choose to take the detour? Why risk yourself on an uneven surface, not to mention risk ruining the good work going on to make the bike path smooth and even for everyone? I was struggling to understand. Especially, as my detour added on an extra 300 metres in total to my commute.

So, why don’t people change? Why do we do the same thing over and over? Why aren’t we open to trying new things? I don’t have the answer. All this experience taught me was how important it is to being open to new things and never continue to take the path of least resistance.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said ‘Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail’. Hear, hear. Happy Friday!

My 30 minute a day commitment to myself was looking tenuous today… It was a pretty busy day. Work was hectic and I had some webinars for my learning I needed to dial into in the evening. I arrived home in time to go for a walk before my webinar, but I really wanted to get some extra work done, so I thought I get stuck into that, do the webinar, then exercise later. Hmmm…  I realised I had not eaten lunch as I had worked through due to meetings so I thought a piece of toast would be just the thing to tide me over. I then got distracted by a mixture of the report I need to read before tomorrow’s workshop and a YouTube ad with a fireman and a kitten. Next thing I knew, the living room was full of smoke and the smoke alarm was sounding. An effective smoke clearance plan was required, so doors were opened and the fan turned on full. The kittens ran for cover. No firemen came.

The whole living room smelled terrible, and it was still 40 minutes to my webinar. I made a quick choice. I put some sneakers on and raced out the door for a power walk listening to an educational audio. This satisfied a number of needs: I felt like I was learning, so not wasting time, I was achieving my 30 minute commitment to myself AND escaping the smell of burning smoke.

It’s funny, I’m not sure I would have made my 30 minutes today unless I had been literally smoked out of my house. Suddenly, the need to exercise was urgent, as opposed to something that could be put off. It got me thinking. How many things do we put off until they become urgent? And often does that urgency come from external sources? What sort of internal sources could we tap into to create our own ‘fire alarm’? Smoke out our own house so to speak and do the things we need to do before we absolutely have to?

Take massive action. And take it now. Don’t wait for the smoke alarm to go off.

Today started early with the Anzac Day Dawn Service. A great opportunity to feel grateful for the men and women who have died to protect our country. Getting up in the cold and rain was a small effort in comparison to the sacrifices made by them to keep us safe.

It rained pretty much all day apart from a brief opportunity to walk to the movies from the tram to see the Avengers (awesome movie!!!). Although, it kind of counted as an urban walk in heels, I was keen to move a bit more after the movie so I jumped on the Wii for 30 minutes of skiing, flying, jumping over barrels and skidding on the ice as a penguin. Great fun.

I’m so grateful I have so many options to exercise. Even on a cold and rainy day, there is no excuse not to move, even if it is just for a short time in front of the tv. Today is a grateful day all around, and I have to say it feels pretty good. I’m sure feeling grateful releases all these great feel good, healthy hormones. So, what else can I feel grateful for to make today even better? What can you do now to make your day even more outstanding?

Today it poured with rain. All day. And my bike was at work. And, yes again, no rain jacket. When will I start listening to Lance Armstrong? Seven Tour de France victories, he knows a thing about cycling! So, I cycled home in the rain. The great thing about being in the rain, is once you get wet, you can’t really get any wetter. And it’s only really the getting wet that is the hard thing. Actually being wet is easy after that. The best thing was getting home, knowing I had achieved my 30 minute a day goal, even when it rained. And having a hot shower. Actually, the hot shower felt better.

Now I am warm and dry, the cold, wet ride home is a distant memory. I remember telling myself as the water dripped down my neck ‘this too will pass’. And, of course, it did. I’m not sure the self talk was super helpful at the time, but I’m wondering what other experiences I can get through by telling myself that. Frustrating meetings? Annoying people? Boring car rides? It’s true. Everything, in time, passes. Nothing is permanent. It just makes you want to hold onto the good things for as long as possible, but also feel relieved that even the truly horrible things are only temporary.  I think that makes me feel better.

Stay warm. Stay dry. But if you can’t, get warm and dry when you can.

A most pleasant bike ride to work in lovely weather. I was very fortunate as it poured with rain for the rest of the day, complete with thunder and lightning. It’s always good when you take advantage of an opportunity, whether it be good weather or time. But it’s even more awesome when you realise later you grabbed the very best bit.

What best bits can you grab right now to make your day awesome?

Today we had the most amazing Yum Cha. Fully stuffed with delicious food, I thought a post lunch walk would be just the way to recover. My fiancé offered to come with me and I was delighted to have company. I had been slightly spitting with rain but nothing to worry about. Five minutes into our walk, the rain drops were getting fatter and the sky was growling. We soon made the decision to turn around in case the ‘possible storm’ became an ‘actual storm’. Halfway home, the rain came down in buckets, and our calm walk in the sunshine became a sprint in the pelting rain. Hail was later reported in some areas nearby. Today was not a ‘just put on your rain jacket and go’ sort of day. It was more of a ‘get inside out of the scary storm and use what you have indoors to exercise’ sort of day. And that I did. After my walk/run warm up, I hit the garage for some 30 second bursts of weights training with kettlebells, including swings, squats, plank press, halos and other such things.

We finished the day with a walk through the city and comedy with Judith Lucy. Another incidental abs workout…

I had been promising myself I would spend more time doing weights. They are great for bone health, not to mention burning fat and looking toned and hot. So given this whole exercise took just over 30 minutes, achieving this twice a week is probably not too much to ask, really is it? Today’s sudden change of plans gave me a whole new workout idea. Walk to the park, sprint home so I’m warmed up, then strength training. 30 minutes of power done, six pack abs here I come.

What ways could a sudden change of plan benefit your day, or even give you a whole new idea? An idea that could change everything, not just your abs? Happy training!