The day I almost died.....

However, I'm going to tell you a story when the line became blurred and I danced momentarily into recklessness with near devastating consequences. It's only my careful preparation and training in breath that saved me.

...Ok, so that’s quite a dramatic title, but it hopefully got your attention....

But when I think back to the details, the story I’m about to share was the closest I’ve come to death while playing in my beloved ocean; surfing.

Since getting back to the UK after my recent travels I’ve had a lot of time for reflection; comparing my life back in London to the lives of those I meet while on my adventures. I like to think I work hard and do what I do for the right reasons, but sometimes we need to check back in form time to time and make sure that’s still the case. what are the right reasons?

The past few months have been full of new experiences, exciting new chapters, new skills and so much physical and mental expansion, all down to taking a chance on something I ‘felt'. Exploring the benefits of breathing for performance and the power of calming meditation lead me to becoming a Yoga teacher, and now it’s played a part in saving my life.Day one in the Mentawi Islands, 36 hours of transit from the UK to the remote coastline of West Sumatra in Indonesia and the trip of a lifetime is under way…

HT's (Hollow Tree's) - Last night was choppy crossing the channel, sleeping in our bunks rocking from side to side in 30 degree sticky heat. I woke up feeling super tired but soon came to life as I came above deck to see a wave outside the window next to a tiny little island covered with palm trees.

It’s not long before I’m paddling around on my board and it’s magical! The waves are coming in around 5-6 ft at the beginning then soon jump up to some 7-8ft bombs while we're out there. I'm trying to act all cool amongst the boys but my heart is pumping and the rolling water under me is enough to keep me out of the action and happy to see the lads warm into it. 

I'm out for a about 2 hours and content I've not managed to get smashed on the first morning. The guide makes the call to head around the other side of the island and get out of the wind that's picked up, next stop 'Lances Left'.

We arrive to two guys coming out of the wayer with snapped boards and the waves are powerful and big, but very clean so still inviting. I'm excited and also nervous at the same time. Some of the boys make the call to stay out of the water and spectate but I'm not one to miss out on the action and needed to keep up momentum to get some waves under my belt. I just wish they were more 'my size' (around 3-4 ft) and not 8, but me and 5 others headed out anyway...

I'm hanging on the shoulder (away from the wave drop zone) and watch the sets to gauge where I can slide in and steel a ride but there's a big delay and it's seems the wave pulse has dropped off, so we creep in a bit, then a bit more, then the mother of all waves comes through! This one’s the size of a house. One of the guys got caught at the top and bailed into a free fall over the top of me, then it was my turn.

I tried to duck dive as far under as I could but there was too much water and the power was like noting I'd ever felt before.
I was in the 'washing machine' getting thrown around like a rag doll made of cotton wool.
I was under, for what felt like minutes.
I hear and feel my knee ‘pop’.
There's no one to access what happened.
I'm getting bounced hard, but stay as relaxed as I can and remember my training (thank you Laird)  “Stay calm, you have enough air".
I popped up and gasped for a breath before going straight back under.
I knew there was reef under my feet.
I was bracing myself for a coral battering.
I tried to stand up and find my feet but there was nothing.
I'd slipped down the middle of a a coral bed.
The next wave took me under again.
My lease got hooked under the reef, looped around my ankle and pulled me down; I was locked in.
I take a big breath and go under to try free myself but it's too tight.
I have to brace for another set coming at me.
My board is getting smashed everywhere and the panic has set in.
I get a break from the waves so I dive under and manage to pull the leash off my foot.
The board comes free and I'm picked up by the current pulling me across the coral table.

The boat crew have seen I'm in trouble and send some help. All I have to do now is make my way out of the reef bed. I'm pulled into the boat and the blood starts to flow, I'm cut up pretty bad. The worry with coral lacerations is that the coral can start to grow under your skin if you don't treat it and clean the wound, so the crew get to work with ice for my knee and used the old school treatment of sliced fresh limes and start to rub it in and over the cuts (yes this stung a lot). The blood turns a dark brown and the coral particles wash away and my god did it sting!

It's starts to sink in that this is only day one and I'm out of action, time to go into turbo rehab and feel very grateful for my yoga and mobility training before I came out here, as it's literally saved my life and the surf trip.

The badboy chef is incredible on the boat, he really helps me reload and kick start the recovery process with a bottomless feast on local fresh fish, rice and vegetables. I’m drinking as much hydration nectar as I can with a combo of water and fresh island coconuts, and the lads enjoy their evening quota of bintang beers. I pass out after a dose of ibuprofen and paracetamol to end a very exciting first day.

…it’s day 4 before I get the confidence to get in the water again. I’ve been going stir crazy on the boat and everyone is worried for my sanity. Not ready for surfing yet, but I throw some fins on and a snorkel and head over to the island reef to spot some sea life and move my body. The ocean literally heals me in minutes, my knee is feeling ok and there’s finally some hope my trip is not over…

The end.

Ok, so that’s obviously not the end, there’s a lot more to this story (i’ve actually done a journal for each day of the trip) but I’m sure most of you don’t want to read it all now. But if you like me to share more of these adventure stories let me know?In the mean time, my words of new found wisdom… Learn how to meditate, practice the art of breath, stay safe, have fun everyday, explore everything, live with passion and do more Yoga!. 

Aloha.

Love Richie

x 

Local treasures - Find Food Heroes on your Doorstep

Have you ever proactively looked into your local producers and made the effort to visit them and ask about what they are doing?

With so much food made for convenience and profit, it's all too easy to forget the pleasure in food and use it as fuel instead of a delicious vehicle to meet new people, learn about your environment and make new friends.

We take a break from a very busy schedule to check in with a local food hero producing some incredible Great British Cheese and remind ourselves to get back in touch with our heritage and all the pleasures this brings.

It’s been a busy December at The Strength Temple. Richie has been working his ass off in London hosting a number of programs with Core Collective and at The Foundry, and I’ve been working on advancing my PT qualifications here in the heart of England and running around in what feels like organised chaos!

Whilst all of this is happening we’ve both been focusing on balance and maintaining our commitment to "walk our talk." We are constantly checking in with ourselves to ensure we are hitting our 7 Pillar goals, even when we may sometimes forget to chill down and assess where we are and how we are feeling.

One of The Strength Temple's 7 Pillars focuses on Environment.  It’s all too easy for those on a fitness and wellness journey to drill down into excercise and nutrition, and forget a whole load of other important areas.  Your environment is one of them.

When we talk about your Environment pillar we should explain a few definitions.  Many people say “oh yeh, that’s all about being green and saving the planet right?”  Well, yes it is to an extent, but that’s not really the main thrust of the subject as far as your Strength Temple is concerned.  The Environment pillar is centred around a number of diverse areas:

• Your immediate environment and surroundings and their impact on your state

• Seeking out Powerful and Vibrant new environments to feed your psyche

• Exercising in Nature and why it’s better for you than an indoor gym

• Creating a calm, empowering and structured place of work

• Creating a tranquil home

• Gardens and how they feed us emotionally and physically

• Temperatures and how to get balance in hot and cold

• Light and it’s importance for wellbeing

• Optimising your rest and sleep habits

• Our responsibility to the environment and the legacy we leave the next generations

• Seeking our local producers for food and drink

• Use of Colours in your environment

• Art and it’s influence on the soul

• The importance of scent and it’s relation to anchors, moods and how you feel

• Decluttering and philosophies concerning order

• Music and it’s impact on your states

AND SO MUCH MORE!

I’ve recently found my self becoming more aware of the local businesses around me, how they are really raising the bar with regards to their offerings and how they are interacting with their customers.  I’m not sure if it’s partly down to the power of social media that I’m discovering more treasures in my locality, or simply that I’m just becoming more aware as I move along my Temple journey, but I though it worth articulating a recent experience to encourage you all to  do a little searching yourselves.

We all know that it’s best to buy local.  It’s much better for the environment for a start, with the number of food miles much lower, influencing the carbon impact on our planet.  It’s amazing really when I look in my local supermarket and see tons of food shipped from far flung places with literally thousands of food miles associated. I’m very fortunate to live in the countryside and am surrounded by local small producers with some incredible offerings.

In addition to the carbon impact on our shopping habits is the impact on our immediate communities of buying local and supporting local small businesses. With globalisation many small producers are being forced out of business and it’s having a dramatic effect on our food as well as our culture.

Droves of people are now taking the weekly trip to the “Supermarket” instead of visiting local shops and getting to know their neighbours. There is a wonderful sense of community in our village and I am most certainly willing to spend a little more money to buy a quality locally produced product that is having a low impact on my carbon footprint as well as supporting a local business. Frankly it makes me feel as good as the food tastes!

Which brings me onto the inspiration for this blog; cheese. We have a farmer's market where I live that displays incredible locally produced products on the last Sunday of every month. I always look forward to it as it’s a great place to see the whole community come together as well as a brilliant opportunity to get inspiration for my diet. I also enjoy chatting with the various producers and hearing how passionate they are about what they are creating, how they make / grow it all and what their ideas are for the future of their businesses.

Once such company is the Leicestershire Hand Made Cheese Company. They make three cheeses of differing characteristics namely Sparkenhoe Red Leicester, Bosworth Field and Battlefield Blue. I discovered this wonderful cheese at the Farmer's Market and was so taken with it I literally couldn’t wait until the end of the month, and the next Farmer’s Market to get my fix, so went to the farm to visit them.

To my surprise I realised that they have converted an old barn on their farm into a beautiful cafe which sits next to their cheese shop, open every Friday and Saturday.  My daughter and I were on our way back from dropping off a load of gifts to friends and family for Christmas and we dropped in for a cuppa and what turned out to be the most amazing cheese toastie I’ve ever had!

I also picked up a few litres of the most incredible raw milk, fresh from their grass fed cows.  Raw milk is full of probiotics and tastes delicious.  It's not available in some countries and it’s production is regulated differently depending on where you are, but I’ve done my research and am very happy to drink it - I suggest you do the same before you try it.  Regular milk is pasteurised (raised to a certain temperature to kill and bacteria), where raw milk is not.  There are various schools of thought that it has a beneficial effect on skin and also allergy susceptibility. Here in the UK there are strict processes and licenses required to be a producer of Raw milk and I’m very happy to drink it. As I said - do your own research.

So the point of this article is to remind everyone to become more aware of your local environment. Start mindfully seeking out local producers and give them a try.  Plan a few little adventures with your family, friends and loved ones and go visit them. Talk to them and find out about how they produce their food, what drives them and start spreading the word. You’ll be pleased to know most welcome your interest and you’ll learn about your local history, meet new friends and discover new experiences and places to go.

If you want to check out the Leicestershire Cheese Company, you can find them here.  If you live in the UK maybe plan a visit.  I promise you won’t be disappointed!

In the mean time check it’s a timely reminder from us to check in with your Environment pillar and see if you have balance and don’t forget to….

#respectyourtemple

Rich Davis

Doggy Style! Why you need a Dog in your life......

Today’s insight is inspired by a meeting that I went to recently with one of our partners.  On arrival I was greeted in the most wonderful way by a smiling member of the team accompanied by the office dog Molly.  As a leaned down to give Molly some affection I was informed that she was a rescue dog and part of the crew.  Her demeanour put me immediately at ease and I felt very much at home in this business environment, knowing I was amongst like minded people and animal lovers.

How many more of you find that you are comforted by animals and nature in general?  In preparation to write this article I typed a number of search terms into Google and phrases like “Animal Therapy” and what’s commonly termed “Biophilia” came back with nearly 300,000,000 results!  I know that anecdotally there is something in this by the way I feel around cats and dogs and it seems there is a lot of research into the subject if you are interested in further reading online.

Part of the current thinking is around a hypothesis that we have evolved to be calmed by animals in our lives. The idea is that we would have used animals such as dogs as look outs and alarms in our evolutionary past to indicate the presence of a predator.  If we have livestock, or a dog in our “tribe” then their amazing sense of smell would have alerted us to dangers before we were aware of them ourselves.  The fact that an animal is relaxed in our company may switch on part of our evolutionary response which indicates we are not in danger, slows down our sympathetic nervous system and allows us to feel relaxed!

Photography by David Neave

As I write this my loyal Springer Spaniel (Lucy) is sat next to me.  She is nearly asleep and is breathing deeply and calmly.  I can feel her warmth against my legs.  As I stroke her she gently stretches her legs and has a little groan before slapping her chops and drifting back off to sleep where I’m sure she is chasing rabbits.  I’m finding myself smiling as I wrote that, and I can honestly say that having her has changed my life.

I like many people have experienced depression in the past. I look at it like any other illness or injury and am very happy to talk about my experiences with people and see no reason to keep it private.  Since Lucy joined our family I have definitely experienced a reduction in any signs of depression.  I’m not saying that I may not find it affecting me again, but I’m sure that our dog has had a positive effect both directly and indirectly through a number of “vehicles”.

I don’t know about you, but I get pleasure from seeing others that are happy.  Smiling and happiness is as infectious as a yawn to me, and if you know Springer Spaniels you’ll appreciate that they are happy most of the time!  There is a classic cartoon of a burglar coming into a house confronted by the (Springer Spaniel) “guard dog” wagging it’s tail.

In addition to this dogs need to be exercised. This in turn means that we walk or run with our dogs and get the excercise we need as well.  Lucy particularly loves to run wild and free in a woodland setting and we enjoy our little adventures together come rain or shine.  I even chose my car based on my lifestyle in the countryside with my family and dog and take great pleasure driving around in a beaten up Land Rover Defender covered in mud inside and out with my dog sat next to me on the middle seat in the front.

Getting outside with Lucy has meant that I am much more closely tuned in to the seasons.  When I combine this with all I’ve learned about mindfulness and life optimisation I can certainly say I’m much more balanced and centred in my feelings around and approach to life.  I think I owe a great deal to Lucy!

Photography by David Neave

So I’m not saying everyone should go out any get a Springer Spaniel.  Yes they are a life long commitment and they may not be for everyone.  Having said that I’m sure that anyone reading this knows someone with a dog if you don’t actually own one.  If you do, then I’d highly recommend that you get together and go for a walk together.  Who knows, you might get to the stage when you can regularly borrow their dog and take him or her for walks.  It’s the best way to find out if you could commit to having one in your life, and if you decide that you can’t, then you still get to go walking with a dog and gain all the associated benefits!

So here’s to Dogs and walking in the countryside. Find someone with a dog today and go for a walk. Write to us an let us know how it makes you feel.  We absolutely love getting feedback from our community.

PS: This article features Lucy Davis.  She has changed my life.

#respectyourtemple

Rich Davis

Introducing the #EnvironmentPillar and how to set up your “Work" Place

So you’ve seen that we’ve spent a lot of time focusing on your nutrition and mind pillars in our insights recently.  These are massive subjects and provide some of the biggest rapid change opportunities for our community.  We hope that you’ve made some serious gains by studying these lessons and applying them to develop awesome new and empowering habits.

Today we want to devote a little time to your Environment Pillar.  What’s it all about?  What are we going to focus on?  How can you start to become mindful of your Environment Pillar and make some progress towards developing your awareness of this area of your life and it’s significance in your overall feelings of wellness, peace, calm and happiness!

So when we talk about your Environment pillar we should explain a few definitions.  Many people say “oh yeh, that’s all about being green and saving the planet right?”  Well, yes it is to an extent, but that’s not really the main thrust of the subject as far as your Strength Temple is concerned.  The Environment pillar is centred around the following areas:

• Your immediate environment and surroundings and their impact on your state
• Seeking out Powerful and Vibrant new environments to feed your psyche
• Exercising in Nature and why it’s better for you than an indoor gym
• Creating a calm, empowering and structured place of work
• Creating a tranquil home
• Gardens and how they feed us emotionally and physically
• Temperatures and how to get balance in hot and cold
• Light and it’s importance for wellbeing
• Optimising your rest and sleep habits
• Our responsibility to the environment and the legacy we leave the next generations
• Use of Colours in your environment
• Art and it’s influence on the soul
• The importance of scent and it’s relation to anchors, moods and how you feel
• Decluttering and philosophies concerning order
• Music and it’s impact on your states
• AND SO MUCH MORE!

So there you go - it’s a significant subject and one that we will be considering in depth as part of our #7Pillars program.  For this insight though, we will talk about the “work” environment.

Let’s start with some background.  The way we run our company is kind of unique and we think it’s super cool.  We are trail blazing new ways of working, leveraging the current technologies available, supporting our tribe and creating an environment for creativity, flexibility and growth.

We are all virtual beings.  We don’t routinely commute to an “office” and actively encourage our contributors and staff to get variety in the places they decide to create and produce. We talk to each other by phone and internet, have face to face meetings and chat by messenger platforms and our customer relationship management platform (CRM).

Despite working remotely from each other, we do interact and encourage collaboration at a deep level.  We also highly value the work life balance and make it mandatory for our staff to attend their children’s sports days!

Including Art in your environment is crucial. This is "The Tree of Life" by Kerry Darlington, and looks over one of The Strength Temple office environments.

I personally have an office at home, which I love to visit and use.  I have a picture from my favourite artist on the wall, I’ve made a massive focus board to pin ideas and empowering imagery onto.  I have my piano handy to grab a quick break from my computer and I am always surrounded by books next to a comfy chair so I can feed my brain with literature the old fashioned way.  I also use incense which i’ve anchored in feelings of calm and creativity allowing me to feel great as soon as I step into the room.

Having said that I like to take my work to other places.  Variety and balance in your work environment prevents you from feeling stale, and allows a momentum to grow in your productivity.  If it’s a warm day I’ll take a chair to the local lake and sit and work from there.  I’m an on call Firefighter and I might work from the Fire Station sometimes.  I’m also regularly in the gym as well, so have a place there where I can take a moment and catch up with our community.

The other area of the work environment we have focused on is the suite of applications we use to make maximum use of our time, and increase our efficiency.  We are a cloud based company and are multi-platform meaning that we can work on our mobile smart phones, mac’s, PC’s, tablets, slates or internet cafes!  For those not familiar with cloud based working everything s stored in the internet and is securely “hosted” by third party companies. We partner with Google, Evernote, Insightly and use Skype.

We have users who love Macs and users who prefer PC.  We have iPhones, Samsung mobiles and windows smart phones as our devices.  We don’t discriminate on technology or platform and our only criteria is that our tribe love their tools, they are open architecture and allow access from all devices.  It’s part of our DNA.

The other thing we like to do is have meetings in strange places.  Recently our “Board Room” has ranged from my office, a hot tub, a sauna and England's Third Highest Mountain, Helvellyn in the Lake District.  We are so proud of the fact we DON’T follow the crowd and try and make every moment as innovative and fulfilling as possible - even meetings.

It’s a mindset that takes a leap of faith for some and we measure performance by output rather than time spent chained to a desk.  There are always some people that might not have the discipline to work in this type of environment, but with practice and assuming that you are following your passion, it’s a fulfilling way to work and a life enhancing way of interacting with your colleagues and community.

So we’d like to invite you to try some of this stuff out!  Perhaps you’ve got a favourite spot in your local park that you love to visit. How about setting up your desk there for a morning and working from there?  Declutter your office at home and make it a place that you really want to be in. Grab some flowers from your local florist or simply from the garden.  Place them in your work environment. You'll be amazed at the difference all of these small modifications can make to your creativity when you add them all together! If you combine all of this with the other pillars of your Strength Temple you are onto a winner and the results you desire will materialise without you having to chase them.

Oh, and don't forget...  #RespectYourTemple

Rich Davis

The Great Outdoors. Scientifically Proven to make you feel AMAZING!

The view towards Glenridding and Ullswater on the way to Helvellyn

Get out into the Great Outdoors and enjoy the restorative capacity of exercising in the natural environment - Doctor's Orders! ;-)

Our resident Doctor and Sports Medicine Physician Dr Dan Roiz de Sa explains why we should all get outside more.  Even if it means looking at pictures of outside; whilst inside! Over to you Dr Dan.....
 
Most of us know that exercising is good for us. There is a massive industry revolving around exercise and training. There are gyms and health clubs with all sorts of facilities and machinery that cater for almost every aspect of fitness training.

But did you know that although this sort of exercise is good for you; exercising outdoors and especially right out in the countryside is probably better for you than doing the same thing in a built up environment or even indoors? I bet you didn’t but actually it makes quite a lot of sense.

Our ancestors, in evolutionary terms were hunter gatherers and as such their lives were spent outdoors within the environments in which they lived. Thus we could argue that much of what we have evolved to do come from this developmental background and therefore spending lots of time indoors in our home or working environments is probably not all that good for our overall health.

Humans would not have faced such overwhelming information rich environments in the past as we currently do. For example being out on a country walk will feel restorative whereas walking for the same distance through a very busy street in a modern city will not. The exercise is the same, the environment is not and this is the difference.

View across Ullswater; The Lake District, England.

Plants and nature, birdsong and the presence of wildlife is very often calming whereas, busy pavements, dodging oncoming pedestrians, the sensory inputs the central nervous system has to process and make sense of like traffic noise, street and traffic lighting, noise and lights from shops we pass by on our walk are varied and many. Our eyes will process all this information, sending it to our brain. We will notice colours from billboards and advertising hoardings and our noses will detect the smells of city and town life. All this information can be overwhelming for the nervous system which really hasn’t had more than a small amount of time (in evolutionary terms) to adapt to this kind of overwhelming sensory input.

Did you know that for example post exercise blood pressure settles to its baseline values faster if you exercise in front of rural scenes rather than those reflecting urban settings? What is this all about? I would argue that it is because we have an innate connection with the natural environment as a consequence of our evolution.

There are other studies that look at heart rate variability (or HRV) and its response to looking at nature scenes or exercising in them. Heart rate variability is something that occurs because of how our heart rates are controlled by the autonomic nervous system. A high variability suggests good or healthy autonomic function; and is inversely correlated with cardiovascular disease. Whilst not a perfect tool; HRV does give us a clue to the readiness of an individual’s nervous system to respond to stress or exercise.

Sitting in an outdoor forest environment increases HRV, and actually even sitting indoors looking at nature scenes does so, when compared to control conditions. Therefore both of these activities are beneficial. But these are resting and not exercising in nature. Could we do better? The simple answer is yes we can.

There are published works that indicate that being outside when exercising is preferable to and more beneficial to mental health than exercising indoors. Some might even go as far as to suggest that not only is being outdoors beneficial that it is even more so if exercise is added.
In other words the benefits of being outdoors and exercising are greater than the sum of the parts. There must therefore not only be a benefit to our psychological processes but also to the changes in our physiological systems and there must be some beneficial interaction between the two.

It is also good for our endocrine system. This is what we mean by the hormone system that controls how our body functions and are also often implicated in ill health. Hormones that are produced by stress: adrenaline; noradrenaline and cortisol are all affected by being within a natural outdoor environment. They all fall, and this is another benefit which results in improvements in our immune system function.

All of this doesn’t mean that all exercise indoors isn’t beneficial: of course it is, and it certainly is better than not doing any. What I would suggest though is that we should all make time to spend more time outdoors exercising (whether it is just a long walk with the dog, or a full on mountain bike trail ride).

City planners in many countries know that access to green spaces is important for aspects of mental wellness; in several countries (Japan, Scandinavia and the Netherlands) it is associated with people living longer and with less mental illness.  We should therefore make the most of this largely free and accessible health and wellness resource whenever we can.

Unless you were brought up in a way that encouraged this engagement with nature, it can seem quite daunting and consequently is avoided by many. The country side can for some city dwellers, seem quite a remote and a risky place to go and exercise in. Perceived risks may be exaggerated and fear of these may be preventative in getting people out, about and engaged with activity in nature.

The Strength Temple Directors, Rich Davis & Richie Norton on their way to summit Helvellyn, The Lake District, England.

If you do find you feel this way we suggest you share the experience.  There is a profound bond that can be created between groups of people who attempt challenges outdoors, or simply go for regular walks with their dogs.  Join a rambling society, or a mountaineering expedition!  Either way you'll feel better for it.

What we need to do as a society is to ensure that our children, the future generations of the human race, don’t acquire these very often unsubstantiated fears and develop a healthy and enthusiastic love of nature, outdoors and the environment.

Make a plan to go for a walk, run, cycle or whatever else you want to do this weekend. Do it outdoors in nature a reap the benefits.  Doctor’s orders ;-)

Oh, and don't forget to.... #RespectYourTemple

Dr Dan Roiz De Sa

Our Mind Technique to tap into your Limbic System and Upgrade the way you FEEL!

We wanted to give you an insight around thoughts and feelings today and we encourage you to really take this one on board as it can literally change the way you are feeling in an instant!

Thoughts create feelings.  Feelings can create actions.  Actions  create outcomes.  Outcomes create new thoughts.  Repeat.  Just ponder on that for a moment and re-read it.  It’s really important to understand.

OK, got that?  Let’s move on then and define a term we often use called "Self Talk."

Your self talk is that little voice inside your head that provides a commentary on your life.  It’s the internal verbalisation of your thoughts. Some people have quite a loud voice, others softer, but we all have it. Becoming mindful and aware of your self talk is a key element to what we will be teaching in this insight.

One way to become very aware is to notice your self talk and reflect on how useful it is to you. People often describe a sensation of almost listening to yourself talking.

If you picture what this “looks like” in the theatre of your mind, it could be the “enlightened and higher you” sitting on a magic carpet watching and listening to everything your mind is doing. You are entirely detached from everything and able to observe and commentate if necessary on what’s happening.

Think about this for a moment.  Can you picture this process happening?  If you can’t , re-read what we’re saying so you completely understand it and then try again.  This is one of the most important steps to becoming mindful and for some is a revelation!

I like to picture myself looking in a state of complete relaxation, peace and calm on my magic carpet.  I’m sitting there cross legged in a beautiful blue sky, deep in the recesses of my psyche, looking very Zen!

So back to your self talk.  Whilst sitting on your magic carpet, observing your thoughts and feelings, if you catch your self talk and thoughts becoming destructive or negative, pause for a moment.  If they are positive reflect on that too.

If you’d prefer that they were positive and you recognise negative self talk happening, simply acknowledge it and say something to yourself like “oh - there I go again” and then allow the thoughts and discussion to change to something more empowering.

Have you ever experienced a time when you’ve chastised yourself using your internal dialogue / self talk?  As you become more mindful you may see this happening frequently and it’s one of the keys to changing how you are feeling.

So all of these thoughts tap into the emotional side of your brain and trigger the neurons associated with feelings.  Feelings are produced by the firing of specific sets of nerve clusters in the Amygdala which is part of the Limbic system in your brain.

The Limbic system is fascinating.  I got the following definition from Google:

LIMBIC SYSTEM:  "a complex system of nerves and networks in the brain, involving several areas near the edge of the cortex concerned with instinct and mood. It controls the basic emotions (fear, pleasure, anger) and drives (hunger, sex, dominance, care of offspring)."

So do your thoughts serve you in a positive way and fire the right sets of nerves in your Limbic System?  If not, then it’s time to check in with yourself and start to gradually allow your focus to move from negative to positive thoughts.

Now it’s important to emphasise at this point that this is not just about positive affirmations.  Some people advocate that simply saying “I feel good, I feel good, I feel good, I feel good, I feel good, I feel good, I feel good” is enough to create a change in state.  This may work for some people, but it’s not the essence of what we are teaching.
 
One thing about affirmations is that you may be in a situation that is too complex to allow your intelligent / logical brain to translate the situation into feeling better.  A more suitable way to change your state is to check in with yourself.  Be kind to yourself.  Let your current thoughts and feelings drift past you on your magic carpet as you observe them from your vantage point.  Breathe deeply and start to migrate your thoughts to more constructive ways of interpreting any situation.

Another powerful way to reframe destructive self talk is to remove its significance by considering it to be like “mental or emotional weather.” If you find your brain is misbehaving and gravitating to less empowering self talk, consider the words to be like a storm passing. Observe the storm from your magic carpet. Sit there peacefully in the knowledge that weather is transient and shining sunshine is just round the corner!

This will in turn bring about different more positive feelings, which will create more empowering actions, which reinforces your thoughts and the cycle continues.  This is probably best illustrated with an example.

I’m going to write two paragraphs and they are going to illustrate your internal dialogue.  See if you relate to any of it and reflect on how each way of talking to yourself could bring about different overall feelings.

“What a shit day!  Why does my alarm always fail to go off.  I can’t believe I’m late again - I’m always bloody late!  Missed my train, even after running. God, I’m shit at running too.  It’s going to be one of those bad days, I just know it.  Everything’s going wrong.  I’ve got to face those people trying to block my ideas at work too.  Why do they hate me so much.  I need a new job, but I’ll never find one in this economy.  What a shit day!"

OK - so I’ve turned on the taps to full here.  I hope that none of you have conversations with yourself of this magnitude of destruction, but then some of you might!  I’m chuckling to myself at how hard it was to write that, as I’ve been practicing mindfulness for some years now and it was difficult for me to come up with those words.  It might be easier for you?  Either way, I think you will see the point. Now let’s try another version.

"I love it when there’s mist in the mornings.  Everything looks like an abstract painting and the moist air feels great in my lungs.  I must remember to plug my phone in at night.  I’ve missed my alarm this morning  and I’d prefer not to let that happen again.  I’ll buy another charger today and put it next to my bed.  I think I’ll listen to that favourite album I’ve just found on the way to the station this morning to change my focus after this little setback.   I’m not going to rush as I’m a little late already, but have called to let everyone know, so it’s no problem.  It will give me time to think about how to get more buy in from my colleagues for my project.  I think they must need more information as the ideas are sound.  I’ll arrange some 121 meetings today to get some feedback on how things are going."

So there we are.  It takes practice to transition from one way of thinking to another as a lot of what we do as humans is habitual.

I hope you’ve found this interesting.  Here’s a simple little exercise to do to make sure you are more mindful of your self talk, focusing and feeling better!  Try it and PLEASE let us know how you get on.  We love to get feedback. 

1. Regularly check in with yourself and ensure that you are being kind to yourself and not beating yourself up with negative self talk.
    
2. If you “Catch” disempowering chatter just reflect from the vantage point of your magic carpet and say something like “there I go again", and let it float past.
    
3. Understand that there is ALWAYS a more positive way to reflect on any given situation.
    
4. After it has passed, be creative in thinking of ways to change your focus.  Either reframe the current negative situation in a more supportive and positive light, or consider some other situation that allows a change of focus and more positive internal evaluation of where you are.  The vital bit is to get your self talk to reflect this using more positive and empowering words and phrases.
    
5. Breathe and be kind to yourself.

This technique works best when combined with making changes in your physical state. We will discuss this in a future insight. :-)

Until next time.

#BeMindful & #respectyourtemple

Do you need a #TempleDay?

We’ve been discussing progress with goals and resolutions recently with a number of clients.  Sometimes a great start and bags of enthusiasm can fade.  It’s a good idea to revaluate your progress if any feelings of disappointment or setbacks come up to prevent you from straying from the path you've set yourself.  We want you to learn to dance in the rain ;-)

When we set goals we mainly do so because of how we think it will make us feel on achieving them as well as how we will feel during the process of attaining them.  Occasionally we might set some milestones or general expectations in our goals that we don’t achieve as quickly as expected.  Alternatively we might not experience the feelings that we expected on achieving the goal.  It’s during these minor setbacks that the real power of your will comes to action to ensure you don’t fall into the trap of becoming distracted or giving up and returning to old disempowering habits.

It’s a set of behaviours that’s also associated with an “all or nothing” type of thinking seen in some people.  So we've created the idea of a #TempleDay to get those of you who are waining back on track to being and feeling awesome during your journey through life!!
The concept of a #TempleDay is to decide that today, tomorrow or some fixed date in the future will be a dedicated day where you enjoy focusing on your Strength Temple by being mindful of your #7Pillars.  For those of you new to The Strength Temple or our 7 Pillars philosophy let’s recap!

The Strength Temple is our name for your overall being!  Not just your physical body, but your feelings of wellness, energy, joy and abundance.  It’s how well you give to yourself and others.  We achieve results in our Strength Temple through focus on what we call our 7 Pillars.  The 7 Pillars are Movement, Hydration, Flexibility, Mindfulness, Nutrition, Environment and Breath.  We provide programs to allow progression to mastery in each of these areas and this journey creates an incredible life and sense of being!

So if you ever feel like you’re losing your direction try just dedicating a single day, or even a shorter period of time, such as a morning, to focusing on your 7 Pillars.  Let’s consider this in the form of an example to give you an idea.

Jane had been really excited at the turn of the year and had completed the Strength Temple Goal Setting workshop and set some really awesome goals for the year ahead.  These had focused on feeling fitter and healthier by taking up a gym membership and setting some goals around running a half marathon in July.  She got off to a great start and had been eating cleaner and gradually building her miles running.

After a few weeks and a very enthusiastic start, Jane started to find some of her new habits were becoming more of a chore than a pleasure.  She found she was getting bored running on the treadmill and had reverted back to snacking on the wrong foods whilst at work.  Feeling disheartened she began to skip running sessions and by the end of January had pretty much reverted back to her old lifestyle.

If any of this sounds familiar to anyone - that’s cool.  Much of what we need to do when setting goals is change old habits and this can be challenging!  The key is to modify any feelings of setback and find ways to refocus and remind yourself why you wanted to progress on a path to a better you in the first place.

We advised Jane to be mindful of her self talk (that little voice in your head that can sometimes chatter negativity at you!) and to have a #TempleDay.  She picked the coming Saturday and arranged to do a number of things that would allow some focus on her #7Pillars and bring her back in alignment with what she was looking to achieve.

From the moment she opened her eyes in the morning we reminded her to take deep cleansing breaths and gently stretch as she reminded herself of the gifts already present in her life.  She focused on the fact that she was warm and in a comfortable bed.  She reminded herself of the support of her family and friends and remembered how fortunate she was to be holidaying this year in France.  After reflecting for a moment, she woke and immediately made her bed.  This is a great habit to set yourself up for a productive day and reflects a sense of order in your environment.

She then progressed downstairs and started her day with her usual coffee, but included some freshly filtered water to drink when she woke up to feed her hydration pillar.  She showered using her favourite organic products chosen for their aromatherapy actions and prepared for a long walk in the countryside with her dog.

Jane chose a route that she hadn’t tried before and took some friends along for the walk.  She made a conscious effort to be aware of the wonders of nature around her and went for her walk at sunrise to experience the wildlife she didn’t usually get to see.  She focused on listening to birdsong and ensured that she maintained positive breathing techniques.  The walk wasn’t rushed.  It was an exercise in living in the moment and enjoying the pure energy of being alive!

On the way home from her walk she visited her father for tea and to pick up some fresh, organic produce from his vegetable garden.  Kale, Cavalier Nero, Carrots and Leaks were in season and on returning home she made herself a delicious green smoothie to kick start her day and pay attention to her nutrition pillar.

We had coached Jane in balancing her lifestyle with some new hobbies and not making everything about nutrition and exercise.  Jane went shopping to purchase some new books on upholstery and did some eBay browsing purchasing an old armchair as her first project.

During the afternoon she prepared a meal for a dinner party in the evening prior to going for a run.  She decided to ditch the gym for the day and run in the local park.  It delivered some variety to her training and she did some research locally to find some other new routes to maintain variety in the future.

Her evening dinner party was very well received.  Jane made a number of dishes from our Strength Temple clean eating programs and she enjoyed sharing the love with her family and friends.

So that was Jane’s #TempleDay.  Yours might be very different!  They key is to do something that will address as many of your pillars as possible and to make it a day of sticking to your plans. 
Who knows, you might eventually decide to make every day a #TempleDay ;-)

In the mean time, we wish you courage in your journey.  Celebrate the great progress you are making and don’t forget life isn’t perfect.  If you get distracted, have a #TempleDay and get yourself back on track.

With love.

#respectyourtemple

Jaws, Adam Amin & The Human Spirit

About a week ago I was sitting reading BBC news at the end of what had turned out to be an awesome week and I saw some surf story had made the most read chart.

Now before I go into this I should say I’m a very average surfer; but I love it.  Not living by the sea means that I maybe get to go surfing for 2 weeks of the year when we make our family pilgrimage to Woolacombe, Devon (England).  I’ve been going for about 22 years so I guess I have nearly a years experience in total.  What I’m trying to say is that I’m writing this with some knowledge of the sport, but it’s not meant to be some expert commentary of surf technique and etiquette.  I'm more interested in the human spirit element of what happened and what followed.

So I’ve seen this article and am immediately drawn to it.  If you didn’t see it I’ll just give you some background.  It was about a man called Adam Amin from Sidmouth, Devon (UK).  He was 19 and had 5 years surfing experience and followed his dream to ride one of the most notorious waves in the world - JAWS.

He had been travelling on a shoestring, sofa hopping and generally living a simple lifestyle after just saving enough money from his lifeguard work and surf repair job to get out to Pe'ahi, Hawaii in his search of one of the biggest and baddest waves in the world.

Amin was out there at the same time that the Pe'ahi Challenge contest was being held.  Big wave riders from around the world converged on the break for a competition.  It was a dream come true for Adam to even be there, never mind think about paddling out.

He went down to the shore at 0530 on the morning of the competition to secure a place and was turned away by security.  Undaunted, he travelled 5 miles down the coast to a spot where boats were ferrying competitors and the media to the surf area.  He was turned away again being informed that all the boats were full.

Now this is the bit that starts to make the hairs stand up on the back of my neck.  Adam decided that he wasn’t going to miss this.  He wasn’t going to take no for an answer and he started to paddle the 5 miles under his own steam.  When he was about a mile or so into the paddle a jet ski came by and the rider started to chat to Adam.  After a short conversation he decided to give Adam a lift.  What’s even more awesome is that the rider was Greg Long.

Greg is an American surfer from California.  He’s the only surfer to win the Quicksilver big wave international, the Mavericks surf contest and the Red Bull big wave Africa event.  To say he was something of a hero to Adam would be an understatement.

So Adams luck had started to turn.  When they arrived at the surf area he quickly realised that he was surrounded by big wave surf legends;  Pro surfers from around the world.  It’s the stuff dreams are made of and he nearly didn’t get to be there.  How many no’s does it take for the average one of us to bow our head, and turn away from our goal?

The surf was good on this particular day.  Sets of waves were rolling in and the surfers were paddling around saying in a safe area waiting for everything to start.  It was at this point that Adam saw his opportunity and went for it.  The following is Adam’s commentary of the experience:

"Yesterday was one of the best days of my life, if not THE the best!!!!

I knew the contest for jaws was going to be on and therefore the road which leads to jaws was going to be closed off to the public. So I tried sneaking past security at 5.30 in the morning but they beat me there.

I then decided to go to Malico Harbour which is five miles away and try to get a ride with some boats heading that way.  They turned me down and said there is not enough space therefore I decided that this was not going to stop me from fulfilling my dream.
I decided to attempt to paddle around 3 headlands to get there. I started and got quarter of the way until a jet ski came up beside me and not only did they give me a ride with my board to jaws but the guy in the ski was Greg Long which is my hero and is a huge pioneer to the sport of big wave surfing!

We got there after much turbulence and I witnesses 40-50ft waves breaking in front if me! I paddled out with not much safety equipment with 5 other of my heroes sitting right next to me. We all spotted a huge wave in the distance and we all paddled out and I saw my opportunity to prove that I can surf jaws so I turned around while all the others were paddling over the wave and caught this monster.

I caught it and rode down what seemed like riding down a liquid mountain. I got to the bottom and looked up.... It was the size of two houses above me.  I then noticed that I was going to make it until there was a bit of white water blocking my way.  I got taken out by this white water just after riding along the face and it felt like the ocean collapsed on me.

I held my breath and took the beating as long as I could and finally made it to the surface of the water.  I then noticed huge waves coming towards me again and I got pounded again and again by huge waves.  I then got very tired and ended up very close to rocks until suddenly a jet ski rider picked me up and took me to safety.

What a legend, he took me to the channel and the contest started.  Moreover I watched the entire event from the channel for five hours while talking to all of my heroes of the sport in one place!  I was in heaven ;D

After the event I went home and noticed the awards ceremony was going to be across the street so I went there and talked and got pictures with all of them."

Now this story moves my heart.  It has everything I love about the true spirit of the human race.  The never say die attitude demonstrated by significant game changing people though out history.  Kinship and kindness shown to strangers as demonstrated by Greg Long giving Adam a lift to the channel.  A man following his dream and despite setbacks getting there to experience the sweet feelings of accomplishment.

It’s for these reasons that I was dismayed to read commentary from someone who described Adam’s actions as “reckless” and made other similar statements around him not having the right to be there.  For the surfers out there the picture I’ve attached here provides the perfect analogy of how I feel about this person.  I’ll call them “Warchild” for the sake of this article and I guess that there’s another lesson in here too.

The internet makes it very easy for certain personality types to act as “keyboard warriors” and put people down for doing things that might go against that persons belief systems.  Don’t get me wrong, everyone has a right to their opinion, but I feel that the practice of what I’d call cyber bullying is rife and I pity the person behind the keyboard every time I see an example of it.  Highly negatively skewed commentary should be avoided at all costs in my opinion.  Needless to say I don’t want to dwell on this aspect of the story and only mention it as it strengthens my feelings of respect towards Adam.

The Strength Temple are a firm believer that successful people are not defined so much by their achievements, but how they handle setbacks.  It’s this that sets people apart and transforms great people into legends.  Adam's response to the article is below.

"I just want to say something I have read recently about my story.
 
I have recently read an article about my actions. I have and always will respect people's opinion but this was hilarious when it came to them speaking about big wave surfing and how much they do not know about it. They specifically wrote it was "reckless or stupid" yet I knew for a fact that there was going to be an entire safety team before the competition.   They were sitting there on jet skis, on standby just waiting for it to start and I spoke to the ski riders to keep an eye on me, only if I go too close to shore but to leave me if I take a bad wipeout.

Billy Kemper & Adam Amin

There is an etiquette which still stands that if you can surf big waves without all the safety equipment and withstand horrific wipeouts then you are accepted to be a part of the scene and should only then be accepted to wear safety equipment such as, inflatable vests. That is exactly what I did and that is exactly what every surfer did before all the fancy gear came out just like the story of Jeff Clark who surfed mavericks for 15 years on his own with no equipment like that.
It does not matter whether I have been surfing for five or fifty years but it does matter to respect the ocean and how much it is a part of all of us. Someone reminded me that Kelly Slater grew up in mushy waves for his childhood just like me and maybe that teaches people to look at the ocean differently.

At the end of the day people need to remember that surfing, whether small or big, we have to respect the ocean."

So once again, for me Adam has turned a negative into a positive.  He’s used the haters to spread a positive message about the ocean that we all need to hear and head.

I hope that The Strength Temple can meet Adam soon and hear more about that day.  We already consider him to be one of our #TempleTribe as he stands for everything we hold dear in the human spirit.

Adam - you have our upmost respect and thank you for doing what you did.  Stay grounded and calm in your approach to your next challenge, whatever that will be.  Whenever a “Warchild” comes by (and there will be others), stand tall and proud as we know you will ;-)  Just as you did before; do the work, do your research, consider the risks and make your play with respect and dignity.  We can’t wait to see what you get up to and want you to know that you have our deepest respect and support.

Rich Davis

Director - The Strength Temple

#respectyourtemple

The Power of NO!

Well there’s an interesting title.  "No" is usually associated with bad people.  It’s something we don’t look forward to hearing as it means we’re not getting what we’ve asked for.  It’s used by people stopping our progress.  People who just aren’t team players; but HANG ON ONE SECOND!

The power of a kind, well placed and diplomatic no is one of life’s greatest lessons and it’s careful use can open a gateway for your growth and ultimately a better outcome for everyone.  Let’s explore how you can use this often underused word to make everyone happier in the end; most importantly YOU!

How do you feel when you think of the word “no”?  What does it mean to you?  It’s an interesting thought exercise as it has different meanings to different people.  Are you the person that finds it easy to say no?  Perhaps you’re using it in the wrong way, or too much?  If you’re the type of person who is run ragged and finds yourself putting off important personal things at the expense of helping others or keeping appointments, then you should probably use it more.

The thing is, it doesn’t have to be a negative thing.  It doesn’t have to mean you won’t do something or help someone.  It may just mean that you won’t be doing it in line with someone else’s agenda!

So consider this for a moment.  The next time someone asks you to do something, PAUSE.  Just take a moment before that habitual “Yes, OK” response and ask yourself a question.  Is it necessary to say yes right now?  Do I want to do this at all?  If I want to do this, shall I agree now, or shall I postpone to another time when it is more convenient for me?  By asking these questions it will interrupt your pattern of immediately saying yes, or feeling you have to say yes and give you an alternative outcome.

This may seem like basic simple stuff, but I’m telling you now it’s potentially life changing!  Very quickly you will find that you’re working more closely to your plans and still satisfying the stakeholders that matter in your life.  It’s a wonderful thing!

Another interesting result of saying no is that it opens up a potential negotiation.  If you start with no and the other party remains persistent in asking for your time, then try asking for something in return for a yes!   “OK, I’ll do that for you, but it means I’ll fall behind with another project.  Could you do me a favour and organise a meeting with the team so we can delegate some tasks?”  If you start with no then you might get a little more balance in the transaction.

Try some of these things in the week ahead and let us know how you get on.  Repetition is the mother of skill, so we recommend you practice often by saying no :-)

• A great place to start is to decide what you’d like to achieve in the next few weeks.  All those things that you just don’t have time for.  It might be visiting family, going on a date, getting your hair cut, going to the gym, doing your Christmas shopping, cooking yourself and your partner or family a fresh meal.  Have fun with it and make a list.  You’re going to get to do all these things and having a clear picture of the outcome of your new habit will provide leverage and allow you to better follow through with the experiment.
   
• Book your activities into your diary.  If in two weeks time you  have decided to visit your friend in Scotland for 3 days, then book it in.  If something comes up that conflicts, you know what to do.  Just say no.  How did that feel?
   
• If someone asks if you can meet them to go through a proposal or idea at work make sure it’s on your terms.  If you can’t do it because you have other commitments, politely give them a time when it IS convenient.  If they can’t make that appointment then just say no.  See what happens!
   
• If you’ve got children you might be familiar with this already!  If they ask for something, say no.  If they are persistent then negotiate by saying they can have what they want if they….. clean their room, do the vacuuming, mow the lawn, clean the car.  It delivers a clear lesson that there is value in any personal transaction and it will assist them in later life.  It might even turn them into a top negotiator!

Often people who habitually say yes are taken advantage of by some individuals.  If someone asks you for something and you’d really rather not do it, SAY NO!  This is one of the hardest ones for many people (whilst others find it extremely easy).  You may be surprised at the other person's response.  Stick to your guns.

In the end if what we’ve done is to raise awareness of the fact that you can say no and give yourself some time to do the things your want and need to do, then it’s served it’s purpose.  If it’s given you food for thought, then our mission is accomplished.  Just don’t forget!

Finally I just thought I’d share something.  This lesson crystalised after an opportunity came by for me to catch up with the legend Chaz Davies.  For those who don’t know Chaz, he’s a World Superbike rider (Aruba.it Ducati Team) and an incredible human being.

My schedule was super hectic and I was really struggling with my inner dialogue around trying to make time for the adventure to visit Chaz at his home in Wales.  It meant that I would have to say NO to a number of people and projects and I was really struggling with the whole process.  In the end I made the right decision to say no and arrange to make the long journey into the countryside.

Arriving at Chaz’s extreme sports playground, you are spoilt for choice on what toys to ride, starting the days with a highland cross country runs chasing the sheep around, then ending with a endurance trials bike challenges through his private woodland… Needless to say this was one of the best action packed weekends I’d ever experienced.

In years to come I will not remember the things I thought were urgent, but I’ll never forget that time with my mate riding our bikes and just loving life.

Try saying no a little more often and see what happens.  It’s LIBERATING!

#respectyourtemple

Stairway to Heaven "Glutes"

“I should just note that I wrote this one quite some time ago when I was living in sunny Sydney. I Sadly don’t live near any park with steps. London is very flat. However, if you are near stairs – I hope this article brings you some inspiration to climb up, then down, then up again, then down, then up (because it’s important to finish on a high). Enjoy…”

Lately I’ve been looking at more dynamic and explosive ways of training my body, 1. because it’s fun and 2. because I don’t seem to have the time for these luxuriously long workouts anymore – so it has to be efficient with the time I have.

Stair sprints have been the answer.

There are a few main benefits to stair sprints. As mentioned above it is time efficient, allowing for a great cardiovascular and intense workout in under 15 minutes of training. Legs and Butt to brag about is benefit number two, as the explosive nature of stair running can do wonders for the Gluteus Maximus & Medius and Quadriceps. Benefit number three is the fact that it’s way more interesting that sitting on a leg extension machine or stepping up and down bench in the gym – you’re hopefully outdoors, in the sun, breathing fresh oxygen.

Today I ran up the beautiful, yet painfully steep steps at Cooper Park, Sydney 10 times. Resting at the top for 30 seconds before I would run down to enjoy it all over again (ok so I may be exaggerating when I say enjoy – it’s a love hate thing). Each time I ran back up the stairs I made a promise that I would go as hard as I could to the top, sprinting 2 steps at a time so that I would get a better Glute workout as opposed to just my Quads doing most of the work.

How To:

Begin with a quick warm up. Using Dynamic stretches like deep squats and psoas lunges. Also, complete a quick jog up the steps – taking one step at a time with a nice and gentle spring in your step.

When you feel warm go ahead and sprint as fast as you can up the steps, taking 2 steps at a time, drive through the heel of your top foot so that you are engaging, not just the quad, but the gluteus as well. Make sure that your knee is tracking directly over your ankle as you run up the steps. (Watch out for knees dropping inward – this could mean that you are not stable enough through the glute and need to slow down. Instead of sprinting, try walking up two steps at a time, consciously driving through the heel of your foot, watching the tracking of the knee and concentrating on squeezing your butt muscles to get you up).

Repeat this 10 times. Resting for anywhere between 30 – 50 seconds. If you’re new to this or you feel under conditioned take a longer rest.

Write down your results – how long it took you to get up the steps, how long you rested for and how many sets you did. Then beat it next week.

Obviously you shouldn’t be doing this sort of explosive training if you have any injuries – anywhere in your body. I say that very seriously – I know it may sound a little overprotective, however this workout is intense and extremely taxing on the body. Why put it under unnecessary stress when it is trying to heal? Injuries require slow stabilising workouts and massage – so be honest with yourself and your current physical state before attempting this workout.

If you can do the workout – Then try the post exercise stretch sequence below.

Watch the video first and then copy the sequence I have written for you below. It’s very quick and simple. DONT SKIP YOUR STRETCHES PEEPS!

1. Cresent lunge:

Begin with feet together and step back the left leg into a crescent lunge. Make sure your hips are square, your lower stomach is drawn in and pelvic floft edited (the kind of squeeze you would doif you were busting to go to the toilet).

Bring your palms together at your heart and reach up to stretch out your psoas and hip flexor muscles, twist your body to the right and hook your left elbow on the outside of the right leg (twisting crescent lunge).

2. Ardha Hanuman

Come back to centre and bring your finger tips to the floor. On an exhale press your hips backwards so that you come into Ardha Hanumanasana / Half Splits. Let your head completely relax down so that you get the full fascial stretch from the sole of your foot through the back of your leg right up to the back or your neck (yes! it’s that connected!)

Move in between these two postures, the lunge and Ardha Hanumanasana, by inhaling to brand the front knee and exhaling back in the the half split (Ardha Hanuman pose). Take as many rounds of this as you like going that little bit deeper each time (if your body allows for it).

2. Skandasana:

From Ardha Hanumanasana come back into the lunge by bending your front knee. Take both hand into the inside of your front leg. Begin to shift your weight all onto the front leg and you twist your body to the left. Place both hands on the outside of your left leg and fold forward.

Transition to take it all on the left side by bending the left knee into a lunge and repeat from the Crescent Lunge.

Happy Stretching.

x

Miss Vertue. (info@shonavertue.com)

#respectyourtemple #movementpillar

Change your state in an instant

So we were having one of our stand up meetings at The Strength Temple HQ and brainstorming what we felt you’d like to hear about today.  Some of the most powerful techniques we teach as part of our Mindfulness Pillar are ways in which our clients can change their state in an INSTANT.  By state we mean how you are feeling in a given moment.

Before we go onto empowering ways to do this, it's important to cover an important point.  The reason that many people turn to drink, drugs, arguments, self harm or other destructive behaviours is purely about changing their state.  The power of these levers is in the instant effect that they have on your state.  Simply being mindful that this is the reason your are doing these things (if you do) is sometimes enough to start a shift in behaviour.  Techniques that you can employ to shift your state in a more supportive and empowering way for your body and mind are pure gold.  Cherish them.

There are many different ways to do this in our arsenal, but one of the simplest that we can give to you right now would be to start your own list of best quotes.  It might seem obvious as you read it, and this really works.

The following quotes are our favourites to motivate.  We have separate lists if we want to focus on different areas of our lives.  These might be love and relationships, growth, giving or our financial wellbeing etc.  For now we would like to give you our motivational quotes as a basis for you to start your own list.

We would absolutely love it if you would add some of your own to the comments section at the end of this post.  We are ALWAYS looking for new quotes to add to our master lists, so please share the love!

We have copies of these all over the place.  One of my favourite places is right in front of our running machine.  When the going gets tough reading through them motivates and changes our focus and ALWAYS gets us to the finishing line 😃  So copy and paste these and print them off.  Stick them on your fridge, or hang them up in your gym.  It will start to move you in a more powerful direction.

Have a mindful day, share this post to help others and don’t forget to…….

#respectyourtemple

"If you're gunna be a bear - be a grizzly."
Mahatma Ghandhi

"Life isn't about how many breaths you take, but the number of moments that take your breath away."
Unknown

"A man is not so much measured by his successes, as by the challenges he has overcome."
Adapted from Booker T Washington

"Never give advice unless you have walked the walk, because anybody can talk the talk."
Valencia Mackie

"Life is about using the whole box of crayons."
RuPaul

"We do today what others won't. We do tomorrow what others can't."
Jerry Rice

"Pain is weakness leaving the body."
Daniel J Evans

"It's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."
Abraham Lincoln

"You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough."
Mae West

"Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than anything on which it is poured."
Mark Twain

"The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity."
Dorothy Parker

"The difference between Ordinary and Extraordinary is the little word Extra."
Adapted from Jimmy Johnson

"Courage to start, strength to endure, resolve to finish."
Unknown

"You are the most prepared maniac I have ever met!" 
Nick Pugh

"Improvise, Modify, Adapt, Overcome." 
The Recruit (modified from a Marines quote).

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit."
Aristotle

"Fear is your best friend or your worst enemy. It's like fire. If you can control it, it can cook for you; it can heat your house. If you can't control it, it will burn everything around you and destroy you."
Mike Tyson

"The highest reward for a man's toil is not what he gets for it, but what he becomes by it."
John Ruskin

"In order to be the best you can be it's OK to fail sometimes. It's never OK to give up." 
Unknown

"If you're going through hell. Keep going."
Winston Churchill

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
Winston Churchill

"The two most important days in your life are the day you were borne and the day that you find out why."
Mark Twain

"The measure of who we are is what we do with what we have."
Vince Lombardi

"If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten."
Tony Robbins

"The mind is everything. What you think you become."
Buddha

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
Martin Luther King Jr.

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”
Gandhi

"Tough times never last, but tough people do.”
Dr. Robert Schuller

"You must expect great things of yourself before you can do them."
Michael Jordan

"You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take."
Wayne Gretzky

"Every ending, has a new beginning."
Laura McGrath-Scott
 

Powerful Thought Game to Transform Your Future!

The first time I did this my goal was to get out of rented accommodation and into my own home.  I didn’t think I had the financial capacity to do it and it was really getting me down.

Within 2 weeks I’d found a new home and placed an offer that was accepted. I also used it to stop smoking and change my career.  This stuff works!

A good way to really take some action towards something is to momentarily  consider what would happen if you don't.  Think of something you really want to change.  It could be anything - your fitness level, your finances, your relationship with someone (existing or imagined!), your diet, smoking, drinking or anything at all really!

Now, the following process can can feel a little emotionally painful in places, but it's worth it and will allow you to shed your fear and live in the now.  It's also important when doing this exercise to make sure you have a good half an hour of no interruptions.  Turn your phone off.  Find a quiet place.  Make sure you are comfortable.  It's a kind of meditation, and so light a candle if that's your thing, and get yourself centred.  If you can’t do it now, book some time in your diary for later and look forward to it!

Preparation is the key. Put all of this in place before you read on, or this won't work.  I want you to do this properly, and this will take me some time to write and explain, so return my investment in you by doing exactly as I ask, and don't cheat.  You will be rewarded at the end for your honesty.

The process requires you to stop at times. When I write PAUSE, do what I have asked, and don't read on until you have done this.  Promise me.  Don’t cheat yourself out of a better result.  It will work so much better if you follow these instructions to the letter.  After the pause there will be a long blank section to stop the temptation to read on before time.  When you are ready just scroll through these sections to the next stage.

OK - So have you prepared??  If you haven't PLEASE DON'T READ ON.  Get yourself set up.

I'm assuming that you're ready and have done all I asked.  I respect you for this, and wish you an interesting and enlightening journey. Let's begin. Be prepared to feel all the emotion associated with it.  I promise you will feel great at the end and have more clarity.

START

Sit quietly on your own with no distrations. Now consider your life where you are now. Really think about your current situation, the current thing you either don't have, or behaviour you would like to change, and allow yourself to "feel" everything.  Take a couple of minutes, don't rush.  How do you feel about this thing?  Breathe deeply.

PAUSE - do this then scroll down to the next part...

OK. Once you are focused on this, you need to consider what you want.

I want you to focus on this for a minute, and more importantly the perfect scenario. Imagine a balanced life.  Imagine you have changed the bahavious you want to change, or achieved the goal you imagine.  Close your eyes and focus using pictures - make them colour, sounds, smells, touch and taste. This process uses what's called the "theatre of your mind". There are no rules, no restrictions, it's all up to you to make it real.  Really take time to describe this to yourself as if it’s happened.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

Have you done this? If you haven't thought about the perfect situation go back and start over - it won’t work properly unless you do this exactly as I describe.

If you are still being good, awesome.  Enlightenment is round the corner!  Does it almost seem real because you ave taken the time to really feel it, and imagine it with colour, sound, smell - everything? 

Good - Now for the more difficult part.

In a minute, I want you to close your eyes again, and see yourself in 1 years time WITHOUT what you wanted to happen.  Not just the actual habit or thing, but all of the things you would have missed out on, or how your energy levels will still be low.  I want you to really FEEL how things are with nothing changing. Use all your senses again. OK do this now.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

Have you done it? If you haven't stop right now and do it bofore reading on.

OK. Now I need you to do the same thing, but forward yourself 5 years into the future.  You still haven't changed, or achieved the thing you wanted.  How old are you now?  What are you doing?  What is missing in your life because you haven't simply gone for it?  Do you have any regrets?  Really feel it. Don't skip the steps.  Do this now for a minute or so.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

OK. Now launch yourself 10 years into the future and do this again.  What has happened.  How is your physical body and health.  What are you doing?  What have you missed out on.  What are your wider friends and family doing?  What do they think of you?  Again for a minute or so close your eyes and really FEEL the situation like you are there 10 years from now.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

OK. I should think you're feeling pretty rubbish by now, so lets really raise the bar. I want you to project your life 25 years into the future.  This will be hard, but really see yourself without what you want.  Where are you.  What do you look like.  What have you missed out on?  Are you happy?  Do this for a minute or so, and use all your senses.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

OK.  I am sorry to have had to do that to you. It will be more than worth it though.  The thing is:

NONE OF THAT HAS HAPPENED

Feel relief. Feel thankful for your current situation and that you have the opportunity and power to bring any change in your life you desire.  Bring yourself back to the present.  Breathe deeply and give yourself the opportunity to take another look at your future.  This bit is amazing.  Take your time before you start, because you have just gone through quite alot.  Have a sip of water or something.  Breathe for a while and feel relaxed in your surroundings and body.  All that stuff hasn't happened, so let's design your future the way it WILL AND SHOULD BE!

So you've thrown away all of the future you just envisaged - BIN IT!!  Lets do this again.  This time, FEEL everything in the theatre of your mind for what would be going on in your life if you go for what you want or change what you need to change.  In 1 year from now, if you have that perfect relationship, what are you doing?  If you have decided to change your diet and take regular exercise how do you look and feel, what are your energy levels like?  Where are you?  Give this some thought for a minute and close your eyes.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

You guessed it - starting to feel a little better.  Now it gets better and better.  5 years get's a chance now. Do it again. Don't skip the steps.  Really take time to enjoy the feelings that you are experiencing having achieved what you wanted.  If it was a new relationship - are you married (if that's what you wanted)?  Do you have children.  What do they look like.  If you wanted a new house - where are you living.  What is everyone doing around you in your new life? Feel everything. Get into minute details. Don't hold back.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

OK - That's great, now let's go for ten years. Don't rush this. Have a good look at yourself. It's tempting to rush at this point, but really take time to experience your new life as it will happen. What are you up to now??? Did you stop smoking or drinking?  Where have you been travelling to in the world?  Amazing! Take as long as you want.

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

GREAT! Now let's go for the big one. 25 years from now in your desired situation how do you feel?  Is there a picture of you on holiday somewhere on the wall? Feeling great, looking fantastic; amazing?  Think of EVERYTHING. Take as long as you want and enjoy and relish in the experience!

PAUSE do this then scroll down to the next part...

Right - bring yourself slowly and gently back in time to the present.  Have a think for a minute about the two scenarios you have just allowed yourself to consider. The ying and yang of your future if you will. One - not what you want, the other - what you are perfectly capable of. Which one do you want to focus on and do everything in your power to go for and attract?

You might want to try this exercise with a friend if they have an open mind and are perceptive to it.  There is a share button at the bottom of the post.  We’d love to impact on as many people as possible to reach their dreams.  Please spread the word.

If I were you I'd sit and reflect for a while. Feel content in your power to design your future. You really have all you need to make it what you want.  Just don't be afraid to go for stuff.  If you get hurt or knocked back, what the heck.  All you have is a lesson in how not to get there, so try something else.  It's not what you know - it's what you do.

If you don't make mistakes, you won't make anything, and your life will rush away from you.  The past does NOT equal the future.  You have the power to go for what ever you want, and it starts right now.

Oh - and don't rush, enjoy the journey :-)

#respectyourtemple

Rich 

Mindfulness, Anchors & Peak Performance on demand

I’m at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend.  I’ve been here for the last few weeks working with some awesome people and getting their game just right for the incredible sport of Motor Racing.

Teams at this level invest significantly in every 100th of a second.  It’s apparent from the sheer obsessive attention to detail of the people involved that they leave no stone unturned and no technique is omitted in their goal of the perfect race.

Clearly the car has a large amount to do with this, as do the teams with their carefully honed skills in pit discipline for tyre changes and telemetry analysis, but it’s the driver that I’ve been focusing on.

There are many lessons to be derived from elite athletes and one of the areas I’d like to discuss is Mindfulness and Anchoring.

Mindfulness is defined as the quality or state of being conscious or aware of something, or a mental state achieved by focusing ones attention on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting ones feelings, thoughts and bodily sensations.

Focusing on achieving mindfulness can also produce a state where we feel what’s commonly described as “flow.”  Flow is the state where your senses are heightened and you are able to focus on the task at hand with what feels like 110% of your brain.  It’s this state of “flow” that we look for when coaching our clients, and we are careful to build anchors for them to allow a rapid return to that state when it’s needed most.

So anchors are a fascinating thing.  Let’s just take a quick look at them before we go into a technique for getting into your flow at will.  Have you ever heard a song on the radio from years ago that immediately teleported you back to that place where you experienced feelings of that time in your life?  Sometimes the sensations are so acute that they can come as a bit of a surprise as memories come flooding back to the present.  Other people mention a smell that they experience like candy floss (cotton candy for our US brothers and sisters) that takes them back to a fairground experience as a child.  These types of sensations and emotions can be positive or negative.  What you’re experiencing is an anchor.

The interesting thing is that we can create anchors on purpose that can act as empowering levers delivering top performance in a desired situation.  These anchors can take various forms from rituals to a physical act or a set of words and the key to their success in their consistent use at the right time.

Our Pillar on Mindfulness takes you through a full process for developing anchors, but for the sake of this article try this.

Find a routine that’s easy to do when you feel you are in a peak state of “flow."  Something like pinching your ear lobe.  Make sure it’s something unusual that you must mindfully do.  Something you wouldn’t do by accident.  Each time you feel in that state of flow in your life be sure to be mindful of this moment and activate your chosen anchor (e.g. pinch your ear lobe.)  You must constantly do this so it becomes a habit.  If you do this consistently, in time simply pinching your ear lobe will evoke the same  feelings and with practice it can be of the same magnitude.

Some of the people I’ve been training with in the last few weeks have anchors.  They may or may not be aware of them.  Sometimes what we might call “natural” athletes and high performance individuals have just stumbled on the technique by accident if it’s not directly taught.  I love it when I see it happening as they enter that state of flow.  It's a wonderful thing.

I’d like to encourage you to research the topic more.  It’s fascinating and can give you that extra edge required when the race starts or the business meeting kicks off.  Let us know how you get on - we love hearing from people on how they apply our techniques.
 
So until next time have an awesome and mindful day and don’t forget to.......

#respectyourtemple.