3 Exercises For Hip Mobility And Stability For Runners

A strong and stable hip joint reduces the risk of injury in your pelvic joints, spine and knees. It also promotes a good posture, as there is no limitation in the hips flexors area (above the thighs, the muscles which help you bring your knee up, that’s hips flexion) and you develop a stronger core and stability muscles.

For runners, and not only, strong stability muscles, a stable hip joints, strong glutes maximus and hips flexibility and mobility can save a lot of injuries, help recover faster from injuries, and help perform better.

By strengthening muscles around the hips joints, which also stabilize the joint, you can relieve lower back pain as well.

Alignment

All exercises must be performed with correct alignment. If you lost technique and perform them with poor alignment then it’s for nothing. Dozens of repetitions are useless if they are not performed correctly.

Running is more than just placing one foot in from of the other. Running with good alignment, and a stable, mobile and flexible hip joint is the key to performance, speed or endurance, and less injuries.

1. Bridges

Lie down on your back.

Soles of your feet, hip width appart, flat on the ground and knees bent.

Keep heels as close to your buttocks as possible.

Lift your hips off the floor – using the buttocks.

This exercise activates your buttocks and hip stabilizers in your hip joints. It will reduce some of the back stiffness and lower back pain, and also improve your posture.

2. Squats

Particularly full or deep squats. These are excellent to strengthen your buttocks, and all stabilizer muscles from your feet all the way up to your core. It is a natural movement and should be practiced every day.

I have already written an article on Deep Squats – Benefits And Technique, it’s more detailed.

3. Balancing exercises

Balancing exercises are again exercises which should be performed daily. They strengthen all stability muscles from the soles of the feet to the core.

Balancing exercises do not stop at just standing on one leg. Not at all. Try variations such as:

standing on one leg and placing a pencil on the floor, then picking it up ( the SeeSaw)
making a big circle around your body as far as possible, close to the ground but without touching (360 Degrees) – see video below
imagine you are the center of a clock, stand on one leg and touch with the other leg (with the toes only) each number around the clock (without putting any weight on the leg that reaches out)

Get creative but do take care where you balance. Even if you have very good balance, in case you do lose balance make sure you will not fall and hurt ourself. Safety first.

These exercises and more are some of the balance exercises we practice on out Natural Human Movement coaching. They are also part of the online Academy – a 12 weeks, weekly training and planning on Natural Human Movement, with videos, audios and detailed technique descriptions.

If you want to know more about The Academy contact me.

If you’d like to experience the outdoors Natural Human Movements training, we have FREE taster sessions taking place in Surrey. Message me and let’s book you on a taster session. Click here to message me.

January 12, 2016

Flexibility And Mobility – Methods, Types Of Stretching And When To Stretch

Methods Of Stretching

Active Stretching

In active stretching there is no outside assistance, no walls, or other person stretching you.

It involves actively contracting one muscle or muscle group in order to stretch its opposing muscle group. When you stretch your triceps, the biceps relax, and the other way around.

This type of stretching is very important for athletes, because it is an essential aspect of dynamic flexibility and thus has a greater correlation with sports performance than passive stretching.

Passive Stretching

In the case of passive stretching you receive assistance from partner, another part of the body or wall. For example placing your leg on top of a bench to stretch your hamstrings.

This method is used by physiotherapists to increase joint range and muscle length.

Types Of Stretching

Ballistic Stretching

This form of stretching involves quick, repetitive bouncing or bobbing actions. This is done to increase the stretch beyond the muscle’s normal range. In this case you use momentum and body weight.

It is generally not the best stretch for the average exerciser, as it can lead to muscle damage that may occur as a result of the stretch reflex.

They are usually used as a radical method of stretching adhesions and stubborn fibrous tissue in physiotherapy and rehabilitation.

Dynamic Stretching

This is similar to ballistic stretching, however, there are no bouncing or jerky movements. These stretches are performed under control and should mimic the movements of the following sport or activity and act as a kind of rehearsal.

perform 10-15 repetitions of each stretch under control, gradually increasing the ROM

Dynamic stretches are recommended at the beginning of the workout. The following is a dynamic stretch:

Static Maintenance

Static maintenance stretching is where the muscle is taken to the end of its normal range and held without bouncing. These are short stretches, held for 10-15 seconds. They are used to maintain the normal length of the muscle.

Following repeated contractions during exercise, the muscle becomes shorter and thicker and a maintenance stretch is used to return the muscle to its normal length.

take the stretch to the point where you feel your muscles stretching, maintaining good alignment and posture
hold for 10-15 seconds
relax
repeat if desired

Static developmental

These stretches are used in flexibility training to develop the length of the fibres themselves, increasing range of movement at a joint. It should follow this pattern

take the stretch to where you feel tension and your muscle stretching, maintaining good alignment and posture
hold for 10 or more seconds, until the tension within the muscle has reduced
relax and passively (assisted by a person or object) increase the ROM of the stretch until tension is felt again
again hold for 10 or more seconds, until the tension within the muscle has reduced
again increase the ROM of the stretch until tension is felt again
hold until the tension reduces, then slowly and carefully return the limb to its normal position
repeat the stretch if desired

When to stretch

Stretching can be performed at any time of the day, appropriate to each person. You can stretch at home, watching TV, or at the office, in order to balance out periods of immobility in positions of poor posture.

As part of your workout, stretching should form an significant part of the warm up and cool down. In Karate we used to have 15-20 min of stretching at the beginning and at the end. It is essential

Warm up	Cool down
Static stretching	Static maintenance
Dynamic stretching	Static developmental
Ballistic stretching

Any questions? Contact me.

January 11, 2016

Flexibility And Mobility – Factors That Limit Flexibility And Mobility

There are many factors that may limit flexibility and mobility, long term or short term. It is good to be aware of them and adjust our workouts accordingly to maintain flexibility and mobility and reduce the risk of injuries.

Body temperature

The warmer your muscles and joints are the more flexible and mobile you will be.

Environmental temperature

Outside temperature, particularly if you workout outdoors as we do, is a big factor that may limit flexibility and mobility. In the cold season give yourself more time to warm up and more patience.

Type of training

If your sport or training style itself involves mobility and flexibility (i.e. Martial Arts, gymnastics) you will naturally be more flexible. No matter how much a runner stretches there will be limitations compared to a Martial Artist or gymnast.

This is why we train in natural movement, we incorporate mobility and flexibility in all exercises. If you are a runner, for example, you should consider yoga classes at least 3 times a week I’d say.

Time of stretching.

In the morning when you wake up you may feel a bit stiffer than normally. In the afternoon your body is probably the most flexible.

Age

Age is indeed a factor that limits mobility and flexibility. However, if you constantly trained to be mobile and flexible throughout the years the limitations will be smaller.

Gender

Women are generally more flexible than men.

Fashion

Sorry ladies, but wearing high heels is not going to be great for flexibility and mobility, ankle mobility will suffer the most limiting dorsiflexion (when you pull your toes towards your shin). Wearing high heels also alters posture and alignment.

Emotions

In his book “Stretching Scientifically” Thomas Kurz says that flexibility can be affected by anger, happiness, sadness, frustration, stress or how mentally burnt out we are.

Internal factors

There are situations when joints or bony structures limit range of movement. These are cases, along with pain in the joint, when you should consider seeing a your GP and see whether there is a more serious problem which needs attention.

Muscle mass

A body builder will be generally less flexible and mobile than a lean Martial Artist or a rock climber.

Practice

In the end the more you train the more flexible and mobile you will be. Be consistent and the above limiting factors will not influence you as much.

I give you this information not to discourage you but to help you train in a more complete way.

Also read about The difference between mobility and flexibility.

If you have questions don’t hesitate to contact me.

January 10, 2016

Flexibility And Mobility – What Is The Difference

Do you know the difference between flexibility and mobility? In this short article I will explain what is the difference between the two and in subsequent article on the topic we will look at what are the limiting factors of flexibility, how to improve flexibility and mobility and examples of exercising.

MOBILITY – ability to move or be moved freely and easily. MOBILITY is an indication on how well and efficiently we move.

FLEXIBILITY – quality of bending easily without breaking. FLEXIBILITY is a component of MOBILITY.

MOBILITY – how loose you feel, or how stiff you feel.

FLEXIBILITY – muscles length

MOBILITY – the whole picture, how easily the body can move.

FLEXIBILITY – specific to a particular movement or joint and it can vary around the body.

A person with MOBILITY can perform daily activities or certain exercises with more ease.

A person with FLEXIBILITY may not be able to move as easily. They have the flexibility but not necessary the freedom of movement. Mobility can limit the potential we gain through flexibility.

Physical Therapist, Author and Coach Gray Cook explains that MOBILITY is actually more anatomically and physiologically correct because it encompasses any structure that could restrict motion.

FLEXIBILITY would only imply structures having tension on them. Calling all limited motion problems “flexibility problems” assumes that all can be helped with stretching. Sometimes it cannot.

Bottom line flexibility without mobility will limit our bodies to function and move as they should. In future articles on the topic I will also talk about exercises and how to improve flexibility and mobility

If you have further questions contact me.

January 9, 2016

Three Elements Of Healthier And Stronger Joints

This passion for body mechanics started many years ago after I struggled with knee and ankle pain for years, to the point where I was struggling to walk. It became an obsession, which later on lead to learning more, coaching and writing on the topic.

Many of my clients come to me with lower back pain, knee pain and ankle pain. Probably because this is what I am most passionate about.

Having strong joints means we have a strong body. There is less rick of injuries, if we do injure ourselves we recover faster, we have more control over our bodies and, in general, a healthier body and movement.

Strength

As human beings we have been designed to move, and not just walk. For millions of year we have ran, carried, lifted and thrown, jumped and much more. Shoes were simple, no gels and excessive padding, sometimes there were no shoes at all. Chairs were simple four legged stools which required us to engage our muscle to stand upright, thus making those muscles stronger.

Today’s society encourages comfort at the expense of weaker muscles. And with more comfort, less physical activity and weaker muscles, joints and bones weaken as well. They also weaken because of aging, we just makes it sooner.

I often ask my clients what drew then towards me. Some of then say that the system, The Merisoiu Technique, is more complete.

Indeed it is. We learn how to walk, run, jump, lift, throw, carry, crawl, hang, and move if various ways. We get fit and strong with correct alignment. We don’t just exercise, we study movement and we strive to master it.

Thus, for stronger and healthier joints address as many forms of movement as you can:

walking
running
balancing
crawling
lifting, carrying, throwing, catching
squatting
crawling
mobility and flexibility

If you have injuries you must be careful. If you don’t have injuries you should also be careful, because a correct form of movement involves alignment.

Alignment

Whether moving or standing there is a degree of pressure on the joints. The problem is the angle at which the pressure falls.

Movements is not only about picking up limbs and put them in another place. Performing a movement safely requires muscle activation with the correct joint alignment.

This is where we, as fitness industry, go wrong. We educate our clients on the amount of calories and fat they burn by running and jumping up/down, left/right. Not many take the time and have the patient to educate about alignment. It takes work and commitment from the client as well.

Alignment is not something I can talk about in general, besides the general, standing and sitting body alignment. In movement, depending on the movement, alignment changes, although the basics (what I call foundations) of body alignment are still the same.

I will discuss body alignment in more detail in future articles. Until then remember this one thing:

If you draw a line (on the side of the body) from your ear, through the middle of your shoulder, through the hip and ending slightly in front of the ankle, you have a correct body alignment.

There is not perfect alignment, there is a range. I have an mp3 recording for my clients, which takes them through a body alignment visualization. I am happy to share this recording, for free, with the first 7 people who contact me. Not more than 7. To do this we must talk first. I like to know who you are and why you want this recording. Mention this article when you contact me. Simply book a call, it’s free by the way, clicking here.

Micronutrients and Macronutrients

I talk a lot about the mechanical side of joint strength. But we also need to ensure we have enough vitamins and mineral (micronutrients), and fasts, carbohydrates and protein (macronutrients).

The body takes what it needs for bone and joint health from the food we eat.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking health is about what you do this month or this year. The impact of good and bad habits surface later on, 2-3-4 years down the road, or maybe more. Inside the body the effects take place sooner. Just because we don’t see them on the skin doesn’t mean they are not there, good or not.

Being consistent with your diet is the key to a healthy body. To check where you stand do blood tests. They change from year to year.

Besides these 3 we also have Flexibility and mobility, but I will talk about that in another article.

If you have any questions you know how to contact me.

January 8, 2016

Lower Back Pain – Should You Exercise Or Not

When you are in pain the last thing you want to do is move.

Lower back pain doesn’t necessarily mean the back is damaged, it’s not always the case. But because we feel the pain we stop exercising, thinking that’s the right thing to do. In some cases it is, but not always. If the back is not damaged then you can move and exercise. Why should exercise even with lower back pain?

De-conditioning happens very fast. If you don’t move for a few days, when you resume you feel weaker. Even without lower back pain, if you don’t exercise, stretch and move (not only walk) for a few days you feel stiff and weak when you do move. If you do suffer from lower back pain, doing nothing will only add to the pain rather than solve the problem.

Pills helps manage, and calm down if the pain is really bad. But that fixes the symptoms, and not the cause. There can be many causes for lower back pain. Very often core strength and general a weak body can cause lower back pain and, in time, even more serious damage.

Besides being strong, your body also need to be mobile (ease of movement of the whole body) and flexible (related to muscle length).

Preventing and managing lower back pain

Preventing and managing lower back pain requires commitments from the person suffering from back pain.

Going to the gym or taking classes only for this purpose, because you have to and you were told to, thinking you will like them in the end, will only make you unhappy and not commit long term.

Choosing a sport, or type of exercise you enjoy doing increases the chances of committing for a longer time and reap the benefits. Learning about lower back pain and how the body functions, like you do now, little by little, will increases the chances of commitment.

This is what we do at The Merisoiu Technique Institute. We have the solution and we help you, but we also explain how things work. Understanding why you are in pain, how the body and muscles work and how you can prevent further pain and injuries, makes our clients enjoy their training and reap the benefits.

If you are in need of advice contact us.

Sports you can try

Here are some ideas of sports, besides gym, swimming, classes, yoga and pilates, running and cycling, you could try to prevent and manage lower back pain. Training for and practicing the sport you choose will strenghten and mobilize the body, and reduce pain and risk of other injuries.

Indoor/outdoor rock climbing
Squash
Tennis
Cross-fit
Obstacle Racing
Martial arts (Karate, Taekwondo, Aikido, Jujitsu etc)
Even gardening (although not a sport)

Remember it is important to also train for these sports, not just throw yourself into them. For any sport you practice the best thing to do is to have a coach. They will turn your weaknesses into strengths. You want to optimize your body for your sports, nut just throw a ball around.

Movement is more than stepping left and right, back and forth. Movement involved correct joint alignment and muscles must activate in the correct sequence. “Don’t just exercise, learn, develop and master. “

More on lower back pain and exercise for lower back pain in future articles. For now remember that not moving is not the solution.

January 7, 2016

The Common Cold, The Garlic Test And Placebo Effect

Just because someone says so doesn’t make it true. I would like to share a story with you.

For the second half of 2015 every time I’d feel my immunity drop a little I would take garlic. Small pieces of garlic, swallowed, so it doesn’t smell. And this seemed to help.

But I was no convinced. I needed to catch a real cold, not just signs of it. When I went to my parents’ to visit for New Year I stopped drinking my lemon with water, having garlic and, because I injured my food I didn’t go running either.

Luckily my immunity dropped and I caught a cold. That was my chance to see if the garlic actually worked.

In the past colds used to last for 2 weeks, 12-15 days. I used to take paracetamol and other stuff, pills for throat and everything else we usually take. Pills taken 2-3 times a day.

I decided to take small pieces garlic 3 times a day, morning, afternoon and evening. Have it with food as well. Since it’s garlic, and it was also from the countryside, it was good for me.

“Garlic improves blood circulation, healthier cholesterol levels and lowers blood pressure, all of which reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. However, current evidence does not support the use of garlic supplements to improve health.” – NHS

We’re not talking about garlic supplements. Why would you do that? Seriously. Have the real thing if you have it. Going through research papers, from what I have seen the research regarding garlic is unclear.

Anyway back to our story. The actual cold lasted 2-3 days, as opposed to 2 weeks. That was it. This proved to myself that my body can heal itself with a little outside help, which I am glad was something natural, even organic.

Placebo?

Maybe. But why is that wrong? Is is bad that the body can heal itself? I’d “take” placebo effect anytime instead of all the chemicals and other ways of curing. Wouldn’t you?

Doctors did fake knee meniscus surgery and both the patients who had the real surgery and those who had face surgery healed from meniscus damage.

There are many stories about doctors giving water pills to patients, and patients recovering from serious illnesses.

Are paracetamol, ibuprofen and other pills placebo? I believe they are. The body is capable of more than we believe. But this is only my opinion.

Bottom line, I’d rather recover from colds through placebo by taking garlic, lemon with water and water than by taking chemically manufactured pills. What do you prefer to believe in is your decision.

In fact why do we even need pills, garlic or anything else?

“Is there scientific proof we can heal ourselves?”

Over 3500 cases of patients who have gotten better from seemingly incurable illnesses. All compiled in the Spontaneous Remission Project.

Spontaneous remission – the disappearance, complete or incomplete, of a disease or cancer without medical treatment or treatment that is considered inadequate to produce the resulting disappearance of disease symptoms or tumor. – Caryle Hirshberg and the late Brendan O’Regan

I will leave you with the awesome Lissa Rankin, MD who talks about scientific proof that we can heal ourselves.

January 6, 2016

How To Lose Weight Part Five

Let’s wrap this up. There are 3 reactions that take place in the body at any given time: Physical, Mental and Chemical. We talked about them in the first 4 parts of How to lose weight series.

Every body has an ideal weight. To reach that weight and keep it all the 3 systems must be in balance.

Your style of life is the way you live you life day by day. It can come in many shapes and colours, but it is your style of life. And it’s shaped by the choices you make every day. That’s not meant to scare you, but rather make you understand that you are in control.

Whether you struggle with weight to put it on or off it’s all about the lifestyle. But not your lifestyle today, or last year. No, it’s about your lifestyle in time, over the last 5, 6, 7 or more years. Your lifestyle today will impact your lifestyle years from now.

Weight gain starts inside our bodies, they are like injuries we cannot see, and they manifest at the surface a few years down the road. It is long terms habits that lead to weight gain, thus it is long term habits, of another kind, that will bring you back to your balanced weight.

Changing your lifestyle

A style of life is made up of many small elements, we call those habits. These habits are being built and they change change over the years. That’s good, every year we are different, we want and need different things so our choices and habits change. So does our style of life.

Because you have created this style of life over many years, you cannot expect now to make sustainable changes in a few weeks or even months. It may not take the same number of years it took you to put on the weight, but it won’t happen in a few months either, if you want it to be sustainable.

Don’t lose weight to be healthy, be healthy to lose weight

One of the biggest mistake I believe people make when they try to lose weight is to focus only on that: I HAVE TO LOSE WEIGHT.

The thing is weight will always go up and down. It’s a roller coaster. That is why many people give up after a few months. What’s the point, right? Over 2 months one may lose 3 kg and put on 4kg. Then lose 2kg and put on 1kg. But in there there’s 1kg less than when you started.

However, it is not fast enough for the fast paced world we live in. And so we get disappointed and frustrated, which doesn’t help with weight loss either. Focusing on health and giving the body the best fuel to work with will also lead to the weight loss you desire. And you can keep this over prolonged periods of time without feeling under pressure or a burden.

There is more to health than weight loss

If one’s focus is on health and being fit and strong physically and mentally, and less on weight loss (numbers on the scale are there as a guide and one should not put too much feelings into them) that’s when we create sustainable changes.

Counting calories, kilograms and days, waiting to see a notable change from one day to another, is not lasting change. Lansting change it taking each day at a time.

At the end of the day you go to bed with a smile on your face thinking “I gave my body the best fuel to work with. I am stronger and I feel excellent”. Rather than “The scale today showed 1 kg more than yesterday. Tomorrow. I have to eat less and run 1h to burn those calories”.

Which attitude do you think will make you stick to your new habits for years to come?

There is no perfect way

We are physically, psychologically and chemically different, and not everything will work for everyone. If you struggle to lose weight, you must patiently search until you find the way that works best for you.

The lifestyle, sustainable diet for you, the type of exercise or sport you love and gives you the results you seek, and the other activities that make you live with a positive attitude.

I wrote a lot about nutritional guidelines. If you want to read those articles give a shout and I will send you the links. Contact me.

Also read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4 of How to lose weight.

January 5, 2016

Confusing Comfort For Well-being

Daniel Lieberman (The Story Of The Human Body) gave me the idea for this topic, which I am very passionate about.

There is no doubt that what we have created today enables us to live longer, healthier and we have cured many diseases. And comfort is sometimes good and healthy. Tight shoes aren’t good in any way, tight clothing either, and there are many other examples.

However, we have taken comfort to extreme.

Our bodies, the stone-age bodies, are not adapted to the lifestyle, the modern world we have created. Our bodies are designed to move, walk, carry, bend, they need to eat fresh food, chew food to develop strong jaws and drink water.

Today we use the elevator instead of stairs, sit for hours to work, eat and socialize. Although we know soft mattresses are not good, the desire for comfort and short-term satisfaction takes over.

Same with cars. We know walking is better, yet we look at how fast and comfortable we travel now rather than how strong or weak our bodies will be 10 years from now. Chairs are no different. Yet I am writing this sitting on a very comfortable chair. And you are probably reading it sitting as well.

Technology is also weakening our jaw muscles and bones and changes how we look. To develop strong jaws, we need to stress the bone. Stress by chewing harder food. Not cracking walnut shells, but chewing carrots, celery, nuts, seeds, fruit etc when the skeleton develops (throughout childhood). Drinking the carrots instead of chewing them will, eventually lead to weak jaws.

Chew carrots for 5 min and you will see how your jaw muscles will start aching. They are not strong enough anymore.

Some would argue that the nutrients are best absorbed through drinking. I cannot deny that, as I haven’t done any research myself. By research I don’t mean reading what others write in research papers, but actually be in a lab and see for myself. They may be right.

However, I believe the body is capable of absorbing nutrients just fine. It’s been doing it for millions of years before modern technology. Our bodies are powerful machines, they are not as weak as we may think.

Finally, the development of strong, fit and powerful bodies doesn’t stop after you leave the gym. Everything you do throughout your life, how you use your body daily, determines how strong your body will be. Do stuff, don’t just go for comfort, walk, jump, run and do whatever kids do, they instinctively know.

Elevator vs stairs

Drinking vs chewing

Soft vs tough mattresses

Cars vs walking

Sitting vs standing

…where do you stand? Which is well-being and which is comfort? Give it a thought and look at your habits. I know I look at mine very often.

January 4, 2016

The Motivation Jars

I met Ruth through Obstacle Racing in 2014. She has a job, family, kids, like many of us do. And surely enough life gets in her way too. Yet she has found a way to fit Obstacle Racing, Cross Fit, Running and more in her life. She has kindly agreed to write about the “motivation jars”, which I thought is an interesting way to get those 2-3 weekly runs done.

My story to become a runner

Throughout 2015 I wanted to become a runner, same as the year before. At the end of the year I looked through my Nike + app to find that I had logged the huge number of 44 runs in 2015, that wasn’t all runs thankfully, but for someone wanting to be a runner its pitiful.

I’ve always wanted to run a reasonable 5k time, and for me under 40 mins would be reasonable, my closest being 40:19 in 2014.

Not saying I can’t run, I can run-walk for miles, and think nothing of signing up for obstacle course races of any distance, including a half marathon distance. But if you ask me to run a half marathon I will refuse as I can’t run that far. Silly, I know, but no-one cares if you walk an obstacle course race from start to finish, and that does tend to be my default pace in such a race.

The other thing about running is that I know my body responds well to it in terms of weight control, which as a lady of advancing years I struggle with it year on year.

I’ve seen challenges to run 365 miles a year, I failed when I tried. Others where you pay yourself money for every run, but that doesn’t motivate me either.

Challenges aren’t a bad thing for me, but they are often daily things I fail as my life can be a bit erratic.

You see, I am normal, I have a house, four cats and a husband that sometime works away. I have a full time job, in which I run a 5 person team that is critical to business functions, and if there is any issue/holiday/sickness that need additional support then that falls on my shoulders as well as my normal stuff. So yes life gets in the way, sometimes. It does for everyone.

The challenge

So if I am going to set a challenge or goal it has to follow some basic rules

Be achievable
Be realistic

A friend of mine ran every day during December, setting a minimum distance of 1 mile.

Could I do that during January? No, whilst it is achievable, going out the door for a minimum of 1 mile is very doable, but every day???? I have no idea what January is going to bring me at work, and I am not a runner. Plus running is not my only exercise, I do Crossfit and sometimes the DOMS from that means that walking can be a challenge in itself, so saying I will run every single day is not going to happen.

But I wanted something for 2016. At Christmas I got myself a Vivosmart HR so that I can track my heart rate and steps done each day, and I can also track runs easily. Nike + relies on my entering the details in after the fact a lot of the time.

The Motivation Jars

I saw an idea on a group of American women, two jars, one with beads in, one empty. You set something you want, and if you do it then a bead moves from the full jar to the empty one. Now that sounds a plan.

Dec 31^st shopping trip and I bought myself a bag of glass pebbles, the type used in flower decorating, for the bottom of vases. In the bag are 120 beads.

I knew I had two suitable jars at home already. One I labelled ‘To Do’ and one ‘Done’.

So how to fit 120 beads into a challenge that follows the rules.

31 would be for January – but I’ve already failed in my head at that one.
120 is 3 months – if I can’t do a single month then 3 is no chance
120 is 10 x 12 – ooooohhhh!!! Now that’s sounds interesting

So here is my challenge

A run is anytime I go out the door and run/amble over 2km (my watch is better in metric)
Any Crossfit WOD which includes running totalling over 3km counts as a run.
Every run, moves a bead from the ‘To do’ jar to the ‘Done’ jar
Any race is also moves a bead, regardless of the distance.
Also to the ‘Done’ jar I will add little post-it notes with milestones/quotes/bits of interest on them, then at the end of the year they will be nice little reminders to read back and see what I have achieved.
First post-it note – my weight at 1^st Even if that doesn’t change, the runs and the other achievements will show me how far I have come.

It works out as 10 runs a month, or 2 runs a week with the odd additional run thrown in for good measure.

That is both achievable and realistic, and to ensure maximum benefit to my well-being then the treadmill does not count, all runs are to be outdoors.

About Ruth

At 48 I work as an assistant accountant for a multi-million pound manufacturing company.

Through my life I have done some great things, including going to university to study environmental forensics at 37, getting a Masters in Water Pollution whilst working, and scuba diving some of the most amazing sites in Europe. I’m a cancer survivor and have a family history of heart disease, which I try to keep at bay with mindful choices.

Notable personal sporting achievements representing the country at 47 in the OCR World Championships, taking part in a 24hr running race and toeing the line at an Ironman.

I am an active contributor to the UK Mudd Queens, an online female group based around support and encouragement, I am also blessed with a supportive husband who also strives to be healthy and fit, so when I want to do things there is an automatic support system.

Current desires are to keep healthy, enjoy running, have another go at a 24 hr race and do better, get my weight and hormone responses under control.

And most of all to live and enjoy life.