exercise – Raindrops On Roses

This week has flown past, as weeks tend to do when the diary is not empty. On Monday, we had another training swim in the pool and managed 60 lengths this time! I was a little achier in the upper back area than before but we were pretty proud of ourselves! The pool was boiling hot though (why are indoor public pools always so hot? Hideous) and so we looked forward to getting on a beach and swimming in the fresh air later in the week.

On Thursday, I had a quick meeting with a wonderful charity I work with, which is so close to my heart, planning new things for autumn and new merchandise to sell at events and online (more in a later blog), and then I took my lovely mother clothes shopping. She has become so tiny that every now and again, we have a trip to downsize her wardrobe. This was not a wasted trip for me as I got quite a good workout pushing that old wheelchair all over the place, and my ever-generous mum rewarded me (which she absolutely didn’t need to do) with some highly-prized and award-winning Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish face wash – used for years and am a devoted fan – and a new jumper from Hush. Lucky me! It was great to get her out and about, cheer her up, change her scenery and give my dad the chance to have some time alone and go to the driving range.

Then yesterday….. “two basket cases on the beach”.

Up early. Swimming costume on under layers. Cup of strong coffee. Sun shining (thank goodness). I was picked up and off we set. Roof down, sunglasses on, hair blowing, looking cool (I’m sure?). I’m not sure what car it is but it enhanced our image and it’s navy. Tick.

An hour later we were there. West Wittering in Sussex – beautiful. Sun still shining. Good. Sand, not shingle. Even better. We collected our baskets from the boot and walked through to the beach. But so, so windy!! However, my friend and I are made of sterner stuff, so we changed and in we went. It was AWFUL!! So, so cold and very hard walking in bit by bit and letting the icy water creep up our previously warm bodies. Yuk. Look at the colour of the sea in the photo! However, once properly in it was lovely. Refreshing, exhilarating, wonderful. But very, very different to pool swimming. We were in for about 25 mins, which was good, but didn’t feel we got very far as the waves were high and all over the place. Sometimes it looked like we weren’t moving at all! At this stage, though, the aim was to experience the sea and the cold. Conditions change all the time and we just need to get on with it and get in the practice, and get stronger. Bring it on. I loved it!

Back on the beach, the real fun started. It’s been years since my childhood days of having to change in the cold, and the wind, on an English beach. My friend has a nifty poncho-type garment which keeps you warm, dries you and allows you to change underneath it quickly, calmly and with no fuss, which she did. I didn’t. I took maybe 6 times longer than she did. Got all tangled, untangled myself, got all tangled again and again, not really dry and also greatly amused the family who’d arrived behind us. I’m only glad my children weren’t there as they’d have laughed their heads off.

We then had hot drinks and healthy salads and drove home. All that fresh air and exercise had tired me out and I felt very sleepy all afternoon. Did I sleep well that night?? NO. This not-sleeping thing is driving me crazy and is so bad for me. As mentioned before, regular good quality sleep is essential for health – along with eating well, moving more and dealing with stress. They all are connected and when they are all being dealt with well, will help us live longer lives with better health. A very interesting podcast to listen to which goes into this thoroughly is Dr Rangan Chatterjee’s Feel Better, Live More where he interviews Matthew Walker who wrote the best selling Why We Sleep. I need to sort this. Soon. I’ve tried everything over the last few years. Apart from sleeping tablets and HRT…….

Off to do some yoga stretches and walk the dogs (10,000 steps!).

Things to be grateful for:

Hot chocolate on a windy beach.

My mother. And father, of course!

The ability to move and stretch.

Dry martinis! I love my kombucha but sometimes…..

I’m sitting at the kitchen table writing this while a chicken is roasting in the oven, lemon stuffed inside, drizzled with olive oil, well-seasoned and sprinkled with tarragon. We’ll eat it with all the green veggies which need to be used up: broccoli, leeks and lightly sautéed courgettes. I’m then going to make bone broth with the carcass afterwards. I put it in a Crockpot and add an onion, red or white, a celery stick with the leaves, a carrot, a couple of cloves of garlic, the broccoli stalk, flat-leaf parsley, a splash of apple cider vinegar, seasoning, and then fill the pot with filtered water. On a low heat, it slowly simmers away at least until the morning, maybe even lunchtime. Certainly 10/12 hours – but it really doesn’t need to be precise. Drain through a sieve, sort through the sieve removing every single bit of bone, and then mash the veggies and last possible bits of chicken together and feed to your dog! My two spaniels think they’re in heaven when I serve them this. Cool the strained broth in a jug or bowl and then refrigerate. This precious liquid is amazing. It can alleviate joint pain and help maintain healthy bones, it is beneficial for gut health (helping to heal a leaky gut), it can boost the immune system and help with shiny hair and good skin. I just gently heat some up and drink it. You can keep in the fridge for up to five days. Yum.

Earlier last week, my lovely friend and I met at the local leisure centre for our first training swim together, hopefully leading to the open-water swim I mentioned before. I was so looking forward to it, not least as it would help to favourably increase my fitness/movement during the week – so good in so many ways, including helping with stress and sleep, two things I really need to pay attention to.

Well, bearing in mind my eldest daughter’s encouragement and instruction to not worry what I looked like in a swimming costume, that I looked fine and not old (and she was right, no one cared at all), I met up with my friend, we hugged and got in the water. And swam 50 lengths. In a full size pool!!! It was wonderful and I wasn’t even all that stiff the next day. Just a bit of water in my ears from doing backstroke, which just went away. So it just goes to show that sometimes we stop ourselves from doing things because we’re too busy, have self-doubt or a lack of confidence, or have lost our way a bit from when we were full of youthful invincibility. We just need to dig down to find our “power” and get it back. It’s so easy to lose the sense of who we actually, actually are. A daughter, wife and mother, yes – but our essential, capable selves too.

Next on the list this week, therefore, we’re planning another pool training swim and an early morning visit to the sea to experience the waves, the absence of anything to hold on to, and the cold – well, cold compared to an indoor pool, but warmer than it will be over the next few months!

Things to be grateful for:

Sunshine and the beautiful English countryside:

The ability to swim and swim for 50 lengths without suffering later and in the company of a very cool chick.

Mamma Mia! and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. Feel-good movies in great locations, making me laugh and cry. What’s not to like?

My oldest daughter’s boyfriend also loves my kombucha!!

That I’m still alive even though I haven’t done any ironing this weekend!

Tag: exercise

Two basket cases on the beach….

Late Sunday afternoon musings…