I feel good. Really good. Upbeat, happy, even slightly manic.
Last night we had our fitness assessment at boot camp. I took 1 minute and 40 seconds off a 2km run, I did 42 pushups in a minute (up from 37) and 32 situps (but the instructor told me I was coming up too high and so it should have been more) and I held the v-sit hold for 56 seconds (up from 36 seconds a month ago). But I’m most proud of the increased speed on the run. Endurance is not my strong suit. I feel like a champion!
Today is a gloriously beautiful winter’s day. It was 3C degrees overnight and forecast 14C today. And the sky is clear, the sun is shining and everything is crisp and clear. My morning walk was sublime – frosty and clean through the bush. I wore gloves, scarf and beret along with my coat for the first time. The sun is still shining and my mood is glowing. Driving to work the whole world just seemed so beautiful. I really love Australia and I love winter and autumn – we have the most glorious weather regularly.
B followed me out to the tea room this morning and we had our daily chat. It seems he is a fan of cold crisp clear weather too 
So many people go for heat but not me. P is the same – he likes cold too. I like men who like cold weather 
B and I were talking about how wonderful it is to warm up by a wood fire in this weather. (Seems we both have wood burning fires which isn’t the most common method of heating here). I really like this guy I have to say. I haven’t even bothered replying to P’s Sunday email as yet.
Also went back to my Tuesday night group after we had a two week break. I enjoyed it much more this time than previously and even started to take a bit of a lead in it (finally…). My Thursday night meditation/study group is also starting up again after a break and I find the study totally fascinating. I am very much the junior in this group. The leader of the group is a woman I greatly admire and she is helping me to trace where I actually ‘go’ during meditation. It is all quite technical and it fascinates me.
I wonder if this is the sense of well being one gets from regular, hard exercise? I’ve never done anything like this in my life before. Its taken nearly four weeks to kick in if that is what I am experiencing. The others are continuing on to do the next boot camp but I won’t be joining them – I have the cruise coming up and also it is a bit too expensive to do on an ongoing basis. But I think will be doing it again in the future. Perhaps once or twice a year – just to ramp things up.
I feel good…
You’ve done brilliantly with boot camp! I can’t even break into a Cliff Young shuffle without being winded!
guybrush, do you notice I’m not actually saying how long it took me to do the 2k run? I’m just saying how much time I took off it
Confession time – it still took me 14 minutes and 16 seconds to do the run. So I’m no Cliff Young or Cathy Freeman yet! And as for being winded … you should have seen me collapse over the finish line and gulp in lungfuls of air!
I am still the slowest and least fit in the group but as I am 15+ years older than the others I think I’ve done ok.
Even if you only ran 2 metres, it’s 2 metres better than I could do. As for pushups … are you serious? You are now on a pedestal!
Well, Guybrush, the pushups were on my knees
You really do have a way of making me confess my sins! Boot camp is officially over now – with my last session last night. I can tell you there is no way I’ll be doing pushups, 2km runs or any other tortuous things in a hurry! Still I must admit to feeling really good and full of well being. I hate to admit that they might be right with all this propoganda about exercising! I’ve managed to tune it out for over 30 years but its hit home now.
Hahahaha … confess all you like – you’re still a goddess! So far this morning I’ve managed to shuffle on to the verandah to have my coffee … and shuffle to the computer. Not a lot going down in the ‘activity’ department!