It's 2014 - Happy New Year!  

Following the Christmas specials (and many thanks to those of you who joined me for these sessions - great fun!), we are back to more or less the usual timetable from Monday, 6th January.  Because of the Eyam pantomime, Monday evening BodyCon and Tuesday morning FitSteps recommence a week later, w/b 13th January.  Hope you have had a fab festive season and are all set for some serious sweat-busting!  Any questions, just get in touch.

Get out there and just go for it!

Confession time.  As a fitness pro, I know the importance of regular exercise (govenment guidelines are for 150 minutes of moderate or 75 of vigorous exercise per week).  And when it comes to classes, I have no problem with motivation - I just love it.  But going out on my own of a weekend is a different matter entirely and I can find any number of excuses and delaying tactics - all of them quite reasonable - to put off getting out of the house for a walk, a run or a bike ride...  Saturday was one such day.  But finally at around 12, I  got my bike out of the garage and set off for the quarries.  And was so GLAD!  Quite apart from doing me good, it reminded me of  all the other things I get out of it:  brain space - a time to think and work things out in my head; sheer joy in the beauty of where we live; a chance for all thsoe little endorphins to come bubbling to the surface and make me feel GREAT (and easier to live with? perhaps best to ask Bob and the girls...) for the rest of the day.  So next time, I told myself, there'll be no procrastination - I'll just get out there and go for it!  Watch this spot... 

FitSteps is here!

Having been piloted over the summer through a 50:50 Kettlercise/FitSteps combination, FitSteps is now ready to go solo.  Classes will be on Thursday evenings at Over Haddon, near Bakewell, starting 12th September. 

FitSteps is on its way - the dance-based workout that's "strictly" fun!

It's about to launch nationwide and I'll be doing tasters over the summer, then regular classes from September. Having undergone the FitSteps training with Natalie and Ian (of "Strictly") and their team earler this month, I can vouch for it being not just fun, but also a really effective workout.

Three cheers for Cate

In a very impressive feat, triathlete Cate Read came 11th in her age-group in her first competition for Team GB. Cate (Friday morning Kettlercise) completed the 1.9 km swim, 90 km bike ride and 21 km run of the European Championships (Middle Distance) Barcelona triathlon in  just 6 hours 27 miniutes and 27 seconds.

Congratulations, Cate - you are a superstar!  

You know about your five-a-day, but do you know about your 150 minutes a week?  

We all know the Government's recommended guidelines for daily intake of fruit and veg, but how much exercise do we need to do for improving and maintaining health?  The guidelines differ for different age-groups, but for adults aged 19-64, daily activity is recommended and either 150 minutes per week of moderate- intensity aerobic activity, together with muscle-strengthening activities for all major muscle groups on at least 2 days a week or 75 minutes per week of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity, together with muscle-strengthening activities for all major muscle groups on at least 2 days a week or an equivalent mix of moderate-intensity and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity, together with muscle-strengthening activities for all major muscle groups on at least 2 days a week.  

New Year New YOU!

The weather may be harsh and I know that the last thing you are thinking about is getting into beach-wear, but now is the time to get rid of the winter blues and exercise! Get rid of those Christmas pounds and enjoy getting fit and trim in time for summer. Kettlercise will get your cardiovascular system working and start to tone all those wobbly bits - Go on - give it a go - you'll love it. 

Just LOVE Kettlercise!

Following a brilliant day of kettlebells in Manchester last Sunday, have been preparing to launch my new Kettlercise class over the next couple of weeks.  I think it’s a fantastic workout - furious but FUN (and a really great fat-burner too).  Gets the cardiovascular system working, as well as strengthening and toning the muscles, and those core muscles are being challenged all the way through!
Tasters planned for 13th and 15th Feb at Eyam Mechanics, then kick off with a 6-week course on 23rd Feb at Bradwell.

Power-walking in the moonlight

The intrepid Body Blasters 2012 enjoyed a beautiful, moon- and starlit night sky while powering round a 5-mile circuit last night.  Given the weather during the day - grey and drizzly - this was an unexpected bonus.  Using a combination of level 1, level 2 and level 3 walking, we were round in under 75 minutes - fantastic work, ladies!

A Spring in the Step

OK so we might have woken up to a hard frost this morning but - wow! - what a beautiful day then blossomed: the bulbs jauntily pushing their way up through the earth, just waiting for their petals to burst into bloom - I’m no gardener, but it’s on days like these that I feel so privileged to have a really good excuse to get out and walk, jog, cycle around this glorious area.  Getting/keeping fit doesn’t need to be a drag - it’s exhilerating and liberating and there are so many ways of making it enjoyable and FUN!