Activewear Photoshoot

Finally we managed to fit in a photoshoot with the awesome Ali Lomas Photography. Ali came up with the best location, Tamworth Boxing Club and thankfully they agreed to let us use their facilities.
It couldn't have been a better venue for showing off activewear and our models Josie Murphy and Millie Hodson really enjoyed using the equipment to get the right look.

The images we needed are for use on the Missfit website so that we can update the look and showcase new design ranges. We weren't going for shopping cart shots, this was pure activewear attitude with a bit of street style thrown in and the girls worked this perfectly.

Right now Ali is busy editing before we get to see the finished photo's and then we're going to hand over to Justin Robert Price for some graphic design wizardry. We have been working with Justin for nearly a decade now and there's no one better to capture the essence of our brand - he designed it!
It won't be long now and Missfit will be able to reveal the brand new active wear range and street style clothing thanks to our network of talented creative professionals.

On the Bench

Last week I ran the perfect 10 miles and felt fantastic, this weekend was to be the next step up to 12 miles and I was really looking forward to it. The weather was great on Saturday morning, the sun was shining and the temperature wasn't bad at around 7 degrees so good running conditions.
I'd done my first summer route run with the club on Thursday which took us off road down the canal and along some fields, not as easy as I'd thought. I found I had to concentrate far harder on where I put my feet not to mention staying upright as the canal was quite muddy so very slippy in parts.
I'm not sure whether it was the terrain or if I just wasn't feeling the best but my times on Thursday weren't great and I struggled to keep up with the front runners so had to drop back.
When Saturday came I was determined to go for the 12 miles but still wasn't feeling 100%. I set off fine but by mile 3 I was struggling to maintain a good pace and could tell I was dropping back, mile 4 was no better and by mile 5 I was ready to give up. This is most unusual and something I've not had to do on any run in over a year, I feel stopping is cheating, I just can't do it. For this reason I decided to push on to complete 10k and see how I felt then. At least I'd know I'd achieved a good distance - even if it was only half way.
By the time I'd made the 10k I was completely done in, there was no way I could've gone on to finish 12 miles. I walked and found a bench in the sun to sit for a while and figure out what went wrong but I really don't know.
Last week I'd been on fire, I even felt as though I held back in case I ran out of energy in the last miles. Moreover I loved every minute. This week nothing worked, my legs felt like lead, I was breathing far heavier than usual and I couldn't even focus on my mindful yoga, it was hopeless.
Maybe I've just pushed myself too hard and my body was telling me I needed a rest, I've been running further and further lately so it wouldn't be surprising. What did surprise me was how bad I felt about not completing the distance I'd set out to do, as if I'd let myself down.
For this reason I'm going to take a few days off to relax and recharge so I can hopefully get back on track next week.

Yoga Goals 2016

Today is my favourite day of the week, yes it's Friday but that also means its Yoga Day
I've been going to a weekly yoga class at Midlands Yoga for nearly 12 months now - it took me at least that long to pluck up courage to attend but now it's a vital part of my weekly routine.
Yoga had been recommended to me by my physiotherapist when I was having to have weekly physio for back pain post nephrectomy - kidney removal in laymans terms. Many of the exercises given to me were reflected in Hatha Yoga and so it made sense to continue with them at my leisure rather than via the NHS.
Early on in my yoga experience I wrote a blog about my fear of 'The Plank' which can be found on my other site An Unfashionable Cancer This addressed fears I had about performing this move during yoga as I was still unsure whether it had played a part in the discovery of my tumor - a good thing but I was still nervous about 'planking'. With practice and determination I have now overcome my initial fears and can happily take up plank pose with no difficulty at all, it was the thought rather than the action that scared me.
Last week however I came up against a new yoga adversary, The Crow. Now don't get me wrong, I had met this move many times before and though I'd given it my best shot, I just couldn't get into that position. Rather than a detailed description or 'how to' I'll just share the image of Crow Pose...

For the very first time last week I surprised myself and actually managed to get both feet off the ground, maybe only a couple of seconds but I felt it. Then I felt something else...a particularly sharp and unpleasant pain in my abdomen around the area where my scar is. Now this will be news to my yoga teacher as I didn't say a word and was more worried about making a scene than what the pain was.
Thankfully it lasted only a few seconds and I was able to continue with the class as normal and without saying a word. I think that what I'm still learning is that there are muscles and parts of my body that I haven't used or put to the test for a long time. There are bound to be occasions where I rediscover these muscles and as in this case reawaken areas that have until now not been used for a while.
This experience has given me the incentive to book a one to one session with my teacher where I can explain to her how I feel during the various yoga poses. I feel that I have often held back due to fear of doing too much or just simply not carrying out the moves correctly.
It's also taught me the need to speak up, that fear of making a fuss is very real particularly when it concerns medical issues that I want to keep private. Despite being asked each week if anyone has any health issues I still find it incredibly difficult to say anything even in confidence, my stubborn pride.
I have 2 main goals in yoga this year, one is to touch my toes - I'm still about 5/6" away and the other is to do the Crow.
Thankfully I have an extremely well qualified and understanding teacher who - once I've shared my fears, will be able to guide me through the best ways to reach my yoga goals. With the added benefit of having one to one tuition I'll be able to approach those poses I find most difficult with more confidence and know how.