Healthy Forever Fitness Motivation

  Take a Moment - The Gift of Life is in Every Breath If we stop, just for one moment and really look - we can see the delightful pleasures that life brings to us. T hey are always encompassing us every day if we allow ourselves to notice......It is in these moments of deep awareness that we find true happiness. Take a few minutes to stop during your busy day. Inhale and exhale for a few deep breaths and just slow down. Open all your senses, look, listen and just observe. Hone into these sensations and pick up on the things you would otherwise miss. The sounds of nature, of laughter and joy, or simply the feeling of a cool breeze on your skin or the warmth of the sun's rays. These are the joys a few minutes of deep breathing can bring to your day. At the end of your day, take a moment to write down the little things that you noticed and observed when you allowed yourself this short time to 'just breathe' . Do this each day, writing down the positive thoughts and emotions yo

  Travelling the World as a Fitness Instructor My Love of Travel and Fitness Combined into One I consider myself to be a very, very lucky lady. I love travel and I love fitness and I have worked in both for most of my working life. However for the last 20 years plus, I have managed to do both at the same time.  I have worked as a hostess in overseas hotels teaching morning and evening stretch classes (plus walking activities, movement and balance classes etc:) and as a fitness/yoga instructor onboard cruise ships to which I have recently returned home after 3 months away. Is this for everyone? Well maybe not as there are pros and cons for this type of lifestyle. So how do I feel after my last 'spout' away from home? Lets delve into the adventures of the sea and all that accompanies being a fitness professional living and working upon the ocean waves.  What's my Job Role as a Fitness Instructor on a Cruise Ship I am a freelance Class Instructor and I teach classes geared tow

  Exercising on Holiday Should you exercise whilst you are away on your holiday? Your annual vacation is for rest and reset, so is exercising a good or bad activity to undertake whilst taking in the rays?  Family and friends who are not exercisers would probably say: "Why can't you have a proper break and just relax?" or "You are on holiday to rest not workout?" Well, you probably can do both! Yes it is true that holiday time is for pure relaxation and self indulgence. After all, it's just for 2 weeks a year and you save a good part of your income to get away from reality and the normality of life's daily routines. So exercise and workouts should be left at home, right? For those who workout regularly spend weeks maybe years perfecting their bodies, making adjustments and consistently journaling and reflecting on the work they do. The decision to relax totally for the entirety of their vacation and not exercise at all is not an easy choice to make.......

  The Benefits of Positive Thinking Positive thinking? What does this actually mean? As much as we would all love to have a positive attitude to everything in life and see the world through rose tinted glasses, this is not actually the true definition of positive thinking. Positive thinking is a skill that some are lucky to be born with or have a natural aptitude for. Positive thinking means you approach life's troublesome times in a more productive and optimistic way.  Training our mind to be positive will take time as our minds are in constant 'chatter' mode. We have thousands of thoughts that pass through our minds daily. In fact a 2020 study  suggests that we have over 6000 thoughts running through our minds every single day. That's a lot of thoughts! The Benefits of Positive Thinking - How to Practice Positivity Start this process slowly. Trying to change all your thoughts into positive notions from day one will be overwhelming and nigh on impossible. Break down yo

 What is a Home Retreat Think of the days you feel overwhelmed, stressed, over emotional or just not coping well. You feel that escape is your only option. A regular home retreat is a coping mechanism, a place to get away or a place for just you. This is your own space where you can lose yourself, sit with your thoughts and explore your feelings.  The practice of yoga and meditation are self care routines but your home retreat is just a step further. This is the next level of self care to really nurture yourself with love and kindness. This is something we normally put on the back burner for another day. I quite often spare a few hours or a whole day if I can find the time, to dedicate to my home retreat. There is some preparation involved and some thoughts to process to prepare yourself for your retreat. I have some pointers to share with you and a free PDF home retreat schedule to encourage you to make this a regular practice. Home Retreat - Set Your Intention Firstly you will need t

 The Netherlands and Gezelligheid The focus on well-being has increased over the last few years due to events of 2020. Well-being includes our physical and mental health and socialising is a big part of mental wellness. Isolation proved to be the biggest issue when it came to loneliness and the loss of personal interaction with family and friends.  Research has shown that socialising and companionship have a positive effect on mental well-being. It makes us feel happier, reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression as well as reducing our stress levels. I love to research other countries happiness levels and the hobbies or ideas that bring cultural happiness to a nation. The Netherlands are the 5th happiest country in the world according to 'The World Happiness Report 2022' . So why is this? One of the reasons that makes the Dutch a happy nation is that they know how to 'chill'.  In the UK our stress levels are high. We multi-task endlessly and never truly relax. We fill