Had the pleasure of spending a week in Dubai last week…  Words fail me… the only thing I can do is show you a couple of pictures of the Worlds only 7 Star Hotel… The Burj Al Arab…

Was lucky enough to get to attend a Gala Ball at the hotel so got to see the inside…

and yep I’ve heard that some might find it tacky but to be honest that’s just not true… maybe the photos look gaudier than the real thing because it’s not… in my humble opinion anyway…

There is more white than gold on the interior… and I guess you just had to be there…

Da Daaaaaa….. And yep the 12th day is here… Isn’t there something mystical about a 12th day somewhere… 12 days of Christmas?… The Twelfth Night… What’s that, a book?  Hmmm… off I go to Google… ah yes Mr Shakespeare himself…

Anyway the results are … not a dramatic weight loss… and nope that will not be revealed here :).  But what I can tell you is a loss of 8 1/4 inches lost in just 12 days…. Pretty Good eh? The funny thing is if I hadn’t been on the low cholesterol diet (just coz I was being on the safe side) I would have lost more…

Now that the cholesterol is in check again… will change the diet to introduce good fats so am expecting another lot of good results… Well hey I’m here for the long haul… well 3 months anyway… and then it’s about maintaining all this good work… Much Thanks to the guys at EducoGym…

Did my training this morning with Geraldine… different flavour again… great at explaining everything… why you’re doing something… pushing you as far as you can and not past that point… tough but fair as they say… a real motivator… felt very focused on what I was doing. Good stuff… Have to run … got to use all this energy I’ve been gaining…

Seem to be in a bit of groove now… well I was for day nine anyway… Day Ten… I found it hard… But nothing to do with the exercise or the 12 days… just one of those long days you know when you’ve not much left to give at the end of the day… so maybe sometimes you can’t do anything for 15 minutes…. Well I did my best … I’ve done better but today … day ten … that was my best…:)

So energy levels are up and mood is back to normal… Have dropped 6 pounds in weight (hopefully fat), my posture is better and clothes are getting a little looser… so not bad eh? Am a little achey though waking up all these muscles - hey who’s complaining? Not me anyway…
Trained with Helena again today, she’s great… always sunny and supportive - working on chest area today - we did well … adding a little extra weight on those exercises I found easier. Being focused before I go in helps me achieve more in those 15 minutes than if I’m not… it just means you do the exercises better…

I know that this is also kicking into my working life and making me more focused on each project at hand. Have picked up some techniques from the gym that I’m applying back in the office… Just about state of mind really… it’s all good…:)

In reply to a comment about my thoughts on silence… it’s a good one… and one i move around a lot… by nature I love to be surrounded by music… it fills my heart, wraps me with an expression of whatever the feeling is I have inside… so to be without it is conscious on my part…

Some time ago I worked with my friend Michelle Bailly… Michelle works with sound… and knowing that one part of my own limits around my own growth was about self expression I asked Michelle to work with me. Wow… pivotal I have to say. For Michelle all sound is song… be it discordant, in key, beautiful melody, wailing or whatever you choose to allow to escape from your throat… And hey all of the above escaped.. the point being to find your own true sound or voice… And at the end of that release is peace and silence…

As homework after that session Michelle recommended that I sit with silence in all the places I normally fill with music… so car, washing dishes, cleaning the toilet or whatever. And so I did. The idea was to listen to me… to start to hear my own song, my own voice and yep ultimately my own teacher instead of always searching outwardly reading books, going to others for guidance.. there’s a point where you have to find that within… I’m still listening…

So there is silence and part of what I’m learning is there’s a waiting with it… waiting for that voice to speak. And with one that’s as impatient as me it’s a great lesson… that silence… that waiting that grows from discomfort to peace and ultimately to connection… Its the same I think whether you’re communicating with yourself or another… The silence allows you to wait… it creates the space, the freedom for expression or listening to another’s expression of truth.

Thanks for reminding me about the silence Joanna… will work on it…

Was in my Sunday groove this morning listening to Nina Simone and leafing through a house and home magazine and the alarm went off reminding me to get going into the gym… Funny you know … and not the vibe for focussed training… So I started … legs again… Holy Shit is all I can say… so Sham reminded me - remember that anger Finola…. it’s a little like that… focus and bring that to the table… and there we were pushing the body again and just for 15 minutes mind you… As I said I can do anything for just 15 minutes but sometimes you forget how concentrated you need to be for those 15 minutes and the weights will quickly remind you… It’s all good though… Half way now…:)

While I fixated for some time on the concept of and responsibility for creating my own reality I’m also brought back to the inalienable fact that everyone else has their own reality too… Sometimes their’s is miles from mine even if they are only a few feet away. And do they touch… can they touch… Do we all have to stay in our nice neat little boxes so that we can’t be affected or affect each other?

That I know is easier.. and therein lies the oft heard reccommendation to surround yourself with likeminded people… and while supportive in times of need and stress the other side of that is complacency… being stuck and being afraid to move out of that space for fear of… well fear… It’s like that statement XXX unite the other side of which is XXX untie…

Connecting worlds could bring resolution, understanding and a little bit of stretching. And it’s not necessarily about bringing the great divides together coz often common ground can be found here -(I mean who knew that could happen between Martin McGuinness and Ian Paisley?)  sometimes the least common ground is when there is only small disparities… Because then there is an assumption that they can see my point of view coz we’re not so far apart but heels get dug in and egos abound.  And you know what.. it’s always down to the things left unsaid so the communication is tainted right from the start…

And the reason why it’s left unsaid? Why? My experience is

• Don’t want to bring up a specific topic coz you’re afraid of the answer you’ll get…
• Being obscure in the hopes that the person will truly reveal themselves…
• Playing a waiting game and eeking out the information in the hopes of keeping interest…
• Not knowing how to say it…
• Simply being afraid to say it…
• Worried about how you will look when the information is received…
• Assuming the person understands you…
• Assuming the person understands the subtext…

Have you ever tried to speak with the prevention of each of these in mind? In a way that is simple, clear and gentle? Asking for help when you don’t know how to say it? What would happen? What could happen? And what about the use of silence?

So it’s a Saturday on this 12 day programme where alcohol and sumptuous meals know no home… What is a girl to do…. If I can find a venue like the one in the picture I’ll let you know…

Ping!!! So it finally clicks… More energy today have to say… and yep smiley old me is back… A couple of things contribute to that firstly Claire and I are doing Tai Chi at lunchtime every Friday now… and it’s lovely to work with Rosie (Fadden) again… What a great Tai Chi Teacher Rosie is - brings balance and calm so that anything is possible and a little smile too…

My training today was with Helene.. and I’m sure everyone is relieved that the emotional lion is now gone… and we worked together on chest area exercises today and also on becoming more familiar on the weights, showing me that I can and how I can choose weights for myself if I feel I’m not challenging myself enough. Always good to know what you’re doing you know… and then again sometimes it’s good not to know too … that I learned from someone who I’ve just become aware that they read my blog…

Have to say am enjoying the whole EducoGym challenge and the fact that every single member of staff is interested in how I’m doing and not just me I have to say… I see them encouraging every other client too. That is quite unique…