I hope you have had a good week, kept cool, drank lots of fluids — non-alcoholic of course ;) — and covered yourself from head to toe in sunscreen. I have pale (red) skin so I can’t sit in the sun without burning, sometimes even with factor 50 on, but I love being outside, so my ‘HAPPY PLACE’ is perfect for me to sit in the afternoon and enjoy being outside without the worry of the sun. I hope you have your ‘space’ and it has served you well this week.

So all the news this week about our classes, the Exercise of the Week, and Your Whole Self follows … and it's Father’s Day so have a good one — to all you Dads out there.

Mermaid stretch is this week’s Exercise of the Week. I give two positions to perform this stretch from, for those who struggle with a zig-zag leg position. It's a stretch that gives a great transition from side work to other positions. 

Although it's not a specific Joseph Pilates exercise, it does have a purpose in a Pilates routine as it creates mobility and space for the lateral muscles and therefore helps the whole body with movement. 

Enjoy, and work appropriately for your body — keep away from pain.

If you have any questions regarding this or any other Exercise of the Week, please don’t hesitate to get in touch for further clarification and advice.

Happy Father’s Day

My Dad died 20 years ago this year, and I can honestly say that hardly a day passes without me thinking about him, one way or another. Something might happen that I would want to share with him, or I might think I wonder what Dad would say, what approach he might take with things … so I will be thinking about him today.

He had a brilliant sense of humour, which has been passed on to me, my sisters and my brother, so I often think about how funny he would find things that happen, particularly now when I’m with my granddaughter … he would just love it.

I got my love of sport from him, he was a footballer, and suffered with his knees as a result of playing into his early 40s. And he was keen for us to be sporty too — let's say he was more interested in my hockey game than my violin practice 😃

He enjoyed watching horse racing on TV, and whenever I see anything like Ascot, or the Grand National I think about him and his inability to pick a winner!

He was a very intelligent man, but he didn’t have the confidence to pursue this in his life — I sometimes wonder if our lives would have been different if he had received more encouragement and more confidence to make different choices. 

However, he was happy, and this is how I remember him, he loved us, he was proud of us, and I will be thinking about this today. 

So to all the Dads … Happy Father’s Day. Be happy, share the love and create some memories today.

Have a great week folks, see you in class,

With love

Jane xx