Welcome to this week’s newsletter, I hope you have had a good week, full of sunshine, movement and light.

I’ve had a challenging week, ending with the JTP Zone members’ website going down at lunchtime on Thursday … and after a stressful 24 hours, and Keith trying to communicate with the webhost, he managed to get it back up and running by Friday lunchtime. Technology is great when it’s working smoothly, but …

Everything should be back to normal now, access to all recorded classes and the live class links as usual. It is difficult for me to ensure everyone sees any message about the online classes when it is with short notice — but should this happen in future, always check the JTP Zone Facebook group (which is the members’ Facebook page) … where I would post a message (as I did for Friday’s class, with the Zoom link to join me live) OR if you aren’t on Facebook phone or text the business number or email as Keith will be on hand to send you the link directly if you are wanting to join the class live. Fingers crossed that this won’t happen again. 

All Face-to-Face Classes continue this week — please remember that if you are going to miss your regular class, you can book out on the Catchups System so that you make your space available for others to take advantage of … even if you don’t want to book a Catchup yourself, others do. You will also then be able to check to see where you can Catchup the class you will miss. The Catchups System works really well when everyone takes advantage of it.

All Online Classes will run as usual this week … technology permitting.

Here we are in Week 4 of March and this week I am sharing a short sequence of stretch and mobility aimed at allowing your inner light to shine bright. If you have read Your Whole Self first, this mini-routine is all about hanging up the ‘suit of armour’ and letting go of the heaviness, finding your safe space to move, breathe and just be.

As with every Exercise of the Week work appropriately for your body, keep away from pain, and if you have any questions about this or any of the Exercises of the Week, please message me.

Have you ever felt like you're wearing a suit of armour just to get through the day? A protective layer that helps you show up, smile, and carry on — even when inside, you're struggling?

Full transparency, last week this was me, and I’ve been thinking about that armour a lot.

It’s been one of those weeks where my emotions have felt heavy, but as we know life doesn’t stop just because we’re feeling a bit fragile. I’ve still had to teach, to show up, to hold space for others — so on goes the armour, the brave face, the ‘I’m fine’ smile.

And in some ways, that armour serves us well. It lets us keep going when we need to, giving us a sense of structure and strength when we feel wobbly inside. It can be a shield against overwhelm, allowing us to function when the alternative might be crumbling under the weight of it all.

But here’s the thing — armour is heavy. It wasn’t designed to be worn all the time. If we never take it off, if we never allow ourselves a moment to breathe and acknowledge what’s really going on beneath it, we start to feel exhausted. The weight of it seeps into our bodies, our minds, and our movement. We carry tension in our shoulders, tightness in our chests, a weariness in our bones.

So how do we balance this? How do we honour the protection our armour gives us while also recognising when it’s time to take it off — just for a moment, just long enough to breathe, to be, to release some of the weight?

Movement allows me to do this. When I step onto my mat, when I start to breathe deeply, and simply allow my body to move without expectation, I find this is my safe space, the time when I can allow the armour to soften and open up a little. It doesn’t mean I have to drop it completely — it just means I can loosen the straps, let my shoulders down, and remind myself that I don’t always have to be ‘on.’

Maybe you’ve felt this too. Maybe you’ve had days (or weeks, or months) where that suit of armour has felt like the only thing keeping you going. If that’s the case, I see you, I have your back. I invite you to find little ways to lighten the load — whether it’s through movement, breath, a quiet moment to yourself, or simply acknowledging that yes, this *is* heavy, but it’s okay to feel that.

The armour is there when we need it. But so is the release. And both are part of the balance of life.

I hope if you have felt the weight of your suit of armour this week, that you have found your space to let go of some of the heaviness and feel some release and a lighter feeling.

I’m wishing you a good week — keep looking, moving, and feeling good.

With love

Jane xx