The Commit to Get Fit Challenge ended on Friday and I can sense that most of the team are a little sad. Without the challenge will we all just let ourselves go into a flabby, lazy pit of plop; returning our lycra and shell-suits to the cupboards to collect dust???

My feeling is that this is just the beginning. Last month gave us all a taste of the numerous benefits of exercise and the fun of competing or encouraging each other through various activities. It is often the thought of doing exercise or classes that acts as the first hurdle to trip us up, even before the tracksuit comes on. But it’s a little bit like the thought of jumping off a high diving board on your way up to the top, once you jump it’s normally a lot of fun, weeeeeEEE! Last month gave us the opportunity to push through the threshold of that cozy comfort zone and we realised there’s a lot of enjoyment to be had!

The challenge ended with Lucy running the campus Boundary, to finish the challenge how it started; she got a little bit lost this time, but it was a nice way to mark it.

I went for a more relaxing finale by taking a Nidra Yoga session with Karen and wow, what a lovely way to bring the month to a close! I have spent the last year awaiting a knee operation to remove a large chunk of cartilage, so in the absence of physical activity, I have solely been training my mind with meditation, including a couple of silent meditation retreats…

The last month has reminded me that the mind and body are not separate entities, they both work in unison and directly affect each other. The natural endorphins have a profound effect on our moods and if you ask any top athlete, our mindset has a powerful effect on performance. This challenge has helped me personally by regaining a better understanding of the relationship between body and mind. Nidra Yoga was right up my street - virtually no bendy business at all, bringing a heightened awareness to our body ~ I literally floated through the rest of Friday afternoon aware of each little tingle in my fingers.

I think we all took something different from last month, but I can say that we all thoroughly enjoyed it! The whole Admissions team would like to send a massive thank you to the Sports Team for pulling all the stops out to encourage us, teach us new skills and inspire us along the way!

I have seen encouraging signs from the team. Michael has purchased table tennis bats, Janet has left Badminton racquets in the office (it’s starting to look like a giant sports shop in the office) and I am sure a few of us will be signing up to the gym… I really do hope the last month has acted as a spring board for much more to come!!!