yoga under the trees!

ummm... yoga outdoors, under the trees- how divine! I have done yoga more than a few times before, but I wouldn't exactly call myself a yogi... I try to fit more of it in because I know how good it is for me to have a good ole stretch and it's something that I just don't seem to get around to enough outside of a formal class situation... after today's class... I may be a new devotee- to outdoor yoga! Lululemon in brisbane has been holding free yoga outside in new farm park on sunday mornings. This morning I did a big river ride with my wonderful flatmate then headed over the water to new farm to stretch it all out. The class was good but I think the bit I loved the most was being able to look up and see the canopies of the trees above me... I really do love the speckled, dappled light that filters through trees and so doing yoga beneath said trees was amazing. There is also something that just feels 'right' about doing yoga outdoors- it's really grounding being literally in contact with the earth, being able to feel the world via breeze on your skin, grass on your cheek... It really was a great way to start a sunday, particularly with post-yoga brekky with fellow-yoga friends at little larder...sunday ritual? I think so!

L. :-)

catch-up-o-rama!

Wow, has been a while, after I was in such a good habit there for a while!
Well... I do have some excuses... top of the list being that I moved house! It was all a bit of a whirlwind, dealing with tax, banks, real estates, removalists and new body corporate... but I am in and I love it! I'm @ Torbreck, which is Brisbane's first residential highrise, built in the 50s and still going strong today... I am now just  a few minutes walk from my favourite Brissie 'hood- West End; I have walk and run routes literally on my doorstep; a lovely lap pool down the road and a cool down pool in my back yard- hurrah! I will try to post more often but for now I will give a snapshot overview of my time away from the blog...

Most recently on Sunday 7 November I mud-wrestled my way through the 350m dam swim/10km mountain bike/4km trail run(mud run!) that is the trex off road triathlon... yes that is mud, all over us, at the end of the run, but you cant hide our huge smiles- I felt like a kid again, whipping through the mud, swimming around the dam, and generally loving being outdoors. The event was low-key, family-friendly and great fun... hecks yes I'll be back for more of that!

This is a bit of a Brisbane special- there has been a spectacular Jacaranda season and this was taken mid-run on a highgate hill-uq-regatta-go between bridge route. After coming over the Green Bridge to uq I turned the corner and this boulevard of jacarandas stretched in front of me- made it into a great Saturday morning and an awesome way to start the day!




Finally, this pic from a weekend at the end of october was taken from the top of  Mt Ngungun, one of the Glass House Mountains North of Brisbane. My friend Alana and I had an awesome weekend, climbing up Ngungun early saturday morning, wandering around the mountaintop towns of Maleny and Montville, before coming down to sea-level at Noosa, where we tried stand-up-paddle-boarding around the beautiful Noosa National Park, bikram yoga and lots of delicious, fresh food from around the Sunny Coast...


 I guess the recurring feature of the couple of months just gone has been enjoying exercise- mixing it up, doing it with friends, using it to see new places- always with a smile :-)
Let's keep that going- I can tell it will be a good summer!
L. x

primo afternoon stretching spot

I just wanted to share this fab afternoon stretching spot... In my building I'm a lowly 2nd floor-er, but this afternoon rather than exiting for my run at the bottom of my building as per normal, I decided to exit at the top (we are on a steep hill- hence the 2 entry points!)... Awesome decision! There is a little opening on the 7th floor where us lowly folk who can't afford the view permanently, can go just to hang out and have a look. This afternoon I was lucky enough to catch the beautiful setting sun, streaming over the city and setting behind the Brisbane valley hills in the background... Loving the afternoon light at this time of year... what a great place to stretch out the day!
L. x

dusky walks

Sometimes life gets too much... things build up on top of each other and it overwhelms... toppling over, in much the same way as (in my case!) the tears do too. I know that this happens when I'm tired, when I havent had time to do a proper shop so not eating well and when I haven't got everything nicely balanced... so what I need to remember are these wise tips (thanks mum!)...
one... get out and walk. there is something about the air that calms me, the rhythm that soothes... or maybe it just gets you out of your immediate environment and forces you to think about something else for a while...
two... remember your friends... I took this pic as I walked over to meet up with a friend and walk through highgate hill and west end. It was a beautiful, clear evening and the view from highgate hill in brisbane is stunning. Talking things through with my friend I managed to get some kind of perspective. Even though things may not be returned to perfect balance yet (are they ever?!?! this is life!) at least I could share my tears... and some laughs... and that makes everything easier to deal with!
L.

more swims, more runs and pies!

Happy fathers day dad! I have discovered a fabulous country vegetable pie recipe, courtesy the silverspoon cookbook, made famous by italian mamma's the world over, for the past 50 years!
This one I was super proud of, because I used spinach grown in my very own garden boxes on my balcony. I think it makes it taste even better!
This was also a special treat for dad for fathers day- something we don't particularly celebrate but do usually acknowledge in some way.
I have also discovered the  lululemon athletica blog, which talks about lots of active, positive, lifestyle issues. In particular I loved reading about their lululemon manifesto - basically a recipe of how to live life to get the most out of every day. It got me thinking about things that I would include in a 'Lucy manifesto'... I think one of those things is definitely to use my recipe books more! I love cooking... and eating! But I think I need to make a more conscious effort to try out different recipes like this one... My first pie ever! I feel another entry coming on, to clarify what would be in my manifesto! Pie for now... (hahaha!)... L.

spring = evening dusk runs

The light at the moment is beautiful! The temperature is perfect! The evenings and early mornings in particular feel special, as the light and air changes, night to day or day to night. It's been great to get back into jogging with running friends, sharing the evening air and light as the sun shines its rays onto the buildings of the city before it sets behind the Brisbane Valley mountains.
It is on days like these when you can't ever imagine it clouding over of raining... Of course, the reality is that one always follows the other, but for now the weather has well and truly thrown itself into spring and it feels glorious! L.

swimming is my yoga....

So today I got back in the pool... I always forget, when I'm not in the habit of swimming, how much I love it, feel energised by it, calm from it, and just generally in a good mood with the world. Some people hate swimming- something about the chlorine, black line and I guess the difficulties of getting arms and legs moving together to propel you through the water, all the while staying a float and drawing breath appropriately. Lucky for me, dad threw me in the deep end at musgrave park pool when I was little and got me to swim a length (I had done some swimming lessons across the pool beforehand- it wasn't child abuse!). Since then, I have always been able to hold my weight in the water, be it at swimming squad, waterpolo or mucking around in dams and in the surf.
Anyway, it has been about 6 months since I was doing any kind of regular swimming (yeah, I know- fair-weather swimmer who can't hack the cold!) and this morning was the perfect day to get back in the pool. Today is the first of spring. A sunny, warm morning in beautiful Brisbane and the pool was not too busy. I even smelt jasmine in the air as I walked down to somerville house pool. There is something about submerging my head beneath the surface, that allows me to enter my own little underwater world. Here, with every day noises muffled, my own thoughts can wander, as much or as little as they like. I find it calming, therapeutic even- and even though I am keen to try some yoga (I even picked up an introductory offer brochure when I was at the pool!), the slower pace and relaxed vibe of water means that, for now, swimming is my yoga...
L.