Hi all,

Phew these past few weeks have been tough.

It started when I pulled an intercostal muscle in my left rib. I could still move around and could still train, but everything had to be modified and it wasn’t much fun. Then I pulled another muscle in my lower abdomen. Two areas were now giving me pain. I rested, took anti inflammatories, iced and rested some more.

The week before the first Open announcement I was feeling back on track. I started lifting overhead again, easing back into other movements and felt good. Then last week I was struck down with a virus.

A full blown nasty piece of work. My torso, arms and upper legs are covered in a rash (my bodies way of dealing with the virus), I was stuck indoors for days and had to keep the air con on full blast due to the heat outside.

David had to work, my family live on the other side of the world and I felt alone. For the first time in a long while I felt like everything was crashing down on top of me.

But here I am, a new week and feeling so much better. Over the past few days I realised that these instances occur all the time with everyone, regardless of circumstance. Illness, stress, relationship issues, financial troubles, I could go on and on. We can’t stop these things from happening, but what we can do is control the way we react to them.

So for this weeks ‘5 Top Tips on a Tuesday’ we will take a look at what to do when you feel like your world is crashing down around you.

Stop a moment. Take a big deep breath in and a long one out. Take a few more moments to stay still. Find a sense of calm. Once you are in this calm, then reflect on what is going on around you. How does it truly make you feel? Check in with your emotions, thoughts and feelings, not your actions.

Have a pity party

Now you have established how you feel, give yourself permission to truly feel those feelings. It’s going to be a tough time and I guarantee there will probably be tears but in allowing yourself to truly feel you will therefore be able to grow. You are not denying yourself anymore the ability to feel. Embrace the suck, just for a little while. Talk to someone and let it all out if need be. Just use it as a release to then move on.

Figure out what you need

What do you need to do to …