Coached By Cat

Dynamo Gym is in the running for Brighton Girl’s Fitness Space of the Year.

This award will recognise the best gym, yoga studio, pilates center, or strength training space that provides outstanding facilities, training, and community support.

We’d love your help to make it through to the final judging phase.

Vote here:
https://citygirlnetwork.com/brighton-girl-awards

Happy Han Solo Season! 😅🍁🧣

I haven’t posted on my page for a long while due to sheer lack of time. As a disclaimer, I do not advocate or wish to glamourise being as busy as I am- it’s just not cool.

Besides running our gym and preparing to open a second, I also work full time managing a frontline service in the NHS. Since March this year, I’ve been running this service pretty much on my own (due to staffing issues that I won’t bore you with). To say that it’s been tough is an understatement. I’ve felt like I’ve reached breaking point on several occasions. The waiting lists are long, the patients are complex, and the stress is real.

*Shoutout to my husband for being my very own personal cheerleader (sans the cute outfit), providing endless support, and listening to my constant work-related rants*

Despite this, I’m still here. Still working hard. Still very proud of the work I do. Still feeling privileged to be able to provide help and support to patients when they need it most.

But I cannot afford to lose myself in my work. I’ve developed firm boundaries through my many years as a social worker and I know I’m resilient AF. Still, I know I’m in a place where I’ve got to practice what I preach to others; I need to look after myself.

That means:

😴Making sure I get enough sleep
☀️Spending time outside
🥦Eating plenty of veg and protein
🚶‍♀️Making sure I get my steps in
🏋️‍♀️Lifting weights
💟Spending time with loved ones
📰Limiting consumption of the news and other stress inducing sources
😌Practicing gratitude

If you’ve found that your work is starting to bleed into your personal life, take this as a reminder to check in with yourself. Reset your boundaries and prioritise your health.

When caring for others, remember that you cannot pour from an empty cup.

What my wonderful clients say:

"I had the knowledge of eating healthy and working out before I worked with Cat but my mindset was all wrong. I am certain that the bulk of the progress I have made is down to that aspect of what Cat offers; the mindset transformation, and that's the part I could not have foreseen. That is something special about her. She is not gimmicky. She's super understanding and kind. I've already recommended her to plenty of friends and would 100% recommend her to you too."

I’m currently fully booked for one to one training/coaching but you can work with me at my gym Dynamo Hove. Head to our website www.dynamohove.co.uk to get on the wait list 😊⭐️

It’s probably right about now that those good intentioned New Year’s resolutions are starting to lose their appeal. You might have even given up on them all together.

That’s okay.

Usually we start out with lofty ambitions and go way too big with something we can’t sustain.

But there’s a much better approach.

Reflect on where you’re starting from. It’s like building a home. You wouldn’t start with the first floor before you’ve built your foundation.

Start small. Master the basics and be consistent. Then build up from there.

Stuck for ideas? Pick two of these. Yeah they aren’t super sexy and maybe not even exciting, but you CAN stick to them. And they WILL make a big difference in the long term.

Go on. I believe in you ☺️

Many of us may be reeling from a sense of over indulgence, lack of movement, and disruption of routine over the festive period. Our preconceived notions of what health is may have cast a shadow over the joy we experience from food, time spent with loved ones, and generally taking a break.

Whilst I’d like you to thoroughly reflect on the nuances of what health is and how this encompasses more than just a number on the scale or how much exercise you do, I realise that this isn’t always so easy.

Instead, I offer you this reminder to help you both process the last few weeks and focus your mindset moving forward.

In terms of our overall health, it matters not what we do on occasion, but what we do consistently.

Not only does this emphasise the importance of putting your behaviour over the festive period into context, it means if you want to make changes going forward, you must commit to actions that you can sustain in the long term.

So basically…

You ate your weight in Christmas cake covered in brandy butter and barely got off the sofa. No big deal- you had a great time doing this. You don’t eat like this the rest of the year and you’re usually more active.

You feel like you want to make some changes to become “healthier” in the New Year. Great, good for you. Don’t do a fu***ng detox juice cleanse or commit to going to the gym 6 times a week. Pick some simple straight forward goals that you know you can stick to in the long term.

At this time of year we encounter messages promoting permission to eat whatever you want alongside “health” advice on how to burn off our mince pies.

Whilst I’m completely in favour of embracing all the wonderful foods that we tend to celebrate with at this time of year, I’m more in favour of you embracing a relationship with food that means you don’t need to negotiate some sort of deal to enjoy yourself or force yourself into a mindset that doesn’t necessarily make you feel happy.

Maybe it’s time to trust yourself. Maybe it’s time to reflect on how you feel and take action based off of that.

How about not having to seek external permission or condemnation for what you put in your mouth. Consider what it might be like to move away from black and white thinking, and exist within the grey.

Wouldn’t it be nice to experience a holiday season without feeling like you’re on or off track? How’s about just…..being? Wouldn’t that be nice?

Whatever you choose to do over the next few days/weeks try to ensure it fits with your values; the sense of who you are. Figure out what brings you joy and do it. You might be surprised to find a real sense of peace you have yet to experience during this time of year.

❤️