Good day my daring debutants, 

In life I feel it’s so important to always be challenging and evolving out of our comfort zone, pushing ourselves to be the best version of ourselves we can be. For this weeks post I am going to be looking back at the range of sporting adventures I have embarked upon so far in my life and how it has helped shape the person I am now.

My sporting prowess first began when I was at school. I was always the one who loved spending every waking moment on our Astro turf pitch in our playground either running, playing hockey or netball. When I was in college I ran my first long distance event (well long for me) which was a 10km race through the centre of Londons well worn streets. Up until this point even running around the block turned me into a red faced mess whimpering on the floor so I felt so proud when I crossed that finish line. 

This then led to my excessant need for adrenaline junkie feats which resulted in numerous hikes up Table Mountain and Lions Head in Cape Town. Although the view was vertigo inducing from the top, it really put a smile on my face taking some snaps from the top all sweaty and shiny whilst tourists from all over the world were looking at us wondering where we had emerged from, whilst their only form of exertion was wrestling for a good vantage point on the cable car. 

For my 25th birthday after much umming and aahing, I embarked on a solo journey to Bali to attend a yoga and surfing retreat. I can safely say I have never cried so much in my life, that feeling of completely letting go of past hurt and anger was truly healing for my soul. I even surprised myself when I had my surfing lessons as I managed to curb my competitive streak to be patient enough to not give up when I had fallen off what felt like a million times to finally stand up on the board, albeit briefly to capture this shot. 

Two years ago I continued my hiking extraganza by climbing Mount Snowden in Wales raising money for getting children with special needs or disabilities into sport which was extremely important to me. Although prior to the hike I had never felt a fear of heights, climbing that final push to the summit with the wind rattling through our hair and the biting cold gripping our bones we reached the top and I burst into tears once again at the sense of achievement for completing it and earning everyone’s generous donations for such an amazing cause.

And then last year I tackled one of my biggest challenges to date – the elusive triathlon. After fairing pretty well the previous summer in Henley I was just happy to even be on the start line in London after months of injuries and set backs plaguing me. The day was hot and humid and I had all of my family and friends waiting eagerly to see me emerge from the water. Although I was a tad disappointed with my bike leg knowing I had completed the distance quicker in training I was over the moon when I sprinted across the finish line. I still look   fondly at my medal on my desk each day knowing what went in to that race. 

These are just a handful of events I have partaken in throughout the last 10 years but even if you as an individual are not sporty, we all have our own passions. I guess as I have not yet experienced getting married or giving birth, I realise these are huge milestones in a woman’s life, I feel like these little victories have been preparing me in a way for when I do embark on that next chapter of my life. 

The sick feeling in the pit of your stomach and clammy palms when you realise how uncomfortable you feel when giving that all important presentation at work or doing a sky dive from thousands of feet in the air – I can assure you we all have felt it. Creativity and adventure stems from an innate fear in every fibre of our being – whatever you choose in your life to do to experience the same feeling, it will be the best decision you ever make. Go on, take the plunge 😀

Until next time take care

Keya X