Why you should go running with your work colleagues?

Why you should go running with your work colleagues?

Every Tuesday and Thursday at 6:30pm I can see a group of bright neon outfits, hairbands and backpacks running down the sidewalk to Hyde Park. They are laughing and chit chatting. They are co-workers who change the famous after work pint of beer for a good hour of exercise. More and more people are changing the "after-work drinks" for physical exercise.

What hidden reasons are there to change that cold beer for an hour of sweat?

We all know the reasons why exercise is beneficial for our health and probably we already have heard and read it many times. We also even noticed in our own body and mind. The list can be endless, but if we practice sport in a team with our work colleagues, the list can grow exponentially and these benefits are not only for yourself, also your company is benefited.

Many companies have already realized this and are sponsoring the practice of sport among its employees.

Although running is considered by many as an individual sport, but a running group has many advantages, which is why many runners choose to run with someone else, but ... why running with our work colleagues? I can think of several reasons that may encourage you to try:

- Group motivation: running with peers can give you an extra boost of motivation, if one day you feel lazy and you don’t want to train, you have a bunch of people waiting outside the office for some jogging and cheer.

-Improved camaraderie: you meet each other several days during the week, you establish goals together, you share your successes, your difficulties and tips or tricks to improve. In moments of weakness you can find that extra motivation or give it to the one who needs it.

-Increased commitment: having a common goal, such as completing a half marathon or running that charity race. It will create common commitments and you will probably wont like to let down these goals.

-Increases performance: running in a group helps not to give up, you will try harder and run faster.

-Networking, having a chance to learn more about your work colleagues. Despite sharing a space, you do not always have the opportunity to talk to the person who is one floor up. It's another way to network within your company.

-Increases bonding with the company you work for: if the company sponsors a group of runners, they will be proud to represent their company in a competition, to be part of your team will strength these bonds. The company and the workers win, the productivity will increase and it will improve the working environment, a Win-win for the company and employee. "

Do you have your team yet?

Surfing

Why Surfing can get you hooked?

Kelly Slater put it well: "It's like the Mafia, once you're inside, you're in, there's no turning back" or Aritz Aramburu: "Surfing is a drug and has us hooked"

What does that board have that hooks us?

These are some of the reasons that surfing can become an addiction: 

1. Surfing is physical activity, you going to release endorphins, dopamine and serotonin, hormones responsible for happiness, pleasure and sense of calm among others, these hormones make us feel good and make you want more. We will be watching for the next wave, to relive that feeling of "Flow". We look for any excuse to take the board and go surfing, or not?

2. It is a sport that challenges you personally always want to improve yourself, whether you're a beginner or pro, each wave is different and that each wave will be a new beginning and new challenge, can compete with others but in the end the competition It is with yourself and the sea.

 3. Make it easy to disconnect and reconnect, to be in the present; you, the table and the sea.

This is a good time to practice "being in the zone", to live this moment of "Flow" which has often been described by athletes, the time of maximum concentration and flawless execution at once. This feeling of contact with nature and Mother Earth that some consider spiritual. That moment where you can connect with the energy of the ocean and the energy I could convey confidence and motivation.

As Paul Walker says: "The Surf reassures me has always been a kind of Zen experience for me The ocean is so gorgeous, quiet and fearful The rest of the world disappears for me when I'm on a wave..."

4. cultivate relations with the sea and with others, you learn to respect and be respected, the real meaning of Aloha spirit comes from "Alo," meaning presence and "Ha" meaning breath. Aloha is a way of living and treating each other with love and respect. Its deep meaning starts by teaching us to love ourselves in order to love others.

 Surf, for many, is addictive, challenging, motivation, fun .... Surfers often live to surf and organize their lives to cover this "addiction". And many people simply surfing makes them feel good.

How would you describe your relationship with surfing?

Are you an Ostrich?

How many times have you just felt like you wanted to hide your head in a hole in the ground and stay there for a moment? Perhaps even for a day or you even started to feel good and protected in that sad hole and felt like staying there a little longer?

Or perhaps you wished you were an actual ostrich so you could get away with doing it all day long?

Many times in our travel, that we call life, we feel this way; trapped, blind. We just see the dark side, and see no lights, not even a tiny little bit...

I bet you have felt this way before. Call it ostrich or the object or animal or metaphor you feel that speaks to you the most...

But you're probably asking, "How can I overcome this feeling?". Well, it can be pleasant for a while but then what? Are we going to stay there forever? Are we going to miss what's happening outside? Hopefully no, right?

I've heard so many times stories of people saying, "I don't know where to go...", "I don't know what to do...", "I don't like what I am doing...", "I hate my life...", "I don't like my job but I want a change...", "I wish things were different..." 

But they sill stick with putting their heads in that hole! Reading this makes you want to shout to them, do something to change it!! RIght? Or is that just me?

I felt this way too, lost...but I can guarantee you that this can change...

Here are a few little tips that can help you to take your head out of the hole and start looking at the beautiful landscape we have surrounding 

1. Take your head out of the hole. I know, it might be scary, but just stick with me on this one.

2. Look around, act as you were a curious little kid, sometimes we can be surprised of what we have just beside us.

3. Talk about how you feel with someone, the big problem probably is not as big as you think. So say it out loud.

4. Write down your dreams, your goals, how do you feel about them...? And yes, you can think and dream BIG!

5. What are you afraid of? what makes you hide your head in that comfy humid stinky dark hole? this point will take some time to do it, but take your time, looking at our inner demons, face to face, is not a thing we like to do... At least most people.

6. Look for solutions, we can get stuck in that miserable place without giving a chance to think about solutions and options... and believe me, there are always options! 

7. Project yourself where you want to be. Where do you want to go? How would want your life to be if there were no obstacles?

8. Breathe, breathe, and breathe again... And breath some more.

9. Exercise, endorphines will make you feel good. That's a fact.

10. Smile.

Hope you are smiling and seeing a bit of light if you were in that hole. If not I recommend to do points 2,4,7,8,9 and 10 just to see what happens!

Keep flowing