I started a new thing on Thursday 11^th of May 2023, I went to the gym at 5.45 am.

Yes, I know 5.45 am.

Now it is the 24 of June and I have been going to the gym at 5.45 am four days a week.

This is week seven of my gym journey and I am so enjoying my new routine.

Yes, it is cold and dark.

I had a thought to myself the other morning, it is going to be cold whatever time I get up because it is Winter.

Yes, sometimes I do want to stay in my nice warm bed but I feel so good when I get there.

I feel like I have accomplished a huge goal.

I am now getting up at 4.45 am, I have a coffee and get ready for the gym.

It does take a bit of being organised.

On Sundays, I will meal prep and organise my meals for the week.

This has saved me so much time during the week.

I will make sure my clothes have been washed and I have clothes clean for the week.

I have a new routine the day before-

• I will lay out my gym clothes and my work clothes for the next day
• I will organise my breakfast and lunch
• I will make sure that I have everything organised for the next day for work
• I make sure that my alarm is set for 4.45 am at least 4 times a week.

It does take a bit of organising, I am now going into week eight of my gym journey and my new routine.

I have also decided that for this term at school, I will not have takeaways and I will cook my own meals. This is something that I have achieved.

I am so enjoying it.

My routine does take a bit of discipline and organisation, it is so worth it.

I am looking forward to week nine for my new gym program.

What is something you can do this week for yourself?

What is something you can do for your self-care?

Let me encourage you in your journey.

I would love to hear from you.

Tracey

This year for me started out quite interesting.

I had school holidays from late December until February this year and then I had long service leave for 5 weeks.

In total, I had 11 weeks of leave, wow!

I had so much planned I wanted to get into the gym and work out, I wanted to go and stay at a hotel near the beach.

I wanted to take walks along the beach and just listen to the waves and feel the sand under my feet.

I wanted to declutter my house and sort through things.

I wanted to go out for lunch and catch up with friends for coffee.

I wanted to work on my self-care.

I wanted to journal.

I wanted to work on my book.

I had so much planned for this time off.

But!

I did not realise the impact that last year had on me.

It was probably one of the hardest years I have had as a Chaplain.

I felt like I carried that year on my shoulders and didn’t know the weight of what I was carrying.

I didn’t realise the impact it had on my body until I stopped after Christmas.

I mean I really stopped; I had no desire to go anywhere.

I had no desire to be creative and I love being creative.

I just sat on my couch and watched Netflix.

It was not what I had planned.

I felt like I had fallen into a deep pit and I had no idea how to get out.

I was stuck.

It was difficult and I reached out for help.

I was advised that I just needed to rest and recover.

I was questioning how do I do that, what does that look like for me.

I didn’t plan to spend my holidays, staying at home.

I went back to work and really didn’t feel 100% but I was so happy to see everyone.

Slowly I began my climb out of the pit.

I prayed.

It was a journey and I slowly began climbing out of the pit.

There is hope, there is always hope and sometimes you need a pause to gather your thoughts and work on your new journey.

If you are feeling like you are in a pit, reach out and keep reaching until you find someone who listens to you.

Keep reaching out, until you find someone that is there for you.

I am cheering you on.

I will share more soon.

Tracey Buckley

I joined the gym late last year in December, I think that I was helping them pay their mortgage for a while.

I decided finally to get a Personal Trainer and we worked on my goals and what I wanted to achieve by going to the gym.

My goal at the time was to go to the gym three times a week.

In February I was on long service leave from my job and I did get to the gym a few times and then I went back to work and things sort of stalled.

My turning point- I had a session with my trainer one morning at 5.45 am. Yes, read that again 5.45 am. Well, this morning he didn’t turn up (there was a confusion about the day) so I thought I am here so let’s do a workout. It was the push I needed.

I am grateful for the day mix up as this started me on my gym journey

I am now finishing week 4 of going 3 times a week and I love it.

I get up at 4.45 am have my coffee and then get ready.

I am at the gym at 5.45 am on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings.

I am loving it.

I have noticed that I am getting stronger, I have put my weights up on most of my exercises.

I have also planked for 5 minutes and 8 seconds.

This week I am going to try to plank for 6 minutes, aarhh.

Now just letting you know that I am not doing it for weight loss, I am wanting to get fit, tone up and for my mental health.

I am enjoying taking some time out of my busy day and spending time on my self-care.

Self-care is my word for this year and yes it is a work in progress.

I will share more soon.

Tracey