‘Stuck at work again’ exercise tip #1: Triceps or that place commonly known as tuck shop lady arms can be easy to train while glued to your desk. Actually, your desk is exactly what you will need for this little exercise.
The Tricep Dip:
Step 1: Stand with your back to your desk
Step 2: Place palms on edge of desk with fingers facing towards bum (wrap fingers around edge of desk)
Step 3: Bend your knees and your elbows to 90 degrees, lowering your bum towards the ground
Step 4: Now extend arms back to lengthened position
Step 5: Repeat…yes repeat 20 times…yummy, feel the burn.

‘Stuck at work’ exercise tip #2: A strong a## looks good but is also helpful for reducing back pain and improving leg strength. Leg lifts are a great way to tone the bottom without having to leave the office.
The Leg Lift:
Step 1: Stand by the side of your desk with your palm resting down (Can’t reach? Prop your hand with a book).
Step 2: Keep the leg closest to the desk straight and lift your other leg out to the side without adjusting your hips. Hold the leg high as you pulse it up towards the ceiling 30 times and then hold it for 8 counts.
Step 3: Turn face the other side and repeat. Can you feel that? Oh yeah, that is good…

Stuck at work exercise tip #3:
WALK!
Today I want you to capitalize on every opportunity to get up out of your chair and walk around. Walk to the bathroom. Walk to the water cooler. Walk to the bathroom again (after consuming said water). Every opportunity to stretch your legs and stimulate your blood flow will help to add vitality to your work day. Go get em’ Tiger.

Splashing about in my sister’s pool, I remembered how happy and peaceful I am whenever I’m in the water. According to Rhiarna Brooke, an aqua aerobics instructor, the use of water as a therapeutic medium dates back many centuries. Romans and Greeks used hot baths for healing and recreational purposes and by 330 AD the main use of the roman baths were for healing of many diseases and injuries.

So after a particularly humid Brisbane day, my flatmate Nancy and I went down to our local. Not the pub – Ithaca Swimming Pool.

‘Excuse me, when does the aqua aerobics class start?’

‘When the music starts.’

My sort of class.

The beats started cranking and the crowd on the grass hopped in the water and started ‘jogging’. Now traditionally I do not get down with jogging, running, sprinting – anything remotely resembling jogging – except dashing madly for the bus. However, water jogging is a completely different kettle of fish.

Jogging in the shallow end was like bouncing on a trampoline. Deep water jogging, on the other hand, is slow going; trying to keep my chest above my hips and avoid reverting to doggy paddle proved rather challenging. And it was a completely different experience from my competitive swimming days where the aim is to get to the other end as fast as you can.

After a few laps of jogging to warm up we began working on our legs and arms.

‘Use the water like weights,’ Rhiarna encouraged us.

Like any exercise, you can push yourself as hard as you want to. The water can be a 1kg or 5kg weight depending on the amount of effort you put in.

‘Push against the water – use it. Get from your body what you came to get tonight.’

When Rhiarna shouted, ‘Go for it!,’ I had the urge to splash about like a wind-up robot who’s lost its key. But we were reminded to use our core muscles to stabilise, and keep our shoulders back and down. Technique is just as important in the water. Every now and again I’d look around and, apart from the occasional grimace from exertion, it was a sea of calm. Underneath the surface, there was a hell of a lot of work going on.

There were several highlights of the class for me. The first was the ‘rock and roll’, an exercise for our abdominal muscles. It was wonderful how the water enabled us to use all the muscles in the body. The second was when we formed two jogging circles going in opposite directions. When we switched direction, we were running against the resistance we had created with the natural current.

We finished up working in pairs – which motivated me to work even harder.

‘Feel the burn – it feels good’.

It certainly did. But my number one highlight was jogging along to Eurythmic’s Sweet Dreams.

‘The music plays an important role. It acts to charge up people’s energy and motivate them. It makes people happy, work harder and keep a rhythm. Overall it makes exercise more enjoyable.’

Hear, hear.

‘Water aerobics is especially helpful for women who are pregnant, the older generation and people with any joint or muscular problem because of the low impact on the body.’

But it doesn’t stop there advised Rhiarna.

‘It’s also been very popular with the younger generation of 18 to 25 year olds. Even for people who can’t swim, as your head is out of the water the whole time. The best thing about water aerobics is the fact you are working your whole body, with the added bonus of putting less strain on your body. Water aerobics is suitable for people of all ages wanting to improve their fitness, wellbeing, and most importantly to get out there and have fun.’

I can only agree with Rhiarna. Throughout the class I could hear Nancy’s infectious giggle. And it wasn’t just Nancy – I think everyone had a giggle when us noodles were told to line up under the flags.

See you at the other end.

Tash

Benefits of water aerobics
• Low impact
• Ideal for working upper and lower body with minimal risk of injury
• Improve range of motion and flexibility
• Improving cardiovascular system and strengthening muscles
• Social

Top tips for people wanting to go it alone
• To get that heart rate up, choose an exercise and work in intervals. For example, 10 seconds hard and 10 seconds easy
• Kicking on the wall and tuck jumps are the best fat burning exercises
• Drink plenty of water even if you don’t feel thirsty; you still dehydrate when exercising in water
• Remember to add in deep water running, this is great for opening up your joints and increasing your range of movement
• Breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth, keeping a rhythm, just like you would when running
• No equipment necessary. Using the water resistance alone can get you a great whole body workout
• Aqua water shoes are a great idea for getting traction on the slipper bottom floor of pools or for sensitive feet. These shoes can be found in several places, including outdoor sports stores, Kmart and Target
• Check out YouTube for water aerobic ideas for upper and lower body exercise where equipment isn’t needed.

Here’s a little video of Russell reading a passage from Booky Wook (this video contains some strong language so if you’re not a fan of strong language…best not watch then okay?):

What’s really struck me with your business is your focus on embracing ALL women and working to improve positive body image.
Thank you! The photography component isn’t even the biggest part for me. It’s playing hostess and giving women the time out to be pampered. Our 50’s style hair, make-up and costume styling, alone, takes about two hours to complete. And when the ladies see themselves in the mirror, so many of them say, ‘wow, I can be beautiful’. It’s such a wonderful moment to witness. For some women, it takes courage from them to just walk through the door. They say, ‘I’m really sorry I’ve come to you; I’m so un-photogenic’. Then they see the shots, before they’re even edited, and realise how amazing they look. Building their confidence just drives my passion even more. We’ve photographed over 250 people to date and it’s still immensely rewarding

You worked in the Fashion Industry before starting Sherbet Birdie. What sparked this idea?
When I moved to Brisbane to be with my long time partner, I found a copy of Picture magazine at his house. I thought, ‘I’m working for a beautiful photography magazine in Sydney and you’re checking out Picture magazine’? So then I thought, ‘I know how photography works; I could do a shoot of myself and give him that to look at instead’! He’s a wonderful man, and it was a lot of fun. He’s not easily surprised and he was just beaming. When I told my friends, they wanted photos for their partners, and so it began.

Sasha Dobies | Sherbet Birdie

What goes into the preparation of the photoshoot?
We have a consultation with all of our clients to get their measurements and ideas for the photo shoot. This ensures every detail is covered when they come into our studio.

They will always comment that so much went into their photo shoot. They’re amazed at how much time goes into the preparation, compared to how much they all thought. All it takes is 15 minutes of make-up and 2 minutes of styling. I swear every woman – if they’re taught how to pose and given access to make-up, hair and styling – can look better than any model in the magazines. I don’t think I’m changing the body image culture. What I think I’m doing is letting people in, educating them on what the modelling world is like, and helping them feel as though they’re as beautiful as those models in the magazine.

Do you do much retouching?
No. We don’t need to. In fact, when our clients see the before and after images, they feel so comforted because we haven’t changed how them at all. We simply tweak the costume malfunctions.

And this studio, it’s beautiful!
I really want it to feel like you’re walking into Alice in Wonderland’s wardrobe. The costumes are of the highest quality, and our hair and make-up artists are so experienced. When trying to build someone’s self-esteem we cannot cut corners.
Our costumes come from all over the place. We have a few vintage pieces and we buy them from suppliers that have really done their research – they use fantastic fabrics which they know will look good on all women.

I can’t wait to get in there and have a Sherbet Birdie Photoshoot myself! For more amazing picture galleries and all the details visit www.sherbetbirdie.com.

Love
Claire

Introducing the first Black Dove Retreat scheduled for Friday the 20th April to Sunday 22nd April. Imagine three glorious days of yoga, pilates, meditation, laughter, food and more!!! (Can we leave now, actually?)

Earlybird price! $395.00! Book before March 7th to receive this great deal! (After this date the cost will be $450.00 per person.)

More details to come but the date is set and we will be having an information evening at Black Dove West End on Wednesday 7th March from 8pm.

We’re so excited. To reserve your spot contact us at the studio today!

Take a few minutes for you and watch this.

Congratulations to Karey and the team at lululemon Carindale. You are an inspiration!

Hi Stephanie,

You’re in luck: the natural look you’re after can be easily achieved in as little as seven minutes. Even without a Beauty diploma!

My first suggestion is to get yourself a tinted moisturiser. It will give you just enough coverage, without the look or feeling of foundation. I personally apply a basic moisturiser beforehand, creating a fresh dewy look. It’s your preference, but I do it all the time!

Following your tinted moisturiser, brush a loose Powder over your entire face and add a dash of bronzer to your sun spots — these include your forehead, nose, chin and jaw line.

For gorgeous low maintenance eyes, all you need is the right lid colour, browbone highlighter and a great mascara! In line with keeping it natural, I find eyeliner can overdo it during the day. A final dust of blush to the cheekbones and some lip stain will complete the look!

If you’d like to send a picture in I can be more precise with the colours and draft up a face chart for you.
Looking forward to helping you achieve your look!

Jess

I’ve never really been one to make New Year’s resolutions, but I came to a point where I felt that my entire life was being consumed by my business. I knew something had to change when I realised that I hadn’t given myself a holiday for nearly ten years. I was constantly run down and sick, I felt anxious whenever I was away from the salon and I said no to more social events than I said yes.

My goals for 2011 were pretty simple: Start having fun; Start saying yes to anything that could bring joy to my life; and Have a holiday!

I knew booking the holiday would be the easy part, so within a few days I had booked eight days in Paris, followed a two week trip through eastern Europe starting in Berlin and making my way to Venice. On the other hand, the hardest part would be preparing myself to walk away from my salon for more than a day. I know, sad, but true.

The lead up to my trip had so many highs and lows. Initially, I was so excited that I’d made the decision to actually follow through on a resolution. Then the reality of handing my business over to someone else turned out to be harder than I thought it would be – this was my baby after all, something that I’d nurtured for the last two and half years. Would it be okay without me?

About a month prior to leaving I was adamant that I was going to cancel my trip; it seemed easier to do that than to actually give myself a break. If it wasn’t for a late night chat with some treasured friends, I probably would have cancelled it. Claire from Black Dove gave me some amazing advice about allowing myself to completely let go; that once I was there I could be whoever or whatever I wanted. I could shake off the seriousness of owning a business and be that girl that hangs out on rooftops in Florence at 4am or gets wooed by beautiful European men. I just needed to allow myself to experience, touch, smell, feel and taste everything!

Thank god I listened.

The moment I landed in Paris I was overwhelmed by familiarity, like I had been there before, like I was at home there. Of course I acted out all the clichés. As any tourist would do, I visited the Eiffel tower and walked along the Seine. I went to a show at the Moulin Rouge and climbed the Arc de Triomphe. I also drank Champagne in Champagne, crawled through the catacombs and wandered the streets of Montmartre. But the ultimate experience for me was being shown the real Paris. My good friend Bert is a lovely frenchman who showed me parts of Paris I never knew existed. We walked and drank and ate our way around the city – I fell even harder for Paris than I thought was possible.

After 8 days of indulging in the Parisian lifestyle, I was to head off to Berlin and join a small tour group to that would take me through Berlin, Krakow, Prague, Cesky Krumlov, Bled Budapest, Vienna and finally Venice. These two weeks were completely life-changing. I was lucky enough to be surrounded by a great group of people that were intelligent, funny, open-minded and keen to experience everything that eastern Europe had to offer. We visited concentration camps, castles, went white water rafting, hot air ballooning, drank, ate and laughed. I learned so much on this trip, not only about the history of this part of the world, but about myself. I did things I did not think I was capable of, and for the first time in three years I felt like I could breathe.

I didn’t want this trip to end, and I cried all the way to the airport, sobbing hysterically in the back of a cab – knowing that that the fairy tale was ending was completely devastating. I arrived back to Brisbane late in the evening and by 10am the next morning I was paying phone bills and buying cat food. My old routine had set in quick. It certainly wasn’t the same as drinking Absinthe in Prague or wandering the alleyways in Venice. After three days I started experiencing a weird depression – a post-holiday come-down. My mind was still in Europe and I just couldn’t, or didn’t, want to adjust to reality again.

I spent hours looking at photos from my trip wishing I was still there, talking to the friends I made on my trip and reminiscing about how amazing it all was. Even though re-adjusting to normal life was a struggle, I realised that my trip was exactly what I needed. I came back to my salon and it had been looked after lovingly by my amazing team; there was absolutely no need to worry. It made me so aware of how much I had been denying myself. I love what I do, I have amazing amounts of passion for my industry, and I won’t stop working hard. But I was working so hard that I wasn’t allowing myself to enjoy the rewards of it. My holiday taught me that balance in life is so very important. I’ve realised that giving myself the opportunity to re-energize and allow myself to be inspired and just take time out to breathe is as important as achieving targets and creating growth in my business.

I can’t wait to see what next year has in store for me – Trans-Mongolian train trek? Spain? Morocco? all of the above?

Until then!