M.Y. Wellbeing - Massage and Yoga

New booking system is now live and working well! Thank you so much to those of you who lived through my transition!

Please click the link in my bio to see what is available. If there is no time available to suit you, please do contact me to discuss.

Also contact me for private yoga or massage for your event or team. Hen parties, workplaces, charity events, birthdays.....

I'm looking forward to welcoming you to M.Y. Wellbeing.

My wellbeing should not be a luxury, but a necessity.

New treatment offering available and it's a good one!
Who knew face massage could have such a profound effect on the nervous system? If you book a face massage, you will have an hour of complete rest and relaxation for your whole body and nervous system. This is my number one focus for every one of you.

There may be an added bonus too.....the ayurvedic techniques used work along the premise of lymphatic drainage massage and soft tissue sculpting. I was sceptical, but experienced first hand how these techniques can change the appearance of lines, dark circles and puffy bits.

If you'd like to try one of these, contact me or click the Book Now button in the bio. You can even add one on to a soft tissue appointment and have 90 minutes of time ....Just.....for......you!

I don't make a habit of taking photos of my students but I don't think any of them realised just how awesome they are. Had to give a huge shout out to my classes this week for being so strong! Shalabasana or locust posture can be really tricky, sometimes uncomfortable, and requires a lot of back mobility and strength. Fortunately we used our practice wisely and warmed everything up properly first with cleansing breathwork, spinal mobility asanas, and hip extension work.

Sorry to and Alex for chopping your feet off. They were just too high! And I apologise on behalf of Pebbles as well, who was unimpressed by your show of strength. He is just there for the savasana.

To all my new followers, I would like to introduce the braun behind the business 😂, Pebbles.

Pebbles has been helping me teach for the last 10 years and now will occasionally oversee a soft tissue session if the client is happy with his presence.

He may appear to quietly judge us all but he has the whole yoga thing nailed so accept his judgement and feel free to bribe him for his affections with treats (I won't mention any students in particular 😉).

I'm afraid Pebbles isn't a fancy hypoallergenic pooch so if this is an issue, I am happy to give him the day off. He will just do his practice on the sofa in the house.

He is very welcoming so if you'd like to meet him, do book yourself onto a class, safe in the knowledge that with Pebbles in his bed by the door, no squirrel or pigeon will dare attack the studio.

Meet Lynn. I love seeing this lady for our regular soft tissue and rehab sessions. Her positivity is infectious. Many of us would choose to wallow and become one with the armchair faced with a rare, slightly unpredictable and scary health diagnosis, but Lynn has decided to embrace what her body and mind is telling her it needs and she has bought herself this rather snazzy recumbant bike. And she doesn't half whizz about on it! I wouldn't challenge her to a race!

Having the freedom to maintain a level of "normal" and "activity " is so important for mental wellbeing and physical strength and/ or recovery. I'm sure Lynn would be more than happy to talk logistics to anyone considering getting one of these beauties. And I'm here too to chat with you about different ways that you can get out and about or do what you love whilst moving your body. A good soft tissue therapist can think outside the box and work with you as a partnership to make this happen (and give a marvellous massage of course - Lynn would definitelyrun me over if I skipped that bit!).

Thank you for being a lovely client and for letting me show off your fancy set of wheels.

I'm a middle aged woman and I know the score so, I lift stuff to stay strong but also to maintain bone density and muscle mass. Women of a certain age can avoid pain and injury (or recover quickly from the inevitable bumps in the road) by staying active, getting a healthy daily dose of vitamin D and loading our bodies with heavy stuff. The physical heavy stuff might even make the mental heavy stuff feel lighter, but that is a whole essay in itself.

The biggest challenge today, at 9.30am on a Sunday morning, was the maths! I'd like a chart please with total weight and what I need to put where to achieve it 🤣

I'm not a strength coach but if you come and see me for a soft tissue appointment, I will probably tell you to incorporate some achievable weight training into your week (it doesn't have to look like this, it's amazing what you can do with household implements!) and work on strong muscle length with yoga. It's up to you if you want to listen. I won't be offended.

Snowy Moon, Imbolc, starry skies, flames, heat, ice, forest, love, joy. The perfect cleansing ritual to welcome spring and nourish my heart and soul.

Do you live in Exeter and have you ever travelled on foot on the Green Circle route?

It's a signposted loop of about 13ish miles that takes in beautiful parts of Exeter that are accessed by off road footpaths and bridleways. Not going to lie, there are some hills 😬 but these only make you stronger! The great thing about it is you can do it easily in sections which you can find on the website.

On Saturday Pearl and I jogged our way around 8 miles of mud and beautiful views and bumping into friends on horses and a big hill and quite a lengthy spotify playlist!

Why would I run this when I can just run on the roads? Because the terrain variability is great for strengthening different muscles, improving proprioception and changing the impact on the joints. Because it's interesting and the miles go a bit quicker. Because incorporating hills into my runs improves my technique and endurance on the flat. Because incorporating really steep hills lets me give myself permission to walk and catch my breath and take stock of how the run is feeling.

Walking is also a much more sensible way of accessing this route! 🤣

Regular walking strengthens muscles and reduces strain on joints and can help to reduce joint pain. It is a low impact exercise for weight loss. Now this is something that I won't talk about often but pain CAN be related to chemicals called cytokines being released from fatty tissue which cause inflammation. It is not about how you look in a swimsuit.

Walking, running, swimming, skipping, rollerblading etc in nature is just good for us. It improves our mood, our sleep, our focus and we get vitamin D from being outside so every step is strengthening our bones.

If your new to any kind of exercise, start slowly and build up. Maybe dont do the whole 13 mile loop in one go straight away, but explore and enjoy and let me know which your fave part is.

January is as good a time as any to commit to getting stronger, faster, healthier, but it can also be a busy time for soft tissue therapists with all the injuries that all these health kicks can bring.

My advice to you if you are just starting out on your fitness journey is...

-start slowly and build up gently
-whilst making sure you are properly fuelled with nutritious and plentiful meals
-stay hydrated
-and well rested with enough sleep and planned recovery and easy days.
-have fun with your fitness and don't see it as a chore. If this happens find a way of making your workouts fun and even sociable.
-be safe. If you're struggling with knowing what to do, ask a fitness professional and if you're starting to feel little niggles, see a soft tissue therapist and nip the niggles in the bud.
- don't give up if you don't see immediate results. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither are abs, pull ups and 5km Pbs.

And remember, no-one ever sticks to their new year's resolutions so maybe just make a start and see what happens.