Hailing from South Africa, I only encountered snow at the ripe old age of 22.  I was au-pairing in Lake Tahoe in the USA and can recall my delight at seeing my first snow.  I immediately got the toboggan out and along with some other Aussie au-pairs [who were also snow virgins] we turned into shrieking kids.

I tried to ski and was abysmal at it.  I couldn't afford lessons as a lowly paid au-pair and skiing really isn't something you can teach yourself.  Years later I went on a work teambuilding trip to Megeve, in the French Alps.  We had the choice between skiing and snowboarding.  I chose snowboarding as it was much cooler.  Two lessons later I very nearly got the hang of it but it was time to go home.  What a shame!

This article in the London Evening Standard gives some excellent advice on how to get in shape for skiing.  Those under-used thighs are going to be screaming in protest, so I'd suggest booking a sports massage for the evening after your first day on the slopes.

Photo courtesy of Flickr.com

I haven't been very well for the last six months - nothing serious - however not well enough to run or go to the gym.  I'm starting to feel a lot better now and am absolutely dying to get fit again.  I'm especially looking forward to going back to my weight training.

What with all the press and media this week about what a huge problem Alzheimer's has become and how it's only going to get worse, this article in the New York Times online caught my eye - the main thrust of it says:

"Researchers in British Columbia randomly assigned 155 women ages 65 to 75 either to strength training with dumbbells and weight machines once or twice a week, or to a comparison group doing balance and toning exercises.


A year later, the women who did strength training had improved their performance on tests of so-called executive function by 10.9 percent to 12.6 percent, while those assigned to balance and toning exercises experienced a slight deterioration — 0.5 percent. The improvements in the strength training group included an enhanced ability to make decisions, resolve conflicts and focus on subjects without being distracted by competing stimuli".

At 45 I'm sometimes convinced I'm already displaying the symptoms of early-onset Alzheimers.  I've definitely got the beginnings of bingo wings and most of the time, thanks to constant multi-tasking, I feel like I've got Attenion Deficit Disorder.   

Let's hope that reaching for the dumbells will be my salvation!