Moving to Dubai wasn't a decision I took lightly, there were
many things I took into consideration when discussing the pros and cons
of moving away. Of course there we're the usual things, like.....I'm
going to miss my family and will I be able to cope with not seeing them
so often, do we sell the house or do we rent it out, what do we do with
our pets, will I be able to get a job over there? But probably one of
the hardest decisions for me was not knowing what to do about my passion
for cross country mountain biking.
For anyone
that's knows me well, they know I struggle, as do many with keeping off
the unwanted pounds. I know many people say it but I really do believe
that I have a very slow metabolism, and by just looking at a cake I put
on a pound! My husband and I did a little experiment over a weekend
once, where we both ate the same and sure enough I put on more weight
than he did! So keeping up with regular exercise is something I am
desperate to do. I don't particularly enjoy going to the gym, I find it
so boring, however I do enjoy group exercise, and back in the UK I was a
member of a gym that did a good selection of group exercise classes
that I used to attend regularly to keep up the fitness. However my
favourite way to exercise was to get out on my bike!
I
have always owned a bike and was fortunate to grow up in the
countryside at a time when it was safe for myself and my brother to go
off on our bikes exploring for hours without our parents worrying. I was
also a member of a Venture Scout Unit who over the years did several
charity coast to coast bike rides. I have took part in 3 of these, unfortunately only completing 2 of them! On my
first attempt I had a rather nasty fall off my bike on the second day
and ended up having to visit the local hospital, after several x-rays I
was relieved to know I hadn't broken anything (apart from my helemt!), but travelling back home
the following day in a mini-bus, with a very bruised right side and
coccyx was not much fun.
When I met my
husband, cycling was not something that he was that into, however it
didn't take me long to get him hooked. He also now has 1 coast to coast
bike ride under his belt. However being a man he did prefer the going
extremely fast downhill, and technical stuff more than myself, but this
led to us pushing and developing our skills further, even to the point
of getting teaching qualifications in the sport! We also treated
ourselves to 2 very nice full suspension mountain bikes. For anyone that
knows me, they will say that at one point I was almost as in love with
my bike as I am with my husband! It breaks my heart to think that they are now just sitting in storage in the UK.
So
I move to Dubai, the original plan was to have our bikes shipped over,
and to continue our hobby here, however even thought there are groups of
people that do go into the mountains in the surrounding emirates to
cycle, it's just not the same. First of all, the terrain is very
different to back home, but the main thing is the limited time you have
to get out on your bike, we would have to get up ridiculously early in
the morning to get to our venue, to have at least a couple of hours
riding before it got too hot, and in the summer it would be suicidal at
any time of the day. So because of this we made the decision to leave
our bikes in the Uk.
We
have tried a few sports since arriving in Duabi to try to get the same
kind of exercise and buzz as we did from our mountain biking. We brought
some second hand kites, and had a dabble at kite surfing, I never got
as far as getting into the water, handling the kite on dry land is quite
enough exercise and excitement for me! I even brought a cheap bike just
to ride up and down the beach road on, which is ok but it's very easy
as its all flat, so it didn't feel like real exercise.
Then
I found an advert for group exercise classes in a building not too far
from where we live, since that point we haven't looked back. Again it
took some convincing to get my husband to one of these classes, but he
now loves them. We owe a lot of thanks to the owner and former members
of this gym, as it was also from this point that ours lives in Dubai
changed, our gym buddies are now some of our closest friends!
The
venue for the exercise classes has now changed, we are now members of a
gym called MMA, the first time I visited this gym, I was dubious about
joining, it seemed very much a mans gym, if you know what I mean, with a
boxing ring, MMA fighting cage and loads of weights equipment. But this
time it was Ian that had to do the convincing! With your new membership
you were entitled to 2 free PT sessions, the girl who took
me for my first PT session did not impress me at all, she did the
usual stuff that they like to do when you first join a new
gym.......took down all my vitals and asked about my diet and exercise.
She had obviously judged me before even speaking to me, and didn't
really listen to what I said. She informed ,me that I was overweight,
and told me I needed to exercise more.......... Durr.......I knew that,
that's why I was there. She asked me if I had any injuries, to which I
informed her about a knee injury that I have, and that I had been
advised not to do any running or jumping for another 6 weeks, it was
obvious that she didn't believe that I did several exercise classes a
week already......and when she took me over to the treadmill and told me
to run for 10 minutes I wanted to cry! Needless to say after this
experience I never wanted to set foot back into that place ever again,
never mind have a second session with her.
However
Ian's experience had been very different, and he came out form his PT
session buzzing with enthusiasm, his instructor hadn't done any of the
paperwork stuff......he had basically got him into the boxing ring with
some gloves on and had done a kick boxing session with him. So Ian
convinced me to go back and do a session with this PT. OMG it was
flipping hard work, but I loved it..... So that's where I started my new
hobby of kick boxing! I now have at least 2 sessions a week with
Ventura, and with this and continued group exercise classes, my fitness
has come back to what it was when I was cycling regularly. I've also
managed to loose some of the weight that had crept back on and my blood
pressure is coming down nicely!
I
don't think I'm ever going to be at a stage where I'll be any good in a
fight, apparently I kick well and my punches are getting harder....to
the point where I've had to have some new boxing gloves ( great early
birthday pressie, thanks Hubby x) but my big problem is whenever I've
been in a group class where I've had to hit people and not bags or
pads.....I apologise all the time for trying to hit someone! As for it
being a mans gym, after a few sessions I got over that fear, to the
point where I almost feel proud when I have my minute break in between
rounds and look up to find them watching me, with a reassuring smile, as
they have a rest In-between sets!
So
there you go, I hope that I can continue with this new hobby for a few
years to come....if my hips will allow it! But I also hope that one day
I'll get back on the old mountain bike! Keeping fit is not easy, but
it's a lot easier if you can find an exercise that you enjoy.
Thanks for reading,
Keep well
Katie x
