Stars in the Canyon

It's almost here! 

Have you got your tickets yet - this is set to be an AMAZING night of musical theater and entertainment........

Join us for a fabulous night of songs from the musicals, brought to you by local singer and vocal coach, Lilli Badcock. 

Lilli will be joined by musical friends, Kevin Badcock - one of the country's leading Michael Buble tribute acts, and Duncan Heather - an impressive tenor who was raised in Salisbury and has since travelled the world as a headline act with his one man show. We also have other local talents:

• Emma Trottman
• Jonathan Cole
• Jo Underwood
• Joe Yandell
• The Starcast Singing Company         

These performers will fill The Chapel with hits from The Lion King, Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables and many more. 
We are really excited to announce an exciting addition to our line-up "Kieran and Sarah" a classical singing due who were semi-finalists in this year's ITV's Britain's Got Talent show.
Their powerful voices will bring a wonderful element to this special evening.

Tickets are available by clicking 

(Early Bird Offers Available Until 10th November)

Lilli Badcock

Massive thanks to Lilli for the organisation of this great show. You are an amazing lady and a wonderful friend! 


Special thanks must also go to the following businesses, as without their help and kind support our show would not be happening: 

The Chapel Night Club - Amanda & Jane
Shipsey's - Tim
Shirley Snell's Florist - Phil & Jill 
365 Linen - Chantal
John Rose Photography Ltd - John 
Sarum Graphics - Paul 
Mecure White Hart Hotel - Tom & Sarah 
The Haunch of Venison/The Pheasant Pub Restaurant - Alex

Table Sponsors:

 Tintinit, The Bodybarn at Odstock, eCleen,
 Millie Couture, Sonic Scaffolding, Daisy Chain Gowns,
 Shirley Hollis & Co, Alderbury Garage, Lara's Hat Hire (website under construction)
 Barrakav Properties, CB Domestics.

We have some fantastic items in our auction, that have been kindly donated by local businesses - including something very special from the NEW Martin Scorsese Film "TOMORROW" that has been donated by the films producer Dean Mitchell Woodford.

Proceeds from this event will be going to: 

      

                                                  UPDATE

On Sunday 26th October, the lovely Marisa Allen of Kettlercise Salisbury held a "Kettlercise to the Kanyon" fundraising day. 
Everyone had lots of fun, including Spire Fm's Martin Starke. and with the raffle and class fees we managed to raise £306.00  
Well done Marisa and thank you.


This weekend  (1st November) went with a whiz and a bang at the annual Rotary Club Spireworks display. 
It was great to get together with a few of my fellow trekkers, all armed with our collection buckets and although it was a little chilly, the rain held off and everyone was in good spirits.

Massive thanks for all that very kindly made a donation.

Remember to check out my gallery and video pages for regular updates.

Whats been happening....

Crikey where have the last couple of months gone?
Time certainly has flown .......

 
I cant believe how busy I've been what with work, training, event planning and fund raising - the next few weeks will be no exception.

So whats been happening:

Bollywood style:

• At the end of August I was invited to the home of Surinder and Safia Bellamy better known to some as "Pure Punjabi Ltd". The ladies threw a party in their home to celebrate the end of a chapter in their lives and the start of a new one. Family and friends were invited along for the day where authentic Indian cuisine was cooked and served, after which we took part in a fun Bollywood Dance Workshop.
  
  During the party I was asked to explain to the guests my reasons for signing up to take part in the Grand Canyon Trek, and what we would be doing whilst away. I would like to pass on my sincere thanks to Surinder, Safia their family and friends, for the £90 that was kindly donated to my trek fund. 

 Kettlercise to the Kanyon:

• Plans with Marisa Allen of Kettlercise Salisbury have been coming together for our "Kettlercise to the Kanyon" fund raising event, on Sunday 26th October 2014at Evolved Health, Unit 10, Glenmore Business Park, Telford Road. Salisbury SP2 7GL

 
      We will be holding 8 x 30 minute "Express" sessions suitable for all abilities:

• Beginners       09:30  &  12:10
• Men's              10:10  &  12:50
• Advanced       10:50  &  13:30
• Un-plugged     11:30  &  14:10

      (We ask that you arrive 10 minutes prior to your 
      class starting)

      Each class is for 8 participants only and you must 
      pre-book and pay for your place prior

      to Sunday 26th October (unless an agreement to pay 
      on the day, is made with Marisa.)  

To sign up, please contact Marisa on 07833 086656 or Mandy on 07786 513747

    Don't just take our word for how much fun this is and how great a Kettlercise class is, 
    watch this video clip:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ob7LQHIAX4Q

Go on, sign up today and get ready to see a new you!
Click here for a BOOKING FORM


 

Trekkers Meeting

Currently we have 29 members in the trek team including Spire FM's Martin Starke, Jas Hair Salon Group's Jayne Prigent, and An.X Agency's Jon Sloane and Eddie Deighton to name but a few.

Each of us have signed up to take part in the Stars Appeal Grand Canyon Trek in May 2015. On Wednesday 8th October a number of us sat down for our second trekkers meeting.

Joined by Hannah Emden from Discover Adventure and Jo Maslan from the Stars Appeal  we met at Parkwood Health and Fitness.This was the ideal time to discuss the reasons each of us have decided to sign up, ask any questions regarding kit,  as well as talking about fundraising ideas.

Above is a selection of images captured during our meeting with lots of concentration going on!

Many thanks to John Rose Photography Ltd, who has kindly agreed to be our official photographer. John will be popping along to our trekkers meetings and any fundraising events to help capture our journey of preparation to the Canyon.

Training and Fundraising

My goodness we are half way through August already, with only 259 days left before I depart for this amazing trek.

I have been training with Matt at Evolved Health for  few weeks now, and WOW! I can honestly say that YES its tough and YES I am shattered by the end of it but - I am loving it! So I recently asked Matt for a brief report on how he thought I was getting on:

"So we are a few weeks into Mandy's training for her charitable trek in the Grand Canyon....

Before beginning on the exercise front, we needed to see where Mandy was at physically and mentally. She openly admitted that eating various foods and that eating in general was a challenge. So we have carefully teamed up to encourage a healthier approach to her eating habits. This alone is a significant undertaking that requires a lot of patience with its undertaking.

Next we needed to address a few postural and bio-mechanical issues, and the initial phase of the program focused on these things.

What we are starting to see now from those initial weeks, is the laying a foundation now ready to bare fruit. Mandy is now staring to be pushed through some tough training sessions, using cutting edge training techniques that will encourage healthy, safe fat loss with gains in strength and muscle definition.

We have used various patterns of training including a technique known as 8x8. This is 8 sets of 8 reps in a strict time format....sweat inducing - as Mandy will testify!

More recently I have introduced Mandy to the unique conditioning tool known as the "battle ropes"....Mandy has taken to these with great enthusiasm!! "

Matt Chappell (BSc Hons)

Health and Performance Coach

(As soon as I can pluck up the courage, I will be adding some short video of me both before and after a training session. Its not a pretty sight so be prepared.)

SO that's an update on my training,so what next........fundraising!

I am now armed with my collection boxes as well as a collection bucket too! I have my just giving page set up and you can also donate via text: TEXT CEGC50 £10 to 70070 to sponsor me.So  there really are plenty of ways of helping me achieve my £4,000 target.


Thankfully I have the privilege to know some awesome people that have have come up with some great fundraising events. The first event takes place in October and involves one of these:

Yes, it's a kettlebell. The lovely Marisa Allen of "Kettlercise Salisbury"
has been a family friend for over 30 years, and when she and her partner Neil Arnold - former British Champion Power-lifter heard about my fundraising efforts, they called and asked if we could meet.

After a couple of long chats, a few tears (from me) and some brainstorming, a date was added to the diary for the first fundraising event. This is due to take place at Evolved Health on Sunday 26th October - more details to follow! So for all my fitness friends (Male and Female) this is a perfect opportunity to:

• Give one of Marisa's amazing classes a try
• Show your support to a great cause
• Help raise funds for the Salisbury Hospital Stars Appeal 

Marisa says:

"Kettlercise® is THE single most effective Kettlebell fat burning workout.......designed to shape and sculpt your body in as little as 20 mins for rapid fat loss & a lean toned body. It’s fun, super quick and super effective!
It’s a stimulating, invigorating, safe and easy-to-follow, kettlebell inspired, calorie blitzing, fat blasting program and people everywhere are loving the lightening quick RESULTS!"

The start of my journey to fitness

Hi, welcome back!

I'd like to start this post by asking you a question:

• Have you been to a gym and had a training program written for you, by someone that you have only just met?

Until recently I thought that this was what should happen in a gym, but often felt for me, this kind of programme was not only boring, but its isn't personalised or tailored to my specific requirements.

In the past my back has ached after exercising, or my knees, my hips.......you get the idea right? I've felt uncomfortable to the extent I've ended up spending a fortune on various styles of trainers thinking they were the cause.

When I announced my plans to trek the Grand Canyon and my reasons why, I was asked by a family friend to contact Matt Chappell at Evolved Health. Curiosity got the better of me and I made that call. A few days later I met with Matt and to cut a long story short, I am excited to say  that I now have Matt as my personal trainer.

Matt at Evolved Health certainly does not work in the same way described above! From the moment you walk through the door, of Unit 10, Glenmore Business Park. Telford Road. Salisbury, SP2 7GL you feel an immediate sense of calmness. There are no running machines, or bikes to sit on that make you feel as if you are on the road to nowhere. No rowing machines and certainly no loud music or lycra clad stick thin people making you wish you hadn't bothered to turn up.

I really wasn't sure what to expect with my training sessions, or in fact the reason he feels he wants to help me! so I asked, and this was his reply:

"Reasons for help are very simple - you are doing a great thing for a great cause, and that effort should be rewarded with support. I had picked up on some confidence issues, and I felt I could add something with regards your health and happiness, therefore I made the offer." 

Matt is the founder of Evolved Health. He has created an elite offering in the field of health and performance. He has travelled the world and studied with pioneers of strength & conditioning, personal training, body nutrition and functional medicine. He believes that we should never stop learning, and so is continually refining his skills in order to benefit his happy clients.

Matt has served as Health & Performance Coach to British 4X Mountain Bike Champion Katy Curd, who came 4th in the 2010 4X World Championships under Matt's guidance and was British 4X Champion in successive years 2011-2013. He has a vast array of skills, to help you become leaner, stronger, healthier and happier. Whatever your goal, Matt will produce a personalised plan unmatched by most gyms & trainers. Once you have taken the step to evolve you can expect the highest standard of coaching, nutritional guidance and therapeutic care available in Salisbury.

• My first session was spent discussing nutrition and diet......that was tough for me as I'm not a big eater. I don't eat fruit, veg or salad but I am a bit of a Carb junkie with a sweet tooth. I am now having to re-look at everything I eat and increase my protein intake!

• My second session was really nerve wrecking as Matt needed to look at me - sounds odd doesn't it, but I can assure you it was very important. He needed to take a look at me, the way I stand, move and feel (scarey stuff when you hate the way you look, with lumps and bumps in all of the wrong places - no laughing, this is serious stuff) but from just looking at me in my gym gear and by taking photos, oh and some video too, he was able to establish a few areas that needed to be worked on, including my calf muscles, pelvis and upper and lower back.

It was a massive eye opener! I learnt so much about my body during that session, to be more specific, about my posture and things I didn't realise were the cause of some serious aches and pains! This is something that is a must with Matt and his clients before he writes, discusses or introduces any gym equipment to a training sessions.

Along with Matt being my new personal health and training instructor, I  have another new found friend - Larry. Guess what, unlike Matt, Larry will be joining me on my Trek through the Grand Canyon too!


I'd describe Larry as very firm, perfectly shaped and reaches muscles I would never have believed possible from a Lacrosse Ball! If you want to know how Larry is used in my training, drop me a line or comment on this blog post.

So now I'm four weeks into my actual training with Matt and having been told in the past ....."oh no, you wont be able to do anything with weights because of your back" WRONG! With the correct guidance, technique and posture I can lift and use weights during my training, and I have already increased the weight I am using, from when I started.

My confidence is growing and my trust in Matt is 100%. He assures me that I'm doing well but this is a long journey, and as he reminds me, it has to be done gradually.

I am training in preparation to trek the Grand Canyon, in memory of my amazing friend Chris Ewington. He fought a battle against cancer that sadly was lost, but with Matt's help I will achieve my battle to get fit and trek the canyon to raise money for the Stars Appeal.

Thank you for your amazing support Matt Chappell.

The reason for my journey

Hi,

Welcome to my blog page, and my very first post!

I’m pretty nervous about writing this but not half as nervous as I am about flying to America next May and trekking through the Grand Canyon with organisers, Discover Adventure……..

YES I did say the Grand Canyon!

Those of you that know me will already be laughing in disbelief- as you know:

• I don’t do the camping malarkey, 
• I prefer to drive rather than walk,
• I don’t go anywhere unless I have my make-up on and my hair done! 

BUT when you lose a friend that’s larger than life, it seems only fitting to do something BIG to remember them by.

On March the 17^th Salisbury lost a great personality, a lovely lady lost her husband - the love of her life and me, well I lost an amazing friend after he'd fought and lost his battle against cancer.

For those of you that were lucky enough to have met Chris Ewington will, I’m sure, remember his infectious laugh, his great personality, and his caring nature.  He certainly helped me get through a really tough ordeal and during that time, we became great friends.

In January, Jayne Prigent, of the Jas Hair Group, spoke to me about joining her, Martin Starke

(Spire FM) and others; on a trek through the Grand Canyon. She said it was to raise money for the Salisbury Hospital Stars Appeal. It sounded great - but also very tough. I thought about it for a few days and luckily had the opportunity to talk to Chris about it too……… 

Laugh - oh Chris certainly did that, to the extent he nearly fell of the chair when I told him. He pointed out that:

• I rarely wear anything on my feet other than stiletto heels; 
• My iphone and iPad are an extension to my arms;
• I’m no longer the fittest of people. 

Trek Launch at Parkwood

Thanks Chris! But when he finally stopped laughing, he agreed it would be awesome and that he would be really proud of me for doing it. He even joked about sitting in Vegas and waiting for us all to arrive at the end of the trek with a pint in his hand! Nothing new there then I told him. 

The moment I received that awful phone call, telling me the very sad news that Chris had passed away, my mind was made up. I knew that I had to do this trek in memory of my amazing friend. 

After a week or so had passed, I spoke to Chris' wife Liezel, asking her permission to raise money in honour and memory of her husband, for the Stars Appeal.

I am so pleased to say that Liezel is behind me and happy that I am doing this for Chris, and for the charity he not only supported and raised money for, but a charity that also helped him.

So, I have a target of £4,000 to raise and today I received another large donation extending my balance to £2,000 – WOW! 

Massive thanks go out to my wonderful friends that have already donated on my just giving page and to some local businesses too: 

•  Laraine Voce - Lara’s Hat Hire;
• Martin Quigley - Qudos, Bar and Grill;
• Amanda Newbury - The Chapel Night Club;
• Theresa Trevett - Elite Care Agency; 
•  Gavin Barrett - Barrakav Properties;

      Since launching my just giving page in May: www.justgiving.com/Mandy-Woolford3 I have been contacted by some wonderful friends wanting to help me raise funds for my trek through music, fitness and other fund raising events. I am so touched and overwhelmed by their support, and I know Chris would have been too.

Thank You! You really are amazing!

Martin Quigly (right) and the Qudos team with me

This blog is a place for me to share my progress with you, throughout my journey. I will no doubt have up days and down days, high points and low points – all of which I will share with you. 

Last week I was lucky enough to have been introduced to Matt Chappel of Evolved Health, Personal Training & Physical Therapy. Matt with his expertise and knowledge, is going to be helping me train and prepare for my journey of a life time. He comes highly recommended and I feel privileged to have his support; thank you Matt!

I will be updating you with my training progress through this blog, so please remember to check in regularly.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog and for your support.