Winter has well and truly arrived here in Champoluc with some of the best December skiing conditions that we can remember. Long may it last through to the Spring. There are off piste, ski touring and Mindful skiing weeks all on the programme for March and April 2020 so if you are interested in any…
Author: John
The Heroes Journey – Book Preview
Earlier this year I was involved in a collaboration of editors and writers to produce a book called Mindful Heroes. 26 writers worked together to create this substantial text which has now been published (details below). I am pleased to say that I am able to share with you the Chapter I wrote, Mindful Learning…
Newsletter ~ Mid Summer 2019
Going Inside Outdoors It’s hot outside and the mercury is rising further this week ahead. What’s it like on the inside though? We know the weather and environment can influence our mind set and emotions, also what shapes these are our thoughts and thinking. Differentiating between a thought which arises, exists and dissolves, from thinking,…
Newsletter ~ April 2019
WINTER – SPRING – SUMMER – AUTUMN Winter has carved its impression leaving memories of skiing, friends, weather, wine, food, good times. The drawing above was sketched by Steve while we were having lunch one day on the Monterosa, thanks, I’m very grateful for the doodle! Now that Spring is officially with us the Monterosa…
The Heroes Journey
Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey animated, here’s a great 11 minute video describing the Hero’s Journey.’
Outdoor Mindfulness
Outdoor Mindfulness – In Nature, through Movement and Stillness, with Awareness, by John Arnold. Nature, the outdoors and physical activity create a perfect context for the practice of mindfulness. Ego-centric thinking softens in the face of nature which seems to foster eco-centric thinking. We see the deep connections within nature and learn that we also…
Tai Chi; Invoking the spirit of Shan Shui by Tim Spratt.
A PERSONAL OVERVIEW – invoking the spirit of Shan Shui I am really excited to have been asked by John Arnold to lead this spiritually enhancing retreat in mid-September, taking place high-up in the Italian alps in a spectacular Mountain Refuge setting. We are presented with such a wonderful and rare opportunity. These long-established, relatively…
Newsletter ~ Dec 2018
While waiting for the snow to arrive at below 2000 metres I’ve been organising the summer and autumn weeks and here’s what we have so far; In June a Monterosa hiking week taking in 7 mountain refuges and traveling from Champoluc towards Zermatt and across to Alagne. It’s going to be an adventurous and physical…
Kabat-Zinn on Mindfulness
In this 13 minute clip Oprah Winfrey interviews Jon Kabat-Zinn who shares some of his views on Mindfulness.
Newsletter ~ Nov 2018
We are almost there, the autumn colours faded and first snows appeared this week in Champoluc, presently a foot of snow at 2000m. The main gondola lift out of the village has been renewed this summer and mid station upgraded to enable speedy access to the Ostafa at 2420m and beyond into Gressoney and Alagne….
From Winter Skiing to Summer hiking and meditation
On the move to Italy in January this year I was welcomed with two metres of snowfall, Champoluc and the Monterosa mountain range were looking magnificent. Everyone skiing in the Alps this winter had the best snow conditions we have seen for many years and, all of you I am sure, have incredible stories to…
Mindful Matterhorn
Mindful Matterhorn This video clip is a favourite of mine, seeing it with fresh eyes and open mind each time I see it.
Changes in Champoluc for Winter 2019
As Champoluc, along with every other resort in the Alps, works hard to make themselves a‘must visit’ destination for skiers, the construction of new lifts and hotels is always something to inspire visitors. The resort is eagerly awaiting the opening of two new hotels, the replacement and enhancement of the main gondola and the distinct possibility…
Outdoor Mindfulness – Hike, Sit, Be happy.
Outdoor Mindfulness – In nature, through movement and stillness, with awareness. Mountain retreats during the summer are a great way to enjoy being in the mountains, have fun exercising and doing something which has lasting health and well-being benefits. Combining the exhilaration of hiking with the stillness of meditation and the grounding of yoga, you…
Attitude at Altitude
Making the transition from piste to powder is the aspiration of many skiers who have spent their fair share of time grooving their skills on the red and black graded slopes. This article looks at the ways we approach the adventure of venturing ‘off the limits’ of graded and groomed slopes. We can think of…
From Happy Hills to Mindful Mountains
This is the story about a journey from hills to mountains and how, 40 years ago, a handful of teenagers made the journey from their local dry ski slope to the European Alps. In the 1970’s there were no performance pathways, sports institutes or athlete support services. Instead there was an abundance of passion, single…
Inside – Out Instructor Workshop Notes
‘Inside – Out’ an Instructor training session at The Snow Centre, Hemel Hempstead. It was great to meet you all last week, thanks for coming along to the session and engaging with the content, it made it a pleasure for me. Here are some notes from the session, including the questions I asked which encourage…
The Power of Purposeful Practice
Here’s an article I wrote in the summer of 2016 about how ‘practicing on purpose’ adds value to the quality of your training. The article was published last Autumn in the Annual Publication of the National Schools Snowsport Association (NSSA), ‘Schools Snowsports’. The link below takes you to the whole magazine, my article is on page 12. https://issuu.com/inthesnow/docs/0028_its_impulsemag_final_issuu There are…
Breathe and Perform
It’s all there within us already; we often have the tendency to look outside ourselves for the way forward, ways to live our lives and searching outward to find what it is we desire and achieve. The problem with this is that what we find when we look outward is tainted by the world we…
Cognition To Sensation
Mindfulness is much about being centred in one’s own body, in one’s being, moving through one’s day with a focused knowing of who one is and what one is being. We are aware of each present moment remaining conscious of our internal domain, what we are experiencing inside and of our interaction with others and…