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Daily Check-in: Sunday, October 4thπŸΆπŸ±πŸΉπŸ°πŸ΄πŸ”πŸ πŸ¦†πŸ•·πŸπŸ’πŸ‰

Welcome to this Sunday's check-in, happy Sunday, and Happy World Animal Day to you and your furry, feathered or scaled trainers, if you have any. I'm your host today again and I welcome you - and your animal friends - to this check-in, with a special shout out to Loki, our FB mascotte! Happy World Animal Day to you too, Loki! Thank you for highlighting a few of my favourite workout videos and I hope you'll make your appearance in many more to come.

I'm inviting everyone to share a picture and/or a story about the zero/two/three/four/six/eight legged creatures in your household. Is your furry friend or other animal helping you structure your exercise routine? Does he/she accompany you during your workouts, daily walks, or does he try to escape his cage every time, which makes you chasing him through your home? If you like: tell us.

If today is a day to remember a beloved pet that's no longer with you, we are listening too. For some of you, World Animal Day can also be a day of missing a good friend. My cat passed away long ago, but I remember how losing her had a big impact on me. Not being a people's person, my kitty meant the world to me. Memories about furry friends that are no longer here are part of World Animal Day as well.

Today's picture. Obviously, when you see today's picture, you can guess I'm not keeping a dragonfly as a pet, but they do have a relation with my daily exercise routine: my walks. I can assure you that insects have been responsible for hundreds of squats during my walks. the last few months.I enjoy taking pictures of them, but they tend to find a place close to or on the ground to rest, and you have to squat really low for good pics. And - comletely against Daniel's FB rules - hold your breath forever, in order not to scare the bugs or get a blurry image. Bugs are making the difference between level 2 and level 3 walks.

Anyhow, today's pic is a close up of a Migrant Hawker, one of the larger dragonflies, although a smaller Hawker dragonfly. Probably, they received their English name because of their migrating behaviour: they are large distance flyers. In Dutch, they are called 'paardenbijters', which means 'horse biters'. Not sure why they received that name, because they don't bite horses. They feed on bugs that do bite horses (and humans), so maybe the specification of their food preference got lost somewhere in history.

I captured a few ones during the summer, always restless, flying around, chasing other Migrant Hawkers, or trying to catch a fly or mosquito, but last week, I finally found one resting on a shrub last week - they can be spotted all year around, although they are most active from June to October. I expected this one to vanish as soon as I approached, but he stayed where he was, for at least ten minutes. Ten minutes of static squats added as an extra credit to that day's workout, in which I took a lot of photos. And that means, of course, I'll be generous today and share two more pics: another close up and a full body picture of this nicely colored hawker.

If all that squat talk won't make for a smooth transition to today's workouts, I don't know what will . So: is it exercise today, or rest from all the workouts you completed during the week? Maybe there is some fun active rest included in your Sunday plans? What's it for you, Fitness Friends? What's your body telling you when you ask what it needs? On my calender is day 11 of the Old School Challenge. It's upper body weight training again. My previous upper body routine made me quite sore and if I listen to the muscles of my shoulders, they are telling me to give them a break. So I'm swapping day 11 for day 12, lower body, which is also my official start of Fit2! I'll be following that program for the next eight weeks, together with Raven and Shabnam (and maybe a few more of you!).

At the end of today's check-in I must still address another important part of our daily routines: refuelling. What's on your menu, today, Blenders? Home cooked or baked, take away, leftovers or frozen dinners: tell us about it and/or enjoy it. And don't forget that extra treat for your pet, if you have one!

That's it from me for today, FB Friends! Thank you for checking in with me and I hope you all will have a great Sunday.🐾🐽

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***Note: These Daily Check-in posts are open to anyone and everyone who wishes to participate! All are welcome here! These check-ins are a way to stay motivated, accountable, and be supported as we all try to be our healthiest selves. Feel free to pop in and say 'hi' anytime, and post as much or as little as you wish! No prerequisites here! Feel free to add photos if you want as well! Whether you need advice about working out/eating well/life in general, just want to comment, or maybe need support during a hardship--we're here for you! So: Welcome to the FB Family, and to the Daily Check-ins! We appreciate you being here!***

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