Yesterday, I did this pose at yoga…twice. Of course, I had a shirt on. And I’m fluffier than this guy. Plus, I only did it for a couple moments. BUT I did it. The action freaked me out.
I’m getting stronger. My body is changing. I’m not dropping significant weight but that was never my primary focus. I’m getting more fit. I’m learning body awareness, my body awareness. This education started nearly two years ago when I began practicing yoga. And it became a private tutorial working out with Josh as my personal trainer.
Josh is helping me adjust my movement for optimal benefit. He’s my body whisperer. He constantly is telling me where I should feel the stretch. If I’m not feeling it in the right locale, he adjusts me. And I’m learning to also adjust myself. He explains how performing the movement incorrectly puts unnecessary strain on my joints like my knees. My shoulders are less and less involved as my core does the work it’s supposed to do. The weight on my shoulders is coming off. After fifty odd years, I’m finally understanding what my body needs and how it works.
On Saturday night, I picked up another serving shift for the couch fund. Knowing I was working my regular brunch shift in the morning, I stretched out when I got home. I took a few minutes and did a series of poses to give my body a bedtime hug. I knew what was tight from being on my feet for seven nonstop hours. I gave my body a little gratitude and attention to the hardworking areas. That action not only helped me sleep, I woke up feeling renewed. I didn’t have my typical serving aches and throbs. I was optimal for the upcoming shift. I’m learning stretching is key to avoiding my old gal rigidity.
Yesterday, I saw a yoga student that I hadn’t see in a couple months. I asked her how she had been. She told me she had sprained her foot and then preceded to have five back-to-back colds. She inquired how I was. I felt like a braggart but I said ‘fantastic!’
I do feel fantastic: physically and emotionally. I’m taking care of my body. I’m stretching often. I’m doing weekly doubles of yoga, personal training and dreadmill. And I’m usually getting over 15,000 steps in daily. The walking is primarily outside so I get the added benefit of fresh air. I don’t listen to music. I typically just stroll and give my mind a breathier. I may do my mental chanting sending out positive energy to people I love. Or I call my mom for a catch-up chat. Yet, it’s the active solitude that adds to my overall well being.
I’m also focused on my sleeping. Annually, fall makes me seasonally fatigued. It’s getting darker and my body craves extra sleep. So, I give it what it wants. I try to get to bed earlier so I can get in 7-8 hours. The early bedtime is required because I still want to get up early to write and workout. I’m not consistently getting optimal sleep but when I do, ooh-la-la! I woke up this morning feeling revived. It’s not like a spring or summer wake up. In those seasons after a good night sleep, I spring out of bed ready to hit it. In the fall and the winter, I wake up feeling cozy and fortified.
A dude gym on my walk route had a sign on the sidewalk that said something like: bodies are broken here, fed in the kitchen and built in the bedroom. At first, I thought it was some kind of sexual innuendo. Now, I’m certain it means our bodies need the restorative power of sleeping. When we are truly at rest, our bodies and minds can effectively reset for the next day’s journey.