While I wouldn't call myself an exercise junkie by any means, I do find that regular activity helps
me remain on an even-keel, both physically and emotionally. (Stop laughing! And
imagine how unstable I’d be if I didn't
work out!). But I'm also someone who craves
change and loathes repetition--okay,
I mean "easily bored". So I run. And walk. And take dance class. And
bike. And lift weights. Confession: I do all of this because of one basic
truth--I love to eat. Oh, and of
course I don't want to get weak and soft and flabby as the years pass. One
thing that has become apparent to me as I age (not so much gracefully as…defiantly…)
is a steady decline in flexibility. Granted,
I was never one to blithely twist myself into a pretzel shape or casually sink
into a full split, or anything like that...but I’ve noticed for a while now that my hips,
especially, have progressively tightened up. Honestly, this hasn't caused me
much pain, or impacted my range of motion or functional day-to-day tasks…that
is, until I joined my new Jazz class. Suddenly I wanted to do high kicks and
plies and nose-to-knee stretches, and it just Was. Not. Happening.
When I mentioned
this to my massage therapist (you know, hoping she'd say, "oh, wait a
minute, I can fix that right up for
you") she paused for only a millisecond before advising, "Well, get
back to a yoga class!" D-U-H!
(She didn't actually add that last part, or even imply it, as she's far too kind and caring. But I felt like an
imbecile nonetheless for not thinking of it myself.) I used to take yoga when I
belonged to the local gym; then for a while I practiced myself in my basement on
occasion. But as time slipped by, I'd gotten away from it somehow--and she was unequivocally
right: boy, did I need it! So I found
a nearby class that miraculously fit into my day off, changed into some
downward-dog-friendly pants, grabbed my trusty mat, and set off to give it a try.
Keep in mind, the
only formal class I'd ever attended with any consistency was called Power Yoga,
and took place at a fitness establishment, not a Studio. So I was used to a
swiftly-moving, muscle-focused lesson, where the goal fell more on the
"raise your heart rate/tone your bod" side of the spectrum, rather
than the "follow your body's cues/flow with your breath" end. My
preconceived notions (which I didn't even realize I HAD, until I arrived) were
shattered the moment I lowered myself to the floor...and the instructor
began...affirmating? She started by reminding us of our purpose for the day,
which was apparently to cultivate openness
and gratitude. Hey, I'm totally down with that! Bring it on! But
as she read relevant passages from a book to reinforce the message, and talked
about "accessing the backs of our bodies" I kind of lost the thread.
Um...I don't really understand how to achieve
that. I mean, it all sounded nice...but it just wasn't sinking in for me, you
know? And as we sat...and sat...oh, and "centered"...I found myself thinking "Alrighty, I'm good.
Can we move now? Wait, there's more? Tick tock!" NOT the preferred yoga
consciousness you're aiming for, to be sure. (As for ‘centering’, I’m pretty
certain I still don’t know what that
means…unless I was supposed to be in the middle of my mat…which I was! I
checked! I had a few free seconds while everyone else was apparently busy tuning
into their ‘backside’, or whatever…)
But please don’t think I’m making fun of the teacher, or what she
was trying to accomplish…it was clearly a case of “it’s not you, it’s me”…as in “I recognize the truth of what you’re saying, I’m just
having trouble getting in touch with my inner…self-awareness”…or something. And
then, just when I was about to get uncontrollably fidgety, she suggested we lead
off with a few “oms”. Uh oh. Everyone around me filled their lungs and intoned
the syllable, as if they were creating the sound from the very depths of their
diaphragms. The room practically vibrated with their sincerity. And all I could
think, as I sat there silently, was “ohhhhhmmm, mmmmy goodness, I am sooooooo not
a chanter!” Fortunately, after those
few awkward (probably only for me) moments, we got around to the business of taking
poses.
While the subsequent physical portion of our practice wasn’t quite
as…strenuously paced…as I’m used to, it definitely challenged both my strength
and balance, which felt wonderful. (And incidentally, my hip joints did indeed cooperate much better after my hour-plus of bending and contorting.) I absolutely believe that it would be
beneficial for me to continue attending class…I might just need to test out a
few different varieties until I find one that…resonates…with me. Hmm, could it
be I’m just not as crunchy granola as I thought? Well, I can try to improve
that, right? Until then, I’ll work on bringing more patience to the mat, clearing out my brain clutter, and yes, “going
with the flow.”
Namaste!
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