Ah, the holidaze. Torqued schedules, buffets of indulgence, and hunting for the ideal sparkly accessories. As a Leo lady, I relish the full social calendar but need my reset workout more than ever.
Beyond the din of festivities, the superego insists on punishing cardiovascular atonement. Yet as I settle into practice, a calm emerges. I submerge into down dog and crawl through standing poses. Squat. Vinyasa. Lunge. Handstand for an upside down. Backbend for an inside out. Lay down. Breathe.
No heavy weights or buckets of sweat. My baseline is pleasurable, intuitive mobility. I only use my bodyweight and am preferably outside. In half an hour, I polish my insides, uncover tidbits of awareness, and prepare myself for teaching. I could show off for the pedestrian eye but my inner observer sees plenty of needed improvement.
Our physical feats all have an expiration date. Age will reclaim all the trophy poses, personal records, and heroic athletics. The “all or nothing” mentality doesn’t age well. What endures?
Knowledge of self, earned through consistency, remains. I practice without supervision, machines, a dedicated space, or an audience. I take vacations off and get back on track. I own my inertia.
Why does this feel like bragging? Why is this unusual? We often yank ourselves between a sedentary stupor and punishing exercise. Understanding movement medicine is a perplexing health crisis of our time. Everyday I challenge myself to know and take the appropriate dosage. Push or permit? Rest or exert?
Several times a week I do a version of this workout: It’s my reset button. Other days I work harder by running stair intervals, training with kettlebells, attending a class or exercising alongside my highly skilled clients. Even as I preach the principals of sustainable movement pangs of insecurity suggest I push harder. As a movement educator, protecting myself from hypocrisy keeps me motivated and honest with my abilities.
Modern living requires a regular reboot. Beyond temporary physical accomplishments, I know what’s healthy for me, I do it, and it feels good. What rebalances us is not the most intense but the most consistent and pleasurable
oh Sadie Enjoyed lunch with Daddy Chris on the front porch of their “town house” today and our last words were about you. I tried to describe to him how you stand out to me as a philosopher and pragmatist in a field consumed by fads, fans and often fewer and fewer participants than pundits. I said perhaps all of the West coast field reflects this brilliance and grass roots homespun personal identity with mountain, gravity AND levity but somehow I doubt it.
BTW truly enjoyed the above post and will read it to all my classes this week! namaste’ your mountain mama “fan”
I’m so glad they asked you to write a blog in addition to donning their clothes because it is so much part of why you are so effective. Any magic for unsticking the reset button ? Lish