Day 4

Well, I'm sad to say that my leg is not feeling as good as I had hoped for.  As much as I want to ignore it and continue on with my plan, I know that rest is probably the best thing I can do.

Fortunately, today's work out was one hour of cross training. So, I went to yoga with one of my favorite instructors and got my zen on.

Yoga and I have a pretty long history. I first started practicing in 2008, but got really serious about my practice in 2013 when we moved back to Boulder. For awhile, I went to yoga every single day. Unfortunately, I over did it (shocker, I know) and ended up with some super fun low back and sciatica problems.

The good news is that I learned a lot through that experience. I realized that I am hyper-flexible in some of my joints, and very inflexible in others. I learned that I tend to compensate for my weak muscles by relying too heavily on my strong muscles. I learned how to set limits for myself and seek balance- in yoga and in life. I am happy to report that yoga and I are back on good terms and see each other a healthy 3-4 times a week.

My love of yoga is so much more than the physical. In fact, I often don't even break a sweat in yoga. What I love most about it is the mental challenge it brings. I am sometimes amazed at how hard it is for me to just take a big, deep breath out. I know that is reflective of my life. I run around trying to tackle too much, too fast. I take on more and more and more without ever letting go, and before I know it, my plate is not only full, it's broken under the weight of everything I've stacked on it.

When I practice yoga, I force myself to breathe deeply, to stay focused on only the task at hand, and practice stillness. It's probably the most challenging thing I do all day, but I have seen how my habits, thinking and patterns have shifted as a result of my practice. And, when I stray from my practice, I feel the anxiety and stress build up.  Yoga is truly my sanctuary.

Tomorrow's work out is 45 minutes run-walk. I think it's going to be unlikely I can do, so I am already preparing to self-talk myself into staying positive.

Now, I'm off to ice.

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