Happy New Year!
No, I’m not trying to skip over the last three months of
2020. Although, if anyone has a time machine? Maybe jump us to a few days
before Christmas?
For those in federal government, the ‘new year’
starts on 1 October. September is a month full of deadlines for spending, closing out files and
getting things finished as well as deadlines for putting in place budgets, setting up files and
plans for the upcoming year. (Not all that different from what everyone else
more or less does in December/January.)
At first I didn’t quite understand the compulsions to go
through my files, to finally start tackling boxes in the garage. Then I
realized that it was the habits from being a government employee. I wasn’t
working but the ‘need’ was still there.
A few days going through files cut the paper in them by
half! In that process, I sorted through all the articles and bits and pieces I
had on yoga, meditation and everything about them. The past several years I
have torn out home yoga sequences for different emotions and needs – grief to
creativity, anger to calm, routines for specific areas of the body and times of
hormones. Reviewing those, I realized I had my October plan laid out.
Actually, looking back, I think I’ve been building up to
this all year. Honest – it wasn’t that planned out! I am not that organized or forward-planning.
Yet. Mm, I think that will be my sole resolution in three months.
My October Plan -
I’ve been walking for months. Starting with Leslie Sansone
either on YouTube or DVDs – a mile at first, slowly building up to where I
would celebrate the weekend with a five-mile walk on Saturday. During the heat
of summer, I either went outside early or did a 3 or 4-mile DVD inside. As things
have finally started cooling, I put the headphones on and head outside soon
after 8ish and go for 45 minutes.
After walking, I do yoga stretches or an upper body workout. Again, nothing really planned out. I drank more water, much less alcohol (if any) and
it all showed in my body. I mean, hello! – I’ve definition in my thighs, those
lovely lines along my shoulders, less jiggly arms, and I have a waist! Definitely didn’t have any
of that back in January! Plus, clothes I was wearing months ago are literally
sliding off my hips. Okay, I still have a bit of a tummy – the mama pouch from
three pregnancies. That’s okay though. I also still have the sons!
Now, I’m ready to ‘add on’ with the yoga sequences I’ve been
pulling from issues of Yoga Journal for years. Today I’ll be reviewing them, as
well as the ‘anatomy’ sections to make sure I don’t injure myself. I’m not
going to set up a definite ‘today I do creativity, this day I’ll do hips and
low back’. I’m going to listen to my body. How is the back feeling? Hips okay?
How are the hormones behaving? Is the body raring to go or need to take it a bit
easy? Does the mind need an energetic release or something calm? If the mind
and body pull towards more than one sequence, then I’ll do more than one. Or maybe even pull out a DVD or a sequence on line and let someone else do the thinking.
You might be thinking – Abby, not everyone can go tripping
out their front door for a 45-minute walk or spend an hour on a yoga mat. Yup,
you’re right. Make it several smaller walks. Ten or fifteen minutes as a break
in the morning and afternoon. In the evening, while watching a show, walk in
place and do stretches during the commercials. Fit it in. That’s how I got
going. And most of the yoga sequences are short. Perhaps one in the morning
after a ten-minute walk to wake-up? Another sequence when you get home to
relax?
Exercise, moving, doesn’t have to be done all at
once. It’s nice, yes, to be able to check it all off our to-do list, but
sometimes we can’t do that. So, do it bit-by-bit. Ten minutes of walking every
couple hours during an eight-hour workday is four thousand steps for the
average person! (I’m short so it’s a bit fewer for me.) See what I mean? You
can fit it in and it adds up. Add the yoga while coffee is brewing and before
going to bed and – ta-da! 😊
I’ll be posting to Instagram and Facebook, adding photos,
lists of the poses and links. YogaJournal is a treasure trove of sequences and there are many knowledgeable yogis on the web and social media. I love following Rodney Yee and Colleen Saidman Yee for their knowledge and approach. Women’s Health
also has a wonderful book about yoga with sequences for just about everything,
with photos on how to do the poses. Plus health and fitness magazines like
Shape, Self, Health and more are increasingly adding yoga to their content and
have great ideas with many focused on athletes at a competitive level rather
than those of us with physical issues. Check with your doctor if you haven’t
recently and see if there are any poses you should avoid or modify. I can’t do
headstands because of my neck and many inverted poses are problematic as well.
The year has been tough on all of us in ways we can’t fully
describe. I’m going to spend October taking care of my mind and body so it can
start to recover and heal, strengthen and prepare for the future.
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