Getting into the Yoga habit.

Monday, April 09, 2012 Jonette 4 Comments

There are just some things that you just gotta do for yourself.

Like exercise.

I've recently taken up yoga at home. I can go at my own pace, do my routines at my own time, and sometimes even prep my menu for the next day while doing so. I've always been a fan of strength- and flexibility-enhancing exercises. I also happened to have The Biggest Loser: Weight Loss Yoga sitting in my hard drive. I remember as a wee girl seeing my dad do yoga, big-boned man that he was, and I thought, "hey, if he can do it, I think I could do that too."

Hoooo, boy.

I was sweating and heaving and groaning and shaking and holding on for dear life through the poses. And that was just the warm-up, by the way.


So, if my memory serves me right, the break-down of the video goes:

• 5 minutes of warm-up
• 30 minutes of weight-loss yoga (a combination of stretching, muscle-conditioning, and hard-core calisthenics)
• 20 minutes of abdominal/ core exercises
• 5 minutes of strength-training
• 5 minutes of cool-down. 

I make it a point to exercise at least 3 times a week, and at least 30 minutes for each exercise day. I still do have slip-ups, true. I also try not to beat myself up too much over them, and just do better next time.



Things Yoga gives me that I am thankful for: 

• That unbelievable sense of balance on my feet as I move. 
• The ease of movement flowing through positions in daily life: lying down squatting to standing to get off the bed, tight-squatting to standing as I get out of a crammed tricycle, sitting on the floor to standing, and so on. There is a precise, calculated sort of instinctive movement that was never there before. 
• A keener understanding between true hunger, emotional eating, and boredom eating. 
• The placidity of choosing healthful foods, and acceptance in pleasure and awareness when I enjoy sweets. 
• The hint of a collarbone. 
• Shoulders getting defined. 
• Clearer skin. 
• Better, better posture, just like my days in Theater. 
• The cheeky bit of thinking that I feel more like an acrobat or dancer the more often I do this. 
• The confidence that I am truly taking care of myself and getting better and getting there slowly, whether or not people see or acknowledge it. 

It’s nice to think back too and remember that a few friends and acquaintances have begun to notice, and sometimes ask me what I’ve been doing. Then comes the delighted look of surprise with my reply, and they next ask, “where?”. I tell them I do it at home, in front of my computer. More surprise, with a touch of puzzlement.

A bit of me is hoping that it tells them you don’t have to be well-off or have loads of free time to do yoga, or exercise. It just takes some guidance, some planning, a lot of motivation, and a ton more of actual get-out-there-and-do-it perspiration. Self-acceptance and self-love works heaps, too, an essential to any fitness or weight-loss routine.

Well, then, I just need to keep going.