Weekly Rundown

It was a Gold Star Week! Not only did I have a plan, but I followed the plan.
And I worked out five days–for the first time in months.

                                                                          So, gold star for me

Monday: starting off the week slowly, I took Monday off 😛

Tuesday: my breakthrough on the treadmill!  Some of you may have heard me complain about how much I hate that thing, but I have finally figured out what works for me! (that will be the focus of my Thursday post) I did 23 minutes, a slow start but a start nonetheless. And I did it late in the day, as I worked and then went to see the Star Wars movie with my friend Kate…did I mention how freaking awesome Star Wars was?  Can’t even express how much I loved it.

 

Wednesday:  off once more.

Thursday: I was so impressed with myself, I didn’t hit snooze! I got up at 4am, and followed the plan. Which was to get on that treadmill again, only 18 minutes but still enough to wake me up and energize me for the day. Feels sooooo good to know I did it, instead of lazing around; my whole day goes better.

Friday:  29 minutes of free yoga. I worked on both strength and streeeeetchy poses. It was a great workout, felt both wrung out and relaxed when I was done.

Saturday:  more running on the treadmill–19 minutes this time. A bit later in the morning as I didn’t have to be to work until 7am.  But it was another ten-hour day, and the first three hours were unbelievably busy. I was glad I had started the day off right.

Sunday: a short but lovely 18 minutes of free yoga. I focused on the stretching,  knowing I had another long day ahead of me. Although, as a side note, I am finding my ten-hour days aren’t really any worse than an eight-hour day. And being busy makes them feel like they fly by. Guess it could just be that I like my job! I  worked on opening my hips and stretching the rear muscles, those are the first to tighten up when I run.

 My favorite  way to end just about any workout,                   the Lotus Pose.
Why? It stretches out my hips, and focuses my posture. It is also a good jumping off point for side bends, forward bends (that is what really opens the hips),  and twists.  And it is just plain relaxing–probably why it is a favorite for meditation.
So this is the pose I suggest this week. For beginners, if your hips are really tight, sit on a towel to get into the position easier. Straighten your back–remember to tuck your tummy to support the back– so you are sitting up nice and tall, and take some deep breaths, relaxing your shoulders-you don’t want them up around your ears.  Hopefully you will feel all your stress melting into the floor.