Twisting the Body, Untwisting the Mind

There's something about twisting yourself into a pretzel that is just so relaxing to me. I know that's weird, but for me, it's like wringing out all of the things you just can't control, getting all of that toxic energy out, and just letting it go.

I didn't always feel that way. I thought yoga was some new-age fad that would go away eventually, and scoffed when friends would mention it to me to help my migraines. My thought was "How could standing on your head help the pain?" It held no value to me.

Obviously, I changed my mind. I began doing yoga via Fit TV about four years ago, and my headaches started to be less frequent and intense. I felt better mentally, and lost some weight(combined with a pretty strict vegetarian diet). Once I started graduate school, though, all exercise went by the wayside while I worked on papers, engaged in a long distance relationship, and worked full time. Once I finished school and began moving to Greenwood, the first thing I wanted to do was find a gym that offered yoga. Fortunately, that gym was less than a mile from the house, and minus my 10 day hiatus for my knee, I have gone at least twice, if not three times a week, for hour long classes.

I feel refreshed, grounded, and energized after that time. I have a hard time shutting the rest of the world out, because my mind is usually going in 30 different directions during the day. But for that hour, my cell phone is either at home or in my car, and all I need to concentrate on is my breathing and my focus to stay balanced. It's total "me" time. I may have a little bit of a Type A personality, and feel the need to be in control of everything around me.

Personally, yoga helps me keep that in check, and helps me put things in perspective. I have found it to be a great coping mechanism, one of which I will be using to help me during the wedding planning, and it also helps me medicinally. I believe that it helps me stay balanced mentally, which in turn helps me stay physically well. As odd as this sounds from a mental health professional, I think medications are overused. I stress this to my clients. I know that some people need to be on medication for severe issues, I used to be one of those people, which is why I may try any homeopathic route before taking medication. I think if people actually listened to their body, they would feel better. Kind of a "your body is a temple, treat it well" adage.

What about you? What are your coping mechanisms? Healthy or unhealthy? Let me know!

Solemates

I love shoes. Not gonna lie.

When I was heavier, shoes were the one thing that constantly fit me. When my pants were too small, I got new shoes. It was my way of denying that I had an issue with my eating. My feet were a size 9 no matter how big my waistline got. That way I wouldn't loathe shopping trips with others, I knew I could always get a cute pair and still have bought something.

I did that 123 times.

I know, it's excessive. The sad thing? I wear the majority of them on a regular basis. The ones I don't wear are formal wear shoes, so I don't really count those. But still, that's a bit crazy. You name it I have it. I think Macy's shoe department is jealous, since I pretty much transplanted all their stuff into my closet. In my office, some of my clients refer to me as "the counselor with the cool shoes." I've lost my identity!

So imagine my sadness when I was told yesterday that my cute pumps and wedges that I have been wearing are to stay in their boxes for 10 days. 10. Long. Days! My knee that I had surgery on a few years ago is acting up again, and my doctor said I have tendonitis. For the next 10 days, I can't do yoga or pilates (which I do 2-3 times a week) run (which I do when it's not so hot), climb stairs or lift boxes (which is hampering the move, since all that is left is the bigger stuff)....and no heels.

It's like I've abandoned a good friend. Ok, that's a bit dramatic. I know it's for the best for me in the long term. The last thing I want is to mess my knee up and have another surgery....the last one was a big enough ordeal. In all seriousness, I had gotten into a great routine with my workouts, and miss the fact that I can't do them for the time being. I fear in 10 days I will gain a lot of weight, which I know is psychological, and I can get past those thoughts pretty quickly. I just feel so much better and relaxed after going to those classes, and I've been making a few acquaintances, which has been nice. And I measure how well I am doing in my workouts by...you guessed it...wearing heels. If my feet hurt after being on my feet only a few hours, I know I need to step it up in the gym. It's also how I knew my knee was out of whack again. They are like my WebMD (some may say my drug of choice, whatever). But it was my way of knowing that I was being successful at keeping the weight off. It's weird. Some people count calories, I wear heels. Like I said in an earlier post, shopping is my new comfort food, and even though I can wear a smaller size, the shoes are the first things I look at. It's an old, comfortable habit.

What are some of your comfortable habits? How have you handled not being able to do that habit for a period of time? Let me know!