Shedding It

 Ow! I tried my first HIIT workout on Monday thanks to my local community association (free zoom classes in different styles all week).  Yesterday was yoga, which was fine but somehow I didn’t have the energy for a bike ride in my basement as planned. This morning I woke up feeling sore abs and arms from HIIT, and discovered that there are actually two classes this morning. I just finished the core strength and balance class, where I really felt the imbalance between my right and left sides. Next up was balance and stability for older adults, with a focus on arms. This was surprisingly challenging. I really liked the modifications to do weights and crunches while in a chair. I may incorporate some of them into my daily routines. I am full of admiration for the HIIT instructor, as she did the workout using her son’s 15 lb weights instead of her usual 10 lbs. I was using 2 lb and that was plenty. It’s funny how you think you are fit, but still discover new things to work on when...

My goal this year has been to do 220 workouts in 2020, not counting my regular walks or bike rides to work. The pandemic really messed up my commutes, but it got me looking for ways to keep fit, especially when my barn was closed, and eventually reopened for one rider per horse (my daughter got that privilege), plus the pool closures that ended swim club. For a while it was daily walks with my daughter. Then semi-regular walks with my friend Renee. I swam outdoors every week once the ice was gone, but didn’t do the big distances of most summers because the crowds at our usual lake were insane. Instead, I contented myself with figuring out smaller loops in the river. There was yoga, too, though that was mostly saved for when I was really tired or sore, at least until someone at my office started offering lunchtime sessions twice a week. Thankfully, ballet was a constant. My teacher pivoted immediately to on-line classes, so I have danced more than ever this year, albeit in my living roo...

I spotted these at my local grocery store yesterday and almost gagged.    Apparently there is a mindful nut too (a woman meditating or doing yoga). I love pistachios, but won’t be buying any this year.

 I love fitness challenges, as long as they are things I can do at my own pace. I am not very motivated to do things on my own, which is why I prefer doing classes or exercising with friends. Right now I am doing two ballet classes a week, plus a riding lesson. If I can, I will ride a second time on my own. I am also doing a powwow workout once a week (offered by the Indigenous Theatre at the National Arts Centre). And I swim with friends outdoors whenever I can, of course. This year I have been doing 220 workouts in 2020. For that challenge, I count any purposeful extra movement that takes at least 30 minutes; that meant that when I was still going to the office, my walk didn’t count unless I did more than 3 km (ie walking one way didn’t count - it had to be the full 6 km). So far I am at 287. For the month of December I am stepping it up a bit by committing to at least a half hour of cardio or strength training every day; yoga counts for the 220 challenge, but not here. My bigges...

Some time back in early November, I saw a post about going outside every day this month. It doesn’t have to be for long, but something more than taking out the trash. It doesn’t even have to be exercise related: driving around to do errands can count. In the COVID times, that sometimes seems like a big deal.  I have been trying to get out every day, but I confess that sometimes I haven’t stepped outside even for a few minutes. It can be easier to cook at home, exercise  and even socialize via Zoom. Tonight, Thought, I did get out and it was worth it. While me daughter had a riding lesson, I met up with a friend and picked up home repair supplies. On the way to the barn, this was the view. It’s not as clear as I would like since it was taken through a car window while my daughter drove. But the moon seemed huge and you could see Jupiter and Saturn just above the moon.

 Apparently when I slow down, my body has things to say. Last night and today, it was that I need to drink more water. 

The new pouch for sewing supplies  As it gets darker and colder, I find it harder to be enthusiastic about getting out and doing things. Cold water swimming has suffered, especially; I liked my small intimate group, and swimming in the morning so that the rest of my day would be free. Now there’s a bunch of strangers and the swim times are right in the middle of the day, so I just can’t get enthusiastic. I have been doing better on the arts and crafts front. I haven’t thrown out as much stuff as I would like, but I am making a steady dent in the unfinished projects pile. This week alone I made two kinds of salami, continued to cure my ham, made an experimental bread, sewed myself a coin purse and a pouch for holding sewing supplies, finished a doll, made medieval macaroni and cheese, accompanied by homemade bologna sausage, dyed some fibres, and worked on new masks and repairing a favourite blouse for my daughter. You can read about many if the projects over at https://siglindesart...