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realexplodingcatI have a love/hate relationship with exercise. This is an improvement over my hate/hate relationship that I had for most of my life until a few years ago. With enough distance from the demoralizing physical fitness education in our schools, the discovery of exercise routines that appeal to me, and learning a lot of theories & facts behind how exercise and the body actually works, my stubborn and skeptical mind has finally conceded to the advice of doctors everywhere: exersize is essential for good health.
While I would encourage people to exercise, I completely understand just how the process of trying to do it can give you many reasons to give up on it. I believe I belong to a class of people for whom exercise is not easy. If not for my decision and dedication to do it, I'd be sitting on the couch whenever I'm not sitting in front of the computer, because I collect far fewer injuries living a sedentary lifestyle.
1. Hiking and Tai Chi. I do not do these at the same time (although maybe I should try it), but both eventually caused me some chronic pain in my left knee. Apparently, I have some spiky bone formations in my knee that can inflame the tissue there. Through careful stepping and some intuition, I have figured out how to do both activities without aggravating that problem.
2. Weights and Cardio. I wanted something a more aggressive than Tai Chi. I signed up for a gym membership, got a personal trainer, and engaged in the traditional daily routine of weight lifting and cardio exercise. In less than three months, I exercised myself into a state of adrenal fatigue and chronic hypoglycemia. Over a year later, I think I may have finally recovered from that. But I still retain my tendency toward hypoglycemia (which I now know I've had for many years prior to this exercise), so I have made radical changes in my diet and maintain them fairly strictly. Through some freaky magic of healthy eating, I now consume more food on a daily basis than I ever did before while continuing to maintain the lowest, consistent weight I've had since high school. Also, I've learned how to read the signals of excessive physical exertion, so hopefully I can prevent the kind of physical collapse I suffered after those months in the gym by taking things much slower than conventional wisdom would suggest.
3. Yoga, part 1. Yoga, for me, strikes a nice balance between the ease of Tai Chi and the excess of traditional gym workouts. But the honeymoon was over after my first vinyasa style class when I woke up the next morning and discovered I could not sit down without great discomfort in my lower back. I decided, I am officially an adult because I have received my first back injury. The problem is probably muscular in nature. I'm just a bit weak in that area. So, after adjusting some postures and paying close attention to that area, I have been attending that vinyasa class without further back problems.
4. Yoga, part 2. Two weeks ago, following a particularly vigorous vinyasa class, I woke up with dull pain in my wrists and occasionally up and down my arms. Primarily in the wrists. I still have it. It comes and goes, some days are worse than others. This is very annoying. When will I stop discovering new ways to injure myself!?!
There are two ways to look at this. Some of you are probably thinking, "You idiot! Why do you keep trying? It sounds like you're causing yourself more trouble than if you didn't try to exercise so much." At one time, I would agree. Like I said, I belong to the class of people who don't exercise. I'm finding the longer you're in that class, the harder it is to start. I'm proving that with all these damn injuries. Sometimes I do just want to give up on it, because it's not coming as easily to me as exercises of the mind do.
But there's another way to look at it and I sure hope this is the right way. I look back over my short, yet painful, history of exercise and I notice that I learn something new about myself and the body I inhabit every time I try (and occasionally fail) something new. My theory is that all of these injuries I'm collecting would have reared their ugly heads eventually. However, they would probably show up later in life after a slow and consistent deterioration that would be much harder to heal and reverse. I'm hoping that the exercise is just accelerating and amplifying the warning signals that I need to recognize these problems before they become irreversible. If I can shake out all the bugs in my system now, learn how to fix them, and learn how to prevent more...maybe I won't be one of those octogenarians who can only shuffle along with a walker, moving forward three inches each step. Or I just might manage to kill myself before I'm fifty.
While I would encourage people to exercise, I completely understand just how the process of trying to do it can give you many reasons to give up on it. I believe I belong to a class of people for whom exercise is not easy. If not for my decision and dedication to do it, I'd be sitting on the couch whenever I'm not sitting in front of the computer, because I collect far fewer injuries living a sedentary lifestyle.
1. Hiking and Tai Chi. I do not do these at the same time (although maybe I should try it), but both eventually caused me some chronic pain in my left knee. Apparently, I have some spiky bone formations in my knee that can inflame the tissue there. Through careful stepping and some intuition, I have figured out how to do both activities without aggravating that problem.
2. Weights and Cardio. I wanted something a more aggressive than Tai Chi. I signed up for a gym membership, got a personal trainer, and engaged in the traditional daily routine of weight lifting and cardio exercise. In less than three months, I exercised myself into a state of adrenal fatigue and chronic hypoglycemia. Over a year later, I think I may have finally recovered from that. But I still retain my tendency toward hypoglycemia (which I now know I've had for many years prior to this exercise), so I have made radical changes in my diet and maintain them fairly strictly. Through some freaky magic of healthy eating, I now consume more food on a daily basis than I ever did before while continuing to maintain the lowest, consistent weight I've had since high school. Also, I've learned how to read the signals of excessive physical exertion, so hopefully I can prevent the kind of physical collapse I suffered after those months in the gym by taking things much slower than conventional wisdom would suggest.
3. Yoga, part 1. Yoga, for me, strikes a nice balance between the ease of Tai Chi and the excess of traditional gym workouts. But the honeymoon was over after my first vinyasa style class when I woke up the next morning and discovered I could not sit down without great discomfort in my lower back. I decided, I am officially an adult because I have received my first back injury. The problem is probably muscular in nature. I'm just a bit weak in that area. So, after adjusting some postures and paying close attention to that area, I have been attending that vinyasa class without further back problems.
4. Yoga, part 2. Two weeks ago, following a particularly vigorous vinyasa class, I woke up with dull pain in my wrists and occasionally up and down my arms. Primarily in the wrists. I still have it. It comes and goes, some days are worse than others. This is very annoying. When will I stop discovering new ways to injure myself!?!
There are two ways to look at this. Some of you are probably thinking, "You idiot! Why do you keep trying? It sounds like you're causing yourself more trouble than if you didn't try to exercise so much." At one time, I would agree. Like I said, I belong to the class of people who don't exercise. I'm finding the longer you're in that class, the harder it is to start. I'm proving that with all these damn injuries. Sometimes I do just want to give up on it, because it's not coming as easily to me as exercises of the mind do.
But there's another way to look at it and I sure hope this is the right way. I look back over my short, yet painful, history of exercise and I notice that I learn something new about myself and the body I inhabit every time I try (and occasionally fail) something new. My theory is that all of these injuries I'm collecting would have reared their ugly heads eventually. However, they would probably show up later in life after a slow and consistent deterioration that would be much harder to heal and reverse. I'm hoping that the exercise is just accelerating and amplifying the warning signals that I need to recognize these problems before they become irreversible. If I can shake out all the bugs in my system now, learn how to fix them, and learn how to prevent more...maybe I won't be one of those octogenarians who can only shuffle along with a walker, moving forward three inches each step. Or I just might manage to kill myself before I'm fifty.
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no subject
Date: 2004-12-22 08:24 pm (UTC)That's probably exactly right, re. the injuries.
no subject
Date: 2004-12-22 08:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-12-22 09:00 pm (UTC)Have you tried swimming?
no subject
Date: 2004-12-23 12:07 am (UTC)Swimming really wears me out. That's probably a good reason to do it more often...but I'm afraid I've been out of practice for so long with the various strokes that I just don't do it efficiently.
I really want yoga to be my thing. After failing as a weight lifter and a runner, I figured it best to use the talents I already have to open the door to fitness, rather than come at it with just my weaknesses. I'm naturally flexible and graceful, which has served me well learning yoga. Plus, since I'm naturally lazy and short on time, I like how yoga kills several birds with one stone--flexibility, strength, meditation, balance, and sometimes cardio (if I have a particularly vicious instructor leading a class) all in one session.
no subject
Date: 2004-12-22 09:11 pm (UTC)Doesn't always work--I've got some bits that need pampering, not strain. But some of my bits are Not Happy through underuse, not overuse.
You could walk over to see the felions. :)
no subject
Date: 2004-12-23 12:15 am (UTC)I don't complain about the painful spots that only last a day or two, which are probably the ones that need more work. But I'm going on a week and a half with a dull pain in my wrists. I probably need to back off on this one, find the root of the cause (if possible), and slowly build it back up.
I do need to see the felions. That should be a part of my therapy.
no subject
Date: 2004-12-22 10:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-12-22 11:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-12-23 12:55 am (UTC)http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=585&e=1&u=/nm/20041222/sc_nm/science_crickets_dc
no subject
Date: 2004-12-23 03:02 pm (UTC)