Finding Middle Ground...

The next time I'm scheduled to go to a conference, I'm NOT taking a week of vacation before hand. Not only is my body all cranky and out of whack from A LOT of driving, but I'm feeling fat and bloated from a week of my Mom's cooking and little to no activity. Putting on tight fitting yoga wear yesterday was about the last thing I felt like doing, but classes were on the day's schedule. So I grabbed my loosest yoga pants and a dark "slimming" top and headed to the studio.

Last night a student asked me if I practiced when I'm on vacation. Truthfully...No.

Unless my vacation is centered around an activity (biking, hiking, etc) or is to a location that has a studio that peaks my interest to take a class (like our trips to KC to visit my in-laws), I have a hard time making practice/activity a priority. Which I realize is not all bad considering the amount of abuse my body gets on a week to week basis with my current teaching schedule. Sometimes I do just need a break to allow for recovery and repair. But I also know there's such a thing as a happy medium between too much and too little activity, and I wish I was better at finding that middle ground.

Trips home to visit my Mom seem to be the hardest for me when it comes to finding/making time for practice. Across the board (not counting my kids or my brother into the equation) my family (immediate or extended, by blood or marriage) isn't one that gravitates towards activity. And to be honest, without a specific reason, I myself am not good at making regular exercise a priority. In high school I was active because I played sports. But since there have only been two main reasons that I've maintained a regular exercise routine:

• Times I've committed to loosing significant amounts of weight. (Weight gained during periods of inactivity mind you.)
  
• Times when my job has required me to be active. (A very convenient aspect of working in the wellness field.)

I enjoy being active and feeling healthy, but given the chance can easy gravitate towards more sedentary activities and hobbies such as knitting, sewing, and reading. I'm not one of those people who have to be constantly going and moving to be content. (No surprise that every time I've done quiz to figure out my Ayurvedic dosha I'm heavily weighted as a Kapha!) It's an interesting personality quality considering my chosen profession. You often hear that people tend to go into a line of work because it provides something they themselves need in their lives. Often we're not even aware of that need on a conscious level. I guess in my case my passion for wellness and helping others find better healthy through activity is indeed a direct reflection of my own body's need to be more active.

I've often thought about how much I wish the rest of my family would change to make activity more of a priority in their lives. Partially because I want them to be healthy and around for me to enjoy as long as possible. Partially because it would make being active together easier without as much initiative and push from me. Initiative I'm not always very good at taking when I'm away from the studio. I know I can't make anyone change their habits. I can only set an example by my own choices and provide support and encouragement when they themselves are ready to explore healthy habits themselves. That's a hard fact for me to make peace with sometimes.

I guess taking a look at things and a return to a more sedentary life once in a while is a good reminder of why the other 50 weeks of the year I do what I do. And maybe with conscious awareness I can do a better job of finding that middle ground in the years to come.


namaste