More exercise

Where I teach yoga at a friend's. The smell of lavender is just so calming. I love it.

 I'm a great believer in exercise. 

Even though I have been really tardy with it lately. (sigh)

To be honest, through circumstance mainly. It's taken me a l-o-n-g time to be able to do much in this area of life.

I love yoga

I've been a life long devotee of yoga. Not of yoga organisations, no, no, not any more, but of the practices of yoga. Mostly the advanced spiritual ones, I must admit, but the physical side, too.

And I do think that the yoga exercises/asanas are great. They totally are. However, I am really aware that this is not the only way to go with exercise. And interestingly, quite a few yoga teachers, as they've gotten older, have digressed to other forms of exercise for themselves, such as adding pilates and/or weights.

I recall how, in the 1980s, some yoga teachers became aerobic instructors. It was The New Thing in exercise. And yoga at the time was not done in triple slow motion. And definitely not fast (doing Sun Salutes fast is fine though). So, I can understand how and why these yoga teachers morphed into aerobics.

Light weights are a good companion to yoga

I've resumed using light weights for my upper body. I was using them prior to the years before my operation, as well as some yoga exercise. This is a really good combination. I've just recently resumed doing it, as my muscle tone seems to be No More. (I'm not kidding😢) This is what too much bed rest does when you're ill, and then unwell whilst recovering. Two years of it. Eeks. But hey, I'm alive and kicking, so "all good". I have great faith in the body's ability to regenerate and repair. 

Our bodies remember movement. and respond very positively to familiar exercise. It's like "hey, I know this!" I would be looking at three months to develop (or is that re-develop?) some muscle tone. 

Abs

I'm now also doing a variation of the v-shaped yoga boat pose, for my abdomen muscles. I learnt it off a friend who has the best toned tummy. Ever. I like to do what has been proven to work, and am quite shameless in asking others what they do. To be honest, it's also how I came to learn so many old fashioned yoga poses, over the decades.

Best leg and bottom exercises

I prefer squats rather than warrior poses, for my legs. My second yoga teacher always started our classes with variations of squats. She seriously had the most beautiful legs that I ever saw. 

Adding light weights

When I was daily doing tons of hard poses and endless Sun Salutes, my whole body had nice tone. But, in society life, who has time to do that much every day? So, light weights it is for the upper body. Sometimes I do some ancient yoga moves with little dumbbells, and they are amazing. Other times, more conventional moves. Hopefully I'll progress to slightly heavier weights. 

Exercise information is easy to find, now

Sometimes I do think that we have to think "outside of the box". I know that I really don't enjoy the gym thing, whether it be classes or machines. And I prefer to exercise at home, alone. (The Introvert Thing)

What I did do, was to research (thank you, google) older women to see how they have maintained or developed, a nice toned body. And it was those who did moderate body toning exercises with light weights who seemed to have done the best for what I wanted. I don't want to lift heavy weights, as I don't really want that sort of overly defined muscle for myself. 

Being a bit innovative

I've sort of combined a breathing exercise with some of  the exercises that I'm doing, in particular with some flexibilities, for I'm a great believer in them. Especially for those of us who are not naturally supple. And with my new-to-me v-sits. I'm mixing these with light weights for general vigorous arm waving. I like to start with neck rotations, and work downwards. Throw in two or three squat type stuff, and these are really old ones that I know, and I do vary them, finishing with the above mentioned v-sits. By this time, I'm really only up to floor yoga stretches, and a quick collapse. And I've done some pranayama along the way.

Cue one very smug older yoga teacher. 

On a ridiculously early start to the day when I have to be out the door asap... I still am doing those v-sits. The rest only if I can fit them in later. 

Having a more flexible attitude

I'm really working hard at letting go of that full-on rigid mentality that I tried so hard to live up to, regarding yoga practices. That way of being, feeling, doing has been completely unsustainable for me, and so many others, with families, work, and such. The rigidity was about doing "have to" yoga stuff. 

One friend who had it sussed all along regarding yoga exercise, a long time yoga teacher, has always done quick sun salutes followed by some yoga abdominal exercises done on one's back. Seriously, he has a six pack from this.

Temperamental tummy

Unfortunately, my digestive system now gets really upset with some of the yoga that I used to do, and this is another reason for me to rethink what I do. No more squishing my tummy. As you do in a lot of yoga moves.

What do YOU do for exercise etc? 

Link to Global Unity Festivals on you tube, here. I'm in the Wave 1, Asia/Pacific episodes.

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Link to a post explaining Global Unity Festivals, here  

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You might also be interested in these links:

here about youthfulness and exercise

here more about exercise