Jane's Journal

Cats and yoga are hilarious. It only goes to show how long I've been off my mat; the last time I did my sun greetings was probably when I still lived in Boxtel.
Last night I tried my hand at the first beginner's lesson from the free YouTube channel I started following. It was ridiculously hard -- which only goes to show it's a good thing to return to practicing! I got to thirty-five minutes and then had to stop.

Doortje and Kwibus were absolutely mesmerised. As soon as I was lying down on my mat, Doortje came to wash my face. "Hello boss. Whatcha doin'?"
And Kwibus made it a game to walk under my legs as I made tunnels for him. *sigh* It was nice of them to help me, though. Couldn't have done it without them. And it adds a dimension to your twists if there's suddenly a soft snootleboop at your elbow.

I did find the pacing awfully slow, but as I was yoga'ing right before bed it helped me relax and it might also pick up in later lessons. And I found it very hard to do. I'm not nearly as limber as I remember myself to be. And there was a sitting stretch of the shoulders -- placing elbows back as far as is comfortable and leaning into the shoulder to open them up -- that was hell on my elbows. Some of my muscles wanted to cramp up as soon as I started working or stretching them, so I need to take my magnesium, and get a better warm-up!

So: yoga! Building a little time into my day for some mindfullness (good!), limbering up (good!) and getting some exercise in (good!). Sounds like just the right thing for me.
(And ouch. I can feel my muscles now!)

Last night's yoga was amazing. The lesson had been reintroduced on the schedule after the summer holidays and now it was given by a muscled blond lady, who focused a lot on breathing. Which is good, because otherwise I'd totally forget to breathe.
The poses were intense and relaxing at the same time. So much stress, all gone...

Which is a really good way to kick off my vacation. For the next two weeks I will not be working! Woohoo! Way to get rid of those piled-up off days.

This coincides with the start of the second larp season, which includes Aon, Omen and the Moots in rapid succession. Charm was probably just a teaser. I'm looking forward a lot to the Moots, thanks to making a leather armour for Frankie with Drahkan and filling the Pathfinder wiki.

Omen? Not so much looking forward to. I should and will practice my archery there, but seeing as we can't use real arrows I don't really see the point. Of course, Stuff Will Happen that will require my attention and I could always take my elves on mission to keep them sharp.

Then this weekend there's Aon. I don't much look forward to playing Henriëtte yet, as she's not alive yet inside me. On the other hand, I'm very much looking forward to the interaction with Caleb-Johann and Odelia (Vince and Luthine) so that's very good.

Unless they plan it differently next year, I might have to skip a larp or two, because this planning thing is seriously wearing me down. On the other hand, they might have planned all three in one weekend, and then where would we be?

To do today: Go to Schröder to find some fabrics, pack bags, drop off a package or two, pick up Palanthe and go to Aon!

One of my own resolutions (not necessarily associated to New Year, Christmas or Yule) is to get into shape and lose some weight. I'm getting more and more depressed with how I feel and look, so there's no time like the present. Eating less, eating more healthily, and exercising are good ways to start feeling better.

After closing DG some time was freed up, though the paper trials (sic) are far from over, and after the New Year I finally had enough free time to go back to the Gym. Though I was aiming to follow a Zumba class, Life Happened. Apparantly, I had looked at the wrong day on the schedule, and Zumba was from 19.00 until 19.45, while the Monday class was at eight pm. So when I arrived at the gym Zumba had just ended.
Instead, I walked into Yoga class.

I've done a few Sun Greetings in Larp settings, but nothing could compare to the odd positions and muscle stretchings of last night's lesson. Granted, I loved every minute of it, though the balance positions were really hard. It's not a sport I'd want to practice during my period either, but I'm definitely hoping to go regularly!

With the snow still blocking my abilities to cycle to work, Zumba and Yoga will be my weekly exercises, but I would like to continue yoga even when I cycle over 40 km a day. It will be good for my muscles to be stretched after they grow stronger.

Meanwhile, I don't think I've been this bouncy after exercising ever before, so yoga is definitely getting a stamp of approval all around.