The Routine - Part II

Please do read Part I first :)

Quick Recap:
We stopped at......when I signed up at a nearby gym and lost 25 pounds in 2 years.
and about how I felt young and great about myself again!

Not so fast...the next 15-25 pounds seems so difficult to get off!!
And I've started doing it again - going on and off all the time!

A couple of months back, I got fully motivated by my cuz-P and we started following the Couch to 5K Plan!

We kept tabs on each other. We'd call each other on the morning of our running day, and again the following morn to check!

We followed it religiously! I even kept at it when we vacationed for a week!

Then around week 7, her shin started hurting, and was asked to take it easy for a while.
That was the rebirth of the Queen of Excuses!!
Cuz-P actually kicked my bottom for stopping, in vain.

Except for an occasional walk, I've been in a slump mode since my break from the Couch to 5K (and back to Couch) Plan!!!

Until last week, that is! I saw an ad for a Yoga Camp around here and signed up for it. Got cuz-P and sis-S to sign up too.

Tried to get Dottie to sign up, but the logistics (timing, location, work) just did not work out for them on the Camp days.

So, all 5 days of the camp (Wed-Sun), I was up at 4.45 and out of the house by 5.15.
I have to admit that the first day was a little difficult - was feeling sleepy on and off - but still, those were 5 of the easiest days for me to be up and about so early!

After 2 1/2 hours of Yoga, (which was mostly Pranayama and maybe 30 minutes of Yoga Poses/Yoga Cardio), I felt so energized and relaxed the whole day at work and in the evening at home!

We were allowed to bring kids on the last day, and T1 was all too eager to go with me. In fact, she did not sleep well for 2 days in the excitement!
She woke up early enough on Sunday and got ready in no time.

2 1/2 hours was a bit much for the kids, and there was an overdose of Marketing going on, being the last day and all.

But we all got what we wanted out of the Yoga Camp.

The real challenge now is to continue doing this.

I promptly got up early the next morning after the camp, and did a little Yoga and Pranayama.

I may not have the heart-pumping workouts like I'm used to. But I'm sure that these quiet, relaxed breathing exercises with a mix of cardio yogi-jogi will work well in the long run.
I am hoping to make this a lifestyle change and keep at it as often and as regularly as I can...
I know my commute is going to be filled with Kapal Bhati(s), Bhastrika Pranayama and Anulom-Vilom(s).
It has been 4 days since the camp now, and I have been going steady with my new-found love affair with Pranayama.

The Routine - Part I

When Pup and I started our lives together, it was just bliss!
We got into our own "routine".
I was a happy stay-at-home H4 wife!
I used to have dinner and a snack (a smoothie or salad...) ready when he got back from work.
After the light snack, we'd both be energized for a...workout.
We hardly strayed from this routine and it left us wanting more each time!
The eager waiting before, the energy surge during, and the cant-take-it-any-longer feeling afterward was to die for!
I felt so very young and alive! Wait, I WAS very young!!!

Then I started taking classes at a local Community School.
I was getting busier, so we were getting a little less on the frequency, but still kept at it really well!
Enough to make us proud of ourselves!

This on-again off-again mode continued till we had a baby!
Oh my! How that changed things!!
We started to blame everything that we could not do on our bundle of joy!!
I mean, it was a normal delivery and I was back to normal soon enough!
Why couldn't we get back on track??
I fail to understand!

How difficult can it be to set aside an hour for yourselves 3-4 times a week, if not everyday?
OK, who am I kidding?
Not an hour, at least 30 minutes?
I think it's absolutely important to make room for the warming up before and the cooling down after!

Anyways, it started getting few and far between (sigh).
Every now and then we'd be all up for it and then a big drop in the sinusoid!
I'm ashamed to say it! But that's the fact!

Then, a few months after T2 was born, I decided to stop finding excuses!
For our own sake, I needed to work this out and get back on track.

Yes!! I signed up at a nearby gym and lost 25 pounds in 2 years.
Soon I got it all back!!
The eager waiting before, the energy surge during, and the cant-take-it-any-longer feeling afterward!
I felt young and great about myself again!