Early in November, I finally went for a first visit with my new doctor up here. It was mainly a checkup, but I also had a skin tag I wanted to get rid of, and I was hoping there was something that she could do for my lower back. It's a lot better than it was, but it still bothers me more often than I care to deal with.
I was pretty disappointed when her only suggestion was to try tai chi or yoga. I'd gone in thinking, laser surgery? E-stim? Nothing so medical. I've always thought that the old people who do tai chi in the park are cool, but that I'd end up as the type who walks in malls instead. But recently I decided that if I don't take my doctors advice, I don't have any business complaining when nothing changes.
Lessons are expensive, but that's no excuse now that tons of them are on YouTube for free. And the prospect of trying it at home alone was less daunting anyway. Who cares what I'm wearing or if I'm panting if nobody else is here? All I really needed was a mat, which was easy to get on Amazon.
I've actually had the mat for a few weeks, and was meaning to get started soon. Yesterday became the day when I realized the kids are still out of school all week and there'd probably be a ton of them at the pool like when I went last week. No thanks. So I went for it. Yesterday I tried
this video, and it kicked my ass. Its definitely a little frustrating to try a class "for beginners" and find so many of the moves so difficult, but then again, it's not a video specifically for fat beginners. Really all there is to it is that my gut gets in the way sometimes, but I worked around it.
I tried her
morning yoga video today and felt at the end that it was definitely more of a daily warm-up type routine and not a workout, so I got geared up and walked for a little over an hour afterward. I saw the start of a trail leading off the road recently and was hoping it might be a route into the park, so I decided my goal today would be to make my way there and see where it goes.
As it turns out, it doesn't go much of anywhere at all. There's a reservoir hidden in the middle of a bunch of houses, and several trails between them surround it. There's a couple of benches. It seems like it might be nice for the residents, or it might be annoying if teenagers hang out there.
So anyway, I'm giving yoga a try. Just another reason I'm glad I have the house to myself during the day.
