A new frontier of ‘mobility’ has appeared on my horizon this
week, among other topics or awarenesses. It’s been a good week, with a sense of
measured or paced progress.
Thing one: I’m well into a new continuum for even thinking
about this pull-up thing. No longer is this a “Can Do/Can’t Do” thing. One side
of my brain still doubts, but more of more of my awareness grows out of the
continuum “Haven’t Done Yet/Will Do Sometime.” What’s the magic or the
difference?
I’m realizing that every action on the bar is a combination
of psychological, physical, and probably even spiritual actions. My window for
learning a new aspect may be small, but there’s always a window within which to
begin to learn proper form, good-protective technique. For instance, I used to think—in
the impossibility category—that I couldn’t even hang on the bar with any
control, or I couldn’t hold myself up above the bar at all. I’ve done that, for
longer and longer moments on my own jump-hold reps, or for much longer duration
with strength band-support. I cannot do either for very long, at this point,
but I am getting accustomed to the view up there, for longer and longer
moments. My body is learning the proper forms, and the proper protections, for
playing with my full body weight at the bar in small actions toward a larger
one.
Today, after a nice long run/walk, I jumped up to the bar to
remember what I just barely felt yesterday, which was hanging from the bar,
keeping my arms completely stationery, and swinging my hips in a controlled pre-kip
kind of movement. I did that several times, noting the developing calluses on
my hands with a sense of pain but satisfaction. I can sense the difference,
too, between approaching the bar with a fresh energy and highest ability, and spent energy and lower ability, with a sensation of weary shoulder/arm/core muscles, which have been used to do a
small part of this workout toward my goal. The window of opportunity to deepen
the learnings is smaller than I’d like—meaning I get weary fairly quickly, at
this stage—but it’s a window that is lengthening. It’s a window through which
“I’m doing this, bit by bit.” So “Haven’t Done Yet, Will Do Sometime,” because
little parts of this path I’m already feeling in my body. I’m already doing little actions of the larger
action to come.
A whole different horizon opened up this week, too:
mobility ‘wods.’ “Wods” simply mean “workout of the day,” a term from the
Crossfit community, if I remember correctly. But there are ways to ‘work out’
that are not strength-training, per se, nor involve expanding one’s
cardio-capability. These work-outs focus on stretching and muscle-release
toward greater and greater mobility.
Movement of the muscles. Freedom of the muscles to fire as they do naturally,
without fighting the tension inside while they do the movement-work on the
‘outside.’ Those who do a lot of yoga increase their mobility, not to mention
flexibility and more. This has a feel of that. But the simple stretches I
learned—thinking “My body does not move like that!”—opened up space within my
own musculature that I could feel in
its presence or springiness or freedom, somehow. Again, my body is learning to do that/this. Will Do, not Cannot Do. Not
only do I have a new frontier to explore—carefully, without overdoing it (she
says to herself, with a stern glare)—but I have simple stretches and movements
to integrate into my days of computer-bound work. I can bring my mind into my
body without having to get myself to the gym, or take a shower afterwards.
Deepening awareness, again and again, seems to be the body-tutorial going on in
my personal-training.
And I took a formal, informal ‘plunge’ today, biting at the
‘half-off’ cost of the idea. I signed up for a beginner’s level e-training for
a half-marathon. Now, I know this seems like a bit of overkill, but hear me
out. Perhaps my weight is more than
it needs to be, even as I develop muscles. What harm can come from beginning an
intentional-community process where I get encouragement to deepen awareness of
chi-living in all things—core awareness, proper form for running, greater
flexibility and spiritual maturity in listening to the body? If I lose weight,
then there’s less to pull-up over the bar, right? I don’t have a strong
commitment to the ultimate goal of the distance, but I DO know that I am
happiest when I am most active. I like the idea of having an e-training while
I’m at the computer anyway doing my online-teaching work (that I dislike so
much). Why not do something for my active life while I have to be there for my
work-life anyway? While I’m engaging the pull-up fears, it can’t hurt to do
something that is familiar, which is a re-distancing goal of walking/running.
If my body discourages me with pain or immobility, then I simply lessen the
engagement wherever I need to. Besides, I’m so excited about it! How can that be
any harm?
I wonder if I can get my husband to sign up for the
e-training for a 5K?! Poor man. Will he know what hurricane is about to envelop him? :)
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