Sunday, February 6, 2011

Cow Face Pose

I love Sunday mornings.  There are two different kinds in my world and they're both wonderful for completely different reasons.

Some Sundays are days of rest.  Typically, those days happen when it's pouring rain or blizzarding (I may have just invented a new word).   There are no alarm clocks and there is no pressure to do anything. Waking up and being able to luxuriate in bed is one of life's great pleasures.  When hunger finally wins out, it's down to the kitchen we go for a yummy breakfast with some classical music playing in the background.  Those Sundays are warm, peaceful and good for the soul.  

Most Sundays involve a 6:30am wakeup, a quick shower and breakfast followed by the loading of two bikes, two trainers, two yoga mats, two changes of clothes, snacks and a laptop into a very accommodating NissanVersa.  Then we head off to Runners' Edge for the Sunday morning cycling group followed by a yoga class.  

Cycling and yoga are great cross training options in an otherwise heavy running schedule.  My legs are always tight and sore from Saturday's long run but, after a stint on the bike and some crazy stretching, they feel long and limber again, if a bit wobbly.  

Yoga is a very humbling activity.  So is running, just for the record, but in a completely different way.  In yoga, we are a room full of runners trying to increase our flexibility.  Facing each other on our yoga mats, there is no place to hide. Everyone gets to watch as we struggle to find our centre of balance and to straighten our damn legs.  Thankfully, we all know each other so the room is always full of good-natured laughter and teasing.  

Most people in the class have one particular pose that they are really good at.  Doug has great balance and rocks the tree pose.  John's hockey has helped him master the bound angle pose.  I discovered that I have very flexible shoulders which means that I'm good at cow face pose.  

Yes, I did indeed say cow face pose. 

I'd prefer to excel at a pose with a prettier name but such is life. 

Today's cycling workout and yoga class were great but we had a few added twists thrown in.  Namely, several centimetres of snow.  We arrived home three hours after we left - weak in the legs and ready to eat.  But first - we had to shovel.  

Shovelling is normally one of my absolutely favourite chores.  It's outdoors, it's cold (I'm always overheating so cold is good), it's invigorating and you can immediately see the fruits of your labour.  I even shovel things I don't need to shovel just 'cause I want to. Today, I was so tired and hungry that our wee driveway and sidewalk just about did me in. 

By the time we got inside, I thought I'd exceeded my physical limit for the day and that I would have to crawl back into bed for a few hours.  

But no!  

One bagel sandwich, one homemade larabar and several glasses of water later, I'm reenergized and basking in that happy endorphin glow that follows a good workout.  

I may be sound asleep in bed by 8:30pm tonight but, for the moment, I feel fabulous! 

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