A ray of light (and my belly)

It's been raining since yesterday night. I woke up at 6:40 at it seemed 3 a.m: almost no light which I found very depressing. When I lived in Canada I had to wait until 10 in the morning to see a ray of light. I walked to the University in the dark, every single day. On my way back it was even worse as at 6:30 p.m in Ontario (December) is as dark as in a night without stars and moon. The same applies to the "wet coast": last November in Vancouver was far too dark for me.

I NEED more light! 

On the positive side, I'll go to Pilates later on. It cheers me up as the teacher is so funny and warm. Usually things go like this:

"Lolaaaa"

"Yes"

"Your belly moves. You're not breathing properly"

"It's not true"

"It is. Stop moving your belly, Lola"

"I'm not moving it. I DO have a belly, I'm not flat like you!"

"Nooo. You are not breathing properly. PULL YOUR BELLY BOTTON TO YOUR SPINE, Lola"

"Ok......... I can't"

"What??"

I can tell you, it is challenging. One has to:

- pull the belly botton to the spine

- do the lateral breathing and maintain it through the exercize.

Not to mention when one has to imagine a diamond in the pelvis! Last time my imagination was so powerful that I felt the urge to urinate!  (the culet was too close to my bladder).

Reconnecting with myself

Although I've been very busy lately, I've also taken time to reconnect with myself. I have become aware of the fact that my body is as important as my brain and I do exercize almost every day. 45 minutes brisk walking and pilates once a week. I am also willing to take up Tai Chi, there will be a free class at my tiny tainy cultural association next week. Pilates is great but as I already mentioned, it 's also very difficult as one has to be constantly focused. I wish I had classes at leat twice a week until September instead of a short course. I am much more aware of my body and my posture and I enjoy that Pilates is slow and controlled so that I have time to adjust my entire body to it. It takes patience though.

I have also changed my diet and I do feel much better even if ... London was far too cold for me and I still have cough and sore throat. I'm now trying with raw garlic which has several health benefits (inter alia, it's a powerful antibiotic), including fighting cough. The main problem with garlic is kissing ;). Don't chew it and you won't have garlic breath.

I feel relaxed and happy with my body also because sexual life is now back to normal. It was so challenging  to deal with sexual related problems due to tough hormonal treatment before and right after surgery. I missed intimacy but I didn't feel confortable with my body. My partner has been incredibly sweet and patient, I'm so lucky.

At this stage of my life, reconnecting with myself means embracing my vulnerabilities and rediscovering my body.

London, Pilates and tips

I'm leaving on Monday and I won't be able to update this blog for a week which is a shame because I'd love to tell you about my crazy (=busy) days in London. I'll meet all my friends on Monday evening and  we'll be working hard until Thursday. I don't have any special plans for Friday and Saturday but I'll be with two girlfriends so I'm sure we'll have fun.

I had my first pilates class yesterday and I enjoyed so much although I found it quite difficult. It's challenging to learn how to breath in a proper way and it takes a while to achieve good alignment and posture. I signed up for a 3 months course, 1 day a week at a sort of "cultural association". I like the fact that we are only 5 (!)and the teacher is really focused on us. I also like the non-gym environment and the lovely girls I met yesterday. I'm eager to learn and I'm looking forward to the second class (after London).

I will try to "work out" while in London as I'm sure I'm going to miss brisk walking with my baby boy. I'm planning to go for 30 minutes walk every -say- 2 days. I don't want to stop using my legs for a whole week! Moreover I feel better (psychologically and physically) when I move. I've recently realized that I've developed my own ways to deal with stress (or life?) which, by the way, are pretty similar to these tips:

• go to bed early (between 11 and 12)
• drink a lot of water, especially in the morning
• take royal jelly in spring and autumn
• reduce meat and bread consumption and eat much more vegetables and fruits (very easy as I used to be a vegetarian)
• focus on one deadline at a time ;)

I was planning to work this morning but the weather is great and I don't want to miss the chance to go brisk walking for the last time before leaving with my big boy.