move

Week 48: Move Mindfully

Decked out in a camel-colored velour tracksuit, I crossed the Army 10-miler finish line with a big grin and achy knees. This was November 2003 and one of my proudest moments.

I’d started running earlier that spring with a friend who coaxed me as I huffed and puffed around the monuments with “You can do it!” After 15 minutes, I collapsed into her sedan ready to rest.

To say athletic inclination has been a struggle for me since childhood is, well, an understatement.

In elementary school P.E. class I’d run to kick the ball . . . and miss. Every time. I signed up for soccer because I understood it to be cheerleading and cried each time the ball came at me.

The clincher was a 4th grade softball game where our class played the faculty while the rest of the school watched. My dear mom called in sick for me while I stayed curled up in the fetal position with no audience to observe my inability to hit the ball.

Then there was the trauma of choreographed step aerobics classes. As I fumbled on and off the step in my white high tops, I decided it was best to stick with putting one foot in front of another on a treadmill without feeling that a class of spandex-clad ladies were silently judging me. I’m still in recovery for that one.

When I found yoga in my early 20s, I was grateful for a way to move my body that felt intuitive. It also didn’t involve an 8-count or a scary ball being thrown at me. Just a sticky mat, stretchy clothing, compassion, and my breath.

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