Body combat... a work-out or interesting play on words

29Nov10, 6:30pm: Body Combat class with Kelvin

I got in a good sweat and feel like my heart got beating too! I love feeling strong and powerful! The class was full, however, and I got a bit annoyed with some of the other participants. As I've discussed space and time already, perhaps a discussion on proximity is in my future.... ha ha! More on that later.

As for today though, oddly I am just realizing that the two words... body... and... combat could essentially summarize my mood for the past few days. I'm going to think about this and write more later.

It's not the time...

28Nov10, 11:30am Power Yoga with Michael Lau

I was in a state of bliss having seen my wife, Kim, for the first time in almost a month, as she finally arrived to Hong Kong Saturday evening about 8pm. It was like we'd never skipped a beat, like two puzzle pieces, different on our own but solidly linked when together, as always...

I left her at 7:30am Sunday morning, as she had to fly to mainland China for a few days, but I will be meeting her in Taiwan on Tuesday, for which I'm quite excited.

We had a big breakfast at the hotel, which I'm not used to unless it's a brunch/lunch on a weekend, but still... so I was quite happy to go back home and relax, go back to sleep another hour, until heading to yoga a bit later. I'm taking a lot of opportunities to sleep lately, which is interesting and a good sign I think. More on that later.

Yoga was good. I like this teacher a lot, but I don't think my body was at 100% this morning. The last few workouts I've had have been good ones, and I think collectively made my body sore. I love that soreness, but I need to realize that when I'm sore, I probably won't be able to do the full lotus or Padmāsana and the crow or Kākāsana with full extension would be difficult today. Remember Jodie, that's ok. I did look around and saw that everyone else was doing full Padmāsana except for me, and a tear welled in my eye. That leads me to touch back on the idea of "comparison" as it seems like a source of a lot of anxiety for me... my intellect, my body and weight, my athletic performance, my yoga... everything. We are taught to compare in life... this is big, that is small, this is white, that is black... and so it must be hard for us not to translate that to everything else in our lives. Especially for me, as a scientist, it is my career to make comparisons, sometimes I even employ sophisticated statistics in order to do so, as the naked eye isn't always enough to sense differences. Therefore, I'm trained to compare, I'm good at comparing, and it's instinctual for me to compare... I quickly acknowledged my feelings and moved on in my practice. Ultimately, I think it turned out really well.

My teacher today also touched on an idea that is important to me... the idea of time. He couched it within the context of his current favourite song by a French artist. The song, titled "It is not the time" touches on how time isn't the issue... it's priorities. I think about this often when I think that "I don't have time" for something. Before the words leave my mouth, I mentally rephrase that I had other priorities that were higher on my list that day, or something to that extent. I think this is a really good lesson for me and everyone else out there... next time we're feeling time-crunched, consider what priorities are occupying your time and which ones are getting excluded... we all have 24 hours in a day, 7 days in a week, etc. We make our own choices, however.

Indeed, "it's not the time"... it's us...

Understanding myself first

27Nov10, 9am: Hot yoga with Shalon

Yoga today... the teacher was a new one for me, and some interesting ideas have arisen since.

I had a really rough night last night after getting home from dinner with friends, which was fun but only a temporary distraction from some deeper stuff, as my last post revealed. As a result, I didn't sleep that well, and so the thought crossed my mind to cancel yoga. Although I didn't end up particularly liking the class or the teacher, I got a lot out of it and am glad I still went.

It started off with the teacher coming in, speaking Cantonese, but then looking at me and asking me if I spoke Cantonese. I said no, and she walked on to her mat and started the class speaking mostly Cantonese but with some English intermingled. This quickly turned into about 99% Cantonese. There would be a few phrases in English here and there, like counting to 5 while holding a posture or some random phrase like "lower back". Needless to say, I was having a tough time, and essentially having to imagine what she was saying throughout my practice. In yoga, you can't alway just 'get by' watching others either, which I ended up trying to do or sometimes missing the asanas all together. I think I resorted to the fact that it was going to be hard for me to get a really intense workout from this class, which upset me but I had to fond something to learn or get out of this seemingly confusing and frustrating class.

While I did feel like walking out at one point so frustrated because I couldn't understand ANYTHING and couldn't see her, I didn't. I stayed. I decided to use my time to think about it all and learn a bit more about myself through my reactions to this situation. And I did, to the point where she must have sensed it in me or in others, as she said to "stop judging yourself" during part of the cool-down. I didn't like it that i couldn't understand anything today. I think that's been a really hard concept for me this month... not understanding and not being understood, mostly in the literal sense but of course also in the figurative sense.

I didn't realize that right away, maybe I was already showering when I thought that... I do some of my best thinking in the shower. When you are doing something that is routine, and takes a bit of your time, maybe something that is in silence, too, it is almost like a form of worship or prayer. This is what yoga is for many people, myself included. Sometimes I go to yoga for a really intense workout, actually that's *always* why I go, but many times I get a bonus learning experience or thinking session too. It's like that for me with showering too... of course I take showers primarily to get clean, but I usually relax and think too. There's something to the routine, like a sun salutation or other vinyasa. It gets to flowing so well that you can just go with the flow and allow your mind to explore itself.

I did come to tears at the end of my practice though, and instead of hurrying out after the final om, I stayed, stared at myself in the mirror, and tried to acknowledge what was going on inside me.

Some thoughts:

Feeling misunderstood or not understanding someone or an idea is very hard for me.

I don't need to be doing something all the time.

I am noticed here in HK more than I realize because I stand out.

I went from living in the US where I was relatively small to moving to Vancouver, where I wasn't as small. I adjusted my diet and fitness dramatically, got smaller and super strong, and became really fit. Now I'm comparing my Canadian self, who was small and fit, to a world of tiny Asians, most of which are not fit in the same way if at all (except for the yogis), but most are very, very small. It's a new benchmark.

Physical composition

26Nov10, 8am: personal training session (circuit training) with Wallace

Candid...

My body is officially comprised of more mass than it has ever occupied in its entire 33.25 years on the planet.

One of the joys that comes with starting a new training program or meeting a new trainer is the full body composition analysis that you get to start with. It's a fabulous way for me to feel absolutely lousy about myself, especially while living in the land of small where I can't find clothes to fit me and belts don't even go around my waist, let alone buckle. When did I become such a big girl? When did obesity become a risk for me? Seriously? It seems like this happened so fast, but then again, it's been slipping back over the past year.

I'm no stranger to the body composition tests, as I've done them with Endorphin Junkies a couple times per year. Still, every time, I was nervous, anxious, terrified... really for two numbers in particular.

1. Body fat percentage

2. Weight (mass)

My body fat percentage is still low, but I am apparently storing it all in my mid-section, hence the "over" WHR or waist to hip ratio, which is a proxy for obesity-related diseases. As you can see from part of the print-out from my body composition analysis from this morning... I'm quite imbalanced. It used to be that the % body fat and my weight were my magic numbers. If I could carry on with a "normal life", i.e. have dessert, a glass of wine, dairy, carbs... all very much in moderation, of course, then as long as I stayed below 20%, I'd feel pretty good. I knew that I could hammer out my work-outs and be extremely strict with my diet, low calories, barely any carbs, no soy, no dairy, no caffeine, no alcohol and drop down to 16%, but that wasn't sustainable. I could carry that on for about 6 weeks at the most, but no longer.

It's pretty incredible... I have everything I could possibly want in life except for the body it comes in. Part of me thinks it's not fair. But then I feel like crap for thinking that this of all things is not fair... where are the starving children these days, everywhere, where are the war-torn communities, everywhere... it's ridiculous for me to worry about this. Meanwhile, I'm probably consuming more calories in a day than many children and even adults have in a month. What the hell is my problem? I think to myself, why is it that so many people in this world can do absolutely no exercise at all and eat crappy, processed, sugary junky food and have great bodies. Mine is strong, no doubt, full of good components too, care of my clean diet... although lately that's not been as easy, but I'm doing well, considering... and so why do I complain? Maybe I will live longer because I'm in good shape, but then again, maybe not... the stats are stacked against me. I have a family history of obesity, heart disease, cancer...

I feel guilty for complaining, and I know that people will tell me that I look great, I'm so strong, in good shape, fit, eat healthfully, etc., but I DON'T FEEL THAT WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! When I look in the mirror, I see a rectangle... a tree trunk with no waist and big legs, a chubby face, I can't wear the clothes I want to wear, and I don't feel good, period.

I could turn this into a goal-setting exercise, I guess...

Goal #2: Over the next 3 months, I will have lost weight such that I am 7kg lighter. By this time, I am also enjoying that my waist to hip ratio is within the normal range for my body size.

There... does that help? Not really. I'm tired of being like this. It's ruined a part of who I am for so long, over half of my life, actually... 20 years maybe... I'm really tired...

I loved it!

25Nov10, 8pm: Silks yoga class with Tessa at Aerial Arts Academy

It was so much fun and a phenomenal work-out! I'm so glad I tried it and would definitely do it again! It was super hard, though... I don't think either Katie or I thought it would be so difficult. I'm really thankful (apropos as it's American Thanksgiving) for my muscular strength and courage to try new things!

Tomorrow is my first official private personal training session at Pure Fitness with Wallace. I am going to start by asking him to please kick my butt! Be careful what you wish for, right? I can't wait to write about it.

Aerial artist for an evening...

My day got better as I stopped reacting and started pro-acting. I feel good leaving campus today, even though I didn't get in a full 8 hours of productive work... who does that anyway? My work week has not been 8x5 but rather more like 14, 10, 2, 4, 6, and then maybe an hour or two on the weekend if I'm inspired. I'm fine with this for now.

I'm excited to leave campus tonight because my "new class" for this week is a Silks, Ropes, and Hoops hybrid yoga class at the Hong Kong Aerial Arts Academy in Central.

Stay tuned for details on how it went... I don't think Cirque du Soleil will be calling, but I'm sure it will be super fun and neat to try something completely different than my usual daily work-out.

Maybe we'll go for dinner at my favourite Life Cafe afterwards... here's hoping!!!

What is my body telling me?

"Sleepy" continued on through Wednesday evening. I went home, ate a salad and canned tuna for dinner, had some yogurt for dessert, messed around on the computer, and tried to plan my Thursday. I wanted to blog today about this process to see if I can reveal some things about myself and learn from this particular experience. I know that underlying frustrations or sad moments surface in strange ways with me, and I think that this is one of them. Therefore, this post will be more journal-style...

I had agreed to a Skype meeting at 8am with my mentor in Australia to talk about this much-anticipated seminar and interview for this position as Super Science Fellow. I have worked on a research proposal and pages and pages of writing, updated curriculum vita, personal statements, mentoring statements, the list goes on... it's been a year-long process. I was excited for this meeting, even though it was at an inconvenient time for me. He had suggested two times, and the first one didn't work either, as it conflicted with a work seminar and meeting. This 8am time slot wasn't ideal, as I would miss my 7:15am work-out, but with the number of fitness and yoga classes available to me in a day and the fact that I was slated for another specialty yoga class at 8pm Thurs. evening suggested to me that I could work around this one and make an 8am meeting a reality.

My mentor here in Hong Kong agreed to have a meeting that I asked for, and he suggested 11:30am Thursday, which would be reasonable as well. I agreed. The topic of this meeting is frustrating me to no end, as it seems like we cannot resolve an issue that I'm having with a microscope that I need for my research. This microscope set-up was supposed to be ready last fall and everything tested by the time I arrived. This is not the case, as it seems the set-up is inadequate for what I need, and I've spent the past 2 weeks learning about microscopes so I can talk to potential collaborators at the various other universities in HK, technicians, and sales people about what we can do to create the system I need. Meanwhile, I know our technician wants to buy new parts for the microscope to make it work for my needs. He was key in setting it up in the first place, and I think my mentor is not particularly keen that it was not adequate. He got a quote for the parts, and this may be ok, but part of me feels like this should have been done last year. Then he comes to me the other day to say that the parts we order may not fix the problem. He mentions that we may need to buy a new microscope that where the physics of the light pathways are organized differently. I understand this... after all, I've become pretty well-versed in microscopy lately, by necessity... but that's a $131,000 bill I wasn't prepared for. So, I mentally prepare for the meeting.

Meanwhile, it's Wed. night, and I'm feeling so incredibly uninspired and very tired. I didn't get anything done on my own work all day, as I had so many meetings, seminars, and such. Preparing for a productive Thurs. seemed to be the best way to get out of this ditch I felt like I was in. So, I think I figured out a plan to incorporate my Skype meeting, my meeting about the microscope, and decided that if I felt good early in the morning, I'd go for a run at the gym. If I was too tired when the alarm went off, I'd go back to sleep and hit yoga after my skyp meeting and before going in f or my 11:30am meeting. After lunch, I'd have a ton of time to do my own work before an 8pm silks and hoops yoga class at the Aerial Arts school in Central, for which I was super excited. Furthermore, maybe I didn't have to work, read, blog or be uber productive at 9pm on a Wed. night. Maybe I could just "veg out" and relax. I know, it sounds so strange....

I fell asleep.

I woke up a few times due to noisy neighbours and their little kids who always seem to be awake and incredibly lively at 11:45pm! I woke up a few more times disoriented, but fine after checking the clock. Of course I didn't have it in me to get out the door at 5:30am with everything packed for a full day in order to make a 6am run and get to my office by 8am.

I slept more.

I woke up again at what I thought was 7:45am, but it was 6:45am. Phew! I ate breakfast... yogurt, oats, and cinnamon... one of my staple meals... and prepared for my Skype meeting. We started late, as he ran overtime finishing a task, for which he apologized. I was proud of myself because I digital voice recorded the entire conversation in case I missed something.

*Kudos to me for acknowledging that I can't always be superwoman and be able to absorb an hour of intense conversation and for using the immense amount of technology at my fingertips to help myself out a bit!

I felt good about that, and I also felt good that even though I'm thinking about the visit, interview, seminar and that whole scary process, I've partitioned my time to work on preparing for it from 5 -14 Dec. While I am currently pre-preparing (is that a word? I like it... going to use it often), I committed to preparing (for real) after Kim's visit. Yes, that does feel good!

I was still sluggish, and so I did a few things and then laid back down to sleep. Although it is hard for me sometimes to listen to my body when it's asking for sleep, I know that it's asking me for a very specific reason. Maybe I'm on the verge of coming down with a cold, and this is my body asking me to take it easy so that it can deal with the cold before I have to. If that's the case, fine... dear body, I will listen to you and get some more sleep. I also drank some grapefruit juice... pure, no sugar added, grapefruit juice. YUM!

I slept some more.

I woke up at 10am and started preparing for my day, which at this point was preparing for my meeting at 11:30am and after lunch.

Something startled me...

Yes, this poor little guy I'm told comes out at about 2am every night. Although it startled me, it was a nice surprise... it wasn't a rat!

I finally get out the door. Sometimes in my world, that's the hardest thing for me... getting out the door in the morning. That's why I usually schedule my fitness/yoga for first thing. I don't have to get ready at home and can start my day sweating and stretching. I am much more efficient that way.

At this point, I am running a bit behind and will only have time to grab a coffee and go directly to my meeting, which is fine. At 11:19am my mentor phones me to cancel the meeting. We discuss some other things about my facilitating a -80C freezer for a colleague's samples while he's been here in HK visiting, retrieving them, etc. This is fine, but sometimes I don't think I'm appreciated for my intellect but rather for my "git'er done" personality. Is that all I am? A puppet?

That's often what post-doctoral fellows are likened to... puppets, as they don't have the resources to stand on their own feet quiet yet, i.e. no money for research or funding and their salary comes from someone established, higher up. It's common. I think I fit into that easily, but then again, I'm fresh out of school without a lot of experience "standing on my own two feet." Furthermore, I'm working with a scientist who is -- technically -- retired. He doesn't do work in the lab anymore, he's just a thinker. He has a strong voice because he's probably the most well-respected for his intellect in any research to do with fish but also research that has to do with oxygen and carbon dioxide transport, pH balance, respiratory physiology, etc. He can convince people and he can get money. That's what you have to be when you get old. When you're young, I guess, you have to pay your dues and learn the ropes...

I phone our technician to cancel, but we end up talking anyway.

What I am to learn from the latter half of this entry... I talk to our technician and rather than letting him run the show, which he technically has been doing prior to my arrival, I take the reins and make a plan. It felt good. He is hired for a specific job, and I am here to make sure that we are utilizing his talents.

I am also going to start learning to stand on my own two feet. A cancelled meeting is an opportunity for me to take the reins and make some decisions. While I can't make decisions on spending $$ yet, I can figure out every possible solution that leads up to that.

Meanwhile, Kim arrives Saturday night, and we have a Taiwan experience to be had next week and a Hong Kong experience to be had the following weekend. I will listen to my body and care for it as much as I possibly can, nurture it, and let it sleep so that I can be in the best possible shape for the things that are of top priority to me.

For today: I know that life is about balance... I am remembering my priorities... I am listening to my body, letting my body rest, and starting to learn to stand on my own two feet... or balance on one foot, as some tasks may require. Finally, if I hear a strange noise in the night, resembling something falling or slipping from the sink in the kitchen, remember the gecko.

Sleepy...

24Nov10, 7am: Hot Yoga with Samrat Dasgupta

Here's to trying a new teacher...!!!! I wasn't happ

y with the last "new" teacher I tried and promptly went back to Michael Lau for a few classes. However, I really liked my class today. It was full, too, which isn't unusual, but not as common in the first class of the morning. He was articulate, and the class was challenging for me. I found myself sweating hard, but working up to that, and then able to calm down at the final Savasana. However, the sweating was profuse, such that while lying there in corpse, the droplets entering my ears challenged my focus to relax and release. I was aware of it though, as I am aware of how sleepy I feel now.

I know I didn't get enough sleep last night, but I still had so much energy and wanted to use it! I ate dinner quite late, and had been sleepy before leaving campus around 8:30 or 9pm. I'm going to pay attention to that and aim to keep my energy levels a bit more stable. The huge peaks and troughs in my energy levels don't aid my productivity, and while I'm on such a roll with my work and self-exploration, I'll take this opportunity to tweak my schedule a bit so I can continue to channel my energy to be productive and set and reach goals!

Roaming throughout many places, living in tiny spaces

How much space do we actually need? What does "space" mean anyway? Google image "space" and the photos are gorgeous... outer space is the context in that case. My dictionary on my computer, however, gives me the following, some of which I've highlighted in orange out of interest:

space |spās|noun1 a continuous area or expanse that is free, available, or unoccupied : a table took up much of the space | we shall all be living together in a small space| he backed out of the parking space.• an area of land that is not occupied by buildings : she had a love of open spaces.• an empty area left between one-, two-, or three-dimensional points or objects : the space between a wall and a utility pipe.• a blank between printed, typed, or written words, characters, numbers, etc.• Music each of the four gaps between the five lines of a staff.• an interval of time (often used to suggest that the time is short, considering what has happened or been achieved in it) : both their cars were stolen in the space of three days.• pages in a newspaper, or time between television or radio programs, available for advertising.• (also commercial space) an area rented or sold as business premises.• the amount of paper used or needed to write about a subject : there is no space to give further details.• the freedom and scope to live, think, and develop in a way that suits one : a teenager needing her own space.• Telecommunications one of two possible states of a signal in certain systems. The opposite of mark 1 (sense 2).2 the dimensions of height, depth, and width within which all things exist and move : the work gives the sense of a journey in space and time.• (also outer space) the physical universe beyond the earth's atmosphere.• the near vacuum extending between the planets and stars, containing small amounts of gas and dust.• Mathematics a mathematical concept generally regarded as a set of points having some specified structure.verb1 [ trans. ] (usu. be spaced) position (two or more items) at a distance from one another : the houses are spaced out.• (in printing or writing) put blanks between (words, letters, or lines) :[as n. ] ( spacing) the default setting is single line spacing.2 (usu. be spaced out or space out) informal be or become distracted, euphoric, or disoriented, esp. from taking drugs; cease to be aware of one's surroundings : I was so tired that I began to feel totally spaced out | I kind of space out for a few minutes.PHRASESwatch this space informal further developments are expected and more information will be given later.DERIVATIVESspacer nounORIGIN Middle English : shortening of Old French espace, from Latinspatium. Current verb senses date from the late 17th cent.So, clearly there are several definitions and contextual usages for the word "space," but essentially I think that every definition can apply. The concept of space that I've been wondering about, struggling with, in awe about, mesmerized by, horrified by, and even comforted by over my life and very much during my recent journeys touches on a lot of these ideas. If I put these words and phrases together, haphazardly...continuous free empty the freedom and scope to live, think, and develop in a way that suits one within which all things exist and move specified structuredistance distractedeuphoricdisorientedThis is pretty much how I've been feeling over the past three weeks. It's really neat how this word "space" has been on my mind for three weeks... for so many overt reasons. I'm in Asia for one. Space is at a premium. Personal space in public places is nonexistent. The space I have created for myself to grow and learn and nurture myself and those around me, however is huge. It is really neat... I take this bit of time to explore it more deeply, and here is what I come up with. Looking at that definition, the words that popped off of the screen to me, I know meant/mean something.My journey is continuous, I know. There is no final destination, and I am ok with that. I feel free, free to explore myself, reinvent myself, starting from the person I had grown to be in my last home. I do have an empty feeling from time to time, no kindred connections yet, but also a strange desire to keep the only kindred connection here in HK with myself. Maybe that's the kindred connection that I need to nourish the most. In that case, the freedom and scope to live, think, and develop in a way that suits one is exactly the path that I've embarked on. Interestingly, that wasn't the first thought that came to mind in pondering the idea of "space." I was more concerned with a specified structure, and to quickly overcome this disoriented feeling that was overpowering me. I needed proximity, convenient distance(s) between my living space and my intellectual space, also neatly partitioned at the University (but also with minimal "space"). I was thinking of the lack of space when I couldn't find an apartment for my first 3 weeks here in HK. And, it wasn't because I was being picky either, which was a relief. Either I seriously lived in a toilet or I spent my entire salary every month on "space." There was no "middle space." So, I was entirely distracted thinking about the utter lack of and the cost of space... for me currently $150CAD per square foot... this was overwhelming my every thought, my every action, how I reacted to others around me... in my "space" that we commonly refer to as "personal space." But after pondering this for a bit, I don't even flinch at any of it anymore, rather pondering it is somewhat euphoric because of the tangential meanings. Space is important... not necessarily in the square-footage context, as I'm learning. The importance of space is within the context that it is within which all things exist and move. That's pretty profound.

Rewording my goals

A wise woman... my wife... my inspiration for a lot of things in life... and I were having a conversation about goal-setting. She's been thinking a lot about this, setting many short-term and long-term goals for herself as of late. She mentioned how the wording of your goal can really influence how you work toward it and achieve it. There is something to putting the words in present tense... and I can really understand how that would make a difference. So, I'm taking this opportunity to reword my Goal #1...

Goal #1: During my time in Hong Kong, I am trying one new fitness or yoga class or teacher per week. I am also doing either one yoga class or one fitness class/work-out of some sort per day.

23Nov10, 7:15am: Bodypump class with Juan and then 20 min. cardio

I noticed my arms still look and feel strong... I really like that!

I am also currently very inspired by a friend's blog. There are a lot of incredible people on this planet. It's interesting how life's twists and turns has you encountering new kindred spirits, sometimes in a different light than before if you already knew them. I see it as an opportunity for me to learn more about myself, others, and the world we live in... each encounter is like a puzzle piece, something to strengthen or build a new part of yourself.

A good thing about being the only white girl

I forgot my keys at work this evening. I left my apartment at 6:30am Mon. morning and got home at 10:30pm... it was a long day with a really great yoga class this morning and then a very productive day at work... I submitted two papers to the Journal of Experimental Biology tonight!! I've never done that in one day before! Actually, I've never even done that in one month! So, it doesn't surprise me that I forgot one thing... it was a big day. However it did suck that I didn't realize until I was walking out of the train station about 100m from my apartment. Choice #1, go back to the Univ., get keys, come back home... it was already 10:30pm and I hadn't had anything substantial for dinner. Choice #2, play the white girl card... that sounds racist, but I swear it's not my intention. I may be the only white girl living in my building, and so I was hoping they'd remember me and unlock my door for me. I have two security doors and then a hallway and the door to my room, and so that all requires 2 keys for 3 locks. The positives are that I can lock my own door from the doorknob when I leave, and the security doors lock automatically. So, I knew this was a potential solution. And, it worked... they remembered me, and graciously unlocked my door and even waited for me to go in and turn on the lights! Ok, so this city doesn't quite know what to do with all of these people and perhaps raw sewage, but they have their transit system figured out and I was treated kindly tonight when I really needed it. Yay - for once - for standing out!

On another note, I think the pollution is getting to me a bit... I've been Q-tipping my nose and it's gray inside! Gross, I know! I'm going to try to figure out if it's largely from my daily routine or if it's happening when I'm sleeping. Maybe I'll wear a mask while I sleep? Thank goodness I'm not living in Beijing... I look at their air quality reports on the news and it's "dangerous" virtually every day! I don't think HK is that bad comparatively speaking, but worse than Vancouver for sure. I do chuckle inside a little bit when I see a woman dressed to the nines, Fendi, D&G, Vivienne Westwood... with shoes and purses that are even more insane... but then... the disposable face mask. I don't want to laugh, but it's such the paradox... I can't help it. Anyway... we'll see, I may get one myself, but it would actually match my outfits a bit better... closer fabric texture to Luon than a French charmeuse.

Dancing eagle?

22Nov10, 7am: Hot Yoga with Michael Lau

See, I'm partial to one teacher now... but I still went and got in a really great work-out. I'm really happy with my dancer's pose, or

Nataraja-asana (see schematic to the right) but I have some work

to do with Eagle's pose (Garudasana... this image is NOT me... but someday it will be). It's strange how last night, my right sided Garudasana was really good... my left side usually isn't anyway, but this morning I was equally stiff and unable to wrap my foot around my leg. I'll pay attention to how I progress with that one.

On another note, I've

been thinking about the footwear in Hong Kong... there are three styles for women...

1. amazing, high-end designers like Minolo, Choo, etc.

2. Havianas flip-flops or the equivalent... usually worn by those that will eventually wear (1.) but between the yoga studio and the shower or by me all the time or by the maids and nannies from Sri Lanka and the Philippines

3. Sketchers Shape-ups... with nice outfits... wtf? Do they really work? I wouldn't go there regardless, but what is the rationale here? They are often worn with really amazing outfits too... the stark contrast makes me laugh. Furthermore, just because they come in a sneaker AND a plain black sandal, doesn't make it ok to wear them. I don't think they work. I've never tried them, but the pure biomechanics behind the idea is flawed. I'm putting a message out to the world today... stop wearing them! They are ugly and you are wasting your money!

Keeping tabs on Goal #1...

Just so I can keep tabs, here is where I am after the first week of my yoga/fitness goal, from here on out, I'll just post the class/workout that I did that day and whether it was new, hard, comfortable, etc.

12Nov10, 7:30pm: Power Yoga with Serena Chan

13Nov10, 11:15am: Forrest Yoga with Bernadette Leung

****(started the daily fitness goal here)****

15Nov10, 7am: Hot Yoga with Michael Lau

16Nov10, 7:15am: Bodypump with Juan

17Nov10, 8:15pm: Power Yoga with Michael Lau

18Nov10, 7:15am: Bodypump with Kelvin

19Nov10, 6:30pm: Power Yoga with Michael Lau

20Nov10, 12noon: Hot Yoga with Michael Lau

21Nov10, 6pm: Hot Yoga with Holly Lee

I love Michael Lau as a yoga teacher. He's funny and can articulate what he's asking of us with the postures and breathing so well. I tried a new teacher tonight and did not like her style at all. I'm sure a lot of students respond really well to her, but I wasn't one of them.

My fitness...

In no particular order, I would like to post goals that I will strive for to the best of my abilities while I'm here representing HK resident #8,000,001.

Goal #1: I will try one new fitness or yoga class or teacher per week, while aiming to do either one yoga class or one fitness class/work-out of some sort per day.

My new gym and yoga studio both host a ridiculous number of classes each day, a few of which I've tried already. I've liked them all so far, but I've already found myself gravitating toward one or two teachers and away from a couple as well. Instead of sticking to my comfort zone, i.e.

doing classes I know I will like, or that I know I'll be relatively good at, teachers I already have had and like, for this goal, I'll branch out a bit, try one of those bizarre classes I've never heard of. For example:

"Jivamukti – Jiva – meaning individual soul and – Mukti meaning liberation – comes from the Sanskrit word Jivanmuktih – liberation while living. This yoga

method was founded by David Life and Sharon Gannon to aspire for greater peace, unity, environmental awareness and karma consciousness. Ahimsa, one of the five tenets of Jivamukti, is the core to the sacred belief in oneness of beings, urging the avoidance of harm and violence. A Jivamukti yoga class is a vigorous physical and intellectual stimulating practice that combines chanting, asanas, breathing exercises, music, meditation and practice of devotion through simple scriptural reading."

I'm not really into the chanting... not so much at all, actually... but why not? What would I have to lose? So, while reading through the class descriptions and realizing my "yeah right" response to this Jivamuktki, I thought I'd challenge myself a bit. We'll see what happens! You will definitely read about my progress.