Having been a desk magnet (by choice) for quite some time now, being fit and active is a luxury that I often craved. Sitting on that chair constantly for 9 hours straight would often leave me feeling lethargic, irritated and not to forget a few kilos heavier. I had always been an athletic person, enthusiastic about the extra long walks and the swims that would make me feel ALIVE! So after almost an year of being Miss Lazy Bones, I decided to take charge and get moving. I was up for anything! Be it Pilates, power yoga, swimming or even going to the gym (which I truly think is the most boring way to keep fit).
However I didn’t immediately join a gym or get a membership at the pool for daily swims. In fact I pondered over this for a few more months asking friends about their fitness regimen and finding out about nearby fitness options which included the gym at work. I also spent a good part of this ‘research’ period asking (okay begging!) friends to accompany me in this fitness route. Because the one thing I was sure of was that all my enthusiasm would die down once my muscles would begin to ache. That’s when I’d truly need someone to give me that little push and encourage me to keep going and who better than a friend who would motivate and put me through.
But, as fate would have it, nothing really worked. One fine day, my mother decided to join this yoga class in the vicinity and she seemed pretty happy with the exercise she got. She praised it so much that I was eager to check it out too. On an impulse I enrolled for the class albeit in a different batch (and thank god for that, because she is super flexible and I would be so ashamed of myself). The first two sessions were great fun. I did some pretty strenuous stretches and felt upbeat about it. But boy! The next 24 hours were tough! Each and every part of my body was in such pain that I just couldn’t figure what I had done. Without a friend to push me this time I was pretty much done with yoga, but not quite!
The women in my class turned out to be my biggest motivators. Approximately seven of them, all these women are elder to me. Some even double my age, a few working women, some house wives and mothers with busy schedules and real responsibilities and yet they managed to do it all with such ease that I was truly ashamed. None of these women are experienced fitness freaks or have been doing it for long, but they were trying harder to reach a healthy goal. And they kept coming back amidst back ache and body pains. While I always end up going back to my starting position in the middle of every asana, these women never gave up. I truly admire their discipline, regularity and commitment and that’s what made me go back more than anything else.
Each time I bend down to do the Surya Namaskar (the cobra poses being the toughest for me) and just when I am about to give up, I look at the other women around me who are older but more flexible. And with new-infused enthusiasm I tell myself, if they can I MUST keep up for just another minute or another second more.
I no longer cringe to wake up early and get ready for my morning dose of exercise. The one hour of yoga truly excites me. I have begin to feel the change in my body and the increased activeness encourages me to put in just a little more. I think motivation truly is about the kind of people you are around. Good, encouraging company is extremely important for you to successfully achieve your goal. And now that I have these enthusiastic women for company and an encouraging instructor to push me just a little bit more each time, I am sure I will soon be able to break my way through to a healthy and flexible life. And if you are trying hard to keep up too, look around for some inspiration and I am sure you’ll be able to achieve your goals.
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