First Class and I Bear a Conclusion

It’s been close to a year and a half that I have sustained my passion for the gym and for working out and voila! I have surprised myself by the discipline. No matter how bad the day might have gone, it all comes to zero when I hold iron in my arms. Besides, the loud music that plays in my iPod not only lifts my spirits high, but also helps me get over a tough or a boring day.

One evening, when I was leaving the premises of the gym, a notice pinned to the notice board got my attention. This said, ‘Yoga classes begin this Monday!’ Not that I am a fitness maniac who would try her hands at every means to get fit that crosses her way, but since I’d heard so much about the after-effects of Yoga, I really wanted to have an opinion of my own.

The second challenge after making up my mind that I want to participate was to get up by 8. No, I am not an early riser and yes, I sleep bang on time! One super fine day that I did get up before 8, I decided that I am going to give this a shot. I politely entered the class and got a mat for myself. The I-am-pro-at-this ladies already practicing there threw super-curious looks at me seeking an answer to their favorite question, why despite being slim do I want to join them. No, I do not think I should have answered to their curiosity so I just smiled.

By the end of the very first class, I had a freshly-brewed opinion of my own about Yoga and why I would want to continue it if at all I do and why it does not mean quitting lifting weights at the gym. First thing, Yoga does an excellent job to your body by making it flexible. Yes, you seldom get this facility at the gym. There are stretching exercises but none of them is this elaborate. The breathing exercises they teach not only open up your mind, but also your senses. You feel negativities leaving your body through your nose and a fresh, lively energy entering in. Further, the morning aspect of it makes it way more ‘cooler’. Lastly, it does not require you to sweat heavy or lift more to have a command at it, if you continue doing it right, it will prove to be the best thing that makes your mind and body balanced.

Now, why I feel I still need to life weights is because that help me gets more muscle in my body, killing the fat. Yoga might do the same to me eventually, but I think I am sure it is going to be at a tortoise’s pace. Secondly, the cardio exercises in the gym besides making you sweat hard, also get your heart rate up and increase the blood circulation throughout your body. That said, I am sure there are plenty of benefits of Yoga that working out in the gym can never replace, like increasing flexibility, toning and strengthening the body and affecting the body mentally, intellectually and spiritually, but after my first Yoga class, I bear an opinion which is going to be my lifestyle now.

I opt to go for the killer combination of the both. That would imply three days of gym, three of yoga and one for the sleep. I am sure the two would complement each other nicely and I cannot wait to see the results of this shock I am going to give to my body, which is used to the music and the iron. No, I am still trying to get up by 8 and my gym trainer thinks I am a sleep-deprived girl, who, for the love of her sleep, is now sucking up her workout time to catch some Z’s. I am, anyway, happy being me. 

   

Boycotting Normalcy

We've long back crossed the age of excitement and astonishment trying to figure out the meaning of marriage and wedding, while learning the difference between the two. After close to six months now, when all fascinating aspects of marriage seemed to have found the answers, I sense the state of ‘being settled’ trying to seize the schedule and painting it in the bland colors of routineness, while shouting on top of its voice, ‘Congratulations! Now that you’re freaking hitched, you’re settled now!’

The only thing I am reminded of by this phrase ‘being settled’ is a heavy stone sunk to the bottom of a water tank, because there wasn’t any space to dig down further and lie there. It’s like a bottle of champagne being decarbonated just to get a more calmed down, fizz-free drink, like a cat being belled just to keep a tab on all her ‘catty’ acts and more like gaseous CO₂ being converted into dry ice to keep it all, integrated at one place.

You seldom hear parents wishing a life full of adventures, while bidding farewell to their daughter-turned-bride, or a life full of last-minute plans, shocking revelations, exciting explorations, daring decisions, creative enlightenment or mental growth, for that matter. All that they would wish her is a life as calm and peaceful as still water, a life which certifies her as a nice wife, daughter-in-law, mother, neighbor, colleague and citizen!

This generation, who I belong to, regards more meaning to the life post marriage than what settlement holds for them. For many like me, marriage brings along a possibility to try the things never tried before, breaching the rules and heading out untrained to face life head-on. Thankfully, I am surrounded by friends and family who think the same; for instance, one of my close friends chooses to be an Army wife instead of going for a ‘normal, settled’ boy because she thinks she can pull it off with fun; one other friend heads out for a road trip to Nepal and one, last, who is learning to knit because she finds it utterly creative. All these have one thing in common, they have refused to stay stuck in normalcy – all of them are happy being called jerks because they think this tag describes them the best. 

I reckon one famous saying by Paulo Coelho (a little down here) and this one brings me the feeling of euphoria, for there are millions of things I would like to try while they are still calling me young and cover it all under the sheath of ‘experimentation’. I feel this is THE time when we could be crazy at our best and still feel grounded, for we have explored the true meaning of being mature and are coloring our life with the hues of sense. 

Refusing to stay stuck in normalcy, here I am saying, 'I'm bad, and that's good. I will never be good, and that's not bad. There's no one I'd rather be than me!'.