What health goals are you pursuing in 2017?

At the end of 2016, my bestie and work-wife, Jenny, invited me to join her as she worked toward her 2017 goal of “walking a long distance.”  Jenny and I have done many crazy things together like: getting tattooed, running in a color and mud run, along with participating in a shady ticket hand off with an old dude named Bob to see Adele.  So, I wasn’t shocked by this seemingly random request.  Also, Jenny and I share a desire to consciously make heart healthy choices, as we both have parents who have heart disease and have survived heart attacks.

That aside, I still had two thoughts cross my mind: 1- How long is a long distance? 2- How bad can it be?  I’ll be walking.  Later, she clarified her goal, walk 25 miles.  (Truly, I envisioned this “walk” to be at a leisurely pace with lots of jokes and laughs along the way.)  Then, it evolved to walking a marathon (26.2 miles)- Walk 2017 as we like to call it.  Walking a marathon seemed more intimidating than just walking 25 miles somehow.  (Who even knew that people regularly walk in marathon races?  I surely didn’t!)  I’m not sure if my reaction was internal, or if it played out on my face, but my eyes bugged out and my jaw dropped in a cartoon-like fashion.  Nevermind how long it would take to walk 26.2 miles, but could my body successfully complete such an undertaking.  Jenny went on to explain that she wanted this walk to be about women supporting women.  We were to be part of an all girl band of positive energy holding each other up and pushing each other forward to that finish line.  I’m not one to give up before I’ve started, so I took the challenge, albeit reluctantly.

Last week, our merry band of ladies began the official marathon training plan.  We walked 2 miles on four separate days.  Since this is a relatively short distance, we have trained alone, providing words of support through our Facebook group page.  We’ll plan to set up dates to walk together once we get to 5+ miles.  Our faithful coach sends us reminders of the distances we should walk each day as well as inspirational videos and quotes to encourage us.

Now more than ever, I need to be diligent with my home yoga practice to keep injury and stiffness at bay.  (Walk 2017 is helping me to stick to my personal goal of building my home yoga practice.)  The training schedule involves walking 4-5 days with designated rest days throughout the week.  I am cognizant to stay close to the specified distances so that I don’t over do it.  I’ve learned that a common cause of injury is doing too much too soon.  (I experienced this firsthand a few years ago when I was training to run a 5k and developed shin splints.  Ouch!)

Pre-walk Routine:

• 4-5 minute stretch before I head outside or on the treadmill
• Use a small roller to stretch the bottom of my feet

Post-walk Routine:

• Foam roll my legs, buns, and lower back
• Use the small roller on my feet again
• 15-20 minute yoga sequence stretching my legs and hips
• 5 minutes in savasana/minutes

I find that I have less soreness when I take the time to roll and stretch after each walk.  For the marathon, I need to maintain a 15 minute mile.  Therefore, the focus of my training is to build up my stamina for walking this extended distance, while maintaining a steady pace.  I’m currently walking 14-15 minute miles depending on the weather conditions and how my body is feeling that day.  I hope to get under 14 minutes.

On the designated rest days I’ve been doing kettlebell strengthening  workouts, alternating between working my upper and lower body.  I do 3-4 sets of each circuit workout.  As a recovering Pinterest fanatic, I have tons of exercise sequences saved to my “Get My Sexy Back” board.  (Don’t judge me!)  These kettlebell circuits usually take 30-40 minutes.  I then follow it up with yoga.  I begin with 5-10 Sun Salutations.  Then I give love to my hamstrings and any other muscles that need attention.  I round off my yoga practice with headstand and handstand (two poses that I am working toward improving this year).  I close with  5-10 minutes in savasana/meditation.

I set aside one day weekly to rest both my mind and body from all forms of exercise.  I look forward to these days to enjoy time with my family and decompress.

2017 is about finding balance in all things, including my health and fitness.  I’m taking a break from running and am instead focusing on “power walking.”  Yoga continues to play a huge role in my daily fitness routine.  I feel that I am seeing improvements in my strength and flexibility that weren’t apparent a few months ago.

I love the positive vibes that are being generated by this group of women as we take this journey towards improved health.  Now more than ever, I see the need for diverse groups of women to band together, try new things, and expand our horizons.  We might find commonalities where none were previously perceived.  People who seem different from you become more human when you connect and get to know them.  Friendships strengthen.  Positivity spreads….and it’s contagious.

How do you plan on getting out, getting healthy, and spreading good vibes?

Why is comparison between women so pervasive?  What factors play into the ways and extent to which we compare ourselves to others?  Growing up in the suburbs of New Jersey, comparison has been my companion for long as I can remember.  Attending a predominantly white elementary school ushered feelings of comparison to the forefront of my mind.  Don’t get me wrong, my mom took me to diverse shows at Philadelphia’s Annenberg Center and enrolled me in Freedom Theater dance classes to balance the influences of my suburban life.  I still measured myself against my peers more often than I’d like to admit.    Why wasn’t my hair straight and flowing like my classmates?  Why wasn’t my style quirky and cool like Clarissa from Clarissa Explains it All or any of the Huxtable daughters?  Why was my wit nothing like the cast of All That?  My preadolescent-self believed that if I were similar to these ideals, I would be the next Barbizan model destined for fame.

Sidenote:  How could any eighties baby forget reading Seventeen magazine (while in elementary & middle school) and laying eyes on the Barbizan Modeling Agency ads in the final pages.  My recurring daydream consisted of being discovered and signed to a lucrative contract while shopping at the mall.  Spoiler alert…I was never signed by a modeling agency. 😔

These feelings of comparison didn’t fade as I stepped into young adulthood.  Now, I didn’t just have my subconscious notifying me that I needed to upgrade my outward appearance, I had the voices of my friends added to the mix of whispers in my ear.  One of the rites of passage for any young lady is learning how to engage and often disengage with frenemies (those girlfriends that pass out backhanded compliments and criticism like a fresh stick of gum, hiding behind the guise of friendly advice).  My arch frenemy would always say, “You’re so skinny!!  You’re like a little twig!”  Translation:  I was tall with NO curves.  I had the body of a 10 year old boy.  I can remember telling my mom how much I wanted to finally not be flat-chested.  She assured me if I waited until I was an adult, got married, and had a baby, then surely boobs would arrive.  I didn’t have the patience to accept this as my only option.  Faster, yet unsuccessful options included socks, tissue, and water balloons.  How come everyone else had it made, but I still felt as though something was lacking.

Fast forward to present me.  I love myself, but I’m still a work in progress.  It was about a week ago I had been carrying this image of my pre-baby, early twenty-something, body ideal that I’d hoped yoga and running would get me back to.  A conversation with a fellow mommy and good friend helped me to refocus on reality.  I have to accept and embrace the body that I have NOW.  (I’m not in my twenties anymore and my body has been the vessel for two human births.  And I have the battle scars to prove it.)  I can improve the body that I have now, but I can’t magically spin back the clock.  Self-acceptance is a process that I’m working through daily.  Many mornings I get up, look at myself in the mirror and find something specific and positive that I can say.  “Hey, your hair is on point today!”  “You’re blessed. You’re blessed. You. Are. Blessed!”  Other times, comparing statements pop into my mind, at which time, I consciously acknowledge the thought, heeding what is true, and releasing what doesn’t serve my mental health.

So I scroll through Instagram with care.  I admire the beautiful asanas and super toned bodies of IG yogis, but let any feelings of envy reflect on the fact that these women work diligently to achieve their levels of strength and flexibility and I too can attempt these unique poses with consistent work towards them.  Myleik Teele mentioned (in one of her podcasts) that social media is a collection of posts and pictures that are curated to tell the tale as the storyteller wishes.  The highlights are shared with the world, while the awkward and dark moments are often deleted from the photo reel.  Ms. Teele also mentioned Theodore Roosevelt’s quote,

I hung this quote on my vision board.  Comparison is also fuel for the Ego.  I notice that when I’m scrutinizing myself alongside another woman, it’s because I want to make myself feel better, which ironically does the exact opposite.  As a measure of self love and preservation, my IG browsing is limited and is for entertainment, enjoyment, and inspiration ONLY!

I’m uniquely me and I need to embrace that and remind myself of this on a daily basis.  Because honestly, “…I’m fearfully and wonderfully made…” I’m my own kind of beautiful.

What techniques do you use when battling thoughts of comparison?

Namaste,

Dominique Anitra