Week 7 - I can’t put it off any longer, time to ease myself into exercise…
I am a little out of sorts writing this week’s post. This is partly because I’m two days late (up until now I’ve managed to post each Monday), but also because I have been catapulted into a completely unfamiliar environment from ‘that which I have become accustomed’ since making the big break; the result of a few weeks contract work in Doha which have fortuitously come my way…
Just a few of the differences between my current life in the Qatari capital and my usual hanging out at home (ensconced on the couch with my laptop and the next-door neighbour’s cat) include:
- The warmth (this kind of shock to the system can really affect productivity!)
- Putting on a wrap/jacket when coming into a building rather than leaving (over-enthusiastic air con in this country!)
- Starting my morning with a paddle in the sea rather than a slosh through the back garden to find the organics bucket
- Feeling like I’m ‘on holiday’, despite actually having to be at a job at a specific time and staying there for eight whole hours. It’s probably something to do with not having to make your own bed and getting fresh towels every day (environmentally unsound but totally luxurious)
- Good reasons why you might NOT invite the local cats in for a cuddle. “Tiger found roaming loose on the Doha Expressway” was yesterday’s main headline!
- Having to walk down 14 flights of stairs in my dressing gown due to a (false) fire alarm. My evening gratitude list now includes: 1) I’m grateful there was not a real fire and 2) I’m ecstatically grateful the lifts were back on board before I had to walk back UP said escalier, because I am probably as unfit as I have ever been in my life.
As you can see, between this and the usual logistics of dealing with institutions in a foreign country (very time consuming, sometimes frustrating but often entertaining), there are a lot of reasons why I need to be creative with my usual routine and accept that I’m not going to be doing quite as much as I would in my familiar little bubble at home.
I have been able to stick with Water on Waking, Daily Intentions/Peace Mission and Gratitude Dude. And I’m still getting up at 5.00am London time (sure, I know it’s 8.00am in Doha, but I have a good excuse, as the shifts I’m currently working mean I don’t get to bed before 1.00am).
What has slipped is my hour of coding practice/training each day, so I’m going to have to work harder to fit that in between the extensive breakfast buffet and a quick swim in the Persian Gulf. I DO feel one of life’s perpetual struggles is to strike a balance between the commitments you make to yourself and a certain responsibility to take advantage of any exotic environments you may find yourself in. And as an Australian who has lived in the UK for more than a decade, I’m not intending to miss ANY opportunities to frolic in the sea, I’m telling you now.
Time to get the blood a-flowing…
Nevertheless — I do need to add in a new habit this week, and it is with a reluctant heart that I concede that some exercise is well overdue. It won’t be anywhere near enough to allow me to tackle the stairs to the 14th floor with a joyful stride, but it is a start, and more importantly, something very doable for Doha.
I am inspired by Chris Winfield’s advice to use the Lolo app to do some stretching each morning, so have downloaded it and have it set to ‘Lower Back Stretches’, probably the area I most need to work on. It produces a workout of between five and 10 minutes. That will do for a start. Again, this is about getting into the habit of doing SOMETHING, rather than scaring myself out of it because it’s too overwhelming. This is forever stuff. And after my first session this morning, I can tell you, I definitely need to do this EVERY DAY! It seems my days of doing the splits while performing a feisty can-can are long gone. Getting them back will require considerable work! For now I’ll be happy if I actually manage to touch my toes.
Troubleshooting…
- You think you have no equipment? I am in a hotel room with towels. That’s about it. One towel down on the carpet, another smaller one as a stretching aid. The Lolo app asks you what equipment you have and adjusts its selection of exercises accordingly. Everyone has a towel. When I get home I’ll be able to add in a chair. Bonus!
- You think you don’t need to stretch? I’d say that’s a miracle. If you are young and supple then I beg you not to think it will last forever. You will end up forgetting to stretch until you are about 40 and believe me, it’s a long way back. Get into the habit now and you’ll never have to make up for years of neglect. If you are older and feel there is no point, just remember it’s only going to get worse. Best do what you can now to halt the decline! Be inspired by contortionist Christine Danton, still bending and stretching for performance in her late 60s.
- You forget? This is the biggest risk. It’s just not part of your routine yet, so you are going to have to come up with a method to make sure you don’t. If you have a GMLODR (Grand Master List of Daily Routines) put it on there straight after your Daily Intentions with a lovely checkbox to tick off. Make it one of your FL15s (15 minute breaks in between working sessions) or come up with some kind of visual aid. Me — I’m keeping a towel laid out on the carpet of the hotel room floor, which will completely annoy me. No chance of forgetting there.
- You are lazy? I know the feeling. But I’m determined to overcome it. It’s on my list and it only takes 10 minutes. I am channeling my inner Amazing Cristina…
And now…I’d love to go for a swim…but it’s raining. That wasn’t part of the plan…
Suzi
Please click the heart below if you’d like to give this post a boost!
And if you are thinking you’d like to hop aboard this slow-moving ‘make the most of your day/productivity/I have to justify giving up my job’ train, just click the ‘Follow’ button and we’ll do it together.
FOR HANDY REFERENCE: 2016 habits glued to the Jenga Tower so far:
The post that started it all — For the first time that I can remember, I’m not waiting for something…
Week 1 — Get up early, ignore social media/email/news-infused mobile phone with special dopamine enhancing features and head straight to old-fashioned pen and paper for writing of Daily Intentions and identification of day’s Peace Mission
Week 2 — The keeping of the ‘Done List’ predominantly made up of achieved Peace Missions.
Week 3 — Breaking the day down to a magic formula of 45 minutes of Pomodoro Technique + 15 minutes of movement (housework/exercise/dancing etc)
Week 4 — Getting a glass of water down you first thing in the morning!
Week 5 — Learning to code in my bid to become a ‘Woman in Tech’
Week 6 — Gratitude Dude — filling in my 10 year gratitude journal
