Yoga Boy

So this past Saturday I had a full physical – my first since 1999. Now, before you think I’m crazy or suicidal, just remember that since 2006 I’ve been probed, prodded, pricked, poked and pored over at least a dozen times to figure out what was wrong with my ticker. I’ve been checked out and scrutinized over for everything from the Big Casino to tropical parasites. And it’s all come up negative. With the exception of the pulmonary vein stenosis and the reduced functionality of my left lung, I’m fit as a fiddle.

Except I’m suffering extreme fatigue and depression, probably each feeding the other. Poor diet and lack of exercise contribute to both, and the depression and fatigue make me want to eat junk for quick pick-up and not work out. So I went to the doctor for both peace of mind and to get a little inspiration.

Well, my doctor gave me both in spades as they say. As far as exercise, she okayed me to do whatever I enjoy – in moderation, of course. That’d be the exercise bike, building up to 20 minutes a day. I told her I like to throw the weights around, too, but not to the point where I’m going to try to score steroids in the back alley behind the gym and get all shredded and veiny and hulkish. She okayed that, too. And she also guilted me by saying, “You don’t really need me to tell you how to eat?” “No,” I admitted, sheepishly. “I’ll eat more fruits and veggies and less processed foods.”

One thing that she is absolutely gung-ho over, to the point of blurbing all about it on her web page, is yoga. Yoga, she says, would give me increased body awareness and help reduce stress and fight fatigue. There are different types of yoga, and I must remember, she chided, that yoga is not a competitive sport.

I did give yoga a whirl when I first got out of the hospital three years ago. I kept at it for six weeks … until I made it a competitive sport, competing against myself. I tried to do more and do more longer, and take on more energetic and muscle-building forms of yoga. All when I should have kept it up for its relaxing qualities. As a result, I stopped doing it, and haven’t done it since. But, man, when I did do it I was soooooo limber and flexible. I’m like a ninety-year-old man now compared to how I used to be. And I noticed that the more loose and flexible I am, the better and healthier I just naturally feel.

So, I’m going to give the relaxation yoga DVD a whirl again tonight after the kids go down. Probably won’t see any serious changes for two weeks or so, though I could be wrong. If I do notice positive changes, I’ll let you all know. Maybe I’ll mark the calendar to review my work-out program on this public anonymous blog in a month’s time. I’m going to stick with it for now, because I have no choice. I’m grinding my teeth down to the roots in my sleep and the bags under my eyes will soon need their own zip codes, or at least those four-digit suffixes denoting their own PO boxes …