Sunday, October 21, 2007

Singing on the stationary bike


One of the ways you KNOW you are heading for the big 40 is when your 6-pack becomes a 2-pack and things just don't work the same as they once did...like your liver (2 glasses of wine and I have headache) and your bowels - can you hear me say bran flakes -YUK- in the morning.
You also (and in my medical opinion this is a genetic thing) start to look at home fitness equipment as a real possibility.

Although it is charming to go to the gym to watch the 20 somethings bounce up and down to the latest europop it just begins to feel creepy and...well...wrong.

Anyway, my wife persuaded me to buy one of these instruments of torture and it has been lurking in the bedroom for  about 6 months. About 1 month ago I realized - as my suit trousers refused to fasten - that it was time to do ...something - and so, for the last 2 weeks the cross trainer (so called because it crucifies you at level 10) has actually been in use!

I have been grunting and puffing away in my bedroom in a hitherto unheard of fashion - the neighbours must think that either I've been guzzling the Surgery Viagra or that Jo is getting my Christmases and Birthdays out the way for the next millenium.

I have  one problem ...(well I have many, many problems actually but this is the one I'm complaining about tonight). I get a bit of asthma. It would appear that my asthma is exercise induced so the old blue inhaler has been getting a using!

But tonight I discovered a secret - which seems to work for me (your own mileage may vary!!) - singing on the stationary bike! (or the cross trainer but it didn't sound so poetic). 

I have been trying really hard recently to be "fully present" during all of the things that I do (It's a kind of hippyish idea of concentrating on what you're doing and with whom - but in a BIG way...)

No more worrying at work about 'the next job" before finishing the one I am engaged in, no more feeling guilty while I'm watching TV with the kids that I should be in the studio working on some project or other - I could go on and on about this (and probably will in another post) so it's a thing I've been working on.

So there I was tonight grunting, puffing and wheezing away and listening to some old Keane and Bruce Hornsby tracks on the ipod when i found myself singing along, top of the voice, performance volume stuff too!


- and man I was there.
- right in the middle of the music and the motion
- really present in the moment.
- and do you know what -  my wheezing just vanished - I felt I had lungs full of fresh air and all my worries about the coming (horrendous) week just slipped away.


So here's just one thought about asthma, exercise, worry and strife - try singing on the stationary bike!


God bless, 


Iain 

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