Me Time
The next few days, from Thursday to Saturday, were the first few days I had to myself. So I tried to do various things that I needed to do. I managed to get on top of my washing, cooked a bit and browsed some job related stuff on the internet.
On the Thursday, I went wondering around shops looking for more clothes. This particular trip took me to Camden Market where I was specifically looking for butterfly related jewellery. I went back to a stall I remembered and bought a lovely black butterfly hair clip. It was a nice trip because, apart from that, I wasn't really buying anything, and I had a nice look at various clothing, trying to figure out what would and wouldn't go on me without the pressure of having to buy something.
After that, I headed to Chiltern Street where I looked at the Autumn collection in Long Tall Sally. There were at least three dresses I liked the look of, which makes a change from the summer collection, which was just... I tried them on and two of them looked good. But they're very expensive and I'm not sure I could afford them at the moment. On the other hand, I have a wedding to go to in Poland on my trip to Krakow and I need at least one nice thing to wear. I need to think about it.
I also took the time to look after my fitness a bit more. I'd done lots of Zumba and aerobics, so I had strength and stamina, but no control. My core muscles were very weak, I noticed, and not very happy. So I worked patiently on the Wii Fit doing the balance exercises, which helped me remember to use my core muscles. Then I went heavily into the dance games, which helped me to work on my muscle control.
I also practised Qi Gong. Clearing my mind was very welcome after the hectic and emotionally draining time I'd been having, and it was nice to just practise not thinking about things, while getting my body to stretch out. I also went beyond to practise Tai Chi and bit more. I did this for the stability and because learning a martial art helps me feel better about being so vulnerable. I learnt that I should be doing the flow exercise and not the postures, since I'm advanced enough to do the flow regularly, even though my understanding of the postures can be a bit ropey.
I also practised the mishmash of other martial arts I know, and discovered that I'm much quicker and lighter now, as well as more flexible. My roundhouse kick goes up to my shoulder now and I can immediately follow up. I don't have any stability or balance, and I'm working on that, but I do have speed and grace.
In dancing and doing the martial arts, I can definitely feel my body's reduced muscle mass. I may be weaker, but there's also less of me to move, so I'm much quicker and more graceful. I have been exploring this.
On the Thursday, I went wondering around shops looking for more clothes. This particular trip took me to Camden Market where I was specifically looking for butterfly related jewellery. I went back to a stall I remembered and bought a lovely black butterfly hair clip. It was a nice trip because, apart from that, I wasn't really buying anything, and I had a nice look at various clothing, trying to figure out what would and wouldn't go on me without the pressure of having to buy something.
After that, I headed to Chiltern Street where I looked at the Autumn collection in Long Tall Sally. There were at least three dresses I liked the look of, which makes a change from the summer collection, which was just... I tried them on and two of them looked good. But they're very expensive and I'm not sure I could afford them at the moment. On the other hand, I have a wedding to go to in Poland on my trip to Krakow and I need at least one nice thing to wear. I need to think about it.
I also took the time to look after my fitness a bit more. I'd done lots of Zumba and aerobics, so I had strength and stamina, but no control. My core muscles were very weak, I noticed, and not very happy. So I worked patiently on the Wii Fit doing the balance exercises, which helped me remember to use my core muscles. Then I went heavily into the dance games, which helped me to work on my muscle control.
I also practised Qi Gong. Clearing my mind was very welcome after the hectic and emotionally draining time I'd been having, and it was nice to just practise not thinking about things, while getting my body to stretch out. I also went beyond to practise Tai Chi and bit more. I did this for the stability and because learning a martial art helps me feel better about being so vulnerable. I learnt that I should be doing the flow exercise and not the postures, since I'm advanced enough to do the flow regularly, even though my understanding of the postures can be a bit ropey.
I also practised the mishmash of other martial arts I know, and discovered that I'm much quicker and lighter now, as well as more flexible. My roundhouse kick goes up to my shoulder now and I can immediately follow up. I don't have any stability or balance, and I'm working on that, but I do have speed and grace.
In dancing and doing the martial arts, I can definitely feel my body's reduced muscle mass. I may be weaker, but there's also less of me to move, so I'm much quicker and more graceful. I have been exploring this.