Brain Freeze, Spring Thaw

I haven’t written a post in over a week, and I’ve only had two nights of taekwondo in the past two weeks. The taekwondo absences have been due to freak Texas winter storms and a belt test I wasn’t scheduled to attend, but I’m not sure about the writer’s block. I think this dark gloomy weather starts a snowball effect, no pun intended, of lethargy and dulling of my mind. As I said in an earlier post, we may not be covered in feet of snow down here, but our roads get extremely icy and the drivers are even worse. You don’t have much motivation to go out when it’s like this. Even when it warms up and the snow is melted the rainy, gloomy skies and crisp chill in the air aren’t very inviting.

The days off work thanks to the weather have been a welcome treat, but I was a bit concerned to see how I could quickly deteriorate into the depression and loneliness that are always around the corner but usually kept at bay. Cleaning the house and doing home workouts get old after a while. It’s just too tempting to sink into the couch, watch more TV, eat more comfort foods, and drink more alcohol. If I’d had a hookah and a metal-bikini-clad captive I would have given Jabba the Hut a run for his money.

I noticed how my body had slowed due to a week or two off my normal routine when I inadvertently became a victim of “Weekend Warrior” syndrome. I had the best intentions–I wanted to kick my body back into gear to lighten my mood and get me back in shape for the dojang. I ran Friday night, went to yoga class Saturday morning, swam a mile Saturday night, and felt it all during yoga class today. My ankles are sore and tense, and my twice-injured and currently irritated left shoulder forced me out of chaturangas and into more child’s poses. I’m glad I exercised though. As much as I love it if I take a few days off suddenly the slippery slope of sedentary living becomes very steep.

As I listen to the rain outside on a dark night I am comforted with the fact that there’s sunny weather around the corner. I’m telling myself not to feel too down about the winter doldrums. I know the one or two pounds and bloat I’ve put on will melt off as soon as I’m back into my normal eating and exercise routine. Sometimes you just have to go into hibernate mode for a while. Sometimes you just need a break from everything. Sometimes you need to give yourself permission to shut down, if only for a little while. Spring is almost here, and not only is it a time for renewal, it’s a time for action. The cushion of “well, it’s just the beginning of the year, we have plenty of time” for work projects is waning. For those in school, the end of the semester and subsequent tests will be here before you know it. My black belt test isn’t until the fall, but now is the time for preparation, for strengthening my body and mind to endure what I know is coming.

Tomorrow will mark what is hopefully the first full week of taekwondo classes I’ve had in way too long. The ice has melted, the clouds are rolling away, and the seeds of success are beginning to bloom.