It's that time again. 2011 is coming to a close and I don't mind that at all! We've accomplished a lot, but it was not without struggle. No, no. I'll try to stay positive here. Learning opportunities. Lots of learning opportunities and knowledge was gained from those opportunities. Some of that knowledge still hangs in the air with it's purpose yet to be revealed. That will come in time. Patience has been in short supply and every once in awhile a cry of despair from losing patience. Sometimes it was more like a primal scream!
My business opened in July of this year and it is thriving! There are so many positives to owning a business, but you have to be very careful not to let IT own YOU. Sometimes it's so hard to say no. I have learned my limitations the hard way. In fact, I'm still learning. It's usually not until I wake up on a Monday morning and see that I have 8 or 9 clients every day that week with a couple of days that I'm working until 7:00 pm. I usually smack myself in the forehead and promise to not do that again. At least for a month. Then I have to run my cycle. Know thyself and be okay with who and where you are. All we can do is our best and move on.
I try to plan out the next year, but I can't see past the present moment anymore. Someone asked me, "So what do you see for Forever In Training in 2012?". I didn't really know how to answer. I haven't really thought about it. Oh, I have some things that I would like to accomplish. Just trying to figure out the path to take to get there is the hard part and I can't separate the two. I feel paralyzed by those kinds of questions. Almost like a fear comes over me and I ask myself, "What if I never get this figured out? Will I look like a fake? Am I a fake?". I sure hope not. You just have to never be afraid to say the phrase, "I don't know". We are human and there is no possible way of knowing all there is to know about what you do in your life. I guess if I got it figured out I would get bored and go learn something else.
So here I am, unprepared for 2012 and it's okay. I'm just going to try and enjoy my life a little more in the upcoming year and be a kinder more giving person. I hear that heals a wounded heart. I think we could all use a little healing...
Friday, December 30, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Forty and Fabulous!
I turned 40 recently and I am having the absolute best time. No really, I mean it. All these women that I know who are either going through or have gone through the forth decade of their lives have told me it is or was the best time in their lives. You are at the point where you know who you are, what you want and where you're going and you don't give a shit if anyone likes it or not. I've just begun this incredible journey and it has been pretty amazing so far. I've gotten over trying to be something that feels unnatural to me. If it doesn't feel right or good, I'm not doing it. So I've decided not to pay my taxes anymore! Just kidding. Seriously, I feel a strength and a self assuredness I've never known before. I also don't feel it necessary to be a sounding board for people with negative energy anymore. In the past I felt like they needed me. I was doing my part for the greater good. All they were doing was sucking my energy and leaving me depleted. No more!!! This doesn't mean that I'm not going to be a good listener and give people a safe place to vent. We all need that. I'm just not going to give up my precious energy anymore. They can't have it, dammit!!! I'm trying to be more aware and open to what the universe sends my way. I'm paying more attention when someone comes to mind. I call, text or email them. I figure that they popped in there for some reason; even if it's just to say, "Yo...'sup?". It's nice when someone just calls you out of the blue or sends you a note to say they were thinking of you. I called my sister on the way home from dinner last night just to tell her I miss her. Very out of character for me. I'm trying to also rekindle my sense of humor and laugh more. I sort of lost my sense of humor somewhere along the way this year. Too much working and training, not enough life. I was trying to hard to be an interesting person. Now I just want to be grounded and real. Just me, only better. When it's my time to 'renew' (a reference from Logan's Run) I want only to leave my echo of laughter behind and for people to say, "I'm really going to miss her" and smile when they think of me. No, I don't plan on dying anytime soon, but I'm going to get a headstart on enjoying life a lot more and leaving my positive footprint on this Earth.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Everybody needs a little time away...
I heard her say...from somebuuuuuhdaaaaay. That sappy Chicago song is so very true. Everyone needs a break...from...well...whatever. It's easy to get burned out, even on the things you love. My clients need an occasional break from me and my workouts. Even if they don't know it. Even though I encourage them to just take a little time away, most of the time they get forced into a break. They have to go out of town for work or they must clean out a relative's house. No matter how it happens or what they are faced with doing on that "sabbatical" they come back to me in a different state. It's good to see them with a smile on their faces and ready to get back to it.
I need my breaks too. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do for a living! Absolutely adore all of it! I mean how much better can life get when people pay you for what you are so very passionate about? I genuinely care about the welfare of my clients. Dare I say that most of us are what you might call friends? It's a beautiful thing and a lot of good things happen with the work we do together. I put a lot of thought into each and every person's program or massage. That's exactly why I feel like I need to just step away and breathe in my own needs. We must take care of ourselves. Our culture is really screwed up in the fact that we view 'self care' as 'self-ish'. WTH? How is taking care of ourselves being selfish? In most cases my clients understand. Although, sometimes I get the evil eye and that's okay. I've gotten much better about not starting such an announcement with, "I'm sorry, but...". Feeling the need to apologize for everything is fading off in the distance. In fact, a client/friend of mine sent an email to me of a saying. It was:
I now use it most of the time to soften a "NO" answer. It seems so harsh to look at someone and just say "NO". I am a work in progress, though. Most everyone is; there is always the opportunity to learn something. Most of us glaze through our days. We are so consumed with going to the grocery store, putting gas in our vehicles, oh...shoot I can't forget to (fill in the blank) that we don't pick up on things that we should. We are too busy texting while driving to look up in time to see the big sign we just missed. Don't worry the universe will take control of your car, run that red light and get you a ticket (or worse...) to get your attention. Something's gotta give and I keep seeing glimmers of hope that may restore my faith in mankind. Maybe one day they will be full blown star bursts and we can really change the world. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, anyway...
I need my breaks too. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do for a living! Absolutely adore all of it! I mean how much better can life get when people pay you for what you are so very passionate about? I genuinely care about the welfare of my clients. Dare I say that most of us are what you might call friends? It's a beautiful thing and a lot of good things happen with the work we do together. I put a lot of thought into each and every person's program or massage. That's exactly why I feel like I need to just step away and breathe in my own needs. We must take care of ourselves. Our culture is really screwed up in the fact that we view 'self care' as 'self-ish'. WTH? How is taking care of ourselves being selfish? In most cases my clients understand. Although, sometimes I get the evil eye and that's okay. I've gotten much better about not starting such an announcement with, "I'm sorry, but...". Feeling the need to apologize for everything is fading off in the distance. In fact, a client/friend of mine sent an email to me of a saying. It was:
Apologizing
Does not always
mean that you're
wrong and the other
person is right.
It just means that you
value your relationship more
than your ego
I now use it most of the time to soften a "NO" answer. It seems so harsh to look at someone and just say "NO". I am a work in progress, though. Most everyone is; there is always the opportunity to learn something. Most of us glaze through our days. We are so consumed with going to the grocery store, putting gas in our vehicles, oh...shoot I can't forget to (fill in the blank) that we don't pick up on things that we should. We are too busy texting while driving to look up in time to see the big sign we just missed. Don't worry the universe will take control of your car, run that red light and get you a ticket (or worse...) to get your attention. Something's gotta give and I keep seeing glimmers of hope that may restore my faith in mankind. Maybe one day they will be full blown star bursts and we can really change the world. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, anyway...
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Something in the way she moves...
Kinesiology - the study of motion of the human body.
Human movement...it is a mysterious and fascinating thing. To think about how the body is laid out and how everything in it works together can get overwhelming, to say the least. However, it's just plain magical when everything is working correctly and can be sheer Hell if it ain't.
I took a two day seminar weekend before last that could have easily been three days. It was about making muscular corrections, loosening fascia, joint stabilization, muscle facilitation and inhibition, reducing swelling and moving stagnated lymph from an area. That was all mentioned in the first 5 minutes. So I made sure at that point I put my seat belt and helmet on because it was going to be a bumpy ride. Especially when we started talking about anatomy. Whoa! It's been like 12 years since I've gone to that place. It was pretty dusty in there, too. I mean, I'm familiar with major muscles because of common injuries and such, but this was all about insertion and origin. I have some work to do when my head stops spinning.
Chances are you've heard of this subject I'm about to mention. Kinesio Tex Tape. Not KT Tape, not Rock Tape. Kinesio Tex Tape - the original! Even though they all have pretty much the same properties and have the same purposes, they made sure to let us know right off the bat that this is the real deal and the rest are similar.
So I've been taping up some people and just asking for feedback. I've taped a couple of shoulders, a pregnant belly and my own leg. I'm pretty convinced that this is helping facilitate my recovery from my injury. I'm not saying it is the be all and end all, but it goes really well with other forms of therapy to regain balance in the body. With another therapy, like with massage for instance, the practitioner works on the tissue and when she/he is done applies the tape with the same intent they were using while working. It's sort of like an extension of the therapy after the session is over. Pretty cool stuff!
In conclusion I'm totally sold on Kinesio Tex Tape. I think it's pretty great stuff. Will it cure every imbalance overnight? No, but it will definitely speed up your recovery. Besides, most of the time injury is chronic, not acute, because we are a nation full of "full tilt boogie, I haven't got time for the pain" diehards and that means it didn't get that way overnight. We don't want to feel like a bunch of wussies, after all. So grin and bear it, dammit!
NOT! In the end we are all built pretty much the same with a few differences. You must honor your body and it's delicate balance. Be kind to yourselves, believe it or not, you deserve it. Take care of your body, it's the only one ya get!
Until next time, thanks for reading!
Human movement...it is a mysterious and fascinating thing. To think about how the body is laid out and how everything in it works together can get overwhelming, to say the least. However, it's just plain magical when everything is working correctly and can be sheer Hell if it ain't.
I took a two day seminar weekend before last that could have easily been three days. It was about making muscular corrections, loosening fascia, joint stabilization, muscle facilitation and inhibition, reducing swelling and moving stagnated lymph from an area. That was all mentioned in the first 5 minutes. So I made sure at that point I put my seat belt and helmet on because it was going to be a bumpy ride. Especially when we started talking about anatomy. Whoa! It's been like 12 years since I've gone to that place. It was pretty dusty in there, too. I mean, I'm familiar with major muscles because of common injuries and such, but this was all about insertion and origin. I have some work to do when my head stops spinning.
Chances are you've heard of this subject I'm about to mention. Kinesio Tex Tape. Not KT Tape, not Rock Tape. Kinesio Tex Tape - the original! Even though they all have pretty much the same properties and have the same purposes, they made sure to let us know right off the bat that this is the real deal and the rest are similar.
So I've been taping up some people and just asking for feedback. I've taped a couple of shoulders, a pregnant belly and my own leg. I'm pretty convinced that this is helping facilitate my recovery from my injury. I'm not saying it is the be all and end all, but it goes really well with other forms of therapy to regain balance in the body. With another therapy, like with massage for instance, the practitioner works on the tissue and when she/he is done applies the tape with the same intent they were using while working. It's sort of like an extension of the therapy after the session is over. Pretty cool stuff!
In conclusion I'm totally sold on Kinesio Tex Tape. I think it's pretty great stuff. Will it cure every imbalance overnight? No, but it will definitely speed up your recovery. Besides, most of the time injury is chronic, not acute, because we are a nation full of "full tilt boogie, I haven't got time for the pain" diehards and that means it didn't get that way overnight. We don't want to feel like a bunch of wussies, after all. So grin and bear it, dammit!
NOT! In the end we are all built pretty much the same with a few differences. You must honor your body and it's delicate balance. Be kind to yourselves, believe it or not, you deserve it. Take care of your body, it's the only one ya get!
Until next time, thanks for reading!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Let's try again
Wow! Sorry for the extended sabatical, but it was necessary. Last year was a rough one. It was rough for a lot of people I know, as well. However, this year started out pretty tough with the loss of my oldest friend, Tigger. She got me through a lot of heartache and hard times, especially when I was on my own. She never questioned anything and all she ever really wanted was to just fall asleep on my shoulder or the crook of my arm. She just slept all the time for the last week of her life. In fact, the only time she was awake was when I had to force a pill down her poor little throat. That felt particularly awful to me. Her kidneys were shot and she had developed a heart murmur. So goes the cruelness of aging. She would've been 18 this month.
I've also been nursing an injury that got insanely out of hand because I, like so many athletes I know, just ignored signs that I needed rest. I suddenly heard what I tell everyone when they get sick or injured resonating, rather loudly, in my head, "If you do not take time to recover, rest and heal, your body will eventually force you to stop". Well, I finally took my own advice only after hurting myself so badly that I couldn't walk without pain. I've been seeing a sports therapist who has been doing myofascial release on my lower body. We've gotten great results and I have no pain except for this inflammation in my heal. Ah, I just love progress. Again I'm hearing myself say to massage clients, "It didn't get this way overnight, so you need to be patient and gentle with yourself because it's going to take awhile to disappear, too". I'm signed up to do Ironman Louisville and it's very spooky to see a lot of similarities with 2009, which was a good year. It too started with an injury that I was very diligent in the healing process.
Okay, so let's start some good news! Yaaaaay Good Neeeeews! I now have a website. It's a work in progress and I'm learning a lot about the technology side of things. Well, it's a lot to me. Nonetheless, Chris White, 3 Wire Designs, designed it and it's fabulous! I feel so professional and organized now. I feel like a...like...ahhhh...what's that word? ADULT!!!! Yes, I feel like an adult. At least a little more than I did. Seriously, you should check it out: foreverintraining.com
I'm so excited about it. There are all the services we offer listed, some recipes and a link to this blog. Did I mention it's pretty snazzy?
My good friend Erin Taylor (she and her husband are co-owners of a fantastic local running store called Go! Running) has started a group of supportive and inspiring women called the Go! Go! Girls. I've met a lot of great women in the last three weeks and the bonds of friendship between women is so necessary for our longevity. We went out and supported at the Little Rock half and full marathons today. I've never been on the spectator side of this event and it was an incredible sight to see all those people working hard to reach their goals. We cheered and yelled and clapped and stomped our feet for everyone and had so much fun! It was such a different perspective to look into the eyes of those runners, every shape and size, from every walk of life. I wanted to give them what I know I need when I'm a participant. You need to feel like you're being lifted up and carried when you start to think you can't take one more step. No one realizes really how vitally important it is until you've been on the the other side. There is no half-assing the support of someone giving all they've got right in front of you. They need you to be a lifeline or you don't need to be out there at all!
I will end this blog entry here and try to be back this week sometime. I will be taking a seminar next weekend. So hopefully I'll have my brain in gear and learn a lot.
Time forge ahead and soak in the essence of what will be an epic year...2011!!!!!
Thanks for reading.
I've also been nursing an injury that got insanely out of hand because I, like so many athletes I know, just ignored signs that I needed rest. I suddenly heard what I tell everyone when they get sick or injured resonating, rather loudly, in my head, "If you do not take time to recover, rest and heal, your body will eventually force you to stop". Well, I finally took my own advice only after hurting myself so badly that I couldn't walk without pain. I've been seeing a sports therapist who has been doing myofascial release on my lower body. We've gotten great results and I have no pain except for this inflammation in my heal. Ah, I just love progress. Again I'm hearing myself say to massage clients, "It didn't get this way overnight, so you need to be patient and gentle with yourself because it's going to take awhile to disappear, too". I'm signed up to do Ironman Louisville and it's very spooky to see a lot of similarities with 2009, which was a good year. It too started with an injury that I was very diligent in the healing process.
Okay, so let's start some good news! Yaaaaay Good Neeeeews! I now have a website. It's a work in progress and I'm learning a lot about the technology side of things. Well, it's a lot to me. Nonetheless, Chris White, 3 Wire Designs, designed it and it's fabulous! I feel so professional and organized now. I feel like a...like...ahhhh...what's that word? ADULT!!!! Yes, I feel like an adult. At least a little more than I did. Seriously, you should check it out: foreverintraining.com
I'm so excited about it. There are all the services we offer listed, some recipes and a link to this blog. Did I mention it's pretty snazzy?
My good friend Erin Taylor (she and her husband are co-owners of a fantastic local running store called Go! Running) has started a group of supportive and inspiring women called the Go! Go! Girls. I've met a lot of great women in the last three weeks and the bonds of friendship between women is so necessary for our longevity. We went out and supported at the Little Rock half and full marathons today. I've never been on the spectator side of this event and it was an incredible sight to see all those people working hard to reach their goals. We cheered and yelled and clapped and stomped our feet for everyone and had so much fun! It was such a different perspective to look into the eyes of those runners, every shape and size, from every walk of life. I wanted to give them what I know I need when I'm a participant. You need to feel like you're being lifted up and carried when you start to think you can't take one more step. No one realizes really how vitally important it is until you've been on the the other side. There is no half-assing the support of someone giving all they've got right in front of you. They need you to be a lifeline or you don't need to be out there at all!
I will end this blog entry here and try to be back this week sometime. I will be taking a seminar next weekend. So hopefully I'll have my brain in gear and learn a lot.
Time forge ahead and soak in the essence of what will be an epic year...2011!!!!!
Thanks for reading.
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