go forth and ....

Arrgghhh… I dread the days that I am the only one at the pilates class! He kills me. Normally if there are a couple more - preferably kids or ladies in the class, it make s huge difference. The trainer’s attention is diverted and you can generally cheat a bit by a doing  few reps less and by not going all the way in the exercises. But when you are alone, he is focus is on you and you alone. He tries to push you to do more and do right. He counts the reps properly and waits in the middle if you stop. Oh man. I don't know how people love personal trainers. I hate them. I refer training is a smallish group.

Today he made me do all sorts of things. And the big one! I can do the bakasan! This is a crazy asan. You first squat and then you put your hands in front of you and then slowly you lift your legs off the ground. And then you glance like a freaking frog but just on your hands. This is a tough thing to do. You try to push your legs so that they rest on your elbows and you try your best to stay there without falling front or back. When in the class they first showed it to me to do it, I was wondering if that was even possible. Why was he showing this to us - we cant achieve this at all! Slowly slowly overtime - I saw my self improve. One day I realized it was possible and that it required to get off your legs slowly and from the tips of your toes. I balanced for a fraction of a second. This became my new BIG ONE after the chakrasan! Slowly slowly I got more control on the asan. Today was a big moment. I could do it without the trainers helps and could hold the position for more than 5 seconds. Steady man Steady….

Wonder why its the crow pose - it should be the Frog pose!

but yes - after the workout that I cry to go to every morning I felt much better and fitter. I think it fundamentally aligns the body and keeps it fit. So yes - next Tuesday you will find me again at the place, trying to look like a frog who is actually a crow.

Jispa is now in the 8th standard. She now follows the IGCSC curriculum. So she has a choice to make - “should I do computer science or art or drama”. Now thats a weird choice to make. In many ways i think thats bucketing the students between the type of student they want to be. But hell, i don't mind whatever she takes. I said do what you want to. I asked what all they teach in each. After hearing her out I was ok with whatever she choose. “Art should fun”. “but is computer science like the right thing to do. Computers are all important and all, nah?” she asked me. Sure they are important. I have always maintained that computers are important along with math. But in this case I told her “listen kid, it really doesn't matter. sure computers are important but what is more important is that you enjoy and like what you do. Do whatever you enjoy. Computers have exams at the end of it, and that can be painful, i understand. Plus you are not really interested in it. When I was your age, I too did not understand the value or fun or future potential of computers. I did not know and I did not care. If you don't like it too much, its cool from my side. You do what you like. Art is fun and so is dramatics. I would have taken dramatics if I were in your place. Take art if you want.” Jasmine was clear - don't take art if you are going to get any art home work. with Jispa’s swim schedule, there is no time for any extra homework, which Jasmine will end up doing for her :) . I continued “Also understand, math is important but to a level where it allows you to choose what to do. If in the end you give it your best shot and you don't like math then thats cool as well. We drop it. If you like, do geography, do history. In fact I would be so happy to have you do history and we would discuss this stuff and WW2 together.” . “ya? What would I do with a  history degree”. “i don't know - be a teacher, write a book, do some research, or become museum curator I guess… Whatever. Do what you like and what interests you at the end of the day. And in the end - you can always do your marketing MBA and become a marketing manager”

 Wow - I was so proud of myself for having this conversation. I always wanted to have this conversation with her. Go forth and conquer. Just go forth. DO anything, try picking one thing that you like and that one thing that you think you are good air and where you find your passion. We can figure the rest!

Faltu bonus song - just to prove that I am still cool because eI listen to my daughters choice in music and thats whats plays in the car when we all go. She has her songs on the cell phone which then plays from the bluetooth. Cool. I am too cool.

Wake up Dandu

When we were growing up the standard reading diet for a teen was Archie Andrews. This was the ultimate American Dream being lived by all of us growing up. A place where you could date multiple girls and where boys and girls could wear their hearts on their sleeves and you had a hang out joint where you met friends had high sugar high fat stuff to eat and drink and generally hang out and a really cool school with a track and field team. When Karan Johar made the smash hit ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” in (i think )- 1998, the first part of the story was a really cool set up  where the college was straight out of an Archie set up. he admitted to it as much. One protagonist with two women, each lady very different from the other. One was the tom boy who Archie really loved but did not know, the other was the bombshell who Archie desired but was not meant to really love. One boy straddling two women together at the same time and getting away with it. The ultimate urban love story.

In Archie it was Betty who wrote a diary regularly and it always started with Dear Diary. It brought about a personal recollection of stories and happening through the day as betty told her diary. Her diary was a living friend whom she spoke to, whom she fooled sometimes and used stories to explain her view. She never cried into the diary. The diary was always a fun friend to whom a lot can be spoken.

It had fired imagination of us kids and writing  diary was a cool thing to do but i don't think anyone had the patience and discipline to write in it everyday. I think i wrote one post or one rant or something. But nothing really much more than that.

I am reminded of that today as I write my post today and I was wondering that I never did write any blog addressing to my blog as Dear Blog. My blog has not been my friend or my confidant in that sense. It was been me talking to me, or a speech to someone or a chat with Jispa. Its not been a place where i share my intimate secrets or thought process. It is an open source of my learnings. Its a weird thing as compared to a diary.

Blogs came into fashion long ago and now are out of fashion. I think easier creative experiences and sharing of one’s woes, happiness and other emotions are easier on Facebook or Twitter. And to add  - it can be done with a simple photo of ones experiences through the day. Anywhere and everywhere. I think the rise of Facebook has been the demise of the blog. And more than even sharing - its the act of discovery that these social sites make easy. Easy if often equated with lazy and i resist the temptation of calling it lazy discovery. Every generation sees its next having a easy time over what it found a difficult thing to do. Its just easier and that is something they cant understand and hence the standard moniker is to call it lazy! Kids are so lazy these days and its all this new tech thats spoiling them! But I think its not the same thing. I think they may be getting more sedentary but that is different from lazy. They just do different things. Not that I support sedentary. It has its own share of issues to be tackled with. Sedentary activity causes really bad muscle behavior. Like - take the example of my nephew.

I joined pilates class for my back and to strengthen my core. I do my fair share of cardio with enough badminton through the week, but its the core thats getting missed out in the process. The back and tummy area that doesn't get enough attention. After joining here I realized that its also the shoulders and upper arms also that need attention. My legs have always been strong and muscular, its my upper body that needs works. And thanks to this i have seen myself toning up a bit. Its nice to have a slighter fitter 40 year body than what i had when I was 35. Stamina, strength and muscles are a complicated set of things, all acting in different directions. All must be taken care of.

So after joining here, I have been talking and trying to convince whoever I can about the benefits of this exercise. Once I had a chat with my nephew from Jasmine’s side of the family. I saw him putting on weight and a paunch to match. He was only in the 12th standard. The guy is complete slob. We call him ‘dandu’ after his surname “Dand”. So dandu was growing a tummy and had a real ugly body structure. A thin boy with an ugly paunch. I urged him to start some exercise. I told him about pilates and how I am loving it. His mom too wanted him o go and get some blood flowing. Dandu boy was a real sloth bear. All he would do was hibernate and vegetate. he would only be the champion in things that required him to do while sitting down. Jispa and me joke that this is an old Dand trait. They sit and relax, thats what they like to do. Eat fatty foods like cheese and milk and sit. Activity is lost on a Dandu. So when dandu agreed to come the next day morning I was surprised. Waking up was one battle and waking up to get blood flowing was another big death and rebirth. The next day he did wake up and come. Seeing him exercise has been an amazing experience. I cannot believe how a kid his age, who is not FAT can be so unfit. He cant touch his toes or even do basic stretches. He cant even basically imitate the actions of the instructor. He cant his basic leg exercises or stretch his legs. he definitely cont even do a plank let alone hold it for some time. He is a complete disaster.

I knew that was the last of him and he wasn't going to continue so i was surprised when i saw him in the next class. Then again - one more class… and again. He became regular!. It just been under a month since the boy has been coming but slowly he has started to like his class and he comes in by his own and wonder of wonder - his mom loves that he wakes up on his own at 6.30 am for 7 am class. WOW - thats an achievement of ‘dandunic’ proportions. Unthinkable.

So when i describe dandu and his horrible workouts to Jispa, we have a laugh. But overtime, i say that I also add - this boy has got my serious respect. He knows he is bad. He knows he is pathetic and he knows that in the end he can give up. But he still comes and still tries. He comes in at 7 am to push his body to impossibilities of a plank position. he wakes up on his own. Seriously he has my respect. So while he is absurdly funny while working out, he is still in my eyes worthy of respect of the highest order. I am bettering fitter than him. i have an incentive to wake up - rather an IMPERATIVE to wake up. i have to take Jispa to the swim lesson. Then i have another incentive - i have a bad back which i have to work on. Then i have always been fond of sports and work outs and I love exercise. None of these apply to Dandu. He has no such imperatives and yet he comes. He comes.

of course it early days yet. Hardly a month. But still within that I see no complains and no resistance. He is trying and its tough on him, but he smiles at the end and somehow he is enjoying it. Wow.

I think if by some slimmer of a chance if I reform one Dandu from the family and get him to move his butt, twice a week in the morning, that would be a magnificent achievement. Its going to go on my CV! Go dandu go. For God, For Country and for your double cheese burst pizza. Go.

Bonus - my instructor doing his stuff for youtube!

he wants to be have a six pack in a few months and a hand stand in 12 months. Amen to him!