I'm standing by the window where the light is strong.

These bruises from hula hooping give a whole new meaning to the line, “I hurt in the places where I used to play.” I have to admit that I am less enthusiastic about going back than I would like. Hopefully, by next Sunday, they will have faded and I won’t feel like a walking punching bag.

The front of stomach and my right side are covered in a smattering of little bruises. My left hip has a large purple bruise. My right hip has a small bruise. My right thigh has a small bruise.

I admit, it scares me a little. The last time I was bruised like this, I was on blood thinners, and I didn’t consider the consequences when I rode a rough wooden roller coaster. That trip resulted in a brief hospital visit to confirm that I hadn’t done any serious damage to myself. This time, since I haven’t been on blood thinners for years, I’m more concerned that I am so incompetent at hula hooping that I may, possibly, have bruised a rib. Embarrassing.

My gym time this morning was short and low impact. I did 33 minutes on the elliptical machine and some stretching. This is probably my shortest workout in months, and it does remind me that I still have some of my “all or nothing” mentality about working out. I had to talk myself to the gym this morning because I was “only” going to have 30 minutes for my workout, and what good is that? Seriously, brain? This is exactly the kind of thinking that I am working on weeding out. My gym is less than 5 minutes from my office. Yes, it’s a pretty long drive from my home – about 25 minutes, but I have to make that drive anyway.

Here I am preaching about the joys of intuitive movement, and I am still fighting my own all or nothing thinking for exercise. I’ve tried to tackle this issue head-on. DH and I play in the pool most nights when I’m home. I also didn’t wear my HRM to hula hooping since the class is supposed to be a “play time” for me. I love the feedback my HRM gives me. I love seeing that I am in the best aerobic shape of my life – that it takes longer to get my HR up and it decreases faster. I love that it helps me get off the treadmill and out into the world. I also love that it gives me an opportunity to do interval training and run for the first time since junior high. But, I don’t want to be tied to it either. I don’t want to worry that every movement has to “count.”

I knew that I needed to workout this morning. I needed to loosen up my sore muscles from Sunday and yesterday. I also committed to my personal trainer that I would try and increase my aerobic activity since my focus has been strength training. I also knew that I was adjusting to being back to work after 9 days of sleeping in and that I needed to make sure that I got enough sleep. So I did both.

I feel pretty good now. My bruises hurt, of course, but I feel like I got a good workout and an excellent stretch. While I can’t do anything about the bruising, I can still prepare myself for next Sunday’s class by working out my soreness, practicing my movements, and treating myself kindly. I will get better at hooping, and I will have fun doing it.