Know Thyself

It has been twelve days since my surgery, which required serious abdominal incisions, which all cut through muscle tissue.  The largest is several inches long right above my pubic bone, and it's amazing how much you use those muscles for everything... even talking!  I felt very prepared for this surgery in terms of my mental preparedness and physical fitness as I've been doing P90X and other Beachbody routines for over two years.  I anticipated being able to heal well afterwards, but what I didn't expect was how well I really "Know Thyself".  Allow me to explain what the heck I mean by that...

When I first started P90X, I really got serious and did the program and followed the nutrition to a T.  By the end of the 90 days, I had dropped over thirty pounds and achieved 13% body fat, but more than that, my body felt like a machine.  Every activity I did, I felt like each muscle in my body was working together as a unit... each part knew its role and played it well.  After surgery, I expected it to not be different, but I wasn't expecting how tuned into my body I was.  Even two days after surgery, when I began stretching, I was aware of every muscle that was engaged for each movement.  This fact allowed me to progress with more and more movements during last week with some slow Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga (http://bit.ly/98mZpH) until I was able to complete an entire P90X workout last Saturday, just seven days after major surgery.  My first time with P90X Yoga X was amazing; I was fully focused and concentrated on my breath, my body, my abilities, and my limitations with respect to my healing areas.  (Now, this in and of itself was quite an accomplishment, because I am ALWAYS thinking.  It is nearly impossible for me to clear my mind for any length of time.)  This was a completely different feeling.  I was dialed into each muscle, each connective tissue, each breath.  I could push and test myself without risking injury to my healing areas.  With these keen sensitivities, I am able to do at least one more thing each day that I wasn't able to do the previous day.  In fact, today I was able to do test three positions in P90X Ab Ripper X, and I am 12 days past surgery.  The surgeon, during my postop appointment yesterday, indicated that I'm ahead in the healing process.

Today I did P90X Shoulders and Arms and then did Patience Hummingbird Yoga with a newbie to Beachbody.  She really did great! I didn't realize she was as flexible as she is! (Nice job Ange!!!)  I will continue to hone in on my body, assessing my abilities and limitations, which I believe will continue to help me not only in the healing process but even afterwards when I am healthy and continuing to improve in my physical fitness. (Are you every really as fit as you possibly can be?)

So, Know Thyself... whether you're healthy now or not.  Being aware of your body and knowing your body will help prevent injury and facilitate a swift or quicker-than-usual recovery.  Your body is a machine- treat it well by knowing HOW to do so and you will find yourself at a completely different level of fitness.

Bring it!