mind – Page 4 – Personal Euphoria: Pilates & Fitness Classes in CT

Strength of Speed

I’m not sure that everything in life relates to this, but I have certainly found it to be the case since I’ve joined a Dragon Boat team. The faster we paddle, the slower we move. The problem is, we are moving fast, but not getting much strength behind each paddle. When we paddle slower we get more for our effort. Still, it’s hard to convince people to go slow. Our minds think the faster we move our bodies the quicker we will go.

More and more in life, I am finding this to be the case. When I try to rush through things, […]

Strength of SpeedMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:10-04:00

Dragon Boat

On Tuesday I joined a Dragon Boat team in Hartford. You can visit the team’s site on Facebook, if you’re interested. Over the past few years I’ve had two clients recommend joining a Dragon Boat team. It actually fits into my schedule since I’m an early riser, and since I teach in the evenings I can’t join most team sports.

And quite frankly lately I’ve been really missing being part of a team. When I was in college I played field hockey and did theater. In both there is a team and a group of people working together to achieve the same goal. I miss that. Plus, it’s a fun excuse to get a workout with a group of people.

So Tuesday, I set the alarm clock a little earlier (we meet at 6:30am–really, not that bad) and went to my first practice. Now, I had no clue what I was getting into and I wasn’t that good. I couldn’t even keep time with the rest of the boat, let alone do the exercises properly. Being a […]

Dragon BoatMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:14-04:00

Don’t Be Afraid

Pilates can be confusing and awkward both for the new participant and someone who may be familiar with Pilates but is learning something new. However, if you start a new exercise nervous and afraid of doing it wrong, you start the exercise with your whole body tense. That won’t help.

So I know it’s hard sometimes to relax, but next time you learn a new exercise (whether Pilates based or something else) just try not to worry about whether or not you’re doing it right. Let your body feel how it feels. It will feel different in your body–no one has the same experience or the same body. By noticing what it feels like, you’ll learn how to do it right.

To this day there are some exercises I struggle to do perfectly. But it’s okay. It’s not about doing every exercise right. It’s about learning about your body and working to the best of your ability that day.

Plus, the only person watching you do the exercises is your instructor and I can guarantee they were once in the same boat too.

Don’t Be AfraidMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:32:14-04:00

Chicago–The Bean

When I arrived in Chicago to visit my friend Julie, one of the first suggestions she made was that I go see “The Bean” in Millennium Park. A park of modern sculpture didn’t sound like a very good idea, and a sculpture that looked like a bean sounded especially terrible, but Julie was pretty insistent so we went.

The moment I saw it, I knew why she wanted me to go. It was my favorite part of Chicago (which is a really cool city). The Bean is giant and looks like a giant water drop distorting the view of the city and everyone who looks in it. It’s reflective, but not made of mirrors and in some places you can see eight reflections of yourself.

The Bean was wonderful and a good reminder that sometimes we need to stay open minded. I assumed I’d have no interest in it and then wound up loving it. Sometimes we don’t know ourselves as well as we think we do, and often we don’t truly understand something until we see it with our own eyes.

Chicago–The BeanMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:35:24-04:00

Giant Pumpkin

So I planted five giant pumpkin seeds with the thought that if I planted five one might survive. I assumed one would never sprout, one would die when I moved them outside, one would get eaten by something, one would do something unexpected and we’d wind up with one really large pumpkin.

I planted the seeds with a bunch of other wildflowers and sunflowers. A day later everything else had sprouted. A week later everything was at least an inch tall. I was bummed–none of the pumpkins seemed to make it.

And then yesterday, two pumpkins sprouted. And today all five have sprouted and one is an inch tall. It’s growing so fast. So so far, I haven’t lost any in the sprouting season. I’ve realized I’m not sure what to do if all five pumpkins survive and I have five giant pumpkins. I guess like life this story is to be continued. For now, I’ll just be excited about my little sprouts and not worry about the future.

Giant PumpkinMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:35:25-04:00