I’m not sure I’m Sarah Connor quite yet, but it’s true: I’ve been pushing myself. At the gym. In yoga. When I climb. I’m still new to climbing, so I continue building my strength and endurance. But, overall, I have to say that in the last few days, I’ve notice a significant increase in my stamina and ability. Even in the look of my arms and legs. The feel of my abs and back. My hips continue to open and expand. My heart is expanding! It’s exciting!

I’ve been struggling with boat pose (paripurna navasana) during acro-yoga warm ups the last couple of months. Usually, I laugh it off (literally, which is probably why I can’t always make it upright to complete the pose!), because acro time is playtime and we try to keep it light and fun and informal. But, I rarely take boat pose when in my own practice (and it rarely come up in class practices), so my personal trainer included it in my routine as one of many unit practices to strengthen my core. I’ve finally (mostly!) nailed it: I start seated, lift up into boat, hold it as long as I can, control back down into almost a corpse pose (savasana) and back up into boat; repeat three times. (I usually practice this pose on a BOSU balance trainer, which is much more challenging that practicing on the mat.)

The climbing gym has been an experience I wasn’t expecting. There’s not only a physical challenge for me, but a mental challenge, which includes figuring out the routes (or “problems”), facing my fear of heights, my fear of falling and visualizing myself reaching the goal rather than psyching myself out to climb down or jump off. By the end of my two hour playtime, I feel fairly well-rounded:  I’ve overcome a fear or two. I’ve zeroed in on what I’m doing in each moment (concentration–important for me to build).  I’m using positive reinforcement in myself to accomplish a goal. And, If I’m bouldering with a partner (switching off for spotting), I’ve complete three or four routes. And, like acro-yoga flying poses or flows, some of the bouldering routes I must attempt two or three times before actually figuring the best climb for me to reach the top; I have, essentially, completed a puzzle. Admittedly, some routes I’ve given up on by the end of the night, to be tried another time! But I do have more successes than failures, which is encouraging. My hope is to some day monkey the wall.

In July, a small group of us are camping out on the coast for a couple of weekends. I’m going to try surfing for the first time (I know, right!? ME? SURF! Nuts.), have lots of acro playtime and just kind of take in the peace. I’m looking forward to it. Surprisingly, I haven’t (yet) turned crunchy!