Alone time

Last week was a whirlwind, partially because of the July 4th holiday, but mostly because my computer died. And when that happened, all was not well with the world.

I wish it didn't set my world on such a tilt, but it did, and I decided I needed to do something nice for myself, so I signed up for some yoga classes at Yoga 4 Everybody in Fairfield. My first class was a gentle yoga class last Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m., a time I find it difficult not to overeat. Not sure why, but after dinner is when all my best intentions go out the window.

I swear that gentle yoga class was life changing. My dead computer became just that -- a dead computer that is annoying, but something I can work around. I breathed deeply and stretched like I haven't stretched in years, and before I knew it, 75 minutes had passed and I was on my way home, looking forward to the next class I had signed up for -- restorative yoga on Friday afternoon, another bad time for me. Friday at 5 I am usually rewarding myself with my first glass of weekend wine. Again, another 75 minutes passed, and again, I was at peace with the world. Saturday morning at 7 I was at the beach, taking a class in Qi Gong and Tai Chi, and ever since, at least five times a day, I have been practicing the one pose our teacher asked us to perfect.

So I was amused when today's "meditation for weight loss" that I subscribe to, suggested I need to spend some time alone each day to develop an internal friendship with myself -- an important component of any weight loss journey.

It is something I really have not thought about before. But since Wednesday -- OK it's only been four days -- I am making better food choices because I want to, not because I feel I have to. And I am calmer, more centered, and really liking myself a whole lot better.

All this proves that an old dog really can learn new tricks. You just have to find the tricks that work. And of course, stick with them.