We Enjoyed A Mid Morning Coffee Meditation...
I am much encouraged by the response to my blog yesterday, that a tipple a day and having fun seem to be philosophies of life that work rather well and are to be embraced...
I am presuming it depends what time of day the tipple occurs? Maybe waiting until the day is done and an evening dinner drink is the way to go...?
Although of course I blew that right out of the water yesterday with a 3pm start...!
I was born in West Africa into colonial beginnings, where I grew up thinking that at 6pm everyone on the planet stopped what they were doing for a double scotch.
I do also remember, that there was a strict rule about the sun hitting the yard arm? Or was it the yard arm hitting the sun...?
Whichever way - it was no earlier than 6pm for that first drink!
(Post posting my blog, Anadi has 'researched' the 'yard arm' and discovered it to be a nautical term referring to the time the sun has risen above the first yard on a mast, and the first drink of rum wasn't taken til then... Which in the Atlantic is allegedly 11am!!! :) )
But right now, I am thinking Cappuccino - Cappuccino holds fun in its froth and lots of chocolate sprinkled on top!
I am writing this initial paragraph at 10.38 in the Law Society where I am meeting my friend Tim - the one who sold me at the charity auction...
For £500...!
It was an auction to raise money for the 'CCHF all about kids', of which Tim is a volunteer; it was his brainchild and the auction raised almost £15,000...
I am in the Reading Room of the Law Society, which is very lovely; very big, lots of space to meet up with business contacts, while still maintaining privacy of conversation.
High ceilings - a grandeur and dignity in its energy - a generous, yet composed, quiet room...
And it has a tempting coffee bar in the corner...
I will wait until eleven when Tim is due to arrive...
15 minutes later...
Tim arrived and had the same idea as me...
I discovered that the coffee bar in the corner of the reading room, did indeed provide very fine coffee!
We enjoyed a mid morning coffee meditation together...
This coffee meditation lead me to reflect that every moment of our life is our 'training programme', rather than planning a training programme to latch on to the rest of our lives.
I loved the 'Karate Kid' films and the way Mr Miyagi coached Karate Kid to triumph over adversity resonated deeply with me then; he applied his lessons to everyday life; 'brush up, brush down, brush sideways, wax on wax off' so that Karate Kid learned to trust himself, find his inner strengths and achieve his goals.
I was twenty five when Karate Kid came out; I was an international athlete and already a coach too.
I found the films helped my own development; both as an athlete and a coach.
I learnt that being present in everything we do, fully choosing it, being fully conscious of our every movement, allows us to go deeper into self awareness and self knowledge. This leads to mastery of self which is the most important thing, especially if we are to guide others...
Therefore even drinking a cup of coffee becomes a meditation, which can help us to be present in each step of the run as much as the running itself - or whatever it is we are choosing to engage in...
Every sports therapist I have seen has emphasised the importance of habitual posture; taking care to be aware of how we stand, how we sit; how we move from sit to stand; how we get in and out of cars and trains, buses and planes.
This echoes being conscious in every moment and of our movements; it is not just running or swimming or cycling that becomes a meditation on the move; but life is a meditation...
Later still...
I have just had a very powerful sports massage with Danny.
My Achilles tendon is so much better when he was working on it, that he thought it was the uninjured one...!
It has felt good today as I have walked about, and another outing into Central London saw me practicing more stair and escalator training!
I had decided yesterday to take today off running. I am keen to accommodate the extra stretch of yesterday and keep building up...
The fact that Danny couldn't tell one Achilles from the other feels to be a very good sign...
He then did a lot of work on my Psoas, which is often so described as the muscle of the soul. It is the central muscle that holds us up, so that we can stand and walk and of course run... but it can also can hold the most tension...
It is said to often be tight when there is a flight and fight reflex stuck in the body... Fear and tension from old wounds.
If the Psoas is tight then the body thinks there is danger around the corner...
My Psoas has been a area of tension over the years and my left knee trouble over the past few years seems directly related to the part of my body that still thinks there is danger...
The body holds all the wisdom if we care to listen; it is in listening to its messages in every step, that we can slow down and unravel pain and tension from the past...
This means our running shifts from any part of it being about running away from things in an attempt free up and to release tension, which is impossible anyway if we are running away!
Instead we can become aware of the hara, which is the centre of our being, located two inches below our navel, and run from this place.
If we run or walk, or sing, in fact if we live from here, then we are living and expressing from the core of our being; and to do this we have to release any tension that we are holding...
To become aware of this centre, it can help to practice throughout the day checking in with your body.. Asking the questions how am I moving? where am I holding tension? how am I breathing...?
Then placing your hands on the hara and breathing into this place...
Gradually, in my experience, being centred becomes the natural way of being, so that you will feel uncomfortable if out of your centre...
Running as meditation then becomes the natural state.
Danny treated my Psoas with very deep tissue release and I could feel the response to his touch radiating down my legs and up my body, even into my teeth!
He said that is is the radiating feeling is important, as that indicates release...
Six years ago, when I was running from London to Brighton, in the inaugural X country event, I slipped off a little wooden bridge across a stream about five miles from the end of the race...
My left leg went into the ditch and wrenched my groin/ Psoas...I have been working to fully heal and release the wound ever since...
Another position to look at this from, is that the accident happened because of the tension already there that needed to release...
And so the journey continues to release from our past pain, our karma, our deep held tensions...
So that we can run free and enjoy running consciously...
