Inversion workshop I

Through great good luck I found out that Eliott from my studio was doing an arm balance workshop yesterday -- it wouldn't necessarily have been an inversion workshop except that Eliott loves handstands. I'm doing an inversion workshop (actually an inversion workshop) with Ana Forrest next weekend at Back Bay Yoga, so I feel especially lucky in my handstand training lately. This balances my bad luck in being sick all week, and therefore really weak. :b

The best thing we did in Eliott's class is practice falling out of handstand into wheel in the middle of the floor. I didn't really straighten up into my full handstand before falling, just came over with knees bent. Up and... thud. Up and... thud. Up and... thud. It was rather cathartic, actually. I still wonder why gymnastics people caution against doing it that way, while yoga people caution against cartwheeling out and rolling out. All three ways seem okay to me. The gymnastics ways do seem lower impact as long as a person is good with working with momentum, but I'm getting better at falling into backbend and I certainly see it as a legitimate way out. It probably helps that I have a pretty comfortable wheel.

I haven't whined yet on LJ about having a slightly torn hamstring. :-( It's my right semitendonosus, for those who really care. The massage therapist wants me to go to physical therapy, where the badly healed-up fibers in the muscle can be ultrasounded away and where they will give me exercises to do. Also, I'm supposed to not be stretching it too much. It's hard for me to feel the difference between the good stretch and the bad stretch, so I may just take this opportunity to focus on other muscles for a while. I suppose this could screw up my annual stretching pictures in March... only the hamstring ones though, and healing up properly is more important. Goddamn hamstrings.

I'm still strongly considering NASM peronal trainer certification. I have a friend who will do it with me if I do. We're about to start up another technical book club at work, so I might be studying a lot this spring.

Yay, we saved the earth!

I'm proud because heisenbug and I just bought $100 worth of groceries without using a single plastic bag. We've been carrying backpacks for years, but lately we've also started carrying a couple of 1bagatatime.com bags, which have been sold all over town lately for $2.... they really make a difference in how much we can buy before going plastic.

Now, if only I could remember to carry them when buying things other than groceries.

Things I could do with a NASM personal trainer certification

• Nothing, beyond applying what I learn to my own workouts.
• Do personal training 1 day a week, possibly by trying to switch to four 10-hour days at a software job.
• Learn more about the fitness industry.
• Get better street cred as a gym owner if/when I decide to buy that gym.

I think I think I think I'm gonna do it! Eep.