flexagon | Aug. 2nd, 2014

That's been my week. So many things have been so very wrong. (You know what I liked this week? KITTENS AND HANDSTANDS. Nothing else.) One thing I did do, though, is lots of handstands -- two days, I did nothing for workouts but handstands. And lots of rolling out my hamstring on a lacrosse ball. I'm not sure yet, but stubbornly doing 10 straddle-ups a day might actually lead to getting better at straddle-ups. I only catch my balance on about one in ten, but I like knowing that. When I fall down, I can be like "that's one of today's nine, good, I'm putting in my reps" rather than "I suck".

I was pleased yesterday morning to return my tweaked knee carefully to squits; I thought my left knee would be up for half a pistol workout or so, if I was careful. Sure enough, it started aching just a bit on the fourth (last) set of pistols, and then I touched my splits down on both sides. All this makes me feel good about my body -- it heals! -- and about my understanding of it. My pullups are slowly coming back too, though nothing like they were after more than 2 months off.

I'm really not as badass as I used to be. I think I'm working out less -- Wednesday, Friday and sometimes Monday are my only twice-a-day days now -- and I really am far more focused on skills now than on strength. Is that okay? I feel needlessly bad-tempered and rebellious about it, even though nobody else could possibly care. Like: I can be more into balance and flexibility if I feel like it. Free country. I can even be more into handstands this year than partner acro.

And as for handstands? I catch my balance on one out of every two kickups now, which is phenomenal (though I'm not saying I always wiggle around into having good form; I often fall out while trying, after the initial balance-catch). I caught myself on video kicking up, going into a double stag, and rotating into the other double stag.

I haven't been talking about these things to my friends, so YOU get to hear all about it, LJ. You can be bored to tears if you need to be, it's okay.