"If you keep at it, one day something which at first appeared impossible will become merely something very difficult indeed." – Danny Paradise
At the beginning of last year, I began a quest for killer abs. I did not enter into this quest lightly. It was something I had thought about doing for more than ten years. I had started before, but I never could become motivated enough to see it through. My desire for this quest began in a very auspicious way. I have told the story before, but it is worth repeating. When my wife Stacy was about to turn 30 years old, I asked her what she wanted for her birthday. She said "killer abs." I got very excited as I imagined how hot she would look until she could see what I was thinking and quickly added, "not on me – on you."
So I decided 2008, a little over ten years after her original birthday wish would be the year she would finally get what she wanted. I was really serious about it so I bought an exercise program called P90X. It claims to be a revolutionary program designed to transform the body of any committed participant into the best shape of its life. We are talking ripped city. I was excited as I began the process and then very sore for nearly three months.
On the fourth day, Tony Horton introduces the P90Xers to Yoga. I had never done yoga before. I saw it on a TV channel once and thought it looked easy enough. It didn't look like something I would enjoy, so I never bothered trying it. If you look at the picture I have posted below you will think that it looks pretty easy to get into position. I discovered very quickly that it is very difficult. At first I hated it because I could not do it. I stuck with it, because I was committed to getting "killer abs". Even though I could not see the connection. The extreme yoga in the P90X workout is 90 minutes long. That is a long time when you are doing balance moves and lunges.
As time went on, I began to enjoy doing yoga. I listened to the instructions that Tony would give us about clearing my mind and forgetting whatever else was going on in my head so I could focus on the present moment. I also began to learn about the spiritual origins of yoga. I found it very interesting in so many different ways. I looked forward to Thursdays because it was Yoga Day.
Balance postures are a big part of the yoga experience. My body didn't do balance very well at first. Slowly but surely I gained the ability to position my body in difficult postures and remain balanced. My key to doing this was to think about something else and to breathe. Even though they were difficult positions, I found myself improving and getting better all the time. If I focused on the move or posture, I was unable to do it, but when I let go and just breathed things fell into place.
As I focused on the balance part of yoga I also began to see my life differently. In yoga there are moving options that require different levels of balance. I noticed that being in motion made it more difficult to remain balanced. This is when I started connecting it to my life. I could see that my life was constantly in motion. As a father of seven children there is always some place to go with one of my children. My business is constantly on the go and I travel all over the world which makes it difficult to maintain any sort of regular pattern of life. I have responsibilities at my church that need my attention. I am constantly learning and developing my individual talents. Stacy is the center of my life and it is sometimes difficult to make her feel that way. I am always in motion and I need to have balance in my life.
If I ever pause to think about everything I have to do, I find it very easy to become overwhelmed. So I don't, I think about what I value and I align my days with my aspirations so that I am living every day to the fullest. It is amazing how much time there really is in the day to be who I really want to be when I know who that is. The balance comes to me by being in motion and by keeping my perspective focused on what I really want.
I know that some people say that creating balance in life is impossible. I would say that is very difficult but not impossible. It takes work and a commitment to quality. I cannot guarantee quantity for any of my commitments, but I can guarantee quality. I have spoke of quality before so I will just say that I have learned that quality comes from being present in the moment. I can not be thinking about the past or the future. When I do, I fail to deliver quality.
I love yoga now and I think I will do it for the rest of my life. I can get lost in its practice. When I began, 90 minutes seemed like an eternity. Now it seems like a small moment in time. I still can't do it as good at the picture above shows but little by little I am making progress.
What Does Balance Mean To You?
I always am interested in finding out what you think. It helps me learn from you and I love to learn. What do think about life balance? Is it possible? What do you do to create it in your life? Make sure you comment before leaving.
Oh by the way – I got those killer abs and it was worth every minute of my exercise regime. Maybe someday I will post a photo in one of my posts.
Life is good!
Andrew Thorn
760-559-3548
andrew@andrewthorn.com
