“Alone again, naturally”

A night to myself, and I started it in the best possible way – by doing a dance workout. Happy me! When I started dancing, on 1 May this year, I had to work really hard, to get to 20 minutes. Now, three and a half months later, my dance sessions last at least 40 minutes.  I am slowly building up my fitness and endurance, my goal being to get to 60 minutes. 

As anyone who’s ever embarked on an exercise programme, starting from a state of extreme unfitness, would attest, the effects are exponential. Indeed. I think that anyone who’s trying to lose weight through eating differently alone is missing out on a very exciting journey – a journey of self-discovery.

As my body attunes itself to these new rhythms, I feel the ripples pulsing throughout my being. I feel myself growing more restless by the day. And I like it. I remember this feeling. And I remember the energy it releases in me.  It’s a wonderful energy, full of hope and excitement. Excitement at the prospect of change. I’m sooooo ready for that change!

This is how I view my life, right now: I could’ve stayed unfit and not started exercising, and my life would’ve stayed the same. But I made a conscious decision to commit to a new experience, to challenge myself and to feel alive in a whole new way. And I do. And I plan to take it further, inviting change into other parts of my life that have become stale, repetitive and unfulfilling. 

Just like my fitness is growing incrementally, so will my other changes not happen overnight – they, too, will evolve.  

What I’ve learnt, through my first challenge, is that, if I waited for others to make my life happen, I would wait forever. I have to initiate the change. I have to think it through carefully, make a decision, and then take that first step. I might be awkward in the beginning, but if I believe in myself and how right my goal is for me, I’ll take the next step, and the next, until I’m on a whole new path – one that makes me smile. And one that turns my heartbeat into a bossa nova.