The Rebuild

 After a very busy last year, I have recently entered a time of physical and spiritual rebuilding. As is usually the case, this was prompted by necessity. I developed patellofemoral and IT band syndromes in March, my right rotator cuff continues to bother me when I exercise, and my headaches have become more frequent and severe the last few months. I have also recently felt less spiritual direction as a result of the busyness of life crowding out my time for meditation and reflection. So it was clear that it was time to hit the reset button and, in the words of Joe Biden, "build back better."

The most pressing issue I have faced this year has been headaches. My triggers include sleep deprivation / deviation, improper pillow alignment, teeth grinding, chocolate, sugar, and gluten. So I have continued to wear a dental night guard and try to get good sleep, and have found a good pillow for me. I've also started seeing a chiropractor and a great Chinese medicine doctor, Burton Moomaw. According to the chiropractor, my scalenes are weak and my posterior neck muscles are tight, so I'm working on that. Burton has counseled me to avoid my triggers more consistently, avoid cold water, alliums, and spicy food, drink less coffee and more tea, and eat more zucchini, rice, bone broth, sprouted seeds, and mushrooms. So I've suspended my long-held skepticism of alternative medicine and tried to start doing all that to see if it will help. I've also gotten a few acupuncture treatments, but the jury is still out on how helpful that will prove to be for me. My headaches have gotten somewhat less frequent, but I'm still getting them once or twice a week.

This summer, I had hoped to program my own workouts, but that quickly proved to be ineffective. I lifted weights once a week at most, without a logical approach or progression. So I met with a physical trainer last month who gave me a few specific workouts and encouraged me to try to work out 3x/ week. My body could initially tolerate only 2x/ week, but after a month of consistent workouts, I am getting closer to that goal of 3x/ week. All of her workouts involved only dumbbells and kettlebells, which I would have never programmed but which has proven to be easier to accomplish in the living room while taking care of an infant. At 17.5 pounds, Eliza is actually a perfect weight for me to use for front raises and side raises, and she loves being a part of my workouts! I also modified the lifts into resistance band exercises and started doing band workouts at work. Finally, I'm also seeing if I can get away with taking creatine supplements for the first time in a decade, though it has proven to be a headache trigger in the past.

Another great thing has been that I have found a running partner (who also happens to be my dermatologist) who is generally free to run at 4:45pm on weekdays. When it's not too busy at work, Michael and I are able to catch at least a few miles on the Greenway, and we plan to start doing interval workouts together soon. He has a goal of breaking 5 minutes in the mile next year and I like to do intervals as part of my triathlon training, so our goals overlap nicely. Plus, he's a great guy to talk to about life.

My spiritual life has recently been enhanced by two things: kayaking and the Tao Te Ching. Thanks to Mindy's support and encouragement, I have been on the river 7 times so far this year, and recently started being able to roll my kayak (which is a major kayaking milestone). But I've realized that the goal of kayaking is not to see how many rivers I can run or how technically proficient I can become, but simply to be present in nature. And there is nowhere else in the world that matches the particular kind of beauty found on the rivers of southern Appalachia. A major bonus is that I get to do it while hanging out with a few great guys-- my friend Nathan in particular. The experience of being in nature with friends is not a means to some other end, but an end in itself.  Which has been a truly powerful revelation for me. 

My interest in the Tao Te Ching dovetailed off my foray into Chinese medicine, but it's been a longtime goal of mine to dig deeper into Eastern philosophy and religion. Stephen Mitchell's wonderful translation of the Bhagavad Gita really sparked this desire when I came across it a couple years ago, so I finally ponied up and bought it along with his translation of the Tao Te Ching. Both translations are beautiful, inspired, and seem to be in a league of their own compared to other versions I've encountered. The approach to life highlighted in those ancient texts offers some of the deepest wisdom humans have ever uncovered, and I hope to be transformed in much-needed ways from the time I spend contemplating their truths. Though my mother tongue will always be Christianity and my most foundational text the Bible, I'm very motivated to learn and experience complementary ways of seeing the world.

Though I'm just starting the rebuild, I'm hopeful that I've sparked a flame of physical and spiritual growth. And there's no time like my favorite season of autumn to get the fire of personal transformation going.