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Friday, March 30, 2012

Drugstore haul

After four years as a beauty writer, it has become second nature for me to poke around in drugstores whenever I travel to see what interesting finds I can unearth. So, while I was in Melbourne visiting my sister last week, I made a beeline for Aussie drugstore chain Priceline.

The three products I bought aren't exactly glamour items like lipstick or perfume but could potentially be extremely useful for certain skin emergencies. I don't think they're available in Singapore yet, so those who are going Down Under might want to stock up on them.



Wednesday, March 28, 2012

On commitment



As I kick off this new little project of mine, I thought it would be fitting to start with a post on another commitment I recently made.

One style of yoga which I particularly enjoy is ashtanga - basically a 90 minute long sequence of flowing postures. Since I left my day job a month ago, I made a promise to myself to attend an ashtanga practice every Wednesday morning at 1015am. My studio only holds a few ashtanga classes a week, usually in the morning, so I could never practice it as frequently as I would like, until now.

I love the sheer physicality of moving constantly for 90 minutes without stopping to rest. Because the sequence of postures never changes, I'm able to chart every small victory I achieve since I have a benchmark from my previous classes.

I still vividly remember the day half a year ago when I was finally able to jump from a downward dog position into a seated position (And to think I once could not even visualise how I would be able to maneuvre my body through this sequence). This morning, my instructor helped me into a headstand, a big achievement for me since I've never dared to do one without a wall behind me for support.

But much as I love this practice, there are many times when I've been tempted to skip class so I can laze around a bit more. My brain is incredibly nimble at coming up with all sorts of excuses ranging from jetlag to being unable to wake up. Sometimes, even when I've made it to the mat, the first few sun salutations don't go well because my joints feel creaky and I find myself regretting the decision to put myself through pretzel twisting agony.

Then, at the end of class, after I've battled with my lousy thoughts for the entire session, when my mind feels refreshed and energised, my body feels limber and lighter and I might have made a little progress in mastering another pose, I suddenly realise that the sacrifice was well worth it.

And really, that's what I think yoga is about. Being able to balance gracefully on one leg or having a lean, strong body are great perks but the biggest lesson I've learnt is to fight through the self doubt and difficulties to get to the end point. Someday, I hope I'll be able to accept life's trials and tribulations with grace but in the meantime, I'll keep going to Wednesday morning ashtanga classes.