Breathing and Balance

B
Breathe. Breath. Breathing.
So important to remember. Yet so easy to forget.
That's why I had "Breathe" tattooed in Chinese characters on my right shoulder. Just above the Angelfish.

Learning how to breathe efficiently while running was the first test. Really learned that back when I was at the Academy and training for the Marine Corps Marathon. Gosh, that was November 1990! Finished it in 4.5 hours, too. Now relearning running breathing again because I have this insane goal to run Disney Half marathon in January 2009 -- gives me a year to really learn how to breathe.

But yoga is where I have really learned about breathing. Erich Schiffmann. Gianni started studying yoga with him in L.A. in the early 1990s. As usual, I was a little late to the game and didn't start practicing yoga until December 1999. And then I only did it so that Gianni and I could do something together.

Now yoga is really a part of my lifestyle. From "hot yoga" Bikram, to Ashtanga, to Vinyasa and Amrit. Doesn't matter where I do it, when I do it or with whom. Well, actually, it does matter who is teaching. My practice has suffered recently because our yoga studio has suffered growing pains and is now moving. I never realized what a great yoga teacher Erich was until we went to a 3-day workshop with him in Austin, Texas, and then again in Phoenix.

The trick for me now is Breathing. Yoga breath vs. Running breath.
Different. Equally as important.

Breathing and Balance. That's where I'm at now. Trying to find balance in my life. Between running and yoga. Between work and play. Between giving and taking.