I’m Learning To Listen To My Body — It’s Pretty Hard Sometimes
Lesson From Flu, Overexertion, and Gluttony — All At Once
I've spent the first 9 days of 2019 nursing some sort of flu.Yup, the sort where your nose is stuffy, eyes watery and everything hurts.
Not exactly the best start to the new year.
Exhibit A: Stuffing my face
You’re supposed to be raring with wild, unbridled energy, ready to take on the new year with the enthusiasm of a 5-year old.
After all, I’ve just spent the better part of the last festive month gorging on spectacular brined turkey, slabs of marbled prime rib slow-roasted to perfection and gorgeous, creamy soups over several gatherings and what-have-you.
I was sick of the sight of food.
The food turned from a beautiful work of art into something revolting. My gut was bursting at the seams and I could eat no more.
It was completely my fault.
I had ignored my body’s constant cries for help, it’s screaming through a red-hot megaphone turned to 11. If I could translate my body’s signals and noise, it would probably go something like this:
“STOP EATING YOU DIMWIT YOU”VE ALREADY EATEN ENOUGH FOR 3 PEOPLE”.
Cue nausea and feeling like Baloo the always-sleepy bear from Jungle Book.
Yup, this is what happens when you don’t listen to your body’s clear-as-day signals.
Exhibit B: Working out while having the flu
You’ll think I would have learned my lesson.
But no, I put my body through the same rollercoaster ride just days later.
I dragged my feet to the first work day of the year, cursing that the prolonged festive break was over. To give myself a ‘treat’, I signed up for a power yoga class, determined to burn off the pounds gained over the last two weeks.
There must be some concession for people who feel disgusting even if it was self-inflicted, right? But I later started feeling the tell-tale signs of the flu coming on.
Stuffy nose? Yup.
Temperature all over the place? I think so
Feeling like a wrecking ball is making rhythmic contact with your skull? Ugh.
That probably means I shouldn’t go to an active yoga class and I should rest at home, correct?
Cue the justifications; the innermost battle between logic, reason and your egoistic self:
“You need to exercise, you haven’t been moving much for the last few days”
“But you’re sick!”
“You’re going to forfeit your class!”
“But you’re sick!”
The reckless side won out, of course.
And instead of feeling at ease in my skin after yoga like I usually do, I felt terrible.
I had to be confined to bed the next day.
“Listen to your body”. What the heck does that mean?
Looking back, all these seem so obvious:
- Don’t do stupid shit like going for an intense yoga class when you’re running a flu
- Stop when you feel full
- If something feels wrong, don’t do it
But still, we persist in pushing our bodies past their limits.
Maybe it’s an acquired habit from long distance running. In long-distance running, you subconsciously train yourself to ignore the pounding in your heart, the dull ache of your shins as they pound the pavement. You learn to shut off that part of your brain that yearns for comfort and pain-free life. You tell yourself that your mind is bigger than your body.
Or maybe I’m doing it all wrong.
It’s barely 10 days into 2019 and I’m already learning:
When your body gives you clear signals that something is wrong, you better damn well heed those warnings.
This year, I’m working on listening to my body:
Stop eating when full.
If your body screams at you, you listen.
Fail to listen and you pay the price.
