Hello friends! It’s been a while. I haven’t seen most of you in person since the first few days of March. Just a month ago, I was on an incredible journey in Peru, hiking the Lares Trek, visiting Lake Humantay, exploring Machu Picchu, and spending every day outside, trekking through the Andes and breathing in the fresh mountain air. But in the words of Ferris Bueller: Life moves pretty fast. I got off the plane and went into isolation for two weeks, and since then I have only left my house a few times to teach and get groceries. I know how that transition feels for me–going from an exciting, bucket list adventure to lockdown, from one of the most physically challenging experiences of my life to not always wanting to get out of bed each morning, and I expect even if you weren’t just traveling in South America, you’re probably feeling a bit out of sorts, too. There’s so much to wrap our heads around right now, and without the strong delineations in our days of going to work each morning or dropping the kids off at school, of taking our favourite classes or meeting our regular clients, without that structure and routine, time can begin to lose meaning.
I feel fortunate that each of my weekdays has begun with me teaching a class or a one-on-one session for the last few weeks. Even if I’m fighting for space with my family, trying to keep that one corner of one room “camera ready”, I have something to look forward to every morning. And that first session with a client was extra sweet for us both–she was starved for outside contact and a little break from non-stop parenting, and I was so happy to get back to work. It’s not the same, of course, trying to find the right angle for your phone or laptop, or correct someone’s form without being in the room, but it’s what we have right now, and the connection to one another is a wonderful reminder of what the studio is for both me as an instructor and the clients who think of it as home.
One of the upsides of this whole experience is that I’ve had the chance to take a lot of classes myself, from teachers I love, at times I’m normally unavailable. Moving has been important. Moving has been VITAL to feeling okay in a decidedly not okay month. And after speaking with some of my Saturday morning regulars, the big thing I’m hearing is that people don’t feel like they’re moving enough. It’s important to carve out a little dance break each day! So whether you’re walking around the block, taking your dog out for a jog, or sprinting to the end of your driveway and back, I’ve put together an eclectic playlist on Spotify, an hour of music to get you off your feet–old songs and new–and I’ll be sharing a few exercises on social media that you can add at the beginning, the end, or in the middle of your walk or your run to mix things up. During these days that never seem to end, let’s use a little of our time to move! ~Pam
Spotify Playlist: COVID-19 CARDIO Go Your Own Way
Spotify Profile: soarconnection
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