To this….in just 10 years – and what have I done that compares…?

In June I will be 49 and this little one has been integral in me finding myself, my body, my happiness and my peace with and within the world. We are our children, ourselves, and our bodies.

We were in Amboise last week.  We took a short road trip to see castles in several towns in France.  What we gloriously stumbled upon (since we do not procure tourist maps or really even plan much in advance of our departure) was a lovely town where Leonardo De Vinci passed his final days.  He lived in a modest castle that was connected – by way of an underground tunnel – to the larger, more grandiose castle of Frederic 1.  Maybe they would sneak away and invent really cool stuff.  Da Vinci was incredible and this museum – his former home – is devoted to preserving the context of his genius…nature.  Da Vinci was inspired most by nature. The grounds of his home are beautiful, sculpted by nature and textured by weather. The curators even went so far as to recreate mist, steam, cloud cover on the lower lying lawn and pond to evoke a sort of natural mysticism that one could imagine Da Vinci enjoying in early morning. It was beautiful.  Strolling the grounds however, I found my favorite thing of all – HUGE reproductions of his body sketches stretched over circular canvases. I found the perfect legs. Usually I see them on cyclists from afar, sculpted as they press and pull on bike pedals.  These were mere and humble sketches of a genius.  They made me want to run…literally run…to achieve such gorgeous legs.

So I leave you with the thought, the image, the unfinished vision of our own perfect nature…

While in London recently I went to Bootcamp Pilates in the East of the city. Fortunately it is a 3 block walk from where I was staying so as I walk I get to see all of those racing cyclists I previously mentioned.  It gets the blood going just watching “commute pursuit” as we used to call it in Cali. Bootcamp Pilates is based on a military-type, non-stop, cardio series of exercises on a reformer, all executed within 20, 30 or 40 second intervals. As one of 10 women in the 7am class, suffice it to say I was both winded and wobbly when I left. A handsome hunk of an instructor walked the isles of reformers with a stopwatch and a sparkle in his eye describing the position and movement of each exercise, smiling as we all “hup-to’d” groaning discreetly under our breath.  It sure makes it easier to look at a handsome and built instructor while one is suffering.  It makes me wipe the suffering right off my face – and smile back. Try it: www.bootcamppilates.com. I guarantee you’ll like it.

While in Porto last week I was staying downtown in a hotel that had a sad exercise room from the 80′s – if then.  Instead I chose to go to the back courtyard and do plyometrics and old fashioned calisthenics.  I found the courtyard as my room window was immediately above it. Despite the very european clay tile roof view, this funny little boxed in area reminded frankly of places I have seen in China (and likely would have chosen as an exercise venue). The area was small and ruddy and seemed appropriate for some old fashioned ruddy exercise. Mission accomplished, I was glared at by the old man (must have been 180 years old) who shuffled out to sweep after I gathered my things to leave. I realized he was letting his chickens out to run in the courtyard.  I guess I was in a modern day coop?

I’ve enjoyed my years of exercising in new and strange places. I was once photographed by security cameras in the back stairwell of a five star hotel in Hong Kong where I had decided to ‘run the stairs’ like we used to in LA.  Not the same at all.  The air was stiflingly hot – as I recall it was July. I did get exercise as was evidenced by my soaking wet clothing, but I was more amused by how entertained the security guards were as they looked at the strips of film that captured my arrival and departure from every floor landing, up and down the 23 flights of stairs. They were howling with laughter when I said I intended to engage in the activity in order to get exercise.

And so the stories go in my quest to fulfill my daily rituel of health and fitness…enjoy yours too.