Well, dear readers, the party’s over for me. No matter how much glucosimine and antioxidants I pack my meals with, my legs aren’t getting any better.
Recently, my brother came for a much anticipated visit, as we hadn’t seen eachother in two years! He is in the physical therapy/sports medicine field so I thought he would be an authority to declare me “falling apart at the seams at a young age.” What the root of the problem was not a dislocated hip from a car accident years ago like I thought, but an impacted hip brought about by sitting on my rear! You heard it here first. You can actually do more damage to yourself by NOT exercising. Yes, I literally broke my butt! What’s the glory in having an interesting injury like that? What tale would I tell?
It wouldn’t be: “Oh, the limp’s nothing. I got it running the Boston Marathon. They told me not to enter that morning, as I had just saved a small town from a rabid bear the night before. I got a medal for my injuries anyway.” It would have to be: “You see that mean hunk of Walnut? That’s Old Dan, the meanest library chair this side of the Mason Dixon. You see that hairline crack in the wood? Old Dan is lucky after I had my tangle with him. I may limp, but normal people don’t get out of that alive”
The remedy he gave me was to – you guessed it – exercise. Daily eating habits are, of course, critical in this whole equation, but you can only eat yourself so thin and so healthy unless you actually get off your rear. I started out with very light ankle weights the first couple weeks, and some simple stretches, but I am getting a bit bored with it and am moving on to the next level.
Since I am a Apple-Cran-Grape Juice and Neopolitan ice cream indecisive kind of gal, I think XFLOWSION would be perfect for me to try. It is not just martial arts, its not just yoga, and its not just a dance class…it is everything at the same time. At first I thought it was for people like my mother-in-law who bakes a cake at twice the temperature in half the time because she doesn’t have the time to wait around. On the contrary, it is not about cramming more of your day into as little time as possible. The change in intensity and movement actually gets you beyond that “plateau.” When you have gotten in better shape, but have hit a wall, it helps you break through and gain muscle town, or lose those last five pounds, depending on your goal.
Eric Paskel is not just an everyday gym guy. He is an athlete, of course, but he also has a background in psychology, and really has worked out a system that keeps people motivated. I may just be his biggest challenge, as my brain is always multi-tasking and on to the next thing while I am supposed to be doing something.
Secretly, what motivates me to do it more is because Shape magazine called it the “Strangest Workout You’ll Ever Love.” I don’t usually do what the magazines tell me to do, but if its “Strange?” I’m in! As you know from reading this blog, I am far from cookie cutter.
I am really excited to start as soon as I get the tapes.

(At left “It’s Just Little Old Me” who baked this cake!)
I used to love getting the tableside “Caesar Salad” making service. At some upscale restaurants, usually Bananas Foster is another dish that is made tableside. You might not expect someone to come to your table and make drinks, however.



