Showing posts with label Flatirons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Flatirons. Show all posts

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Spring Snow in Boulder

Mist shouds the Flatirons after a spring rain turned to snow last night in Boulder. Earth, plants, trees soak up the moisture thirstily--it has been so dry for so long in Colorado and the previous 18 inches of snow a little over a week ago had pretty much melted. I'm always grateful for snow and rain after memories of one terrible summer of drought when we used "gray water" collected from the bathtub after showers to water the flowers and watched our lawn die. Water is one of the essential life forces and should never be taken for granted. Water is gentle, yet strong.

"Water is fluid, soft, and yielding. But water will wear away rock, which is rigid and cannot yield. As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong." - Lao-Tzu (600 B.C.)

Friday, January 26, 2007

Mountain's Edge

When I finally realize my life depends on it, I choose Mountain’s Edge fitness club because it's two minutes away from my house, and I figure I will have no excuses for not working out. But as dumb luck has it, the ambience is great. The walls are painted a certain blue that makes me happy (the same color you see highlighting my blog site). When I climb the central staircase to take a BLTS (Body Lean Training System, weight training) or T.A.C. (Total Athletic Conditioning) class, then come back downstairs afterwards feeling like I’ve accomplished something, right above the stairs is a blue and white painting of the Flatirons* that always gives me a sense of well being.

There's energy in the air. I see all ages and types, from young, incredibly muscular, tattooed men to silver-haired seniors. I go to the 6 a.m. spinning class on Thursday morning, and find that the bikes face a huge west window overlooking the snowy Flatirons. As I spin in the class listening to “the kind of music KBCO plays--no 80's,” according to the teacher), I imagine riding right up the mountainside. Peggy, the kindly and humorous instructor, understands my awkwardness. She cheerfully helps me get seat and handlebars adjusted and my toes into the toe clips. During “Peggy’s Moment of Meditation” she suggests we think about a goal while spinning to the song she plays, and I get into that so much with my eyes closed that Peggy has to come back and check me out to make sure I'm all right.

I am not in good shape right now, so going to the club and doing the classes is a repeated exercise in humility. My goal is not to be extremely athletic, or even to lose weight. My goal is to retain as much strength and flexibility as possible and be able to walk and move freely as long as I live. I want to be a spry old lady.

Motivation is my biggest challenge now. My work schedule doesn’t easily let me work out during the day or in the evening. So it is either weekends or 6 a.m. classes for me. Wish me luck (or actually, wish me self-discipline)!

*If you don’t live in Boulder you probably don’t know what the Flatirons are. They are three foothill rock formations just west of Boulder, each flat and tilted, and they can look magnificent – never more so than when they are dusted with snow or glowing pink as they reflect the morning sunrise.