Last week, I received three gifts — and it’s not even Christmas yet! I got a new Fitbit, attended a new kind of yoga (for me), and adopted my first dog in seven years.
The Fitbit Charge 3 wasn’t a big change from what I’ve been using the past year — I’ve handed off my Versa and Ionic to family members and returned to the Charge 2 I’d been gifted by Fitbit two years ago. That’s because I found I like simple fitness tracking versus the more full-featured smartwatches. The Charge 3 has so far been a sleek upgrade on a two-year-old model, but of course with gadget upgrades come changes to the way you interact with them and control them so I’ve been on a learning curve with it. Watch out for my review in two weeks’ time, just in time for a Christmas gift for yourself. π
Last Saturday’s Puma #DoYou Hour went off around Metro Manila, and after a short hiccup with the traffic around Filinvest Alabang due to a running event road closure, I made it just in time to start the Power Hour ashtanga-based yoga class at Beyond Yoga Alabang. As someone who’s practiced different kinds of yoga for fitness off and on the past 11 years, not much was new to me — except for Ashtanga yoga’s use of headstands. I’ve always been wary of challenging my cervical spine, but the preparation was so good during class and I felt really strong through my upper body and core that I decided to try it out (under the teacher’s supervision, of course).
The gift there is that I learned I had the strength to do something I never thought I could — and that I finally had the courage to try it.
The final gift last week was the arrival of a new fur baby into my life. While my sister’s family welcomed a Shih Tzu puppy two weeks ago and I’ve enjoyed puppy-sitting duties, my aunt decided that my mom, my dad, and I also needed a furry companion of our own. So, she gave us the pup I have named “Calvin Klein”. (Props to you if you know that’s a Back to the Future reference!)
I had a dog back in 2011, a Labrador Retriever I named Ashton. Unfortunately when we moved to a small condo from a large house, we had to leave him with a family friend who could accommodate large breeds. I haven’t had a dog since then because our condo rules prohibit leaving pets unattended. Well, since now I work from home, I guess I can take care of one again…
Having Calvin around is an adjustment for sure, for this huge reason: it’s a living being other than myself! But taking care of an affectionate little creature instead of feeling sorry for myself is a huge deal for my wellbeing. Admittedly, I’ve had more success keeping dogs alive than succulents and cacti, but you still can’t just leave a dog to his own devices. (Still trying to housebreak him, huhuhu) But taking him for walks has certainly helped me up my Fitbit step count. I wonder how Calvin would react to me doing some yoga and a handstand? π
