Be careful what you wish for 

This week I went down with a bad backache. My initial reaction was pure disbelief. The thing is I never fall ill. The worst I ever get is a cold – it’s often terrible, but it’s a known enemy. I’ve learnt to manage it. Besides, despite the cold, I can go about most of my chores. This time, however, one attempt at getting out of bed brought sudden tears of pain to my eyes and I promptly retreated with a tube of Volini and a hot bag for company.

I think I’ve mentioned earlier that I’ve been going for yoga this past year. I’ve been rather a reluctant ‘yogi’, so to say. Somedays I develop a random reluctance to doing the plank, other days I get bored with the endless suryanamaskars.

That’s not to say I don’t do them. I do. And, despite my weight (which I seriously need to reduce) I find I have more stamina, greater flexibility and fewer aches and pains than a lot of others. A result, perhaps, of having had an exercise routine all my life.

However, instead of being grateful for all of that and feeling a sense of achievement, I began to resent it a little bit. I resented the fact that people who couldn’t do it were getting away with easier/fewer exercises. I sound stupid even to myself as I write this, but that’s how I felt.

So the other day I was chatting with some friends and I said, half in jest, that what I needed was a good backache to convince our instructor to go easy on me. And BAM.. the very next day just as I was on my 12th or 13th suryanamaskar I pulled a muscle or something and that was it.

Mercifully the instructor helped me with some relaxing exercises and I could get back home. Once home I was confined to the bed with that excruciating back pain.

I’m better already, with just a lingering pain now. I’m enthused enough to go for the Pinkathon this Sunday, that’s tomorrow. I figured if 80 year-olds could walk their way through it, so could I. And then of course there’s the handsome man-behind-the-run to consider. So yeah, I’m going, bad back and all.

And I’ve learnt my lessons. Here they are:

– Be grateful for what you have.
– Nothing in your life deserves half-hearted effort.
– Enjoy your exercise routine.
– If you don’t, give it up.
– Pick up something you do enjoy.
– Oh and don’t try to sit on a beanbag when you have a backache. Go for that hard, straight-backed chair you’ve written off as ‘most uncomfortable’.

Beyond the learnings, there was another huge plus to this whole episode. I’ll talk about it in my next post. Do check back soon.

31 Replies to “Be careful what you wish for ”

  1. I hope you are feeling better now, Tulika! I never fall sick too except for my ‘kill-me now’ migraines. I’m almost immobile then. Workout injuries are the worst yes. I once almost had a slip disc trying to do a cartwheel, which I could easily do long long ago. Now, thanks to the weight gain I can barely touch my knee 🙁

    1. I am thanks Soumya. Wow you could do a cartwheel! That’s something. It’s hard to come to terms with the fact that you can no longer do stuff that you could once do easily! Sigh!

  2. I relate so much to what you say love, it has happened to me more than once when I had absentmindedly made a silly wish and repented later. Take care and congrats for completing the pinkathon. Next year, I promise to join you.

  3. I hope you’re feeling better now, Tulika! And the pink-a-thon too went well! Back aches are the truest enemies of all, I feel. I too have them once in a while. Happy to hear you!

    Cheers

  4. Ugh, has the lingering pain stop lingering? Workout injuries are the worst.
    And I *know* what you’re saying: I got cocky about never having fallen sick ever in my life and promptly contracted typhoid and possibly had the worst week of my life *eye roll* I’m careful about what I let slip these days.

  5. Oh no! Sorry to hear about the ache. You know that with my back condition, I get scared with even the mention of an ache. So I’m glad you are already better.
    Gratitude and full hearted attempt is critical and now that I’m changing my workout styles, I’m seeing the difference Yoga has brought to me. I’m practicing but now when I try other forms, the yoga helps me stay energetic and strong. 🙂 take care, Tulika!

    1. It’s about finding what you like to do. If yoga is your happiness that’s wonderful. In fact I do love some parts of it – I like that it has a cure for most of our routine illnesses and discomforts and I enjoy the peace it brings me. Which is why I am reluctant to leave it.

  6. Oh dear! That definitely does not sound like something you should wish for, although I get where you’re coming from. Sigh, life has a weird way of giving us what we want, isn’t it?

    Please tell me you did manage to rest enough? The one thing with back pain is plenty of rest and enough medication to help you ease out of it. Take it from someone who’s had chronic back/neck/shoulder problems for years.

    I admire your resilience though. I wouldn’t have even thought of the Pinkathon, Milind Soman or not 😉 So kudos to you for finding the inspiration 😀

    1. I cannot even begin to imagine how one lives with chronic back pain. In that one day when it was truly bad, I thought this was it – that it would never go away and that I’d never be able to exercise well again. So very dramatic! But it did feel like that.

  7. Damn! that is painful… Please take care. How many suryanamaskars do you usually do … I myself don’t do much… it gets quite boring 😛
    Glad you were able to complete Pinkathon 😀

    1. Exactly. It gets boring. I do about 30-50 on routine days. The target is 108 in one go, one day of the week. Even the plank gets boring. After about three minutes I don’t want to hold on any longer.

  8. Dear Tulika,
    I hear you. Someone rightly said, “Be careful what you wish for.” I have seen this pattern occur with me too many a times. It’s such a weird thing but it happens.
    But I’m so glad you nailed the Pinkathon and I’m sure you had oodles of fun doing so. I used to run the Pinkathons each year. Haven’t in the last two years. And honestly if Yoga does not stoke your interst anymore, opt for another form of exercise, maybe strength training. It helps tone up big time too. Also it’s a good idea to change our workouts, as the body gets bored of the same kind of workout and shows no progress.
    I’m so glad you are feeling bright eyed and bushy tailed now. :-)))
    Keep those spirits soaring.
    Hugs

    https://natashamusing.com/2017/11/been-there-doon-that-mondaymusings/

    1. I’ve ben thinking about looking beyond Yoga too in the New Year now!
      Pinkathon is fun. It’s not even a run, it’s an experience – there’s such bonhomie and happiness – that’s what I love.

  9. Awww! That must have been terrible! But, I am glad you are feeling better.
    I can so relate with you, Tulika! I, too, seldom fall sick. Just the odd cold, or cough, that vanishes as soon as I have my gharelu nuskhey. But, a backache – now that can leave me feeling almost dead! I hate it so! And, I have learnt that I will have to live with it. Too much bending led to my painful situation, because of which I can’t even do my fav suryanamaskars!
    But, I agree…think a hundred times before you wish for something. There are 36 crore gods and goddesses waiting to say, “Tathastu!”.
    Get well soon, dearie! And, get back to your Yoga big time!

    1. Ha ha.. I can just picture the crores of Gods waiting for me to wish something silly so they can say Tathastu! How come they turn a deaf ear to the scores of decent things I ask for?
      You have chronic backache? That must be terrible.

  10. A backache and exercise for unfit people like us are never far apart. But I agree with Rachna, we need to up the intensity of the exercise. I am trying for a couple of months but the walk regime is not showing results so time for a switch.
    Good to know you are better now.

    1. I read somewhere that a walk results in weightloss only if one walks about 7 kms at a really brisk pace. I’m not sure how accurate this is but I rarely go behind 5km so perhaps that’s the reason the weight is staying put. Plus there’s the diet.

  11. Ouch, that does not sound like fun. Backache can be so bad. Good to hear that you are feeling better now and could complete the Pinkathon too. So what if that hunky guy was your inspiration? 😉 A girl has got to do what she has got to do. Jokes apart, it is uncanny how sometimes we wish for the stupidest things and they come true.
    I can sense that you are in a world of confusion when it comes to your exercise regimen. As good as Yoga is with all the flexibility etc. it won’t help you lose weight. You need to join a gym, maybe for a short term. Find a good instructor so that you are regular and do cardio plus strength training. You will lose weight. Do try.

    1. I guess I needed to hear someone say this – that I need to go back to the gym. You’re right, I’ve been very confused about my workout routine. I’m trying all kinds of things but nothing is falling in place. And I’m failing to build a routine. Perhaps, in the new year I’ll have new plans in place.

  12. It happens Tulika.Howsoever, grateful we might be but there comes a point when things take a turn and gratitude flies off out of the window or it would be more apt to say we get distracted or uninterested. It is nice to know your backache has got much better and you also participated in the Pinkathon.

    1. Thanks Anamika. I was sceptical about the run but as it turned out, I ended up having fun. It’s so easy to forget to be grateful and take your blessings for granted. We all need a reminder sometimes and I got mine.

  13. Ah that sounds bad. Glad that you still decided to go for Pinkathon, The lessons are indeed food for thought. Wish you a speedy recovery Tulika

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