Living in Motion

Fell right into a drain half a full-sized monsoon drain a couple of days ago making me literally sluggish, depriving me of jogging and strenuous physical activities. Bruises on my right knee went deep and an anti-tetanus injection made my left arm swell rendering it helpless, mercilessly helpless.

I was watching Oprah the other day about an interesting topic of how women (or men, even) are so perturbed about their weight and how they look that they keep putting on and subsequently losing pounds only to be, in the end, still unhappy about their appearance. Which got me thinking. Am I doing the right thing? Constantly obsessed about where my weight is going, and sometimes I am almost at wits end if I don't get that regular dose of endorphins. Is it all worth-while. Well, truth be told, it was, especially after you're able to fit into that pair of jeans stowed away. One that was boxed away, to be pulled out on one such miraculous event that one can finally fit into. That feeling of accomplishment is almost unsurpassed, glorious and elating. But really, it is only worth-while that particular moment. The goal of exercise and a healthy diet and all that effort shouldn't come out of self-obsession rather it should be a product of, ultimately, leading a good life. No one wants to be morbidly obese because most-often it cripples motion. Every living being on Earth besides vegetation thrive on their motility; if we(it) are(is) incapable of motion, we(it) cannot survive. Why motion? Because a task as simple as walking includes five muscle groups namely; the quadriceps, the hamstrings, the adductors, and the soleus. And for animals, motility is a question of being a predator's next meal (predator AND prey, regardless).

You can't walk to the kitchen to get a drink; well let's just say if you're a lonely morbidly obese spinster incapable of walking you're in for a slow and painful death...

For other more capable people, motion is, in many ways, living a life that is worth-living. The simplest things in life, taking a walk in the park, running to hug a loved one, playing with one's children, a swim in the pool, dancing (especially for me); all these tasks require us to be motile; the more efficient the better. Of course how one looks can be just as important to some people. But to me, for now at least, is to be able to dance topless on stage and not look revolting  (odissi male dancers usually perform without covering their upper bodies). If not a Greek-God body, at least the average odissi male dancer torso is all I ask for.