Day 310: Magnesium

Starting my day at the gym.

 Need. This. Everyday!

And I repeat:

I need to start with exercise every morning! I have been slacking.  I have been distracted by the need to practice for many performances.  I have been in pain. It has been raining.

But these things are almost constant now in my life. I am a musician. I have performances. Hence I need to practice. I live in Portland, Oregon. Hence, the rain.

I hurt all the time. But I would rather be sore from exercise and know that I am making  myself healthy, then just be sore from whatever this is that is ailing me. And if I do not exercise, I will become weaker and flabbier and heavier...sigh.

I just found out that my father has Parkinson's disease.  The irony. That is his last name.  We do not know how long he has had it. Before the stroke? Did the stroke bring it on?  But he does need to exercise. We are all ganging up on him to at least insure that he walks daily.

So I will have to walk my talk!

I must give myself credit. These last few months of slacking, I have been doing daily yoga. Usually twice a day. And I walk.  I am a commuter, so I walk to the bus stop and from house to house on my piano teaching circuit.  However, as I have mentioned before, I usually have a large bag or backpack full of books, lunch, tea, stickers for students, etc. It slows me down.

I went to the gym today out of desperation. My morning routine was interrupted. It is all good. I was contemplating getting vertical when I heard voices. Not inside my head. Loud, happy male voices coming from the kitchen. My son-in-law was hosting a bible study. So, I decided it would probably not be appropriate for his mother-in-law to come shuffling out to the kitchen in her flannel gown and slippers to put on a pot of water for tea.  Probably not so appropriate for me to do my yoga stretches in the kitchen while I waited for the water to boil. Also, most awkward to plop myself down at the kitchen table with my Bible, Beth Moore book, and prayer journal, because that is where they were congregating.

So I took a quick shower, said hello to everyone and hightailed it out to catch the bus to the gym. I had a nice workout and got to watch Dr. Oz talk about high glycemic foods.  This show was about low carb diets and how, although they were effective for weight loss, often contributed to constipation. Dr. Oz recommends lots of vegetable fiber, fruits (especially pears) and magnesium supplements!  Well that is the second time I have been advised to take magnesium this week - time to do some research!  And get some pears!

After the gym, I stopped at the little Mexican joint next door and had a small, black bean nachos and ice water. I did my prayer and bible study there.

Back home, I am practicing the piano and getting ready for a quick yoga session before I start out to teach.

I think the reason morning exercise works for me is that I am NOT a morning person. It gets my blood flowing and ready for the day. I like starting the morning with God by means of prayer and Bible study. But I tend to linger too long and then have to rush to get everything done.

There is a happy routine in here for me somewhere. I left a message for my doctor. I think getting to the bottom of my joint pain will help too.

But for now, here is my psalm of the day:  

Psalm 5.

Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation.

2 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray.

3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

4 For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.

5 The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity.

6 Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

7 But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.

8 Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face.

9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.

10 Destroy thou them, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions; for they have rebelled against thee.

11 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.

12 For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

Now I am wishing I had read this psalm before I started my day. Perhaps that is part of the key to my daily routine. Read my daily psalm BEFORE I get up to do my morning exercise. 

LIGHTBULB!!

Psalm 5 is considered a morning prayer.  In Halleys Bible Handbook it says:

"Beset by treacherous enemies, David prays and shouts for joy, confident that God will protect him. David must have had many enemies. He refers to them again and again. Many of the most magnificent psalms came out of David’s troubles."

I have many enemies too:

Sloth
Gluttony
Low Self-Esteem
Doubt
Irrtability

Just to name a few. I need to pray this psalm daily!

Happy Tuesday!