The Balancing Act

My idea of breaking a sweat used to be a run around Kapiolani Park or 30 minutes on the eliptical machine at the gym. After about 15 minutes of aerobic activity, little beads of perspiration would form on my forehead and after a few more minutes of effort I'd break a good full sweat which was easily wicked away by whatever sports jersey I was wearing. If it was a Kapiolani Park run, I would usually jump in the water at Kaimana Beach and swim to the wind sock. If it was a gym workout, I would just jump in the shower to wash away the sweat.

I am an O blood type. According to my Naturopath, type O blood is the original blood type. It's the hunter/gatherer blood type. As such, like my hunter/gatherer predecessors, my body functions best when I can give it intense physical activities. Basically, I need to sweat. Now, I'm not saying I'm a huge exercise freak. On the contrary, when my Naturopath told me this info, I asked her if I could just sit in a sauna instead. Her answer of course was, "no."

These days my sweat producing activities are a little different. Instead of going to the gym, I find myself walking around the open area of the cabin looking for big rocks in the grass that may get caught in the mower blade of the tractor. Instead of swimming a few laps, I'm swinging a hammer or pulling on a buck saw. I like that my exercise is now part of my daily activities. I like that I can't find where I packed my sweat wicking running clothes, so after a few minutes of work my t-shirts are soaked and sticking to my body. I like that I probably smell slightly off when I pick up Bodhi from preschool. There is something gritty and real about breaking this kind of sweat. As an educator for the past 15 years, the most I sweated in my daily activity was probably a slight nervous perspiration at the beginning of a class I hadn't prepared for.

Sometimes, when I am on the land working, I think about my hunter/gatherer predecessors running around with clubs and spears chasing down a woolly mammoth or some other large creature, and I somehow feel connected. I've spent a lot of years of my adult life learning the importance of being sensitive and being in touch with my feminine side. What I'm realizing recently, is that it's also incredibly important for me, for balance, to beat my chest and go, "Unga! Unga!" It's fun to pound on things and to chop things. It's fun to pick up large rocks and throw them out of my way. It's fun to sweat profusely and possibly smell to high heaven. It's fun, to just get my man "on."

"Unga! Unga!"