In addition to getting in a few runs, I've been doing Yoga 1.5-2 hours every day and walking 3-5 miles every day with Victoria in the evenings. I slacked on the sit ups for 5 days in a row, and a few days last week, and I promise you that my belly instantly became soft again. It's so unfair, how quickly my body loses it's form. The good news comes from the world of Yoga. I am getting back into yoga shape and able to stretch and bend in ways I have not in over 2 years. I am good at strength Asanas, but have to be so very careful about hips and hamstrings stretches. Astanga feels like literal therapy for both my mind and body. In running, you are trying to extricate a performance (at all cost) from your body. In yoga, as you move, you must remove pride and quiet your ego in response to what your body says back to you. The stillness of it forces you to listen; instead of you telling your body to shut up and do what you say. So as time goes by and I incorporate other activities into my fitness life, the running is becoming less important. In terms of health: Running is like eating raw kale, Yoga is like eating warm boiled potatoes, and walking with Victoria in the evenings feels like eating my favorite sesame candy from the health food store (it's kind of good for you, but mostly tastes like candy). My arms are looking strong from the yoga, so that's nice. But my son grabbed ahold of the skin that now bulges over between my armpit and sports bra on my back and asked "what's this!?". I didn't know how to answer him. Letting go of what (for me) was physical greatness has been a humbling. I am trying to be grateful for what I can do--not focus on the pain/ache in my hip or worry about my 10:30 ap when I do get out to run. | 