[ The Happiest Candle ]
[ Black berries // black nails ]
Here’s some food for thought:
A friend of a friend visited Shanghai recently. She came back from the trip feeling crazy-inspired.
Why?
Because in the city she visited had many outside parks with gym equiment ( think stretching machines, Ellipticals, Treadmills, ladder climbers, etc. ). There were people in circle dancing and practicing Tai chi & yoga-like moves. There was music and laughter, and tons of movement.
People were also walking around the park massaging ( aka hitting themselves lightly ) their lymph nodes as a warm up.
Side note: waking up the lymph system gets rid of excess fluid, bacteria, viruses, and cell waste. They act as check points along the passways of the vessels. And when they’re working well, we feel strong, healthy, and energized ( << a post to come on this ).
Here’s the weird thing though: some people were even smoking cigarettes while they were “working out.”
This is SO interesting to me because in America we think of working out/exercising as a chore. A task to cross off our to-do list. Our hour to sweat it out. We plan our yoga class or our barre workout.
But why not making body movement a way of life? Just something you do whenever/wherever. I mean, these people don’t seem to think of movement as “working out.” They think of it as a daily activity— they just do.
Hence why some of the people were smoking cigs.
To them, smoking cigarettes while exercising is just like walking and smoking or sitting and smoking.
It’s no different. Because exercise is just a part of their whole day, including their smoke breaks.
So! I guess the point is working out doesn’t have to be such a chore.
Incorporate all kinds of movement throughout your day- make it more of a lifestyle and less of a daunting task that’s annoying. Live Shanghai-style ( sans the cigs ).
Oh, and naturally today I was walking around lightly hitting myself to engage my lymph system.
Weird? Yah. I D K.
<3 L
[ Just the cutest ever ]
[ A San Diego sunset at my absolute favorite restaurant, Mister A’s ]
[ Yesterday’s ‘mocktail’: sparkling water + pomegranate seeds & lime ]
Interesting and yet strange. You would think that if exercising and health was so ingrained in their society that perhaps the benefits of not smoking (and likewise, the dangers in smoking) would also be recognised.
Still, respect.
Smacking lymph nodes???? I must research this further…
I know, right? It’s like an oxymoron. Very, very bizarre!! LMK how your lymph research goes :-). Xx.
This is a great post, really interesting 🙂
Sophie
http://what-sophie-said.blogspot.co.uk/
xxx
I love the picture of the paw!
I encountered many MINI DELITES this weekend. My mother was in town, had not seen her for 7 months. Now she is gone and I certainly miss her 🙁 But I cherish the moments I Have with her.
Love your martini glass in the last photo!
Great post! But now I’m dying to try that mocktail…yum!
I love that! In Thailand its the same working out and walking everywhere is just the way it is. They have gyms in the park and walking trails with clear pathways its truly a beautiful way of life! Thanks for sharing 🙂 love + shine Courtstar
Cute mocktail! I live on seltzer water, but adding some seeds & lime and putting it in a cute glass definitely makes it more special than drinking out of a can! Haha. Love your Mini Delites posts.
Loving the mocktail, so chic 🙂 Simple everyday luxury.
♡: Anni
I love the term ‘mockcocktail” you make it seem just as inviting as a glass of bubbly 🙂 Can’t wait for the deets on lymph system functions. And the candle…. I have to have it!
I live in Shanghai! Cigerettes are (at most…the imported ones) $2 usd. And you can smoke in public places like art galleries or university classrooms. It’s bad for health but they are much less strong then the ones in America. And often for migrant workers it’s the only pleasure break from manual labor since it’s cheap and promotes socialization. There aren’t any real anti-smoking campaigns since the heads of the government all smoke.
Anyways I think what I’m trying to say is while it’s not a healthy habit, it’s just very different here.
That’s so interesting about the people in Shanghai! I can’t imagine seeing people puffing away in the middle of a beach bootcamp workout here, haha.
I HAVE however seen a few older Asian women doing those massaging/tapping exercises at the park near my house….they were not smoking though 🙂
Hahaha. Love that you spotted this! ESP love that they weren’t smoking. X
I try to do lunges all the way to the bathroom at work and everyone looks at me funny and says it’s unprofessional LOL!!!