As I monitored my recovery each day, the link between today and yesterday was unmistakable. A long, stress filled, low hydration day was an early indicator of poor sleep and an even poorer recovery. As I talked with a friend about the carry over impact of one day to another, his advice was to break the cycle each night.
“What do you do on good recovery nights? Whatever that is, repeat the same every night!”
It was an interesting challenge. My quest began with observing and understanding the action(s) which are part of my recovery. It wasn’t enough to just focus on good nights. No two were precisely the same. What threads bound them together?
On the most stressful days, the evenings preceding a strong recovery often includes at least one vinyl record. I have a habit of breaking the connection to the day by listening to old school jazz. Art Pepper, Sonny Rollins, and Oscar Peterson are frequent choices, although Maury Paich has emerged as a go to artist of impulse more recently.
At some point during the evening, I will disconnect from the immediate and find myself meditating. It could be in total silence or with meditation inducing music, rarely is it a conscious choice. I have come to appreciate the value of responding to a whispered invitation to let one’s self go in the moment.
Time near the end of the day will include a steam. Short or long, intense or casual, hot or hotter, steam will come into the picture. It is a final step that ensures one has let go and embraced a time of recovery.
The routine is not mandatory or required. Nobody is policing and spying on me to see what choices I make. I do know the outcomes that will follow if I do. It is as if I am living an echo of the psalmist’s observation; “You’re blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God” (Psalm 119.1) You will recover and wake to a new day filled with opportunities and possibilities.
