As an addendum to my post on New Year's resolutions, I offer two biggies that I came up with at a belated Christmas potluck. Our small group Bible study's celebration had been snowed out, so we moved it to this past week, and I was musing with our friends there about our goals for this still fresh new year.

I told them that in my adult ballet class, we always end the stretching time with the splits, both front and side. Now, when I say "we," I mean anyone but me. Because, my friends, I cannot do the splits. Either way. And feel that perhaps I was not made to do them.

I floated this idea out to my friends -- that God had stitched me together with tighter inner thigh muscles than was strictly necessary, and that splits were therefore out of my purview -- but they cajoled and cheered me on and got me to resolve that 2009 will be The Year I Do the Splits.

It's strange, because I'm very flexible in every other stretch, but when it comes to the splits -- bupkes. I can touch my knees and my nose to the ground doing the butterfly, but stretch my legs into a narrow V, and I go into spasms.

So I have been scouring the interweb for such how-to gems as gymnastics articles and ballet videos, but I think what it will mostly come down to is time and practice. Very much like my previous encouragement to practice breastfeeding positions before assuming that they're impossible, I will point my advice homeward and try, try, try again. I will just have to get into split position, however far I can, until I can get lower and lower.



If all else fails, and it's December 2009 and crunch time, I can apparently cram the rest of my flexibility training into three weeks.

So that's #1 to add. Number 2 is...

Doing man push-ups.



Now, my friend who suggested this is going for 10 of these whoppers. I would be pleasantly surprised with one, myself, since I can so far do 0.5 of the wussy kind. But I have agreed to this resolution in sisterly support, so that is another thing I will torment myself over and over with this year, until I get it right.

Wish me bonne chance, stretchy thighs, and strong triceps!

Joyous photo courtesy of Bob Knight on stock.xchng