"Don't go naked to the office".

Has he really written his book by himself or has he had a ghostwriter, was our evening discussion yesterday in the Croatian bar round the corner. The stories in the book by Oliver Kahn are so entertaining that E doubted he has written them by himself.

The title of this post is a subtitle of a chapter in his book that will say: Are you prepared when you're going to a game, a meeting, a yoga workshop, a Mysore class.

For Oli it didn't matter who was the opponent. He always tried to give his best, he wanted to be prepared for each match. Prepared in his case as a goal keeper  also meant to have a disciplined life style. He controlled his weight, he took care that he had times to relax. And here we have it again. A passion can have influence on our entire life.

Being disciplined means abandonment. Fast satisfaction (via food i.e.) or fast relief (via alcohol i.e.) are abandoned for a higher goal that might be accomplished in the future. This is why it's so important to know what motivates us. Oli loved it to jump behind the ball, throwing his body in the mud. OMG. I love to hear, what my relative said to me: People like you don't exist anymore (because most people at my age are stiff and a bit overweight).
Know what motivates you, know your trigger, then it becomes easier not to eat that ice cream. Then it becomes easier to exercise abandonment, being disciplined.

Being prepared, what does this mean for my yoga practice I wondered:
- Having a clean yoga place
- Drinking alcohol is part of our Western culture. For yoga it's better to limit those days with wine and Champagne. Yep, my birthday next week is a Veuve Cliquot day!!!! I insist. But not every dinner must be accompanied with a red one.
- Eating modest.
- Sleeping till one is well-rested.
- Practicing positive self-talk.
- Practicing breathing or some asanas/vinyasas beside the regular practice to study it.
- Planning the time when the practice shall start the evening before.
- Thinking of a focus
The possibility to prepare are endless. Some preparation measurements have more influence, some less: attitude, weight is of a higher importance than knowing what to dress for the practice.

I'm disciplined. I'll step on my mat soon. Primary is on the schedule..........