Page 19 of Body Check

Gavin did so, and after, they moved onto rolling on the balls of their feet, one at a time, in both directions.

“Your feet might get tired as we go,” Dakota said. “We spend so little time strengthening and stretching them they don’t have the same stamina our other muscle groups do. Be mindful of your breathing. If the sensations get intense or you feel yourself fatiguing, breathe mindfully or even take a break to shake it out or rest.”

The breathing part Gavin was more than comfortable with. It was important for weightlifting, and he did find it helped when his feet began to cramp.

After they were done, Dakota instructed him to shake his feet out and do some more deep breathing before they moved on to pressing the tops of their toes into the mat and rolling them around.

“Now we’re going to stretch the top of our feet. Shift your weight to your right leg.”

Dakota reached out, hovering near Gavin’s right hip. “Are you comfortable with me touching you to guide your posture?”

Gavin nodded.

Dakota’s fingers were warm as he gently pushed at Gavin’s hip. “You’re beginning to collapse here. Focus on your core for a moment, find your stability.”

He did and Dakota let his hand fall away. “Now, move your opposite foot behind you and curl your toes, resting the tops of them on the mat.”

Almost immediately, the arch of Gavin’s foot began to cramp and he stifled a yelp.

“Muscle cramp?” Dakota said, his tone sympathetic.

“Yeah.” Gavin frowned. “Shit that hurts.”

“That tells me you need to be doing a lot more of this.”

Gavin huffed out a laugh. “Probably.”

The next ten minutes or so went much the same way, Gavin wincing at how damned angry at him his feet apparently wereand Dakota reminding him to breathe through it, his voice calm and measured, surprisingly soothing.

“If you’re feeling a lot of discomfort,” he said, when Gavin squatted in what Dakota had called a modified frog pose, sweat breaking out on his forehead as he tried not to tip over, “remember, that’s an area going through transformation and healing.”

Gavin had a sudden, dizzying thought, wondering if that was true for other parts of his life.

Was the discomfort he felt watching the team lose in games they should’ve won—their defense collapsing around the net, leaving Jesse or Arkady vulnerable—was that going through transformation? Or did it simply suck?

Was his empty bed, empty condo, empty life?—

“Gavin, you’re holding your breath. I need you to return to your mindful breathing,” Dakota coaxed. “Slow inhales in through your nose and out through your mouth.”

Fuck, and he’d thought he had thebreathingpart down at least. He let out the air in his lungs in a noisy rush, head a little light, trying not to wobble.

“Any pose that’s too intense, feel free to come out of for a moment. Listen to all the signals being sent to you.”

Gavin wondered what signals he was being sent about the team when not a single damned GM seemed interested in trading one of their defensemen and every single hookup Gavin planned fell through.

And then he realized Dakota was talking about the signals his body sent him, and he managed a pained, rueful chuckle to himself before he focused on what Dakota was saying again.

They moved into a kneeling pose next, toes curled against the mat, sending a fresh wave of sweat across Gavin’s skin, his breath a noisy rush in the quiet room as he struggled his way through. Downward dog was easy enough, and he was grateful for the strength in his upper body until Dakota stood and guided his hips upward and he felt the stretch in the backs of his thighs.

He swore, loudly and colorfully, and Dakota’s soft laugh seemed understanding rather than mocking.

Child’s pose was a joke. He couldn’t come close to doing what Dakota did and when Dakota demonstrated some pose where he knelt on his shins, then arched backward, relaxing his back onto a bolster pillow, Gavin was tempted to throw something at his head because how in the fuck were his hips supposed to dothat?

It pulled through the tops of his upper thighs, and he huffed in annoyance when he realized his torso was still practically upright, rather than reclined.

“That’s okay if you can’t reach,” Dakota said, supporting his weight as he tried to lean back farther. “I’ve got you. Just let go. Allow your body to drift backward as far as it is able. Breathe into it.”

“There we go,” Dakota said a minute later, as he guided Gavin upright, patting his shoulder before he let go. “Now we know where your tight spots are.”

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