Graduation Party for Kyle

No Bikram today. Nephew Kyle's graduation party at Rainbow River. Making Key Lime Bars for Denise because she is on Weight Watchers. I'm sure I'll have one too... ☺

Kind of a Yoda

Last day of classes at school. Finals next week.

4pm class. Went very well, thank you very much! A new teacher that I haven't seen before. Didn't get her name. Good job though.

After my 'chat' with Melissa, I've been much better with the heat. She has a very calm but firm way about her. She doesn't argue with you either. It's very non-confrontational yet at the same time she's projecting a "Just do it" attitude. Kinda of a Yoda. I quit worrying about the heat... started breathing deeply and fully instead. Felt okay. Was that a Jedi Mind trick?

I really got into the postures today. I have three problem areas:
1. Standing head to knee - I can do it but I can't hold it. Oh, did I mention it hurts like bloody hell? Lock the knee, Lock the knee, Lock the knee. The top of the leg with the LOCKED KNEE hurts like bloody hell.
2. Toe Stand - Getting down to the ground now (a NEW Accomplishment). Right now, I have to balance with both hands on the floor. And I can't get back up. Basically, I have to fall inelegantly on my arse and then stand up. See photo of girl doing toe stand. See how she has her hands in prayer? I haven't a prayer of getting my hands up off the floor.
3. Locust - Who knows when I'll get the buttinsky up more than two inches.

On the brighter side:
My back is bending more and I'm doing well with the heat. I'm kicking ass in the forward bends. Oh, and I'm doing the situps too. Oh baby! My recovery after yoga class seems way better. In general, I don't pass out til 10pm! I think that two days on, one day off is working well. Wax on, Wax off.....

Locust

6pm class. Britton was in the class. Her locust is amazing. She just goes up and her feet end up on top of her head. But hey! I'm just admiring not comparing!

Car saga continues

Melissa, the Director, taught class today. During class she suggested that I stop messing with the water bottle.

At the end of class, as I was getting my things together, Melissa came up to talk to me. She was very nice about it. You know, the few times that I've spoken with her she has been soooooooo calm.

I started to explain why I was using the water bottle to cool my forehead then I saw the expression on her face and switched gears. Instead, I asked her what her thoughts were on it. To my concern that I didn't want to get heat stroke again, she felt that my diagnosis may not have been quite correct. Instead, it could be detoxifying and cleansing. I remember that perspective from my days at the Temple.

So, I assured her that I know the goal. I went from drinking a lot of water to just holding the water bottle (which has ice in it) to cool my forehead a bit. She was gracious and agreed with me about moving in progession. So she let me have that. That was nice.

[Reminder to self: When teaching I have often used her approach. Which is accepting and loving, but also redirecting. The students are able to focus more on changing their behavior rather than spending an inordinate amount of time defending themselves.]

I used my new hot yoga towel today! I bought two of them at T.J. Maxx. They are 24 x 72 and fit the width of the little taped off space at the Bikram studio exactly.

And, just to balance the euphoria of discovery, I returned to the parking lot to find that someone had scraped the right rear side of my car! Argh. This poor little faithful Honda has really been through it this week. Wazupwidat?

Postures Today:
Standing Separate Leg - I'm starting to keep hands in prayer position, not the whole time though. Very wobbly when coming back up with right leg forward. Better with left leg.
Situps - Started doing situps today. Before, my hip/back hurt too much.
Forward bend - Forehead touched the floor for a bit. Still a lot of strain on the hamstrings. Loosening up though. I expect to be able to touch forehead to the floor and keep it there very soon.
Awkward Pose - Hey! In the third posture...I can go down now! Yeah. Stay tuned for when I can get back up!
Toe Stand Pose - Went down to floor but had to balance with both hands. And forget getting back up.

Memorial Day - Wedding Anniversary

First 10am class I've taken. Felt a little stiff driving over but after a couple of postures I was feeling pretty good.

Britton led the class. She is always positive but it seems she's more...loving. That's what I've incorporated into my classroom. My BFF, Laura, says that the best administrators and teachers are the people that make you want to please them. Yoga teaches me to be a better teacher.

I'm doing all the postures now, except the Toe Stand Pose and the Locust. Of course I don't do any of them perfectly or correctly. But at least with those you have an idea of what the posture is SUPPOSED to look like.

Here's the ones that, when I can do these, I will feel that I've truly turned a corner:

1. Standing Head to Knee. Can't hold full time. This one hurts.
2. Toe Stand Pose. Almost there. Hands on floor, bending knee, but not standing on one foot. Not enough balance.
3. Locust. Nope. No Way.
4. Fixed Firm. Sometimes I don't lay down in the posture. Sometimes I can.
5. Awkward Pose. I can do all of them except the final one when you put your knees together and go down. Painful. Seems strange because my legs had always been so strong.

The rest of the poses I'm just working on flexibility, strength and balance to get the full expression.

For me, it's the practice of being where you are and then just striving past the discomfort into being a bit more flexible, a bit more stronger and a bit more balanced.

Today, I was able to enjoy pushing myself as far as I could go in some of the postures. Up until now, it was "whoa, you're going to hurt yourself or overexert yourself". That's because of overheating and inflexibility. It's only been a week and I'm starting to feel like I can really get into it. That's going to be awesome when I can just really truly get into the postures.

Indulgence. I bought two new beach towels for yoga. The towels can be used for the beach too! How versatile!

AND I bought a terry cloth robe. It's plush and pink with a soft orange interior and pockets. When I come home and shower after yoga, I can't seem to dry off enough and my clothes stick to me. So now I can flip flop around in my comfy new bathrobe until I feel nice and dry. Then I can change into my clothes or even better, my jammies. I get the best sleep after hot yoga. Of course, today, it's NOON. What will I do? Afternoon nap? Mebbe? Maybe!

Michael gets home tonight around midnight. I can wish him Happy Anniversary and then take him to the airport early tomorrow morning. He's going to Vegas to do a show.

Recharging the Battery

No Bikram today.

Plans to go to Gville (Temple) cancelled. Car would not start. What now? Low battery. So, a new battery for the car. I'm resting and recharging myself....

I'm eating fruits and veggies all day. Strawberries for breakfast. Yum. Salad for lunch. I can allow myself Chinese food for dinner. Broccoli & Tofu in garlic sauce. Just no rice....but maybe one fortune cookie.

I'm too hot for me!

Went to the 4pm class Friday (yesterday). Then came home and fell sound asleep.

Today is Saturday and I went to the 4pm class. Mama mia! It was too too hotchachacha.
I was beginning to struggle. I wanted to leave the room. I had to pee. I poured ice cold water from the water bottle on top of my head. I got angry that I had to choose between sticking it out or getting HEAT STROKE again. I didn't leave. I didn't pee. Why the hell does it have to be SO F'IN hot? I don't care. I'll just die. Oh, it's over, I made it. Thank you Jesus, Hallelujah.

I now see the tie between yoga and God. Suffering and redemption. You get it all in 90 minutes.

It's kind of amazing that I'm already getting so much more flexible since I started last week. But there is one posture that I cannot do at all. Yes, I'm talking about the LOCUST. [see photo].

My legs barely lift off the ground. Hey, don't laugh, that one inch in the air is an accomplishment.

I just wonder how long will it be before I can get this big ole buttinsky up in the air? sigh.

Kar Kaput

Yesterday, on my way to Bikram, I had some car trouble. My faithful Honda Accord was spewing steam and smoke out from under the hood. This is the first time I've had an incident like this and the car has 242K miles.

I was disappointed that I didn't get to work out but, as usual, I do my best and accept the rest.

Luckily, the car repair shop was only a couple of hundred yards from where I noticed the steam and they were able to fix it. Radiator and heater hoses replaced. Even more lucky, I had packed clothes to change into so that I didn't have to walk around half naked at the repair shop. yay.

Walk

Day off. Ninety minute walk & talk with best buddy Nayda.

An Accomplished Yogi and Dedicated Teacher

Britton taught class today. She and the Director are so dedicated to hatha yoga and Bikram's teachings. Upon returning, I've noticed that there are quite a few new teachers who seem very sincere. I'm sure that it is Britton and Melissa's sincerity that have attracted them. I feel very fortunate to be able to go to a place with that level of quality in school.

Bikram's beginning yoga class consists of 26 postures. The one Britton is performing is not one of them. Apparently, there is a an advanced class! But I'm not aware of it, perhaps you only get into it by invitation.

While I have a ways to go before you can even recognize some of my postures as being one of the 26 postures, I was very proud of myself. I did all the postures. Secret technique: pouring cold water on my head so I don't overheat.

Much better

On Saturday, I probably had heat stroke. I've never had sense enough to get out of the rain and have driven in near hurricane weather; why wouldn't I return to hot yoga and possible fatal heat stroke?

Went to the 6pm session today. Ahh yes....doing so much better now. Somehow it didn't seem as hot. Of course, I drank cold water as soon as I felt like I was going to overheat. However, it was before the teacher said it was O-K-A-Y, and apparently that was NOT okay. He even called me out in class to tell me NOT to. Yowser! But I knew I needed to cool down my body so...........I drank.

He's telling me "no" while I'm putting the bottle to my lips and shaking my head "no" back. Out of the corner of my eye, I happen to see DH to laughing her head off at me. At least this situation has entertainment value.

Later, during the floor postures he was teasing the new people about staying on for the 8pm class. Then suddenly, he started on me about drinking the water! He asked me "you're coming to the 8pm class since you drank the water, right?". ack! I just laughed because, it's not exactly the place to have a conversation. Especially smart-ass "kiss my butt" type responses. Anyways, he seemed to be having a laugh. So I'll just assume that that is his idea of being funny and I will reserve judgment that he is a frickin' CONTROL FREAK. ☺

I think that inspires a thought for the day:

A student is not a know-nothing, just as the teacher isn't all-knowing.

Well...it seemed better while I was lying in savasana........

Starting Bikram Yoga

Friday was my first day back with Bikram Yoga. I've decided to blog my experience with it because it is soooo intense. I had tried it last year and then took a trip over the summer and didn't return til almost a year later. Mainly, because I've been busy with work and getting my professional certificate. I've had it in mind to start back when I was free so I started Friday.

Gosh. I was so afraid to start back because, as I said, it is so intense.

I was so relieved that the first session went so well. I felt fine. Came home, showered, and felt so good. Slept like a baby. Decided that I'd go Saturday just to keep the continuity going.

So I got to Saturday's 10am class and paid for a month in advance. Then I saw DH and we got a chance to talk for a couple of minutes. She hadn't been in class for three weeks. Anyways, we both decided that you've just got to suffer through it til you get used to the heat again. Then class began....

During the rabbit pose, I realized that everyone could see the top of my underwear because..... I wear these granny underwear. I just like full coverage, what can I say? Well, this just won't do. I was trying to tuck them in and making a mental note to invest in new underwear. Or, maybe, nobody wears panties under their tights? After all, no one does when they are wearing bathing suits, and that's just about the conditions here.

About an hour into the class, I started to feel overheated and drank a little water and even tried to pour some cold water on my head. I just kept talking myself through it and ended up finishing the class without having to lie down and skip any postures. I was proud of myself for just making it through the postures. Talk to DH again after class and she cheered me on about not skipping any postures. She was saying "victory" but I was thinking "survived".

So I made it home and felt good. A little later, I felt a nap coming on so I got into my jammies and curled up on the couch for a good little nap. When I awoke, I had a bad headache that didn't go away for the rest of the day. I just felt so bad. It was so bad I ended up sleeping off and on all day and didn't get any errands done.

So I'm still stuck with my "grammy wear".