Walk 40 minutes

Walked 40 minutes.

The Vitamineral superfood green powder that my sister loves finally arrived yesterday. So I'm packing that to go with me along with a plastic bottle to mix it with juice. I won't be making my green smoothies so this will take its place.

However, I do plan to relax and enjoy Belgium and not worry so much about diet. Just moderation. Yeah. Moderation in the land of chocolate.

40 minute walk

Still on vacation.

Trying to work the yoga into the schedule but there is so much to do before I leave for Europe on Thursday. I have to have everything prepared for the flight but also for work as there is only one day to rest before returning to work.

Bought a ten day package. But basically, will resume Bikram when I return from travels in mid-August.

In the meantime, the diet is going well. I've been too busy to exercise regularly but my weight is slowly headed in the right direction so that's a very good sign. I wanted to change my diet so that I do not have to exercise to compensate for it. Instead, I want the exercise to further the weight loss and overall health benefits.

My friend from Belgium was in town at a family reunion and spent one night at my house. She brought cookies dipped in Belgian chocolate, Italian biscotti, Belgian chocolate bars. Amazingly, the cookies and chocolate bars are intact. However,I ate some of the biscotti that very morning because I was so hungry and after one, well... Anyways, I could not make my green smoothie because the blender is so loud and I was online with the software tech trying to retrieve some lost files.

Now, I had already determined that I was going to enjoy being in Belgium... with moderation .... She is telling me that the chocolate is soooooo good that you don't want a lot. It will satisfy you for days. I'm going to bring some back for my sister and if that works on her, I will consider it to be the absolute truth. I am praying that she is right. In the meantime, I am contemplating an extra suitcase just to bring back chocolate.

4pm Bikram Downtown

Joined the Bikram downtown to see what the new studio is like. I'll be able to get a few workouts before leaving for Europe for vacation.

They have better control over the heat. I was glad that I made it through all the postures although I've been away for a few weeks on vacation. It will be great to return to a routine after the summer.

9am Bikram

Don't know the name of the instructor. Good one though.

Back bend was deeper. For whatever reason, I am now sweating a lot. Did they make the room hotter?

Standing back bend and camel were much deeper today. Overall, I am able to push harder because I'm stronger. That feels good.

Still weakness because of the hip flexors but I'm happy in the knowledge that there has been improvement and hope to be walking/jogging on a regular basis though not for as long a distance as I had in the past.

The Eye Never Sleeps

The Eye Never Sleeps a book with commentaries on the Hsing Hsing Ming, Verses on the Faith Mind by Dennis Genpo Merzel.

Hsing Hsing Ming Verses on the Faith Mind by Chien-chih Seng-ts'an, Third Zen Patriarch [606AD.

9am Bikram w/Lynne

Got there a couple of minutes late. Argh. However, the instructor was 15 minutes late. This worked out very well for me. It gave me the time to stretch and limber up. Perhaps that is the reason that I sweated profusely today. Dripping. Usually my towel is relatively dry.

Lynne is probably my favorite instructor right now. The postures become more of a meditation the way that she presents it. Of course, she has been practicing for nine years so that makes a difference.

Still pain in the hips although I went to massage yesterday with Rex. Last friday, he worked on my hip flexors and this time, he was led to work on other things. Hopefully, I will be able to get a few more massages despite the upcoming schedule.

The room seemed to be hotter than usual and I had to drink water more often than before. Normally, I drink water at the "party time" right after eagle pose. Then again, when we hit the floor. Then just before fixed firm pose, and then again just before the final savasana. Today, I even had to let cold water pour down my neck as I was drinking. A trick someone told me about to further cool off.

Anyways, it was a different experience to be so drippy with sweat that my towel squished when I moved my feet across it. ugh. This probably happened because a few days ago I saw someone in class just dripping all over the place with sweat and thought to myself "I'm so glad I don't do that". Famous last words ... ☺

Day Off - Visiting mom

The trip to visit my mom today was quite poignant. She cried almost uncontrollably because she was so happy to see me. Then my anger at my father who refused to even open his mind to making healthy drinks with ingredients readily available in a blender that is sitting on the shelf. Taking my mother to Wal-Mart to look at arts/crafts supplies. Although she can no longer drive, she still pointed out the stop signs and told me to be careful. In Wal-mart we walked very slowly stopping to rest now and then. In the arts/crafts section, her once great talent for floral arrangements now focused on the shiny chenille pipe cleaners that she will use to decorate more photos in a bizarre shrine she has created on the wall of all her children and grandchildren. As her mind leaves her, her essence still remains. Her love of her children. Her love of creating with her hands. And her love of the Florida Gators.... her ecstatic response when she picked out a Gator embossed handbag. She seemed a bit confused not knowing where her money was. The mother who always insisted on paying for everything simply accepted the explanation that the purse would get paid for. She exclaimed several times how she has wanted that purse for forever. We returned home and she held the handbag with admiration. I asked her where she wanted the pipe cleaners she said "let's put it in the purse". So we did. When it was time for me to leave,she cried again and thanked me for coming. I don't know if she could see my tears as well. She followed me outside although I insisted she stay inside because it was so hot out. She stood on the porch and waved to me as I pulled out of the driveway. Be careful of the ditch, she said, her final advocacy for safety as I drove away.

9am Bikram w/Celeste

New teacher. Good job.

I learned that it is better when the instructor suggests "try to" instead of insisting "do it". Because the latter comment doesn't take into consideration that, perhaps, you have an injury and cannot do the posture fully. Which, in turn, might result in resistance on the student's part where the student might feel it necessary to explain "I can't because..." This observation comes as a result of working in the classroom, where I class management much easier when I minimize what appears to be a challenge to students. The less they feel the need to defend themselves the more likely they are to cooperate.

Feeling much stronger in the backbends. Went deeper, much deeper in camel. Also, when I do the backbend in the floor series, I am now only on the hip area. Before, I looked like an upside down table.

Still problems with hip flexors, however, I think that the massage tomorrow morning will fix that. Especially since I won't be rowing in a kayak for five hours like I did the last time. ouchie.

Colonic #3

Unlike last week, everything came out just fine. Last week it took 20 minutes before there was any sign of anything. This week, well, I just cleaned out completely. It's not the most enjoyable experience but it does make it more tolerable when the hydrotherapist is complimenting you on how well you chew, how good your diet is, etc. and yes, she is telling me this as she is watching my poop float by.

Anyhoo, it seems like "the third time is the charm" as the colon was completely cleaned out this week.

Jun 15 Bikram w/Missy

New teacher.

Missy was very good. Good attitude. She was saying "hold...." as we all fell out of the posture a moment prematurely and then she said "or not..." ☺

Again, just hanging in there with this sore body. My hip flexors are all tight again because of the kayaking. I was soooo looking forward to the yoga after the massage (friday) because I had felt such a great improvement by Saturday morning. But that afternoon, I went kayaking and undid everything.

Bikram w/Maria

Lovely Maria. She is very kind and loving when she teaches her class. It is amazing how much you pick up from a person's words and what is in their voice.

Arrived late. Had to call in to tell them I was arriving late. I left in time but it's a 40 minute drive and there was road congestion. I almost missed the entire first pose. It makes a huge difference.

Last night, I had slathered on AVON skin so soft because of all the bugs at the campsite. When I woke up this morning, my skin didn't feel particularly moisturized but when I got to the studio...yikes! I was very slippery which helped with eagle pose but beyond that it was a bit of a nuisance.

Anyways, I was just hanging in there today with my sore arms, just trying to get through all the poses after kayaking five hours yesterday.

Day Off

Kayaking on the Suwannee River.

Day Off

Out of town to visit my mom.

9am Class

No notes. Except to note that I went to Bikram today.

The 26 Postures

click on photo to make it larger.

9am Bikram w/Afton

Got into class a couple of minutes late which bugs me when I've driven 40 minutes to get there. The roads were very congested. It is so much better to get there a few minutes early to stretch, relax and switch gears from "getting to class" to just "being in class".

Afton is a very good instructor so I'm glad that she is working in both Bikram locations.

#1 Standing deep breathing. I see people with elbows pointing up to the ceiling and arms along the side of their head and I wonder how long does it take before that starts to happen. Of course, the main focus is on breathing and warming up from the inside. After all, yoga is about the practice not the posture. Still....

#3 Awkward pose. The third position. "Press knees together and go down slowly". Why is that so hard for me? I cannot do this properly. Seems like it should be so easy. I've always had strong legs. Today, I was actually able to lower down to the floor. Got a bit weeble wobbly while down there but at least there was noticeable improvement.

#5 Standing head to knee. The standing leg is getting very firm. The only thing that really keeps me from doing this pose fully, it seems to me, is the pain in the right hip. Hopefully, massages will help with that.

#9 Triangle/Warrior Pose. Getting more strength here. Starting to get into the full position.

#17 Locust pose. My hips actually came up off the floor for just a split second while doing the locust pose. Hallelujah. In the beginning I just dreaded the floor series with the cobra/locust/full locust because it took so much effort for so little result. The locust in particular... I mean the beginning and ending poses looked exactly alike! The only difference was my facial expression which went from relaxed to gritting and grimacing but those legs didn't move an inch. Just a lot of "vibration".

#20 Fixed Firm. I have had to stay in an upright position during fixed firm because the ankles were so tight. Now that there is some loosening up I was able to lean back now, not 100% but it's coming along now.

#22 Camel. After the first camel pose everything went black for a moment. I felt okay though I did take a few extra seconds until I could see again before I laid down between postures.

#24 Head to knee. Only did one of these. I don't do it fully like I used to. I think this is where I re-injured my lower back. So I'm careful here. Before, I thought I knew my limits but was pushing too hard and re-injured the back. For me, the key is to be consistent in practice and not push so hard that I can't come back tomorrow.

At the end of class, I always stay a few extra minutes in corpse pose. Then I do downward dog and pigeon pose [see photo] to stretch out the leg muscles associated with lower back pain as it stretches the thighs, groins and psoas muscle.

Noticed that I did a lot of deep breathing today. I think because I could really feel the heat in the room today.

I was happy to see that I managed to do the situps between postures during the floor exercise although there was some tightness/pain in the right hip. Though I'm glad that I have a massage appointment this Friday with the miracle worker, Rex.

Colonic #2

Number two in a series of four.

After yoga, I went to the wellness center for the second colonic. If you are like my spouse, you might ask "why do a series?".

I look at it like "pressure washing". The more you hold the hose on the area, the cleaner it is going to get. So, a series of colonics will clean deeper.

While the entire process takes about an hour, the actual filling you up with water is about 30 minutes. You get filled up with water and then you release it. The hydrotherapist will massage the stomach area to "loosen" things up. Todoay, it was about 24 minutes into this process before any matter was released. The colonic hydrotherapist mentioned that the "lighter" colored stuff is more recent while "darker" matter is older. So, apparently, we got some deeper stuff. There was a lot more discomfort this time.

However, even as I was driving home, I was feeling cleaner and better.

9am Bikram w/Maria

Didn't quite hydrate enough before class and I could feel it. Need to drink at least 16 ounces about an hour before class. That gives you time to go to the restroom before class ☺

Missed class during the weekend because I went out of town. Annual get together with friends that I grew up with. It's the best R & R, the best therapy. To be yourself, to share your deepest and to laugh your hardest. Yoga is about union and so is true friendship. Wishing everyone that kind of connection.

Class with Maria today. Even though this is my first class with her, I am struck at how you can get the essence of a person when they lead a class. She seems very kind and gentle. Enjoyable class.

Attention. Noticed that today I didn't have the level of focus that I normally bring to class. My attention was elsewhere at times. As a result, my balance was off. It didn't help that there were two people behind me that were flopping all over the place. Normally, I don't think that would have affected me. I felt "scattered" and it was reflected in my workout today.

4:15 Bikram w/Lynn

Ahhh.... this is more like it. Lynn's speech is more balanced and so it doesn't knock me off my balance. I can get into the postures and focus more on deepening my balance, flexibility, etc. rather than having to withstand a barrage of words and volume. What can I say? I love love love her class.

I will definitely need to arrange another massage with the amazing Lex since I can still feel tightness in the hips. His hands are lot hot pads. He is definitely a healer. And now I can do the sit-ups between postures though there is still some pain.

The change in diet complements the yoga practice. The heat feels good though I seemed to get a little overheated today. It just feels so great to sweat and workout.

I spoke to someone yesterday who told me she tried Bikram for the first time. She felt "incredibly tired" afterwards. I remember that feeling when I first started. Actually, I would go on a Saturday morning and then sleep the rest of the day. No more. I just keep on going nowadays.

Today, in locust, for a fleeting second, my hips came up off the floor. Wow.

However, not the same story for awkward pose. I find it incredulous that someone with thunder thighs has trouble going into the squat position in awkward pose. Seems like that should be a cinch. Who can explain the inexplicable?

Day Off - Bikram

6:15 w/Joe

Had a good class though I feel like we are at the racetrack with Joe. I like high energy but not to the point where it is a distraction from focus on the posture. At an energetic level, it seems to me that Joe's style is more about him though I don't think that he feels that way. It's just a matter of evolving into the practice. Lynn is very much into the yoga itself. You can feel the difference.

I'm looking forward to vacation and the opportunity to focus more on diet and yoga not to mention a different time where there will be different instructors... ☺

I'm fitting in to my fat clothes again (ha ha) and am happy to be moving in the right direction. The weight loss is the beginning, the ultimate goal is shining health.

Bikram w/Lynn

May 31, 2009. Thursday.

A little sore today. Second day after returning to Bikram so the soreness is understandable. A little concerned because it seemed that the hurt in the hip was starting to come back. Otherwise, it felt great. I absolutely cannot do the third position in the awkward series. Seems like my legs should be strong enough. I feel that once I can get strong in the awkward pose then the Tadasana, Tree, pose, will fall right into line. I can go down but can't come back up in the 2nd position of the tree pose.

Day #4 - Internal Cleanse - Liver, Gallbladder & Para

Feeling great.

Bought some bottled organic apple juice to have handy for those nights when I am too tired or don't have time use the juicer. Unfortunately, I don't seem to know when I'm too tired because I fell sound asleep and didn't take toxin absorber before bed.

Breafast smoothie

3 stalks swiss chard
1 small handful watercress
blueberries (frozen)
goji berries
organic strawberries (frozen)
1 TBS camu powder
1 TBS bee pollen
1/4 c hemp milk (so i can throw out the container)
2-3 c distilled water (cold)

I bought camu powder because it is in some of the recipes. Thought I'd just throw it in the blender this morning. Same thing with the goji berries and bee pollen.

Camu comes as a powder form. Stuck my finger in it and tasted it before I ruined my smoothie. Reminds me of Tang. I grew up in Florida and that was the drink the astronauts drank so we all drank it. According to the literature, camu has lots of vitamin C. Much more that oranges.

It occurred to me this morning while sippin' my smoothie that strawberries & blueberries should be enough nutrition instead of buying all this 'exotic' stuff. At the same time, it's probably a good idea while I'm detoxing and purifying to get this body back in shape.

Traditionally, native medicine practioners and herbalists have recommended camu-camu to:

Strengthen the immune system
Promotes healthy viral blood ecology
Promotes mood balance
Promotes healthy brain function
Supports healthy red and white blood cell formation
Detoxifying the body, especially the liver
Promotes health of upper respiratory organs, including lungs, sinuses, nasal passages
Promoting a healthy heart and circulatory system

Colonics - #1

Right after Bikram, I went for the first of four colonics. Since I'm 'cleaning house' so to speak, it makes sense to keep the 'back door open' to rid the temple of all the trash. ☺

Afterwards, I came home to find that the cat had an eye injury so off to the emergency clinic we went. She had some kind of trauma to her eye so the doctor gave her antibiotics and pain medication. He asked if I could give her pills. I said 'yes" and decided to not mention my former life as a geriatric feline caregiver. My previous cat lived to 17 yrs. She had renal failure. I was giving her fluids subcutaneously. I had ordered needles, venoset (sp?) and the glucose bags from a medical supply place and towards the end, she received fluids twice a day. I have trouble even looking at needles so a process that would normally take five minutes took 20. First I had to cry, then insert the needle under the loose skin in her neck, then cry again. The cat was fine though, purring away while a small camel hump formed under her skin.

Back to Bikram - w/Lynn

Yay. It felt so good. I did all the postures. I can still feel a little (sciatica?) in the hips but I was able to do the situps between the postures and everything. Well, according to my ability. Lynn is a very good teacher. About 7 of us in the 10am class this morning. It also felt good because I've lost a little weight now and could tell the difference. I'm looking forward to summer vacation (soon!) where I will be able to go every morning. My plan is to go six days a week.

Chocolate "Milkshake"

2cups distilled water (cold)
2 TBSP Organice Cocoa Powder (I use Black & Green's)
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup blanched almonds
4 large pitted medjool dates
1 tsp vanilla, nonalcoholic

I grind the pumpkin seeds and almonds in a nut grinder (formerly known as my coffee grinder ☺). Throw all ingredients in the blender (mine is a Blend-Tec) and add water, ice cubes, to get the consistency I want. You could use 2 TBSP of organic cacao nibs in place of the cocoa powder.

Note: because I have a Blend-Tec, I probably don't need to grind the pumpkin seeds & almonds. This is probably an old habit. However, if you don't have a Blend-Tec, and don't want to spend $399 for one at this time, you can spend $15 on a coffee grinder and grind the nuts and seeds to a powder/butter and then throw everything into your cuisinart (or whatever) blender. ☺

For me, it's the best dessert.

Sweeteners Talk with Green Smoothie Girl

Green Smoothie Girl Videos

Robyn Openshaw, a.k.a. Green Smoothie Girl, has a series of videos where she shows you how to make green smoothies and other things. In one video, #15, she talks about sweeteners. Which ones she considers to be the worst to avoid (refined sugars), better, and then the best. I'm decreasing/avoiding sweeteners now because I've started a cleanse. Below are listed the best sweeteners that she recommends:

Best:
Whole figs
Whole dates
Currants

By the way, I made a chocolate drink using whole dates (along with almonds, cocoa powder, pumpkin seeds, vanilla, distilled water) which had consistency of a milkshake, was very chocolatey and completely satisfying as a sweet treat.

Internal Cleanse - Day 3 - Liver, Gallbladder & Parasites

"The eviction."
Jeff had said at the Food-based Healing class that if your poop is "stinky" then it indicates that you have parasites. Well... prior to that class, I could not help but notice how..uhm...it just seemed like I had the secret to peeling wall paint. Anyhoo, just a few days into the cleanse and it seems like the "air has cleared" and the walls are safe. While I was a bit surprised to realize that I had been harboring unwanted "guests", it does seem like they've gotten the eviction notice.

Meals:
I made two smoothies today. One for breakfast. Swiss chard, some black sesame seeds, berries and a packet of stevia. The second smoothie, from Jeff's book for the brain, which consisted of raw corn, ginger, goji berries, cilantro, pumpkin sees, lime with pith & seeds. It was actually very good. Yes, I'm surprised, I've just started using the recipes and so this is a nice discovery. The lutein in the corn is good for the brain. So I drank both smoothies. The second one just before lunch. Lunch was salmon, wild rice and broccoli. 4:30p snack: Cherries. 6pm: Still hungry. 6 black sesame crackers with smoked salmon & capers. I'll have soup later.

Internal Cleanse - Day 3 - Liver, Gallbladder & Parasite Cleanse

I've gone ahead to Step 2, the Liver, Gallbladder & Parasite part of the cleanse. There are some pills and tinctures to take before breakfast, lunch and dinner. Then the toxin absorber with apple juice before bed. Luckily I bought a very high-powered juicer so that making the fresh organic apple juice is pretty quick. After purchasing the juicer that I have, I read a review that made me realize that I could have bought the Jack Lalane juicer for half the price and would have been satisfied with it. In the end, I decided to keep the Breville Juicer Elite. It's solid, fast and easy to clean. There was a youtube video of Martha Stewart juicing. She was swearing that the pulp was so dry that even her chickens wouldn't eat it. Well, she must be getting a good % off that because the pulp is very wet. But it makes sense. The motor is so powerful that the apple just goes flying through it. Sometimes there are whole slices that end up in the bucket. However, here's how I see it... I am NOT going to stand there for 30 minutes juicing and then another 15 minutes to clean just for one glass of juice. I spoke with someone who went to Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center and trained as a raw foods chef. Her and her mom both went. They both were at the same seminar with me to learn more about healthy smoothies because smoothies are quick and convenient while the raw foods lifestyle was too time-consuming. She has the Omega juicer, which I was seriously considering buying, and told me that she doesn't juice because it takes too long. Chopping the veggies/fruits really small to fit in the chute just took too long. So, for me, it's really a matter of "know thyself" and I know that in the long run I won't use a machine if it takes an hour to make a glass of juice.

Internal Cleanse - Day 2 - Reflection

Initially, I had thought when I started preparing for the detox/cleanse/change in June that I would follow a raw vegan diet. And maybe I will once vacation starts and I have the time. While I am eating some cooked veggies and fish, I've also increased my raw veggie & fruit consumption greatly.

The main criteria are:
No refined sugar
No refined starches
Good oils only

And those simple criteria have ruled out most of the items in a regular grocery store. Essentially, I shop the perimeter of the store where the produce and seafood are located. If I didn't have a cat or used paper towels, I'd never have a reason to go down an aisle. But I still take a stroll down memory lane with the coffee. The cart slows down, I close my eyes a little and take a long luxurious inhale. Ah... But it's adios amigo to my old caffeinated friend. Coffee is very acidic so why would I make all these changes only to sabotage it with coffee? It's all about PH balance. More on that at a later date.

No white sugar. While agave nectar is the current rage, I just can't see throwing out the gallon jug of raw honey that our brother-in-law gave us. Honey has an indefinite shelf life. It is anti-microbial, anti-fungal and anti-viral. All the same, I'm using it sparingly so that my main sugar will be from fruits. In June, I hope to reduce to only those fruits that have the lowest Glycemic Index [GI]. I will have to check a glycemic index for fruits that are low in sugar. Oh yeah. I just found cherries and they are very low at 22.


Good oils. Coconut Oil for cooking, as a spread on toast and make-up remover and moisturizer. I have always cooked with olive oil but was told recently that it has a much lower smoking point and becomes denatured (carcinogenic), therefore, I will use olive oil primarily for salad dressings at this point. I've been told that hemp oil is good for you too. I'm now hearing from some that while flax is a good oil, it becomes rancid too quickly. I know that it must be refrigerated and keep my bottle in the fridge. But now that I have coconut oil which I understand will remain good for three years.... I don't see the point of having the more fragile flax oil. Another oil, DHA plus EPA cannot be found in plant sources. Just cold water fish like salmon, tuna, etc. Sardines are a good source, plus, because they are so young when caught they don't have a build-up of toxins. So I bought a few tins of sardines and oysters since I won't be preparing fish daily. Just two smoked oysters per day is all you need...

The first three days of the 24 day cleanse is actually a preparation to determine the number of 'digestive stimulators' (pills) necessary to ensure three Bowel Movements (BM) per day. Today I had three BMs before noon so I think I've determined that one pill is enough. Although the instructional booklet says that you can move on to the next step in the cleanse once you've determined the right number of pills, I just don't have time tonight to figure/plan/measure all that tonight. So another day won't hurt.

Internal Cleanse - Day 2 - Meals

Before breakfast: hot water w/lemon, cayenne, smidgeon of honey
Breakfast: Smoothie of swiss chard & berries with coconut milk base.
Snack: cup of tea w/1/4 tsp honey
Lunch: wild salmon w/orange sauce, wild rice, broccoli
Snack: cherries
Before Dinner: 1 digestive stimulator
Dinner: homemade soup, sprouted grain muffins w/coconut oil,three smoked oysters
Before Bed: Toxin Absorber w/fresh organic apple juice, followed by 1 big glass of water

The hot water with lemon, etc. is to detox the kidneys. I've been doing it for some time. I recently added the cayenne & honey just to give it an extra kick.

I ate the oysters while preparing dinner because I was really hungry and forgot that I had salmon for lunch. So I didn't need it. Salmon, oysters, sardines, etc are a good source of DHA plus EPA.

"DHA is required in high levels in the brain and retina as a physiologically-essential nutrient to provide for optimal neuronal functioning (learning ability, mental development) and visual acuity, in young and old alike. DHA plus EPA are both considered to have beneficial effects in the prevention and management of cardiovascular disease plus associated risk factors as well as other chronic disorders." DHA/EPA Omega-3 Institute

I love the soup. It's the "Fat Flush Soup" by Louise Gittleman. Basically, the fat flush diet is about supporting the liver. The recipe that is linked to her website is a bit different than the one I use which is in the Fat Flush Diet book. I only use turkey, no beef, and I don't use eggplant. However, it's the same basic idea.

The toxin absorber. The toxin absorber. Main ingredient is bentonite clay. Once, while doing the colon cleanse by the same company, I forgot to drink it right away and it turned into a sludge and then I could NOT drink it. That's what it does inside you. It coagulates into this mass that goes through your intestines pulling the mucoid plaque from the intestinal walls along with it and out of you. Fun, eh? If you want to have a really great time, look at the photos of the mucoid plaque. Truly gross. Yes, that 'sand juice' coagulates and takes on the shape of your intestines and then it gets that gnarly look. ack.

Afternoon

Blended a cup of water with goji berries. My first goji berry juice. Not bad. The berries are red but when you blend them into a juice, it looks very orange. Like carrot juice. However, it supposedly has 50x the beta-carotene. Some people have reported that it has improved their eyesight. That would be great since I have to wear reading glasses these days. Just typical aging.

Walked for an hour. Felt good. After showering I stepped on the scale and had dropped 2.5 pounds since waking up this morning. I could not have lost that much fluid. During the walk I talked to the body (if the chiropractor can do it during the kinesiology, why can't I?) and asked if it would be alright for us to lose quickly. Maybe that was its way of saying yeah baby! ha.

Then early dinner of salmon with herbs and steamed asparagus. Used a small dab of coconut oil on the asparagus w/some salt & pepper. Yum!

Tonight I have to juice the apples and drink the toxin absorber. Fun fun fun.

Today's Smoothie

I just made this one up. I will start using the ones that Jeff has in his smoothie book. Some of those are more veggies than fruits. It will be a change since I usually make the smoothie first thing in the morning and have grown accustomed to fruit mixed in it.

2c unsweetened coconut milk
2 large leaves of Swiss Chard
1.5 c papaya with seeds (because it was in the fridge)
1.5 c raspberries
additional water for consistency of smoothie

I'm trying coconut milk for creaminess since Jeff said that bananas were too yin for most people.

Changed the title from Bikram Yoga Journal

Well, I've changed the title of this journal because I don't want to have a separate blog for the Bikram and another one for the cleansing, Qi Gong, or whatever else I happen to be doing. So the concept of the blog is evolving along with me....☺

No Big BM - What gives?

Well, I've been sitting here at the computer and reading while sipping my lemon water and I normally have a nice big BM before now. But no, I'm still waiting. Maybe I'll try the digestive stimulator now just to get this show on the road...

Foods-Based Healing

Okay. I took a two day foods-based healing class with Jeff Primack of Supreme Science Qi Gong. As with most seminars, there are things you already know. But it's the things that you would not have done without someone else showing or introducing it to you that makes it worth the cost of attending. I felt that way when Jeff started talking about some of the Chinese supplements like wild reishi and the herbalist that he trusts, Ron Teeguarden, at Dragon Herbs.

I met some lovely people there and enjoyed learning from them all. Also, I reconnected with a yoga teacher that I absolutely love. Edeley of Yogamatrix. She healed herself through yoga after a bus accident (it went over a cliff if I remember correctly) and was able to leave the wheel chair and medications behind. She is dedicated to yoga and healing and just a joy. She's Brazilian, how could she not be?

So it's Monday, and I have the holiday off. What to do? Well, I'm going to begin the weight loss program that I've been preparing for all this time. I intended to start it around June 8th. I'll be off work and it will be after the "Girls' Weekend". But I'm ready now!

Since I have the internal cleansing kit from Blessed Herbs, I'm going to start it now since the diet supports the cleanse.

I'll be, essentially, using the Diabetic protocol that Jeff outlines in his book "Conquering Any Disease". With a few exceptions though... I will use berries in my smoothie. And a smidgeon of honey in the hot water/lemon/cayenne/honey I have first thing in the morning. Oh, and I will be making fresh organic apple juice to drink thee toxin absorber and at the end of this cleanse when I do the liver/gallbladder flush, which is not part of the Internal Cleansing Kit but an entirely separate cleanse.

Right now, I'm typing away while sipping on the hot water/lemon/cayenne/honey mixture. Now that I have the Blend-tec, I peel the skin away and put the lemon with pith and seeds into the Blend-tec with some warm water. The phytochemicals are in the pith and seeds so it's better to include them. Go easy with the pith because it is very bitter. Jeff was reminding us that in Chinese medicine they teach about the different tastes (sweet, sour, bitter, etc.) which is also taught in Ayurvedic. So, one of the tastes that we don't really subscribe to here in the U.S. is "bitter". However, bitter is the medicine, so you need to have bitters.

Advanced Qigong Level 4 - Neigong

Happy Mother's Day.

Today's class was the best of all. Primarily for the Kundalini practice.

Yesterday, I attended the Level 1 - form for becoming an instructor. I don't know why since I don't have a desire to be an instructor nor do I want to be a "Qigonger". But I went anyways. I didn't know what they were going to do and was surprised to discover that we were to perform the Level 1 on a stage and it would be a test from memory. Oh no. During lunch, I read the book and memorized it. To my amazement, even though I was on stage, I really got into it and it felt really great. I passed too. Which was a mixed blessing because I then had to decide whether to go this Saturday for the certification. But truthfully, it was a no brainer since this Saturday is our niece's wedding and everyone is going to be in town.

The most important thing was getting the form right, which I did, not the certificate or my photo on a website. Then again, I learned from one of my new friends that they will have L1 instructor's certification in July in Tampa......☺

Chocolate Pudding

Whoa! I just made a chocolate pudding using the meat from a Young Thai Coconut, cashews, almonds, honey, cocoa, vanilla, a bit of salt, and some water. Whiz'd in the blender, then poured into a few glass bowls and popped into the freezer for a bit to cool down. Voila! Heaven with a spoon.

The bottom-line is that there is no reason to feel deprived on this diet and that's good thing.

Excalibur Dehydrator

Ordered a five tray Excalibur Dehydrator today.

The Blend-tec should arrive sometime this week. I had to return it because it was the wrong color. Had no idea it would take this long. Can't wait for it to get here. I want to see how much smoother my smoothies will be. Today, I tried blending the watermelon with the rind. Not the green outer rind, the white part. Had to add water and then a lot of ice to make it cold. While it was good, I thought it was much better when I juiced it in the Oster Juicer. I'm thinking about returning the Breville Juice Fountain Elite that I just bought to replace it because for $299 it isn't that much of an improvement on the cheap Oster. For one thing, in Martha Stewart's youtube clip, she went on and on about how dry the pulp was. Well, it seemed to be as wet as the pulp that came out of the Oster. Also, things go through so fast because it is so powerful that it isn't much good with leafy greens.

Besides, the item that I'm realizing that I will use primarily is the Blend-tec. In that way, I get the fiber as well as the phytochemicals that are in stems, seeds & rind of the fruits/veggies.

Well, the Blend-tec will get here soon and I'll be able to decide then.

Tumo Breathing

Yesterday and today, Jeff taught us Tumo breathing. Today's version was the advanced breathing. Before teaching it to us he gave us a lot of warnings so that we would be careful with it. He also showed a video clip of himself and 25 of his instructors studying with Wim Hof who had studied Tumo breathing. Tumo breathing is also known as "inner fire" and was perfected by Tibetan yogis to generate heat and were able to withstand the cold and snow of the Himalayas. I personally knew a Tibetan lama who had no heat in his room in upstate NY in the middle of December and laughed and said that it was cozy. Anyhoo. I felt my back start to get warm. The warmth oscillated in my lower to middle back. I can't imagine what it's like after you've been practicing for a while. We had a room of 2000 people practicing tumo breathing. Everyone in the room was very focused. I was impressed with how much chi I was able to feel by Day 4. They do an extraordinary job of presenting the practice. Jeff has a very simple and clear way of explaining but they also have wonderful animation and visuals to assist along with very well synchronized music. The staff is comprised of the instructors who all volunteer their time to come and help. They are one dedicated group and I was extremely impressed. Thanks to Jeff Primack and Qi Revolution!

Qi Revolution 4-days

Attending the 4-day Qi Revolution with Jeff Primack. My friend, Mical, invited me but then couldn't make it but I went anyways. Glad I did. The breathing techniques are getting better each day and lo and behold! They make smoothies! Got the book of recipes. Can't wait til my Blend-tec arrives. Amazingly, it is the blender that Jeff uses. So much for synchronicity.

You can't beat the price for the 4-day workshop. $99. The presenter, Jeff Primack, seems very sincere. The presentation is very organized and straight forward. Most importantly, the focus is not on getting but giving. Seems like a good soul. There are a lot of massage therapists here for their CEUs but they are enjoying the program as well. Tomorrow is the last day.

Jeff pointed out that the it's not drugs that make you well, it's the immune system. To keep the immune system strong, you need phytochemicals that are found in the stems, seeds, pith (cell walls) of plants. So he drinks about 20 oz of smoothies each morning.

I went to my friend's house to prepare the anti-inflammatory recipe from Jeff's smoothie recipe book since both she and her boyfriend just had surgeries within the same month. Hers was an emergency. This smoothie recipe called for the stem of a pineapple, a slice of pineapple, cherries, cilantro (chelation), goji berries, ginger, turmeric, 2cups water, papaya, cucumber, that's about it. She had a Hamilton Beach mixer and while the Blendtec will, apparently, grind fruits/veggies down to the micron level, the Hamilton blended well enough for us to drink it. Since she can't afford the $399 Blend-tec we figured, hey, this is better than not doing it. So there.

It was my first attempt at making a smoothie from his recipe book. The nice thing about the smoothies is that you can experiment. Nayda doesn't like cilantro so I told her to maybe add more pineapple than the recipe calls for to drown out the taste of the cilantro. Interesting point about the cilantro. Jeff recommends everyone to have cilantro daily. He says that it gets rid of metals. People that eat fish are exposed to mercury and that cilantro helps to get it out of the body. In addition, autism and alzheimer' are connected to heavy metals so cilantro will help with alleviating those conditions.

This morning, I was running late. I made my smoothie but I ran out the door without it! argh. Well, my husband was home so it didn't go to waste. His is still in the fridge. Anyhoo, I noticed that I was felt a tad more constipated today. Things didn't go as easily as I've become accustomed to with the smoothies. Seems to be true. Jeff talked about getting a big huge bowel movement his second day trying smoothies which really sold him on them. Plus the fact that he had met a 70 year old man who had no wrinkles that drank the smoothies. I believe it's true about the BM's thanks to my personal experience and my friend's. She told me the first week that I started bringing her smoothies and green juices that she had become VERY regular. She was really happy about that and I am too because that's a good thing. ;)

Day Off

Female stuff. Cranky. Craving chocolate. Blah.

Day Off

Sunday 4pm

Don't know the name of the instructor today but she was very good. I felt great in class today. No aches & pains. Think I'm finally finding the balance between pushing and pushing too hard. Despite the fact that it felt like I was taking it "easy", I received a compliment on my camel pose. It does feel like I was bending deeper. I think the bow pose is coming along as well. I also think my change in diet is helping the body because the diet is more alkaline producing.

Still cannot do the third posture in the chair series. Argh! Once I get that, I think I'll be able to do the 2nd posture in the tree pose. I can bend forward and go part of the way, but I can't come back up. Where is the weakness? My legs have always been so strong.

Purchased the e-book from Green Smoothie Girl. Lots of recipes and a 12 month program for going "raw". Actually, she isn't 100% raw but around 60-80% raw. She works and has four children and says that it becomes very time intensive to get make that 20% more to 100%. And that's why she makes smoothies. She throws the greens in a blender with fruit and voila! What she is doing has been better than what I'm doing so I'm integrating her suggestions to get to the 80% mark. After all, you can only be successful if the plan is doable. At the same time, I do plan to go 100% in June to detox and lose weight.

My dear friend had gall bladder surgery and I've been making her the smoothies and delivering them to her while she has been convalescing. I had read in someone's blog that they felt that their recovery was faster because they were drinking green juices. She told me that after she drank the green smoothie that she felt better. Also, that she prior to the green smoothies she didn't go to the bathroom (#2) on a daily basis, but that this helped regulate her. It's not good if you don't do #2 every day. [Advice so eloquently stated]. Stuff "backs up", just like the plumbing in your house, and toxins will enter your bloodstream. So drink green smoothies and get regular and keep everything moving in one direction!

Sat 10am w/Ocidee

Arrived 5 minutes late and heard about it from the instructor. He was a bit harsh. I had driven 45 minutes only to arrive late to class. As I pulled into the parking lot I nearly turned around because I was five minutes late and didn't want to walk into class late. Then I decided it was better to be scorned than miss the class. So when the instructor barked at me, I chose to be grateful that at least he isn't an instructor whose opinion matters much. He yells at people for drinking water between postures and then one day when he was next to me in class, what does he do? Swigs water between postures. Ha, I don't really care. I suppose he feels that the Bikram program is the place where he can release his inner control freak with utter abandonment because no one at his day job will put up with it.

The really useful lesson out of all this is that being a teacher, I get to see my reaction and learn a bit more about what it's like for my students. For example, Ocidee taught me that when you are teaching a class, and you want to give specific direction to an individual, you should not talk to them them at the same level of volume with which you are addressing the entire class. It throws them off balance. Instead, soften your voice and just make it between the two of you. A student is less inclined to be embarrassed or feel like you are calling them out. And therefore, less inclined to become preoccupied with defending themselves. They can just focus on their lesson. Restated another way, they will feel that you are trying to help them and not just challenging them because you are a control freak who only cares that they do what you say. So thanks once again, Ocidee, for teaching me what NOT to do. ☺

The house is further from the studio than work and I just didn't judge the time properly. The last time I came from the house it was the 8am class and I forgot that there would be more traffic at the 10am class. And there was way more traffic than I'm used to.

Anyhoo, during class I was feeling great. No pain in the hip. So, the short break must have been good for me. However, towards the last few postures I was beginning to feel some pain in the hips again.

The fresh watermelon juice I made tasted great after class. It's half rind and half fruit. There is, apparently, a lot of nutrition in the rind. Later tonight, as I was juicing the rest of the watermelon the thought occurred to me, wow, wouldn't this fresh watermelon make a fabulous martini....

I'm looking forward to June where I can have an entire month to do a yoga/detox program and where I will not be working so I will be able to get to class on time. har har har.

Raw Model Website

I'm reading an interesting website titled Raw Model. It's by a guy who works as a model in NYC and shares his raw food recipes and discoveries. Unlike some websites that give a small amount of information with the rest of the website designed to convince you that you need to buy their e-book, he simply and sincerely shares his recipes and self-discoveries honestly and openly.

Day Off

Training across town and then a huge thunderstorm. A tornado touched down somewhere nearby so I don't think I'll get caught in all the bad weather to drive across town for Bikram. I'll return tomorrow.

I'm reading the 12 steps for going raw by the Green Smoothie Girl. You can purchase it from her website. Lots of recipes which is what I want.

In the meantime, drinking my fresh vegetable juice:
1c celery
1c cucumber
1c carrot
1/4c kale

Gotta go lighter on the kale........bittah!

Sweetwater Cabin

With the family at the cabin. The weather could not have been more beautiful. The spring, as clear as I last remember, but where were the larger fish? They finally arrived at 4pm, though only two of them. One of the large mouth bass ate a smaller fish and soon after left the spring with no further interest in remaining in the vicinity. Rather business-like of him.

I was a bit unhappy to learn that some catfish had taken up residence because they had been described to me as being non-native to Florida which didn't seem right in this most Florida of settings amongst the palmettos and racoons, hawks, deer and other wildlife.

6pm Kelly

A bit of pain in my right hip today. Glad that tomorrow has to be a day off so I can check on my friend who had emergency surgery. Then I will be out of town for the weekend with the family.

Day Off

Very tired. Makin' sketti. Wholewheat of course. I have to go to the 6pm class which means I don't get home til around 9pm. So tonight I'm making the hubby's favorite dinner.

I'm lucky that my husband has started growing the wheatgrass. I've also got plans to grow sunflower, buckwheat and pea sprouts. These are considered the most nutritious. I'll be eating them in salad as well as using them to make the green juice. I just have to figure out how I can make 48 ounces of juice daily and not take an hour.

6pm w/Lynn

Oww. My muscles are sore today. And I'm really feeling the soreness in the right hip.

Made 4 ounces of wheatgrass (2 oz each for myself and husband) then 8 ounces of green juice (kale and various leafy greens) which I also shared with hubby. Then a green smoothie in the blender for later in the day. Yeow. That took an hour. Lucky that I was up really early. Obviously will need to do something about getting a decent electric juicer. The little manual juicer is great for juicing wheatgrass but Hippocrates recommends three 8oz (or is it 12 ounces) glasses of green juice each day. That's too much time since it's best to make it in the morning.

6pm w/Kelly

Another good class with Kelly. Felt very flexible and good. Pushed harder today.

10am w/Kelly

Great class. Warrior pose. Kelly's instructions to lean the "right shoulder back" [left leg was forward] just opened everything up. Even Kelly said "whoa!".

There was an asian lady in front who did the most perfect chair sequence. Wow. I cannot do that third posture (with knees pressed together)at all. It should not be a strength issue. Maybe there is one small weak link that needs strengthening.

While everything is loosening up and I'm feeling stronger and more flexible, the injury in the right hip keeps me from bending forward in Janushirasana with Paschimottanasana - Head to knee pose with Stretching pose. Since the head must touch the knee, I basically pull the knee all the way up to my head. So I'm going through the motions.

After class, I stopped at Whole Foods and bought some sunflower sprouts, baby spinach, and strawberries. Before making the salad, I rinsed the sprouts because the Master Grower at Hippocrates had said to always rinse the sprounts because they are still alive. I didn't ask why, hopefully, I'll find out later. Made a spinach & sprout salad. Tasted so good. I think the taste buds are changing.

Hippocrates Health Institute

Spent the day at the Hippocrates Health Institute.

There was a short course with the Chef Ken on raw cuisine. He showed us how to make flax crackers, tacos and red pepper corn salsa. He used a Vita-Mix Blender and dehydrator to make the crackers. He had some already made for us to taste. Now, I've purchased some flax crackers at Whole Foods and at a raw cuisine restaurant but these were much more delicate and tastier than those I've tried before. The girl sitting next to me opened her eyes wide with approval as we devoured our crackers. It was comforting to know that such goodies could be made with not that much work. However, it does take time, lots of time. Dehydrating usually takes 24 hours, sometimes more here in humid Florida.

Chef Ken said that the focus at the Institute is health and secondarily on taste. Hopefully, at the Institute they have both. But the foundation of the diet is sprouts and wheatgrass juice. The stuff made in the dehydrator (pizza, tacos, crackers, cookies) were considered "condiments". He also said that sugar in whatever form is still sugar and he wasn't telling us that we couldn't have it, because it is our choice, I got the feeling that I wouldn't be seeing anything like the chocolate hazelnut tort that I shared with my niece at the raw restaurant, Cafe 118. Since I would want to learn the "right way", it makes me feel more confident about the Hippocrates Institute though a little sad about the chocolate. I gave up coffee quite quickly and easily and yes, I sometimes linger by the roaster at Whole Foods and take a deep whiff, but must everything go?

At the beginning of the lunch buffet all I could see were mounds and mounds of the cleanest, freshest sprouts of all kinds. I have to say that they were ... well... beautiful. Like a beautiful lawn, but I never thought about eating my front yard. I got a little worried til I got to the end of the buffet and found the salad dressings and tacos. Whew! I grabbed some olives too and some what turned out to be very crispy pieces of dulse. Obviously dehydrated. Dulse chips?

At lunch I dined with two ladies. One local and the other, rather elderly, who was dealing with cancer. She was doing the three week program where you detox and learn the skills you need to take home with you. She had just completed her first week so I asked her if she felt better. She very enthusiastically said "yes!" and then picked up her dulse chip and said "I just love these".

She said that she had met people from all over the world that had come to learn at Hippocrates. I confided that I had come today with the purpose of checking out the place. When I mentioned that I was a teacher and on a teacher's salary and that the price was a bit high to be here, the other woman pulled out her card. She is a realtor and knows some people that live close by that could give me a better deal to stay nearby. Hmmmmm.....I'm definitely interested.

We were also shown the greenhouse and how to grow sprouts & wheatgrass by the greenhouse manager, Michael. He is very passionate about what he does and extremely knowledgeable. Before arriving I had thought, couldn't I just get this from books or DVD or youtube? But I learned so much more and the grounds were so beautiful. They have 40 acres. It's in West Palm Beach so it is subtropical and just beautifully maintained.

Michael said that he has seen so many people come through with cancer and seen their tumors shrink from (using both hands to make a big circle) to a pea. Basically, the foundation of the diet is wheatgrass juice and sprouts. Wheatgrass juice is very close to hemoglobin which provides oxygen to the cells. Cancer cannot survive in oxygen. So many diseases go into remission because of the oxygenation. Anyways, really glad that I went.

Long drive and I'm a bit tired now. Exhilirated and pooped.

The Cute Little Wheatgrass Juicer

It only takes a few minutes to juice and clean it and it's light and cute. What else do you want in a juicer?

Oh... I almost forgot ... it's very quiet.

Yes, at some point I will have to get a big, loud juicer that can crank out the volume but I'll always remember that I fell in love with this little guy first...♥

8am w/Debora

Tomorrow off.

Day seven in a row. Woo hoo. So I've proved to myself that upping to five days a week is certainly doable. I'm not going to do a 30-day challenge yet because if I only get 27 days .... well you see.. i just wrote "only". So there is a feeling of failure even though I would have made it 90% of the time.

My real challenge is to achieve consistency in the long run. So it's more important to develop the routine now and then still be going strong six months from now. I can get all inspired and go for a while then stop. Like the lion so ferocious on the kill and then sleeps two weeks. Other Leos out there?

In the meantime, it felt like I went deeper into camel. Seems like my backbend is coming along. The standing bow seems to have improved. The standing leg feels solid and now I'm bending forward more and there's more of a curve in the bend.

There is a muscle in my right hip that was pulled a few weeks ago and I can still feel it so I'm taking care not to re-injure it. It basically affects the bending forward/compression postures. Especially standing head to knee and head to knee pose with stretching.

The 90 minutes is going quicker and that feels good although in practice today, I felt a bit weak like I should have eaten a piece of banana before class. Though it does seem incredulous that I need to eat and can't just live off my fat for a week...

Change!

I teach ninth graders. This was a career change and it's now my fourth year. I'm constantly amazed at how the smallest "tweak" will change the same lesson from a disaster to a success. One "tweak" are my instructions. From "who knows the answer to this question?" to "Now, I'm going to ask a question, if you know the answer raise your hand...don't say anything... just raise your hand..." With that adjustment in my directions, I go from a situation where students are shouting out answers and trying to have conversations to an orderly response....most times...

So in Bikram, as we transition between postures, the instructor will say 'change' and I cannot help but notice that many of us will flop out of the position.

The 'CH' sound itself is a stronger sound so it has more force behind it. So when they want us to move more abruptly the word 'change' is more effective. However, when they want us to transition more slowly out of the position maybe there are other ways of saying that to get the desired effect. How about "now....slowly move out of the posture"? Of course, in a posture like standing bow where I'm just waiting to POP out of that pose, I'd like to hear "Change!" as soon as possible.

Right after making my green smoothie tonight, I noticed that the base of the Cuisinart had some "black dust" and oil on it. It looks like the base is grinding the black pastic teeth a bit. I think I'm pushing it beyond its capacity. And like my hip muscle, it's gonna blow. So I'm researching online to find a more powerful blender than the poor Cuisinart that can whack those raw beets and collards into a tasty drink. It should have a big enough motor that it could just mow the lawn too. That's not a bad idea, maybe it could come with a special attachment that would juice that lawn grass right into a shot glass for my daily regimen.... hmmmm

8am Class w/Moo

Only three of us. But the other two are dedicated yogis so it was a focused class. Moo has a soft voice so the class takes on a more meditative quality. Not that I mind being barked at by a would-be drill sargeant, just that I respond better to this style. I still push as hard but I'm better able to focus on what I'm doing rather than pushing my body too hard and getting hurt.

Day six in a row. Feels good. So I've accomplished what I had hoped to during this spring break. Simply to go to a class every day for at least six days in a row to see what the stamina would be like. I'm also pleased to find that my stamina has been fine.

The muscle in the right hip is still tender but I am able to do most of the postures. Just have to be careful with the bending forward poses where the lower back gets pulled/stretched.

I'm back in my fat jeans! Yay! We must celebrate the incremental changes which will eventually lead to the ultimate goals. Of course, once I'm skinny and glowing, that goal will replaced by even worthier ones.

Renewed Vows

So I signed up with the new Bikram studio on March 1st with the intention of going at least 4x per week. I'm happy to report that goal was accomplished.

I also decided to change my diet. Right now, I just want to fit back into my FAT jeans.

However...I want to lose the weight while glowing with health.

So, I've spent some time reading raw food blogs and hanging out in the book section at Whole Foods rather than journaling.

So I've decided to begin the transition by drinking wheatgrass and drinking green juices at Whole Foods. Regarding wheatgrass. It smells just like freshly mowed grass. And it tastes like fresh mowed lawn too. As one wheatgrass expert said on his blog... no one likes the taste of wheatgrass and you don't want to hang out with the few that do. So there. I learned a vital lesson about green juices... not only are they high in nutrition... they also kill the taste of the wheatgrass. argh!

After a month of ordering my wheatgrass shots at Whole Foods, I figured that the taste wouldn't kill me so I was prepared to purchase a wheatgrass juicer. Luckily, I found a manual juicer online that only costs $50, including the shipping. It works very well and it's kinda cute. I've saved myself the $399 on an electric version so that's major shopping points right there...

Whole foods conveniently sells bags of wheatgrass which is nice since I'm not at the grow my own phase yet. I learned that my husband is willing to take his green medicine too so I'm really happy that I invested in the little juicer.

In the fourth week of yoga practice, I really began to feel a change. If I could use only one word, I would have to say "calmness". It feels to me that the diet is complementing the yoga practice quite nicely. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that there are a lot of yogis eating raw foods.

Now, for April, what am I going to do, as Emeril says, to "kick it up a notch"?

For April I will do Bikram 5x per week. But I need to get organized. So, for that reason, I'm doing a "stay-cation" this spring break week instead of taking an "away" vacation.

That means only one thing..... shopping!

During the "stay-cation" I grind wheatgrass in my new juicer and pour it into the new shot glasses I purchased especially for serving them. These glasses look a little like the communion glasses at church. To deliver the holy green liquid to my Catholic husband. har har. Then I make a green smoothie and pour it into the new travel drink cups and place them into the new little cooler for the car ride. And, of course, with going to the studio every day, I'm not always going to be able to wash/repack the yoga clothes & towels so voila! a couple of new aubergine colored microfiber hot yoga towels. They were so nice it would have been a crime to not get the matching yoga mat....

Bikram - New Smyrna Beach

New Smyrna Beach
10am Liz Morrison

Wow. And to think that I almost decided to not go to Bikram because we were out of town for one night with family and it seemed like I'd be gone too long blah blah blah.... If I had not gone I would have missed a great class. I never worked out so hard on Standing Deep Breathing before (1st posture).

As I was facing right in warrior pose, Liz told me to turn my right foot out more. I thought it was okay. So when I made that adjustment, I was able to remain stable and go further into the posture. yay.

Small studio. The shower is outside. It's just a shower head. So I showered in my yoga clothes which is more efficient I suppose. As I was showering in the cold water, outside, with my back to the cars in the parking lot.... I imagined what it might be like to live here and go to this studio, everyone waiting to use the one hose with shower head...