Well, finally taking more than 5 minutes to add to my blog! Just started loading new show into Durham North Carolina's new Performing Arts Center so there are NOT enough hours in the day. I did manage to get to the brand spanking new Bikram studio though, and not only am I impressed with the new studio but also with the amazing amount of people giving it a try! They have been open three weeks when I first went last Monday and there were at least 20 students there for class. Each successive class I have been to has had at least that many people there. The teachers are pretty good with first timers, I can see a few things I would add but then I have been to so many studios that I have gotten kind of opinionated about how to treat first timers. But their teachers are very very good. Ralph taught my first class there on Monday and did a nice job of explaining the initial breathing and did a good class I just felt a little out of his rhythm. Carmen taught on Wednesday and she was awesome. I totally enjoyed her class and her spiel is great. Her accent, and this may sound un-politically correct, but I LOVED her accent! There were some spanish to english slips of tongue that made me smile and relieved tension. She gave great corrections and was just so spot on with temperature and caring. Mani on Friday was just as good without the accent. Mani notices a lot about her students and has a great spiel that imparts energy and inspiration. I loved her demonstration of standing head to knee, her balance is something to strive for.
The studio is very very clean, there are some pesky columns in the room itself that are strange but obviously not removable. They have filtered water out of their water fountain and in the sinks in the changing rooms. The water fountain gauges how many water bottles you save by refilling yours! I LOVE that! Inspire me to save our world MORE! The changing rooms are a little tight but work ok. They have lockers and three showers, which is so nice because I must shower after class even if I am just going straight home! The studio is in a building that was some sort of factory and has been renovated for artists and such, very nice ambiance.
As far as my anal retentiveness for first time students....Please demonstrate the initial breathing! It is so hard to see it and try it at the same time. And if you demonstrate two breaths than the student can see how you get out of the exhale and back into the inhale.
Rabbit pose, have them watch the first one!
That is really it. I tell people who are intimidated by Bikram Yoga to watch the first set of each pose and then try the second. These teachers here have all emphasized that TRYING it right is better than pushing and not being anywhere near the pose the way it can help! I am still trying to hold my damn foot while standing on one leg and some days I can't even REACH my foot but then I have days where I can start to kick out and keep my standing leg straight and I feel so good about myself. That is what this yoga has given me, being happy with each little step forward and not grieving over a little setback. So important for all of my life where I rarely see anything but black and white!
Namaste!
Monday, September 20, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Leaving NJ
I was so very sad to be leaving Palisades Park Bikram Yoga. I think Eune and Aldwin are great instructors and see the nice details that makes the posture work the best for each person. The energy they put into classes is inspiring, they really care and don't seem to be spouting the dialogue like they have done it a thousand times before.
I cannot say more good things about how nice their studio is as well, the largeness of it all is so unlike many studios where you feel too cramped to change and shower. Their prices are great and the rentals are reasonable.
I cannot say more good things about how nice their studio is as well, the largeness of it all is so unlike many studios where you feel too cramped to change and shower. Their prices are great and the rentals are reasonable.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Palisade Park, Montclair, and NYC Upper East Side
I have been able to go to Palisades Park Bikram pretty consistently the last few weeks and am even more impressed with this studio. I have had class again with Eune and with Aldred Gonzales who is also very good. Aldred has so much energy he gives to those of us struggling on the mat, it is really a great thing to experience. Eune is so good at seeing where you are struggling or potentially doing a pose a bit wrong and fixing it, she knows her asanas inside and out. I will be going again today and I have to say that one of the things I liked the best is the size of their lobby and dressing rooms, so comfortable to not be squished after a class while you decompress and shower!
I went to a class at Be-Evolution Yoga last Tuesday. I had to go out near there to buy fabric for a project for work and so it was easier to go there than try to make a Palisades class. Dar the teacher was certified in 1976! She has a intuitive knowledge of the class and how to keep the students trying their best for 90 minutes. She has a website:http://www.certifiedbikramyogateacher.com/ and also teaches a Yin Yoga Aromatherapy seminar that I was going to get to but my schedule just does not fit it in. The Yin Yoga has some awesome meditation from what I have read and if you have read Bikram's book, you know how important that mental time is for you. And while Bikram states that American's don't stand much chance at developing a good meditation practice, this Yin Yoga is a great place to start. And as someone who spends a lot of time in stinky hotel rooms, the aromatherapy part was very intriguing!
There were a couple things about Evolution yoga that I wasn't fond of. The studio has more of a sweat smell than some and the dressing rooms were very small. Other than that, they have a great lobby and lots of reading material and lending library for yoga and healthy living.
And so I come to my excursion to NYC yesterday. I really do not care for the city at all. Maybe if the gazillion tourists weren't milling about taking up so much sidewalk that a person often has to walk in the street to pass a group? Or can I just call out the many people with strollers who were pushing one handed so the stroller took up its own lane? I mean, come on, look around you and SEE that you are wasting SPACE with that stroller, let alone not protecting it with your body. Ok, I am calm now, kind of....
So I put together a day that included seeing wonderful old friends at their theaters and doing yoga with the BEST, did I say ABSOLUTE BEST Bikram teacher I have ever had.
Had to go change my laundry around so let me repeat, Jena Blackwood is the best Bikram I have ever had which says a lot because I have met some amazing teachers in the last few years. Maybe because she has a Photographer's eye, maybe because she goes to teacher training often and teaches a ton of classes a week, whatever gives her the ability to tell people things in a manner which they can comprehend during a sweaty 90 minute class, it makes her invaluable.
I had accidently thoughtlessly ingested a Venti Green Tea with one of my friends a few hours before class and my standing series left a LOT to be desired. Jena still found something to compliment and a few things to give me for future improvement. I like to listen to all the slight corrections she makes and try them and see if they apply to me as well. She also has an energy like Aldred's that pervades the room and helps everyone try harder. It is kind of like we are trying harder to please the teacher but in trying harder we are really pleasing ourselves.
So for today's class, what I remember from yesterday, which might not be everything Jena said since I was having heart pounding dizziness during the standing series:
Standing Head to Knee pose, try to bring foot to hands instead of hunching and going so rounded and far down to foot.
Fixed Firm pose, try to keep knees closer together in the first set when my right knee usually aches. This will help the constriction and make the second pose even better. I had my knees about 8-10 inches apart to be able to go all the way down to the floor with my shoulders, this way, I will probably not immediately be able to go all the way down but as I progress, perhaps?
Rabbit Pose, Instead of going down and inching my knees forward, I have enough bend to aim for my thighs with my head and then guide my head down to the ground then curl my hips up.
Amazing what her hints do, and I don't want to discount any other teachers, recently Yuen has also given me some great tips.
SO, if you see Jena Blackwood on a teaching schedule GO TO HER CLASS!!! BUT, any class, any time, can help you fix your body and fix your brain!!
A toast to all who keep going to class! My friend Paul with the broken feet is still going and so is Ashley, my boss's wife, who is progressing amazingly fast!
I went to a class at Be-Evolution Yoga last Tuesday. I had to go out near there to buy fabric for a project for work and so it was easier to go there than try to make a Palisades class. Dar the teacher was certified in 1976! She has a intuitive knowledge of the class and how to keep the students trying their best for 90 minutes. She has a website:http://www.certifiedbikramyogateacher.com/ and also teaches a Yin Yoga Aromatherapy seminar that I was going to get to but my schedule just does not fit it in. The Yin Yoga has some awesome meditation from what I have read and if you have read Bikram's book, you know how important that mental time is for you. And while Bikram states that American's don't stand much chance at developing a good meditation practice, this Yin Yoga is a great place to start. And as someone who spends a lot of time in stinky hotel rooms, the aromatherapy part was very intriguing!
There were a couple things about Evolution yoga that I wasn't fond of. The studio has more of a sweat smell than some and the dressing rooms were very small. Other than that, they have a great lobby and lots of reading material and lending library for yoga and healthy living.
And so I come to my excursion to NYC yesterday. I really do not care for the city at all. Maybe if the gazillion tourists weren't milling about taking up so much sidewalk that a person often has to walk in the street to pass a group? Or can I just call out the many people with strollers who were pushing one handed so the stroller took up its own lane? I mean, come on, look around you and SEE that you are wasting SPACE with that stroller, let alone not protecting it with your body. Ok, I am calm now, kind of....
So I put together a day that included seeing wonderful old friends at their theaters and doing yoga with the BEST, did I say ABSOLUTE BEST Bikram teacher I have ever had.
Had to go change my laundry around so let me repeat, Jena Blackwood is the best Bikram I have ever had which says a lot because I have met some amazing teachers in the last few years. Maybe because she has a Photographer's eye, maybe because she goes to teacher training often and teaches a ton of classes a week, whatever gives her the ability to tell people things in a manner which they can comprehend during a sweaty 90 minute class, it makes her invaluable.
I had accidently thoughtlessly ingested a Venti Green Tea with one of my friends a few hours before class and my standing series left a LOT to be desired. Jena still found something to compliment and a few things to give me for future improvement. I like to listen to all the slight corrections she makes and try them and see if they apply to me as well. She also has an energy like Aldred's that pervades the room and helps everyone try harder. It is kind of like we are trying harder to please the teacher but in trying harder we are really pleasing ourselves.
So for today's class, what I remember from yesterday, which might not be everything Jena said since I was having heart pounding dizziness during the standing series:
Standing Head to Knee pose, try to bring foot to hands instead of hunching and going so rounded and far down to foot.
Fixed Firm pose, try to keep knees closer together in the first set when my right knee usually aches. This will help the constriction and make the second pose even better. I had my knees about 8-10 inches apart to be able to go all the way down to the floor with my shoulders, this way, I will probably not immediately be able to go all the way down but as I progress, perhaps?
Rabbit Pose, Instead of going down and inching my knees forward, I have enough bend to aim for my thighs with my head and then guide my head down to the ground then curl my hips up.
Amazing what her hints do, and I don't want to discount any other teachers, recently Yuen has also given me some great tips.
SO, if you see Jena Blackwood on a teaching schedule GO TO HER CLASS!!! BUT, any class, any time, can help you fix your body and fix your brain!!
A toast to all who keep going to class! My friend Paul with the broken feet is still going and so is Ashley, my boss's wife, who is progressing amazingly fast!
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Bikram Yoga at Palisades Park
http://www.bikramyogapalisades.com/
Finally got back to Bikram Yoga after almost 2 months off! Really enjoyed the 4 pm class at Bikram Palisades Park in New Jersey. I believe the teacher's name was Yuen and she did a wonderful job of giving tips to first timers and veterans! My friend Ashley went for her first time and stayed in the room the whole time. She is awesomely tough! AND she agreed to go again tomorrow morning! Woo Hoo! Another possible convert!
The studio is pretty clean, it has carpet and so has that sweat smell that cannot be gotten rid of. (I know I have said this before but I LOVE the floors in Toronto, NO smell!!) Yuen monitored the heat pretty well and kept the fans going (even at a low speed it helps mentally to know there are ceiling fans on!). The dressing room for women was very nice size and had toilets and three clean showers. They have lockers and also lock the doors during class and so is very safe as well.
I would recommend this studio to anyone looking to try Bikram espcially if Yuen is teaching!
I struggled a bit through class after not doing much physically for a while. I was in OH which doesn't HAVE Bikram yoga and since I was pretty much at my dad's hospital bedside most of the time, I might not have gone if they did have it. Spending weeks on end in a hospital and rehab home gives a person a ton of time to think though and that was very good for me. My father has been diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma and due to his bad heart and rhuematiod Arthritis, the Oncologist was not able to prescribe Chemotherapy or Radiation treatment. He is taking steroids and anti nausea medication to try to get him a little stronger and back on his feet which will help with his general health but his outlook isn't stellar right now. I feel like I float between being mentally all right with what is happening since we are lucky to have had this much time with him and then occasionally falling apart because no matter how much time I will have with him, it isn't enough.
I was reading a book called "Falling Man" by Don DeLillo, which I haven't finished but still....anyway, it is about 9/11 and the World Trade Centers falling and one of the lines was something about how heroic the people were who ran towards the fire. If I could write a book about my dad that is what I would call it "Running Towards the Fire". My dad is a man who raised himself with help from his sister's and younger brother after his father died and his mother, who drank a lot, married a greasy guy who also drank a lot. Dad was shipped off to relatives for summers and worked odd jobs from the time he was 7 or 8. He worked in a bakery, joined the Army, got kicked out of the Army for having bad hearing, and eventually married my mom and worked at the post office. This man with very little training on how to be a good Dad, has done an amazing job at it. He worked two jobs most of his life to provide for the three children and wife he had. He took great care of my mom as she was failing from Emphysema. And he has fought like a demon to stay alive to help my sister and I as our lives became tumultuous in the last few years. I truly do not know a better man. I ache so viciously when I think of life without him but I also know how tired he is and how much pain he feels. And above all, I know he still loves my mother with all his heart and that he believes they will be together again in death. And for him, I so pray this is true. It would be fitting to see their two angels sitting in lovely white wing back chairs reading together quietly for all eternity. That is heaven.
Finally got back to Bikram Yoga after almost 2 months off! Really enjoyed the 4 pm class at Bikram Palisades Park in New Jersey. I believe the teacher's name was Yuen and she did a wonderful job of giving tips to first timers and veterans! My friend Ashley went for her first time and stayed in the room the whole time. She is awesomely tough! AND she agreed to go again tomorrow morning! Woo Hoo! Another possible convert!
The studio is pretty clean, it has carpet and so has that sweat smell that cannot be gotten rid of. (I know I have said this before but I LOVE the floors in Toronto, NO smell!!) Yuen monitored the heat pretty well and kept the fans going (even at a low speed it helps mentally to know there are ceiling fans on!). The dressing room for women was very nice size and had toilets and three clean showers. They have lockers and also lock the doors during class and so is very safe as well.
I would recommend this studio to anyone looking to try Bikram espcially if Yuen is teaching!
I struggled a bit through class after not doing much physically for a while. I was in OH which doesn't HAVE Bikram yoga and since I was pretty much at my dad's hospital bedside most of the time, I might not have gone if they did have it. Spending weeks on end in a hospital and rehab home gives a person a ton of time to think though and that was very good for me. My father has been diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma and due to his bad heart and rhuematiod Arthritis, the Oncologist was not able to prescribe Chemotherapy or Radiation treatment. He is taking steroids and anti nausea medication to try to get him a little stronger and back on his feet which will help with his general health but his outlook isn't stellar right now. I feel like I float between being mentally all right with what is happening since we are lucky to have had this much time with him and then occasionally falling apart because no matter how much time I will have with him, it isn't enough.
I was reading a book called "Falling Man" by Don DeLillo, which I haven't finished but still....anyway, it is about 9/11 and the World Trade Centers falling and one of the lines was something about how heroic the people were who ran towards the fire. If I could write a book about my dad that is what I would call it "Running Towards the Fire". My dad is a man who raised himself with help from his sister's and younger brother after his father died and his mother, who drank a lot, married a greasy guy who also drank a lot. Dad was shipped off to relatives for summers and worked odd jobs from the time he was 7 or 8. He worked in a bakery, joined the Army, got kicked out of the Army for having bad hearing, and eventually married my mom and worked at the post office. This man with very little training on how to be a good Dad, has done an amazing job at it. He worked two jobs most of his life to provide for the three children and wife he had. He took great care of my mom as she was failing from Emphysema. And he has fought like a demon to stay alive to help my sister and I as our lives became tumultuous in the last few years. I truly do not know a better man. I ache so viciously when I think of life without him but I also know how tired he is and how much pain he feels. And above all, I know he still loves my mother with all his heart and that he believes they will be together again in death. And for him, I so pray this is true. It would be fitting to see their two angels sitting in lovely white wing back chairs reading together quietly for all eternity. That is heaven.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Kudos to Paul Brown!
So if you want to be inspired look no further!
My friend, Paul Brown, had a terrible accident in early April. He was working at the Ordway on a bosun's chair about 35 feet in the air focusing theatrical lighting for the Minnesota Opera. He slid across the track as usual, which is how a lot of Opera sets are done since they have numerous platforms and such that make use of a Genie lift impossible, and when he got to the end of the track, instead of the stopper on the track stopping him, it allowed him to fall off the track and down 35 feet to the stage floor. Amazingly, his had and back were fine but he had shattered his heels in both feet. I have seen the xrays post surgery and it is like a teeny tiny jigsaw puzzle the way they put his heels back together. As of last week, Paul had 6 more weeks of healing to do before he could even bear weight on his heels! He is an amazing guy though, very philosophical and intelligent, and after I told him about Bikram Yoga and how much I loved it, AND with Patrice, the teacher in Woodbury, saying the studio could work within his capabilities, he decided to come to class.
Now Paul has been doing a lot of weight lifting with his arms since he has to propel himself everywhere in a wheelchair but he had not gotten much stretching in. He came to class this morning at 9:30am and Michael the studio owner was all ready for him! Michael has been teaching for ages and has such an easy way about himself. He said the basics, "Listen to the monologue" "don't push too hard, listen to your body", etc. He set up an armless chair behind a mat and gave Paul a lot of little hints throughout class. I was trying not to watch and just do my own practice but I have to say that Paul pushed himself harder than anyone I have ever seen in their first class. He tried every pose in one way or another, whether bending from the top or lifting his legs up to stretch. He gave 110% and after class said he really felt an emotional release as well as a physical one as he stretched. I can only imagine the amount of emotional issues he has coursing through his brain. Career threatening injury, long healing process, surgery, therapy, it seems like a long time to go before he can walk again. But I think his attending class and getting the energy that others emote and mixing his energy into it all, is one of the best things he can do. I hope he comes back! I know it felt like I had an energy boost after class today and I have been feeling a little dragged down lately. I guess I needed someone to look up to for a class!
Also got to see Michael's "daughter" so a beautiful Dandayamana–Dhanurasana. She has great balance and stretch and such a sweet personality! I chatted with her in the dressing room and would love to go to her studio in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada if I ever get up there!
I cannot overemphasize how much Bikram Yoga has changed my outlook on daily life and life in general. I used to take so much too seriously, like everything affected me and my life and now I feel so much more peaceful and know that I am in charge of my life and it is up to me to seek the peace which lies somewhere in the chaos. I hope that my friends notice it in me and find me easier to get along with too!
Namaste`
My friend, Paul Brown, had a terrible accident in early April. He was working at the Ordway on a bosun's chair about 35 feet in the air focusing theatrical lighting for the Minnesota Opera. He slid across the track as usual, which is how a lot of Opera sets are done since they have numerous platforms and such that make use of a Genie lift impossible, and when he got to the end of the track, instead of the stopper on the track stopping him, it allowed him to fall off the track and down 35 feet to the stage floor. Amazingly, his had and back were fine but he had shattered his heels in both feet. I have seen the xrays post surgery and it is like a teeny tiny jigsaw puzzle the way they put his heels back together. As of last week, Paul had 6 more weeks of healing to do before he could even bear weight on his heels! He is an amazing guy though, very philosophical and intelligent, and after I told him about Bikram Yoga and how much I loved it, AND with Patrice, the teacher in Woodbury, saying the studio could work within his capabilities, he decided to come to class.
Now Paul has been doing a lot of weight lifting with his arms since he has to propel himself everywhere in a wheelchair but he had not gotten much stretching in. He came to class this morning at 9:30am and Michael the studio owner was all ready for him! Michael has been teaching for ages and has such an easy way about himself. He said the basics, "Listen to the monologue" "don't push too hard, listen to your body", etc. He set up an armless chair behind a mat and gave Paul a lot of little hints throughout class. I was trying not to watch and just do my own practice but I have to say that Paul pushed himself harder than anyone I have ever seen in their first class. He tried every pose in one way or another, whether bending from the top or lifting his legs up to stretch. He gave 110% and after class said he really felt an emotional release as well as a physical one as he stretched. I can only imagine the amount of emotional issues he has coursing through his brain. Career threatening injury, long healing process, surgery, therapy, it seems like a long time to go before he can walk again. But I think his attending class and getting the energy that others emote and mixing his energy into it all, is one of the best things he can do. I hope he comes back! I know it felt like I had an energy boost after class today and I have been feeling a little dragged down lately. I guess I needed someone to look up to for a class!
Also got to see Michael's "daughter" so a beautiful Dandayamana–Dhanurasana. She has great balance and stretch and such a sweet personality! I chatted with her in the dressing room and would love to go to her studio in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada if I ever get up there!
I cannot overemphasize how much Bikram Yoga has changed my outlook on daily life and life in general. I used to take so much too seriously, like everything affected me and my life and now I feel so much more peaceful and know that I am in charge of my life and it is up to me to seek the peace which lies somewhere in the chaos. I hope that my friends notice it in me and find me easier to get along with too!
Namaste`
Thursday, June 24, 2010
reading and more reading
Hi,
I am in Chicago and unfortunately didn't make it to Bikram Yoga this morning, I will tomorrow and will totally enjoy it since this is the studio I started at about 4-5 years ago. They are so popular now that they have sold out classes! It is amazing and makes me feel so encouraged by the spirit of the people who can put their focus into a 90 minute class that is so hot it can fry your brain. Anyway, today, I am going to go to a Vinyasa class at noon at Yoga Now. A little easier and it won't matter that I had a huge bowl of cereal at 9!! Well, at least it won't matter nearly as much as if I were in Bikram class.
I was googling Bikram info and came across this interview with a Bikram Studio owner in the UK and thought many things she says are interesting:
http://www.purecalma.com/bikram_yoga.html
Enjoy!
I am in Chicago and unfortunately didn't make it to Bikram Yoga this morning, I will tomorrow and will totally enjoy it since this is the studio I started at about 4-5 years ago. They are so popular now that they have sold out classes! It is amazing and makes me feel so encouraged by the spirit of the people who can put their focus into a 90 minute class that is so hot it can fry your brain. Anyway, today, I am going to go to a Vinyasa class at noon at Yoga Now. A little easier and it won't matter that I had a huge bowl of cereal at 9!! Well, at least it won't matter nearly as much as if I were in Bikram class.
I was googling Bikram info and came across this interview with a Bikram Studio owner in the UK and thought many things she says are interesting:
http://www.purecalma.com/bikram_yoga.html
Enjoy!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Cconcentration is so hard.
I wonder if there is a scientific study that analyzes why a video game or piece of music can totally capture you so you can't remember anything but the sound of the song or the dings and pings of the video game. Because you would THINK that in a silent yoga room, concentrating on just quieting your mind would be easy. It is silent, peaceful, quiet, all you hear is breathing, (sometimes gasping) and sighs. But I have a terrible time leaving the "real" world behind and just opening my brain up to peace and serenity. Every once in a while I will have a quick flash of total calm before I say to myself "OMG, that is so cool and then I should go to the grocery store....blahblahblah". But I suppose that is why yoga is a PRACTICE. But I do understand why the hatha yoga is part of the meditation experience. It really warms up and stretches you so that you are so grateful to just relax and breathe and give yourself up to nothing but air. Finding the lack of suffering.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
it's not the heat, it's the humidity
Once again, it was a tough class today. I felt great at first and then midway through the balancing series just pooped out. Not sure if it is the humidity outdoors or the recent constant rain but I feel so tired all the time. Maybe hormones from getting to that pleasant age where stunning flashes of unbearable heat occasionally slam me to the floor? I bought some new tablets with vitamins and electrolytes in them to see if I am just missing something from sweating so much. Need to nip this in the bud and feel better since I am SO happy to be able to do yoga daily!
I am so excited that Patrice and Barb from the studio are reading this blog! I am having fun writing it and am happy that someone is reading it. I cannot overemphasize the way that Bikram has changed my life (and of course, this is always a work in progress so it is still molding me!) Before I first started Bikram yoga in Chicago in July of 2007, I had done all different kinds of workouts, lifting weights, fast walking, biking, and lots of diets. I never could look at my body though, and not judge it against either the other people at the gym or the image I had in my mind of what I wanted my body to look like. My body has been my enemy as long as I can remember, well, since high school when I realized I wasn't pretty and boys would rather make fun of me than date me! I starved and binged and dieted and binged and fought bulimia and binged. This however did not gain me dates but just made my self esteem worsen. It has taken me until now, really, at the grand age of 46, to look at my body in the mirror and say to myself, this is what I have, this is the body that works with me and has helped me to succeed. When my eyes meet my reflection, I am not embarrassed to be in yoga short and a jog bra. This is me and I am proud of who I am and how I lead my life.
Practicing Bikram Yoga has led me to do a lot of reading on yoga and Buddhism and just peacefulness in general. I no longer blame other people for anything in my life, I accept responsibility for myself and the choices I have made. I am a happy person and while sometimes not on the "Ecstatically happy" side, just the peacefully happy end of the spectrum. I just read "Geography of Bliss" which I think I mentioned in an earlier post but anyway,it is so true that in the USA we expect to be totally overjoyed every minute of the day and are disappointed when we aren't. (Or at least that is how I felt, I had NO gray in my life, just black or white, way up in the clouds or way down in the valleys of despair.) I am noticing now just how much I have to be grateful for and that the peace in my life is a constant calm happiness.
Good luck to whomever is reading I wish you happy peaceful dreams!
I am so excited that Patrice and Barb from the studio are reading this blog! I am having fun writing it and am happy that someone is reading it. I cannot overemphasize the way that Bikram has changed my life (and of course, this is always a work in progress so it is still molding me!) Before I first started Bikram yoga in Chicago in July of 2007, I had done all different kinds of workouts, lifting weights, fast walking, biking, and lots of diets. I never could look at my body though, and not judge it against either the other people at the gym or the image I had in my mind of what I wanted my body to look like. My body has been my enemy as long as I can remember, well, since high school when I realized I wasn't pretty and boys would rather make fun of me than date me! I starved and binged and dieted and binged and fought bulimia and binged. This however did not gain me dates but just made my self esteem worsen. It has taken me until now, really, at the grand age of 46, to look at my body in the mirror and say to myself, this is what I have, this is the body that works with me and has helped me to succeed. When my eyes meet my reflection, I am not embarrassed to be in yoga short and a jog bra. This is me and I am proud of who I am and how I lead my life.
Practicing Bikram Yoga has led me to do a lot of reading on yoga and Buddhism and just peacefulness in general. I no longer blame other people for anything in my life, I accept responsibility for myself and the choices I have made. I am a happy person and while sometimes not on the "Ecstatically happy" side, just the peacefully happy end of the spectrum. I just read "Geography of Bliss" which I think I mentioned in an earlier post but anyway,it is so true that in the USA we expect to be totally overjoyed every minute of the day and are disappointed when we aren't. (Or at least that is how I felt, I had NO gray in my life, just black or white, way up in the clouds or way down in the valleys of despair.) I am noticing now just how much I have to be grateful for and that the peace in my life is a constant calm happiness.
Good luck to whomever is reading I wish you happy peaceful dreams!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Inspiration
Breath
Breathing in, I know I’m breathing in.
Breathing out, I know
As the in-breath grows deep,
The out-breath grows slow.
Breathing in makes me calm.
Breathing out makes me ease.
With the in-breath, I smile.
With the out-breath, I release.
Breathing in, there is only the present moment.
Breathing out, it is a wonderful moment.
-Thich Nhat Hanh
Breathing in, I know I’m breathing in.
Breathing out, I know
As the in-breath grows deep,
The out-breath grows slow.
Breathing in makes me calm.
Breathing out makes me ease.
With the in-breath, I smile.
With the out-breath, I release.
Breathing in, there is only the present moment.
Breathing out, it is a wonderful moment.
-Thich Nhat Hanh
Tuesday morning
Just woke up crabby and that sucks cuz I was sleeping alone. (insert drum trill here).
I should have gotten my ass going and made it to 9:30 class but I just looked at the schedule and there is a 7 pm so I am going to be a total weenie butt and go to that one. I will blame my "ennui" on the deep tissue massage I had yesterday which has left me feeling a little bruised, ok a LOT bruised. But it is always fun to impress the massage therapist with the size and strength of the knots in your muscles! The area between my shoulder blades is the catch all for tension. I don't know if that is the reason I can barely get my arms behind my ears in yoga poses, or if there is a physical reason too, the shape of my shoulder bones etc. I watched some fantastic videos on yoga postures and different types of bodies that I recommend for everyone. "Anatomy for yoga by Paul Grilley" is so well done that it keeps your attention and gives you examples of different bodies in positions so you can really understand what you should be seeking to achieve. There are not many of us who are going to end up as a slender, lean yogini after even 20 years of yoga. We should have a picture of ourselves that is actually obtainable in our minds. No matter what society says, ANY body that is healthy and toned, free of excessive alcohol and smoke, able to think new thoughts and not just rattle off the status quo, is the MOST beautiful thing in the world.
That said, if anyone has the 45 and older male version of that being, please send them ASAP!!
I am working on getting a friend of mine who was in a horrible accident the beginning of May to Bikram class. He is so physically and mentally strong and I hope if you see him there you will spread good cheer. I know how hard it is to get my reasonable healthy body to class and his feet, both feet, were shattered into pieces that two days of 8 hour surgeries put back together. Patrice at Bikram Woodbury has been great for advice since she had to do Bikram sitting in a chair for a good long while. My hope is to wheel Paul in and give him the energy of the room to begin his practice and maybe it will help his healing too!! I have done yoga with 90 year olds, a woman in San Francisco celebrated her 85th Birthday in class, there is a man who is paraplegic in Tempe, AZ, these people have a life force that is so impressive, i am actually getting teary thinking of it. There are so many people in the world who are constantly putting obstacles in their own way. They won't do this or try that because they don't want the world to see them. That is such utter bullshit and so they sit in their misery trying to suck us into it and are bewildered when we don't give in! (yeah, I feel a little passionate about this point, eh?) I would rahter live 10 years aas a peaceful person who tries everything once no matter how bad, fat, tired, sore, bruised, stressed, whatever, I feel, than live 100 years stuck in a rut.
On that note, I must get offline and finally sit down and write to a relative who has gotten herself in some drug trouble and landed in jail. Everyone is vulnerable but everyone is also able to rise above their troubles.
Namaste!
I should have gotten my ass going and made it to 9:30 class but I just looked at the schedule and there is a 7 pm so I am going to be a total weenie butt and go to that one. I will blame my "ennui" on the deep tissue massage I had yesterday which has left me feeling a little bruised, ok a LOT bruised. But it is always fun to impress the massage therapist with the size and strength of the knots in your muscles! The area between my shoulder blades is the catch all for tension. I don't know if that is the reason I can barely get my arms behind my ears in yoga poses, or if there is a physical reason too, the shape of my shoulder bones etc. I watched some fantastic videos on yoga postures and different types of bodies that I recommend for everyone. "Anatomy for yoga by Paul Grilley" is so well done that it keeps your attention and gives you examples of different bodies in positions so you can really understand what you should be seeking to achieve. There are not many of us who are going to end up as a slender, lean yogini after even 20 years of yoga. We should have a picture of ourselves that is actually obtainable in our minds. No matter what society says, ANY body that is healthy and toned, free of excessive alcohol and smoke, able to think new thoughts and not just rattle off the status quo, is the MOST beautiful thing in the world.
That said, if anyone has the 45 and older male version of that being, please send them ASAP!!
I am working on getting a friend of mine who was in a horrible accident the beginning of May to Bikram class. He is so physically and mentally strong and I hope if you see him there you will spread good cheer. I know how hard it is to get my reasonable healthy body to class and his feet, both feet, were shattered into pieces that two days of 8 hour surgeries put back together. Patrice at Bikram Woodbury has been great for advice since she had to do Bikram sitting in a chair for a good long while. My hope is to wheel Paul in and give him the energy of the room to begin his practice and maybe it will help his healing too!! I have done yoga with 90 year olds, a woman in San Francisco celebrated her 85th Birthday in class, there is a man who is paraplegic in Tempe, AZ, these people have a life force that is so impressive, i am actually getting teary thinking of it. There are so many people in the world who are constantly putting obstacles in their own way. They won't do this or try that because they don't want the world to see them. That is such utter bullshit and so they sit in their misery trying to suck us into it and are bewildered when we don't give in! (yeah, I feel a little passionate about this point, eh?) I would rahter live 10 years aas a peaceful person who tries everything once no matter how bad, fat, tired, sore, bruised, stressed, whatever, I feel, than live 100 years stuck in a rut.
On that note, I must get offline and finally sit down and write to a relative who has gotten herself in some drug trouble and landed in jail. Everyone is vulnerable but everyone is also able to rise above their troubles.
Namaste!
Monday, June 14, 2010
Monday, Monday......
Hello! I had a pretty great class today, I gotta say! It was really busy in Woodbury for 9:30am on Monday morning. A couple new students too which is awesome! I always think of my first class in Chicago when I was like "who are these crazy people and how can they stay in this heat and breathe". My first class, when the guy in front of me went into Standing Bow Pulling Pose, sweat POURED off him onto his mat and I almost gagged!! Now when I drip and it sounds like a little rain storm, I just smile to myself and probably make the person behind me gag!! I also did NOT stay in the room the whole time at my first class! I truly, in my most overly dramatic way, thought I was going to DIE in there. I staggered out as the poor teacher said, "You should try to stay IN the room". I think I went back into the room at some point or that may be the way I like to remember things.
Then I went back the second day.
I would love to hear about how other people got through their first class!
So today, in my quest to disassociate myself from the heat and my tiredness, I started a mantra to repeat that was "I have never done this pose before". I think I was trying to convince myself to do the second set of each pose by pretending that I had never done the first set of the pose, instead of just laying there like a dead dog. It worked. I have used a number of mantras, some work better than others. One is "this is all I have". Another is "so I die the house will be paid off"......
I do every once in a while hit that treasured peaceful glowing feeling where I feel calm and able to do anything. If you promise not to laugh (and my friend Sherry didn't laugh she said she gets it too), I will tell you about how sometimes in Savasana I half close my eyes and fuzz everything out and just have this golden glow that has me feeling nothing but calm and peace. It might be THAT which keeps me coming back for more!
Then I went back the second day.
I would love to hear about how other people got through their first class!
So today, in my quest to disassociate myself from the heat and my tiredness, I started a mantra to repeat that was "I have never done this pose before". I think I was trying to convince myself to do the second set of each pose by pretending that I had never done the first set of the pose, instead of just laying there like a dead dog. It worked. I have used a number of mantras, some work better than others. One is "this is all I have". Another is "so I die the house will be paid off"......
I do every once in a while hit that treasured peaceful glowing feeling where I feel calm and able to do anything. If you promise not to laugh (and my friend Sherry didn't laugh she said she gets it too), I will tell you about how sometimes in Savasana I half close my eyes and fuzz everything out and just have this golden glow that has me feeling nothing but calm and peace. It might be THAT which keeps me coming back for more!
Catching up!
YOGA BLOG
How on earth did I become such an internet addict? AND Bikram addict? First I was stuck in Cleveland where there is NO Bikram Yoga, then I was stuck in my friend’s house in Hudson, WI without internet! So, I am finally going to go to Starbucks after yoga tomorrow and do the stuff I need to do that I usually spend a few hours a day on every single day! By the time I get the DSL connection from AT and T, I will have accrued so many OFF hours of internet use, I might need to devote an entire day to just surfing!!
I went to Bikram Yoga in Minneapolis last night at 7pm. It is a wonderful studio in a very eclectic neighborhood that I would love to wander around more some day. Minneapolis was the only studio in the area to have a late class on Fridays so even though it is a 40 minute drive, I felt it was worth it. The studio is in the bottom floor of a large building, it has bathrooms, showers, lockers, and the locker room itself is accessed through a pushbutton lock which I really like. The teacher , Heidi was so very good with her dialogue and her corrections throughout class. She also knows Jenna whom I met in San Francisco and is one of my favorite teachers ever! I am usually a morning yoga person since I have to have coffee at some point in my early day or fall into a coma. So when I do yoga in the evening, the caffeine I have ingested make my heart pound. (hmm, if it burns more calories that way, maybe it is a good thing?) Anyway, the studio was very humid and I must admit to having to sit out a lot of the second sets of postures. Not only that but I had to leave to use the restroom which rarely happens to me! As soon as we hit the floor postures and I raised my knee to my shoulder, I knew, just knew that the second I rolled onto my stomach there would be trauma. Occasionally, I feel like I kinda maybe need to go and I can work through it as soon as I take my mind off it. Not last night, it was like a giant water balloon.
Enough of the banal side of yoga.
Today was a morning class at Bikram Yoga Woodbury. This is a very new studio in a new building that is comfortable, big enough, yet cozy at the same time. They have a locker room and shower and lock the door for class. Karen taught class and she really read the class well. The standing poses went by fairly quickly but she gave us a little extra time during the floor series to breathe and recuperate. I enjoy that studio, the people who attend class are usually open to a little chat after class and it feels good to hear about other people and why they take yoga.
My friend Sherry went to both classes with me and even though during class I barely even know anyone else is in the room, it is nice to have her there. She is a calm peaceful person who is a joy to hang out with. She has been practicing yoga at her gym and we talked today about the gym changing to a more “core power” yoga outlook. I understand that the “core power” is popular and bouncy like aerobics and thus more “saleable”. But the Ashtanga yoga they offered previously had attracted a different group of people who are now a little stranded. I am glad that Sherry has been open to going to Bikram when I am in town but not many people are eager to go from Ashtanga to Bikram. To me, it is an easier change than Ashtanga to “core power”. Both Ashtanga and Bikram emphasize the breath and long slow poses.
I have a couple of questions. First is the position of the tongue during yoga. I had been listening to a teacher in New Smyrna and when we were in Savasana, she said “let your tongue relax away from the roof of your mouth”. I found it really relaxed me and so I have been trying to keep my tongue there during the whole class. Is that the best place? It seems to keep me from having my jaw tighten and pushing against the roof of my mouth with my tongue which makes my stress higher. The second question is why don’t more of the teachers talk about the breath. Jenna from San Francisco had emphasized breathing during one of the first classes I took with her. She reminded us that the inhale should be faster than the exhale to keep the heart rate slower. I think it would be a great thing to remind us of when the heat and humidity start to overwhelm.
Last question is if Bikram has decreed that new students not get the example breathing at the start of class? It used to be when new students were in class the teacher would demonstrate the first breathing exercise but the last two classes I went to with new students, it wasn’t demonstrated. The teachers also used to have the students watch the first Rabbit posture which they don’t anymore. Maybe it feels to me like they should be a little more conscious of the new people who are trying Bikram for the first time and might feel overwhelmed. I know I was totally unprepared mentally for my first class.
Whew, ok, that’s what I have had on my pointy little brain for a week!!
How on earth did I become such an internet addict? AND Bikram addict? First I was stuck in Cleveland where there is NO Bikram Yoga, then I was stuck in my friend’s house in Hudson, WI without internet! So, I am finally going to go to Starbucks after yoga tomorrow and do the stuff I need to do that I usually spend a few hours a day on every single day! By the time I get the DSL connection from AT and T, I will have accrued so many OFF hours of internet use, I might need to devote an entire day to just surfing!!
I went to Bikram Yoga in Minneapolis last night at 7pm. It is a wonderful studio in a very eclectic neighborhood that I would love to wander around more some day. Minneapolis was the only studio in the area to have a late class on Fridays so even though it is a 40 minute drive, I felt it was worth it. The studio is in the bottom floor of a large building, it has bathrooms, showers, lockers, and the locker room itself is accessed through a pushbutton lock which I really like. The teacher , Heidi was so very good with her dialogue and her corrections throughout class. She also knows Jenna whom I met in San Francisco and is one of my favorite teachers ever! I am usually a morning yoga person since I have to have coffee at some point in my early day or fall into a coma. So when I do yoga in the evening, the caffeine I have ingested make my heart pound. (hmm, if it burns more calories that way, maybe it is a good thing?) Anyway, the studio was very humid and I must admit to having to sit out a lot of the second sets of postures. Not only that but I had to leave to use the restroom which rarely happens to me! As soon as we hit the floor postures and I raised my knee to my shoulder, I knew, just knew that the second I rolled onto my stomach there would be trauma. Occasionally, I feel like I kinda maybe need to go and I can work through it as soon as I take my mind off it. Not last night, it was like a giant water balloon.
Enough of the banal side of yoga.
Today was a morning class at Bikram Yoga Woodbury. This is a very new studio in a new building that is comfortable, big enough, yet cozy at the same time. They have a locker room and shower and lock the door for class. Karen taught class and she really read the class well. The standing poses went by fairly quickly but she gave us a little extra time during the floor series to breathe and recuperate. I enjoy that studio, the people who attend class are usually open to a little chat after class and it feels good to hear about other people and why they take yoga.
My friend Sherry went to both classes with me and even though during class I barely even know anyone else is in the room, it is nice to have her there. She is a calm peaceful person who is a joy to hang out with. She has been practicing yoga at her gym and we talked today about the gym changing to a more “core power” yoga outlook. I understand that the “core power” is popular and bouncy like aerobics and thus more “saleable”. But the Ashtanga yoga they offered previously had attracted a different group of people who are now a little stranded. I am glad that Sherry has been open to going to Bikram when I am in town but not many people are eager to go from Ashtanga to Bikram. To me, it is an easier change than Ashtanga to “core power”. Both Ashtanga and Bikram emphasize the breath and long slow poses.
I have a couple of questions. First is the position of the tongue during yoga. I had been listening to a teacher in New Smyrna and when we were in Savasana, she said “let your tongue relax away from the roof of your mouth”. I found it really relaxed me and so I have been trying to keep my tongue there during the whole class. Is that the best place? It seems to keep me from having my jaw tighten and pushing against the roof of my mouth with my tongue which makes my stress higher. The second question is why don’t more of the teachers talk about the breath. Jenna from San Francisco had emphasized breathing during one of the first classes I took with her. She reminded us that the inhale should be faster than the exhale to keep the heart rate slower. I think it would be a great thing to remind us of when the heat and humidity start to overwhelm.
Last question is if Bikram has decreed that new students not get the example breathing at the start of class? It used to be when new students were in class the teacher would demonstrate the first breathing exercise but the last two classes I went to with new students, it wasn’t demonstrated. The teachers also used to have the students watch the first Rabbit posture which they don’t anymore. Maybe it feels to me like they should be a little more conscious of the new people who are trying Bikram for the first time and might feel overwhelmed. I know I was totally unprepared mentally for my first class.
Whew, ok, that’s what I have had on my pointy little brain for a week!!
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Packed class today!
So the studio was packed when I got there 20 minutes before class. How amazing that so many people in FL would come to a Bikram class on a Saturday morning. There were a lot of new people and I was a little surprised that the initial breathing wasn't demonstrated before we did it. In a lot of studios they demonstrate that and have the newbies watch the first Rabbit Pose so they don't twist their neck in Rabbit. No biggie, it was a great class, VERY hot! I was very impressed that the teacher was so calm and cool since three of the new peeps were teenagers who kept trying to whisper to each other. The teacher just nipped them in the bud a few times very nicely though and reminded them that it is a 90 minute meditation. I don't know if it was the energy from the full room or what but in the balancing series I felt way more steady than usual and felt like I had really made some improvement. Now I fly to Cleveland for a few days were there isn't any Bikram and probably fall apart!! Why oh why is ther no Bikram in Cleveland?
I have so enjoyed this studio and the teachers and students. It seems there is always a friendly face around to chat with before and after class.
It has been a pleasure to be in New Smyrna Beach enjoying life and yoga!!
I have so enjoyed this studio and the teachers and students. It seems there is always a friendly face around to chat with before and after class.
It has been a pleasure to be in New Smyrna Beach enjoying life and yoga!!
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Subject matter
I hope that yesterday when I went off about obesity, that you recognize that it does have a lot to do with this blog. I may go outside the safe barriers of thought but it is important to me that overweight (which I am by 20 lbs). and obese people understand that while there is a segment of the population that stays in shape without effort, the rest of us are really putting time and money into our bodies.
That said, today I was reminded again about how Bikram Yoga is a practice! The poses I can do reasonably easily considering the heat are probably the ones I don't really "need". Today as always my enemies were the first standing balancing pose, with head to knee and the damned Triangle pose. Standing head to knee is so hard so of course, I approach it like that when I relaly just need to take my head out of the equation. I can balance on one leg when my foot goes behind me but not when I am reaching in front of me. 4 years of not being able to stand on one leg is tormenting me. I am so concentrated on my standing knee, locked like concrete, then the ankle wobbles. Then I think about keeping my big toe down and the whole kit and kaboodle goes over to one side! Arggghhhh......Does anyone know if the trick of standing on one foot often during the day works? Obviously I have some weak part of the whole equation.
Triangle I can go into and feel okay and I really try to breathe but it feels so strenuous that bit by bit my leg slips, the hip comes up and I a down for the count. And I must stop breathing somewhere in there because I can usually do just one set of bad triangles. I am envious of those who can go right down and not feel like after this pose they are going to have a heart attack. I know my hips are tight and that is part of it so I am going to try to open them up a bit before class and see if that helps. Any other suggestions are welcomed!!
FYI, the average age in New Smyrna Bikram is around 40-50. Lots of younger gals but also the equal amount of older women who impress the hell out of me. So don't be embarrassed by your age or size, just try it for a week! Try it and be an addict like the rest of us!
That said, today I was reminded again about how Bikram Yoga is a practice! The poses I can do reasonably easily considering the heat are probably the ones I don't really "need". Today as always my enemies were the first standing balancing pose, with head to knee and the damned Triangle pose. Standing head to knee is so hard so of course, I approach it like that when I relaly just need to take my head out of the equation. I can balance on one leg when my foot goes behind me but not when I am reaching in front of me. 4 years of not being able to stand on one leg is tormenting me. I am so concentrated on my standing knee, locked like concrete, then the ankle wobbles. Then I think about keeping my big toe down and the whole kit and kaboodle goes over to one side! Arggghhhh......Does anyone know if the trick of standing on one foot often during the day works? Obviously I have some weak part of the whole equation.
Triangle I can go into and feel okay and I really try to breathe but it feels so strenuous that bit by bit my leg slips, the hip comes up and I a down for the count. And I must stop breathing somewhere in there because I can usually do just one set of bad triangles. I am envious of those who can go right down and not feel like after this pose they are going to have a heart attack. I know my hips are tight and that is part of it so I am going to try to open them up a bit before class and see if that helps. Any other suggestions are welcomed!!
FYI, the average age in New Smyrna Bikram is around 40-50. Lots of younger gals but also the equal amount of older women who impress the hell out of me. So don't be embarrassed by your age or size, just try it for a week! Try it and be an addict like the rest of us!
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
An easier day!
Today did not quite kick my butt as much as the last two days. Don't know if it is because I ate dinner later or woke up earlier and drank water so I didn't obsess about having to pee the entire time we were on the floor!! I hate leaving the room and yesterday it would have benefitted me to just get up and go instead of mentally thinking over and over again how much I had to pee!
Young guy probably just around 30 took his first class today and was so much fun to have there. He had a great outlook on it and the few exasperated comments that came from him ( a few OMG, ughhhh, and sighs) made me smile. He had an already healthy body so It was kind of cool that it was so hard for him and makes me kind of pat myself on the back for going to class. It did remind me of a class I took in Bloomington, MN, a studio that is now not Bikram, but was a beautiful place to go a couple years ago. I was in a back corner with one older gentleman between me and the wall. He was probably in his late 60's and did a great class but as he moved into positions and back for savasana, he would mutter and it wasn't until we were on the floor that I heard him better. He was saying "fuckfuckfuckfuck". I almost laughed out loud, it was so great! It hurt but he was just going to get himself moving into that next asana!!
I have taken class in San Francisco with a woman turning 80 and at that same Bloomington, MN studio with a man in his 90's. It is so inspiring to me to see people who haven't given up and planted themselves in a chair to eat and watch TV. There is so much more out there in life to do whether just walking around the block or running a 5K!
I was talking about the Obesity problem in the US with some of the people from New Smyrna today and we were bemoaing the fact that parents either don't want to, don't have time to, or don't have the energy to spend outdoor time with their kids. I am among the generation that was safe enough to go out and play and stay out until Mom yelled to "Come in the streetlights are on!" What do we have to do to get kids to play together? First stop spending money on video games for them and spend that money to take a day off and go to a state park? Find a schedule where one parent in the area can watch over the kids playing at their yard? Everyone can spare a couple hours a day for their kids, can't they? Why HAVE the children if you aren't going to have time to spend with them? If having a child means you have to work longer hours so you are exhausted all the time is it really worth it? I think more people should think about the quality of the life they are contemplating having instead of thinking of their own wants. Don't have a child because he or she will love you forever or take care of you in your old age, have a child because you seriously love your partner and want to share your LIFE with another being. And you aren't sharing your life if you are working 14 hours a day.
More data on obesity is on the Center for Disease Control, http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html.
The program I watched on CNBC was pretty eye opening but worrisome to me in that it spend a half hour talking about surgery and pills that help to lose weight. When are we going to take responsibility for our own problem and eat less and exercise more? Catch yourself before you become morbidly obese and turn yourself around. This is YOUR body, not the governments or the insurance agencies.
I know it is all so "easy" for me. I don't have kids, I have a kind of active job. But I have fought some battles with addictions and want people to keep in mind that food is an addiction to and if you allow it consume your life, it WILL kill you. So step up and take care of yourself and recognize that you are the most important thing you have going for you. It is hard but espcially in Bikram Yoga, when you are standing in front of that mirror, you think, I just have to breathe, this is all I have, and I just need to breathe.
Young guy probably just around 30 took his first class today and was so much fun to have there. He had a great outlook on it and the few exasperated comments that came from him ( a few OMG, ughhhh, and sighs) made me smile. He had an already healthy body so It was kind of cool that it was so hard for him and makes me kind of pat myself on the back for going to class. It did remind me of a class I took in Bloomington, MN, a studio that is now not Bikram, but was a beautiful place to go a couple years ago. I was in a back corner with one older gentleman between me and the wall. He was probably in his late 60's and did a great class but as he moved into positions and back for savasana, he would mutter and it wasn't until we were on the floor that I heard him better. He was saying "fuckfuckfuckfuck". I almost laughed out loud, it was so great! It hurt but he was just going to get himself moving into that next asana!!
I have taken class in San Francisco with a woman turning 80 and at that same Bloomington, MN studio with a man in his 90's. It is so inspiring to me to see people who haven't given up and planted themselves in a chair to eat and watch TV. There is so much more out there in life to do whether just walking around the block or running a 5K!
I was talking about the Obesity problem in the US with some of the people from New Smyrna today and we were bemoaing the fact that parents either don't want to, don't have time to, or don't have the energy to spend outdoor time with their kids. I am among the generation that was safe enough to go out and play and stay out until Mom yelled to "Come in the streetlights are on!" What do we have to do to get kids to play together? First stop spending money on video games for them and spend that money to take a day off and go to a state park? Find a schedule where one parent in the area can watch over the kids playing at their yard? Everyone can spare a couple hours a day for their kids, can't they? Why HAVE the children if you aren't going to have time to spend with them? If having a child means you have to work longer hours so you are exhausted all the time is it really worth it? I think more people should think about the quality of the life they are contemplating having instead of thinking of their own wants. Don't have a child because he or she will love you forever or take care of you in your old age, have a child because you seriously love your partner and want to share your LIFE with another being. And you aren't sharing your life if you are working 14 hours a day.
More data on obesity is on the Center for Disease Control, http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html.
The program I watched on CNBC was pretty eye opening but worrisome to me in that it spend a half hour talking about surgery and pills that help to lose weight. When are we going to take responsibility for our own problem and eat less and exercise more? Catch yourself before you become morbidly obese and turn yourself around. This is YOUR body, not the governments or the insurance agencies.
I know it is all so "easy" for me. I don't have kids, I have a kind of active job. But I have fought some battles with addictions and want people to keep in mind that food is an addiction to and if you allow it consume your life, it WILL kill you. So step up and take care of yourself and recognize that you are the most important thing you have going for you. It is hard but espcially in Bikram Yoga, when you are standing in front of that mirror, you think, I just have to breathe, this is all I have, and I just need to breathe.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
When class is HARD!
Yesterday and today I have felt like Bikram class was killing me. Like I needed to lay down for another 8 hours of sleep after 90 minutes of yoga. I wish I could figure out why sometimes you come out of class absolutely euphoric and ready to eat a steak and sometimes you are ready to just give up and be fat and unhappy. Anyone got a clue? Please fill me in!
I have also been thinking about a great studio I went to while the last show was playing Washington DC. I rented an apartment in Alexandria, VA and went to Bikram Yoga Alexandria (http://www.bikramalexandria.com/home/). Another great studio, clean, big, nice locker rooms and showers, lots of bathrooms for we who are aging and have bladders the size of peas. The owner of the studio is ex Army, although I don't think you are ever an ex soldier always a Army guy through and through. He has devised many ways of keeping people coming to the studio and not giving up. He also works with veterans both able and disabled who are interested in yoga. He has the only "props" I have ever seen in a Bikram studio but they are used in a way that progressively weans you off the prop. He has a refrigerator in the studio for beverages and ice packs doing anything he can to keep you in the room. I wish I could have spent more time there, it was a very learning oriented place. I loved the way the owner of the studio would teach and walk through class really seeing the people there and if they were struggling or just walking through it. And yes,once or twice I got nailed for just fluffing though a few things!
One of the things he did at this studio I recommend for all places! Instead of just a line running across the floor for positioning, he had dots placed that you put your left corner of your mat to. That way whomever was laying their mat knew they would be able to see at least a glimpse of themselves in the mirror. So many places once the front and back have set their mats, the middle is at a loss to find a spot where they can see.
Also, for those of you who might be like me in the mid life contemplation mode (I refuse to call it a crisis). I am reading a book called "The Geography of Bliss" which has some amazingly pertinent things to say about how we approach happiness and unhappiness in the USA compared to other countries.
Hope you find peace as I do in the outdoors, sunshine, four legged animals, and damn good coffee!!
I have also been thinking about a great studio I went to while the last show was playing Washington DC. I rented an apartment in Alexandria, VA and went to Bikram Yoga Alexandria (http://www.bikramalexandria.com/home/). Another great studio, clean, big, nice locker rooms and showers, lots of bathrooms for we who are aging and have bladders the size of peas. The owner of the studio is ex Army, although I don't think you are ever an ex soldier always a Army guy through and through. He has devised many ways of keeping people coming to the studio and not giving up. He also works with veterans both able and disabled who are interested in yoga. He has the only "props" I have ever seen in a Bikram studio but they are used in a way that progressively weans you off the prop. He has a refrigerator in the studio for beverages and ice packs doing anything he can to keep you in the room. I wish I could have spent more time there, it was a very learning oriented place. I loved the way the owner of the studio would teach and walk through class really seeing the people there and if they were struggling or just walking through it. And yes,once or twice I got nailed for just fluffing though a few things!
One of the things he did at this studio I recommend for all places! Instead of just a line running across the floor for positioning, he had dots placed that you put your left corner of your mat to. That way whomever was laying their mat knew they would be able to see at least a glimpse of themselves in the mirror. So many places once the front and back have set their mats, the middle is at a loss to find a spot where they can see.
Also, for those of you who might be like me in the mid life contemplation mode (I refuse to call it a crisis). I am reading a book called "The Geography of Bliss" which has some amazingly pertinent things to say about how we approach happiness and unhappiness in the USA compared to other countries.
Hope you find peace as I do in the outdoors, sunshine, four legged animals, and damn good coffee!!
Monday, May 31, 2010
Other interesting things at New Smyrna Beach Bikram!
I forgot to say what a great website the New Smyrna Beach Bikram has. I especially love the "students of the month" idea. I get a lot of energy from reading about people who have started the yoga and felt it change their life. I don't think it matters if you lose 80 lbs or just feel a sense of peace that you never felt before when you go to class but it is all healing and important. It helps me to smile and try to pass along my peaceful feeling!
Also the Detroit yoga studio I went to had a lot of articles on their website.(http://www.bikramfh.com/press.aspx).
Also the Detroit yoga studio I went to had a lot of articles on their website.(http://www.bikramfh.com/press.aspx).
Happy Memorial Day!
Just starting out with an idea I have been playing with for awhile about posting ideas and chatting about Bikram Yoga in different studios around the country. I travel for a living and get to experience so many different places and people and would like to meet more of the hot yoga addicts online. Let me know what you think about the studios in your city. Tell me why there isn't a place to do Bikram in yours! How much do you practice? Who is your favorite teacher and why? How do you feel during class and after class?
One of my questions to whomever might know is why why why is there no Bikram in Cleveland? I mean, I grew up near there and it isn't my favorite place on earth but really, not ONE studio! I was just in Detroit and there are two within 30 miles of Detroit which is much ickier than Cleveland! What would someone need to open a studio within driving distance of say Avon or Lakewood, both decent size towns with people who are health minded and open to different ideas about health. And we all know that people do have to be open minded to the idea of yoga let alone yoga in 105 degree temperatures! I have gotten one or two friends to try it over the 4 years I have been practicing but everyone else I hang out with and work with (so that list is actually mostly the same people but....) think I am insane to enjoy it the way I do. I have woken up at 5 am for a 6 am class because it was the only class I could get to that day! I think the studios do an awesome job of trying to get people to try it. Almost every studio offers a first class or first week special. The studio I am in currently in New Smyrna Beach was $10 for the first class and the second class was free, then I did $45 a week for unlimited classes which is a really good price. Most studios offer specials only to locals but sometimes offer to all.
So speaking of the New Smyrna Beach studio in Florida's Atlantic coast,(www.bikramyogansb.com) it is a very nice kind of intimate studio. It is kept very clean, NO sweat smell at all. I think I have had a different teacher at each class and they are all very concise on their oration. One or two have offered more advice than others. I like the tips they give and anything that alleviates the tension that builds. I like it when I can smile at something a teacher says and it makes the pose seem easier to hold. The studio has two bathrooms and an outdoor hose for showering but since it is not enclosed you have to shower clothed which is still often nice and refreshing! This studio has a nice amount of clothing and beverages and both cold and room temp water which is nice. They are affiliated with the Port Orange, FL Bikram studio but I have not gone there for a class at all, maybe later in the week.
I do have a couple of favorite studios around the country that I would like to mention and see if I get any feedback on them, first and foremost would be Funky Door Bikram in San Fransisco (www.funkydoor.com). Great studio, awesome teachers and so many classes you can find one that fits your schedule. Then the studio in Baltimore (www.bikramyogahampden.com) which is clean and beautifully new, very relaxing and some awesome teachers, arghhh, I think the one who was my favorite was a young man named David? Anyway, he was youthful and totally into teaching, giving his energy to the whole room. Toronto (www.bikramyogacentre.com) is fantastic! Clean, great schedule, a solid floor instead of carpeting. Nice area to wait for class or recuperate after class. Paul was the first teacher I had there and was so fun to listen to, he is an actor and his speaking voice is great. he also did a little relaxing talk after class while in savasana that helped to sink into the floor and recuperate.
I will think more about my favorites and what made them that cool! Please send me any thought you have!
One of my questions to whomever might know is why why why is there no Bikram in Cleveland? I mean, I grew up near there and it isn't my favorite place on earth but really, not ONE studio! I was just in Detroit and there are two within 30 miles of Detroit which is much ickier than Cleveland! What would someone need to open a studio within driving distance of say Avon or Lakewood, both decent size towns with people who are health minded and open to different ideas about health. And we all know that people do have to be open minded to the idea of yoga let alone yoga in 105 degree temperatures! I have gotten one or two friends to try it over the 4 years I have been practicing but everyone else I hang out with and work with (so that list is actually mostly the same people but....) think I am insane to enjoy it the way I do. I have woken up at 5 am for a 6 am class because it was the only class I could get to that day! I think the studios do an awesome job of trying to get people to try it. Almost every studio offers a first class or first week special. The studio I am in currently in New Smyrna Beach was $10 for the first class and the second class was free, then I did $45 a week for unlimited classes which is a really good price. Most studios offer specials only to locals but sometimes offer to all.
So speaking of the New Smyrna Beach studio in Florida's Atlantic coast,(www.bikramyogansb.com) it is a very nice kind of intimate studio. It is kept very clean, NO sweat smell at all. I think I have had a different teacher at each class and they are all very concise on their oration. One or two have offered more advice than others. I like the tips they give and anything that alleviates the tension that builds. I like it when I can smile at something a teacher says and it makes the pose seem easier to hold. The studio has two bathrooms and an outdoor hose for showering but since it is not enclosed you have to shower clothed which is still often nice and refreshing! This studio has a nice amount of clothing and beverages and both cold and room temp water which is nice. They are affiliated with the Port Orange, FL Bikram studio but I have not gone there for a class at all, maybe later in the week.
I do have a couple of favorite studios around the country that I would like to mention and see if I get any feedback on them, first and foremost would be Funky Door Bikram in San Fransisco (www.funkydoor.com). Great studio, awesome teachers and so many classes you can find one that fits your schedule. Then the studio in Baltimore (www.bikramyogahampden.com) which is clean and beautifully new, very relaxing and some awesome teachers, arghhh, I think the one who was my favorite was a young man named David? Anyway, he was youthful and totally into teaching, giving his energy to the whole room. Toronto (www.bikramyogacentre.com) is fantastic! Clean, great schedule, a solid floor instead of carpeting. Nice area to wait for class or recuperate after class. Paul was the first teacher I had there and was so fun to listen to, he is an actor and his speaking voice is great. he also did a little relaxing talk after class while in savasana that helped to sink into the floor and recuperate.
I will think more about my favorites and what made them that cool! Please send me any thought you have!
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