Yoga, and whatnot.

So, I went to a Hot Yoga class and didn’t die. It’s a big step, and I feel pretty good about it. It was hard, and I was obviously a “beginner” because I was struggling more than the other people, but that’s ok because I really felt amazing afterwards. Amazing, and sweaty. I have a hard time admitting that it’s impossible to master something after one go of it because I find it infuriating. I have a few pounds to lose before the wedding (trying dresses on really solidified that fact for me) and so hopefully I’ll get better and plank won’t be a problem and downward dog really will be restful. On the flip side, in the time since that class I did hear from my old Ashtanga teacher that Hot Yoga is really bad for your skin and your insides, among other things. I suppose, like everything else, moderation is key, so I plan to alternate as soon as I renew my membership, which expired just before I went home and I haven’t been back. I’m super dedicated, can you tell?

I’m going to go to Hot Yoga tomorrow morning. Let’s see how it goes. I shall keep you posted.

balance

It feels a bit like a buzz word that past few years is “balance” and there’s all sorts of talk about finding balance and achieving balance and striking a balance. I used to think it was a bit bologna, and imagined that everyone simply needed to get into a schedule and repeat the same actions every day and then we wouldn’t really have to be balanced, but then things would still get done (but I guess that that’s a form of balance on its own). I’ve recently discovered that balance isn’t imaginary, and that it is, in fact, really difficult to find it. The most frustrating bit is when you’ve got your balance and then you lose it. For instance, when you finally get into a schedule of going to class, and doing homework, and keeping the house tidy, and going to yoga and eating your greens and drinking your water and then the next week it all goes out the window. Also annoying? Doing a yoga class devoted to balancing when you’ve got the worst balance in that class. Awkward.

yin yoga

I bought an unlimited membership to the yoga studio around the corner from my house when we got back from Barbados. I’ve been going twice a week, but hopefully once my papers are out of the way (only two more days!) I’ll go maybe three or four days a week. I want to say that I’m going to go five days a week but I’m no superhero. The point of all this is that I went to yin yoga last night which is a more gentle and slow practice and today my body hurts and I love it.

I went to ashtanga on Monday which is more difficult and I was struggling to do one of the postures and I was getting frustrated and I thought to myself “what am I doing here? I hate this!” but then I left and I felt better and I realized that this is one way of exercising that I actually enjoy and of course it’s going to be hard. Nothing that’s good for you is easy, right? Plus, if I’m going to feel good in my clothes or bathing suit I have to do something drastic. I mean, I have to look good when I’m hanging out on Brighton beach this summer!

hot yoga, or how to sweat a bucket in 90 minutes

As I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, I haven’t been overwhelmingly successful in making friends this year. However, there are a few friends here in London who miraculously happen to also be here and who have been very important to me this year. One of these friends, my pretty popular friend, asked me the other day if I wanted to join her in purchasing a 10 day pass for hot yoga for the bargain price of £20. Initially, I was hesitant. But The Cool One is very tall and slender and very athletic, and I, more of a “let’s go for a walk to the store to buy chips instead” big-bummed typed girl, didn’t like the fact that she doubted me, and my athletic prowess and determination to get a fit, bikini appropriate body before summer. So I did it with her! And do I ever like it, and please notice that I am recommending it to you! I’ve been a general yoga fan for a number of years now, but when I moved here and got a monthly pass I hated going. I’m not sure if it was the fact that it took me a half an hour to get there and back, and the class was only 60 minutes. Maybe it was that I didn’t really like my teachers the way I liked the ones I was fortunate to have back home. Either way, I didn’t really go and wasted a lot of money and consider my lesson learned. But, this “Bikram Hot Yoga” this yoga is different in a very good way. It combines all the good things about yoga, the centering, the breathing, the feel really good and refreshed and flexible after class with the benefits of an hour and a half of crazy cardio. It’s a series of 26 postures that are the same in every 90 minute class and it’s suitable for beginners, and pros and it’s hard either way. The postures themselves aren’t particularly difficult, it’s more about the challenge of being in such a hot room and staying focused and not needing to sit out for a few minutes. It’s a fantastic workout. But only if you’re not afraid to work out in a 40˚c room and sweat buckets. I also like it because it’s been forcing me to drink a lot more water, and even though I know water consumption is crucial to higher brain function and overall well-being, it’s amazing how much of a difference it really does make when you go from only drinking a few cups of (decaf!) tea a day to drinking almost two litres of water. So, the moral of this story? Go to hot yoga, and drink a lot of water. But not too much, because you don’t want to die from washing away all your electrolytes. Namaste.