Day 3! Hot Yoga in San Francisco!

Hot Yoga!  - Day 3!

Tonight I am going to bed earlier. It's hard to wake up at 6. I am dreaming when the alarm goes off and it's all I can do to keep my eyes open. I literally hit the snooze and woke up from a dream again five minutes later. I either need to go to bed earlier or wake up a little later.

Made it to class a bit early. It felt really good to go into the warm room and lay down on my towel-covered mat. I love to be warm. As those closest to me know, I prefer heat to cold. I am often referred to as being "like a lizard". I need a heat source (a warm rock or direct sunlight both work) in order to be warm.

Today's instructor was male. He didn't tell us his name. Today's session was like yoga boot camp, so we'll just call him Sarge. I'm not complaining. I really pushed myself (and he pushed us all) this morning and it felt great. My balance is still crap, but Sarge offered a bit of advice that worked. If I concentrate on my straight leg being planted like a lamp post - literally meditate on it and look at it in the mirror, I can catch a moment of stillness and it's if time stops, and I feel my body in the pose, and I hear the encouragement, and I go deeper. It's very sensuous when it works. And then I fall out and stumble around.

Sarge kept saying that we were playing it safe and to push ourselves and that our minds were holding us back. So, during tree pose, I did more of the pose than before. Yesterday I watched as people leaned forward, put their fingers on the floor and then sat, bringing their hands to prayer position. I thought "That looks Painful". I did it today, except for the last balancing act, because Sarge was saying that none of us were taking chances, and it was a hell of a lot easier than standing there trying to balance and keep my opposite foot stuck to the front of my leg! I'll be doing that pose more completely again tomorrow.

Another cool thing that happened - during bow pose, I actually felt my hip bones against the floor. Improvement.

I was a little cotton-headed after class. I made a half of an avocado sandwich at the bus stop and ate it while I waited for the bus. Wished I had salt. Made it to work 5 minutes later than I would have liked to. Made and ate another half sandwich with salt. Yummy.

11:04 - Definitely a headache coming on. I've consumed 32 ounces of water so far today. Taking a Tylenol - with more water. Maybe the Heed isn't the answer. Maybe I was just being a wimp yesterday.

12:00 - Not starving today, but hungry. Brown rice salad and a banana. Tasty and no processed sugar!

12:40 - Tired. Could literally lay down on the floor and go to sleep. . . hopefully green tea will help.

1:20 - Green tea helped a tiny bit. . .

4:30 - Went to a meeting at 3:00 - about 3:15 I could feel my face was flushed. It stayed hot the whole meeting and when I went and looked in the mirror, sure enough, it was red. Not terribly red, but red like a mild sunburn. Interesting. Not very pretty, but interesting.

Left work on time. Mr. Green took me out to the Kabuki for a glass of wine and a bowl of shared crab ramen. Yum.  Still thinking that I should go to bed earlier. Or maybe I just need to get up earlier. . .

The yoga was great this morning. I am a little sore. My shoulder muscles are sore if I push on them (so don't push on them) and I can feel my thighs and mid-back.

I'm surprised by how hard I can work in the moment and how not-sore I am later in the day. The body has an amazing ability to recover. So, tomorrow, as Sarge says, No Fear!

Definitely going again in the morning.

Hot Yoga! Day 2

Day 2 of Hot Yoga at Bikram Yoga Seacliff, San Francisco.

I slept well last night. Woke up at 6 with the alarm. I was a little tired, but not bad.


Getting ready to go to class is complicated. I have to take everything I need to end up at work dressed and groomed appropriately. Managed quite well today.

Made it to class early, but not as crazy early as yesterday. There was already a class in session. It started at 6:00 a.m. - the same time I got out of bed - Who ARE Those Bendy People?!

Anyway, class was great today.

I realized, after about 10 minutes, that I could actually hear the instructor. Yesterday there was so much internal noise between the voice in my head and breathing and my body, that I couldn't hear a thing. Today, I could hear everything. Consequently, I was able to concentrate more on the poses and really stretch. It felt good. Except for the falling-over part. The first balancing pose was a total joke. I was the example of "uncenteredness". I'm sure other people found it hard to balance with me falling all over the place. It did get a little better as the poses went on. There is hope.

I was only slightly light-headed at the end. I think this has to do with two things.

First, I drank a cup of decaf chai tea with a large spoon of honey in it when I got up this morning. There is still a tiny bit of caffeine in decaf tea and the honey served as a little "food" in my system without adding any solids. One is not supposed to eat for two hours before yoga for many good reasons. Stomach cramps are no fun and, trust me, you don't want to be the one who rips one during downward dog and belches every time you stand up. I'm not eating breakfast until after class.

Second, I put a full scoop of Heed in my water bottle this morning. Heed is an electrolyte powder by Hammer Nutrition. Cyclists use it. It doesn't have any of the nasty ingredients that Gatorade has - no HFCS (high fructose corn syrup), no artificial colors. It doesn't taste like much, it's sweetened with stevia and xylitol, and it keeps your electrolytes in balance while you work out. It's great on really long or really strenuous bike rides. Worked perfect for intense yoga.

We spend a lot of time looking at the ceiling. It's made of a beautiful deep red cloth that looks like quilted silk. It's quite beautiful, actually.

9:45 - On the bus. Munching stems of broccoli from a zip-lock bag (it was what was easy to grab out of the fridge). Not starving, but definitely hungry. Had an interesting conversation with an Asian woman about food. She wanted to know if my broccoli was raw or cooked and if I eat salad dressing. We talked about making dressing from scratch. And there was this baby on the bus! A blond girl. Not more than 14 months old. She made eye contact and said "Hi!" and waved to Everyone on the bus - one person at a time! It was Great! Wow! What will She BE when she grows up?! Maybe her whole generation is that outgoing - what a change That would bring! She was so Present. Very Cool.

10:15 - At work. Feeling good. Neck is a little stiff. Ate the salad that I brought from home - various lettuces, raisins, some shaved parm. No dressing.

11:30 - Hip Flexers! Wow. They totally seized up while I was sitting at my desk. Makes walking to get a copy a whole new adventure! And suddenly I am aware of my posture. I can hear my mother reminding me to stand up straight, so I do.

12:05 - Lunch. Brown rice mushroom salad - Fabulous. Flan for dessert. Yes, I know I should eat fruit instead and get totally away from the white sugar. Not today. Sorry. The rest of the broccoli stems. Am aware of my neck and upper back. Feels kind of good, actually.

2:54 - Suddenly tired. Thirsty. Drinking lots of water. Slight headache, so I'm taking an aspirin.

3: 59 - Better. Maybe I just needed some human interaction. Went to a meeting. Hip flexers are working without pain. This is good.

5:00 - Now I get to decide whether I want to ride my bike home or not. How much exercise is too much exercise? The wind actually isn't blowing 20 miles an hour for a change. It's sunny outside. I think I'll ride home. Leisurely. Or maybe I'll take the bus. . .

9:31 - Stayed late at work and took the bus home. Stole a piece of string cheese out of the work fridge - will have to replace it. Got here around 8. Made dinner with Mr. Green and ate (cauliflower pasta). Ate too much. Still learning to not overeat. Crazy how we are programed to "pig-out" when food tastes good. Also, why eat at 8:45 p.m.? There's really no reason to. I would have been fine with a piece of fruit or some veggies. I eat and learn. . .

I'm a little sore this evening - back, legs and the muscles along the sides of my neck (weird). It will be interesting to see how I feel in the morning.

Onward to Day 3!

Hot Yoga!

I bought 20 sessions of Birkram Yoga at Birkram Yoga Seacliff from Groupon for $20. What a deal!

If you don't know Groupon, you should check it out and sign up. It's a great way to get deep discounts on fun experiences around The City! I've purchased manicure/pedicures, belly dance classes, restaurant discounts and more.

Back to the Yoga. I decided, after reading the info on the Birkram Yoga Seacliff site, to do the 20 classes basically in a row. I am going to take next Sunday off to participate in the Bay to Breakers run. I think a seven mile run and 90 minutes of yoga would be a bit much. Besides, I want to hang out in my Sustainability Girl super hero costume as long as possible! I am leaving myself the possibility of two other days off, so, when I'm finished, I will have completed 20 yoga sessions in 23 days.

Here goes. . .

Day 1
I arrived way too early to the center this morning. I knew there would be paperwork and I wanted to have plenty of time to ask questions if I had any. One never knows what traffic is going to be like, but at 6:55 a.m. it was an easy drive from the Outer Sunset to Seacliff. The class started at 7:45 a.m. and I was set to go by 7:15. The woman at the desk (who's name I don't remember, although it started with a T and was sort of like mine. Tanya? Tamaya? - I hate it that I can't remember names!) was eating a banana when I walked in. She was friendly and helpful and Real, which I appreciate.

The space is comfortable and appealing. There are benches and a fountain in the front, cubby holes in the hallway to hold belongings and restrooms in the back. It is all clean. The restroom/dressing room area is good-sized and has a shower (yea!). I didn't know if there would be a shower and my plan was to bathe in the sink at work, if not, so I was thrilled to see that there was one.

After I was all signed in and oriented, I sat and flipped through a magazine which had an interesting article about the fight against CODEX. If you don't know about Codex Alimentarius, inform yourself. If you want to continue to have real food and real supplements in the future, you will want to pay attention to the madness that is Codex.

Soon people with yoga mats started showing up. After three or four people went into the back, I went back and took my shoes and socks off, stuffed my bag into a cubby hole and sat on a bench outside the room. I had a great conversation with a woman who also had purchased 20 sessions. She was on day 12 and said that she loved it and was totally hooked. She encouraged me to come back tomorrow no matter how I felt after class. I told her that was my plan.

When I entered the room, it reminded me of a sauna. A wall of warm air hit me and I had to adjust my breathing a little to accommodate the heat. It is supposed to be 105 degrees and I'm pretty sure it was over 100 at that point. The room was dimly lit. I threw my mat out in what I hoped was the back of the room (opposite the mirrored wall) and watched others put their towel on top of their mat and lay down. I followed suit.

As it turned out, the instructor was the same person who helped me at the counter. She was great. She encouraged me and praised me when I managed to do a pose fully. It was not easy. There are a lot of balancing poses and my balance sucks. Especially early in the day. I learned some new poses and really enjoyed being in the heat for about the 1st hour of class.

Right before we moved to floor work I started to get light-headed. I drank a bunch of water and kept going. I finished the class feeling light headed and a bit dizzy. I moved out of the room and into the dressing area slowly, got the avocado I brought out of my bag and ate a few bites of it.

When I got out of the shower and looked in the mirror my face was bright red! Yikes! I dressed and mashed the rest of the avocado between two pieces of bread. Wished I had some salt. They even have a blow dryer which means I ended up looking a lot better than I thought I would today. That makes me happy. Off to the bus. Arrived at work later than I wanted. Will probably have to do the afternoon class tomorrow. Showing up at 10 all week isn't going to fly.

10:00 - I wouldn't call this state light-headed. It's more like head-stuffed-with-cotton. Feels weird. I'm sure it will pass. Drinking lots of water. Have finished my 1st 32 ounces and refilled already.

12:04 - Must Eat Now. I'm starving. It's pouring rain outside and I get to go down the block to the cash machine before I can go next door and buy lunch. We have a fabulous cafe next door that has all kinds of fresh veggie salads all the time. Head is starting to ache a little. I'm taking a Tylenol. Not a good idea to let it go, as I could end up with a migraine. . .

12:30 - Lunch is served - Salmon Salad  "Protein good" and a banana. I read on the Birkram site that light-headedness and nausea is caused by lack of potassium and salt. I sprinkled sea salt on my salad, wolfed it down and then ate the banana. Felt better in about 10 minutes. Amazing.

2:30 - Fading. Could literally put my head on my desk and sleep. Am going to have a cup of green tea instead. Co-worker is going next door to get a snack. I go with her and end up eating a piece of honey cake. This is one of my favorite treats and it instantly gives me a sugar high. Not a good idea. Feel nauseous. Blah.

3:19 - Head is starting to ache a little. Feeling rather tired. Think I'll take an aspirin and a multi-vitamin and see how that is. Funny how the headache goes away so quickly when I take a pain killer. I get that that's what they are for, but wow. Thought the green tea would help (caffeine) but it didn't really. Tasted good, though.

3:30 - Feeling rather normal now. Finally. I've consumed 64 ounces of water. . . think I'll back off on the water a little at this point.

7:24 - Ran errands after work. Stopped at Nirvana for lettuce wraps and a pink cucumber. Didn't need the alcohol or the cookie from Hot Cookie for dessert, but they were good! Probably a better food day tomorrow.

Overall - made it through. Didn't fall asleep at my desk. Feel great right now. Will probably sleep well. Ready to hit it again in the morning. . . one drawback - There are going to be a lot of dirty towels and clothes. Even though I hung my shorts & bra top on the back of my door all day at work, they were still soggy. Gross.

I am not the least bit sore and I'm darned happy about it. This is good.

It Does a Body Good

Yoga. What comes to mind? Skinny people twisted up like pretzels? An old man with a beard sitting cross-legged on a mountain top? Or are you already a fan and it brings to mind peace and tranquility?

I've done yoga, and enjoyed the benefits, off and on for years. I can't really say that I have a "practice" because I haven't done it consistently. In November I woke up one day and I was 8 pounds heavier. Even though I was riding my bike to work! What gives?! Being a "foodie" was getting out of control. . . obviously, I was going to have to cut back. My intuition was screaming "Where is your yoga DVD?!" and I was telling it "In the damned storage unit in Idaho!"

I hate buying things twice. It just doesn't work for me. So far, and it's been a year and a half, I haven't replaced anything that I already own. I do carry strange things home in my suitcase when I go to visit. Last trip I brought home a blender, some glass baking pans and a casserole dish.  What I didn't bring home was my yoga DVD. I couldn't find it. So, out of desperation, I signed on to Amazon to buy another copy. And, guess what?! It wasn't available! There was one used one available for $45. Wow! Who Knew?! Apparently my favorite yoga DVD is everyone else's, too. . .

It is a good one. It's called Yoga Mind and Body and it "stars" Ali McGraw. She isn't the teacher, but just one of the students. It's shot on these beautiful white sand dunes, the cinematography is really well done, the participants are of all ages, including this beautiful woman who must be in her 70's, and, the workout is a bit advanced, but great!


So December arrived and I wasn't any thinner and my little inner voice was still screaming "Yoga!". There was a DVD called "Yoga for Inflexible People" in Mr. Green's DVD rack. He swears he didn't buy it and I'm pretty sure I didn't. A gift from the Yoga Gods? I popped it into the DVD player with high hopes. Unfortunately, it wasn't the yoga for me. It requires props. Which, if your body is inflexible, makes sense. All you need is a folding chair, a couple of blocks, a strap and a couple of blankets. I improvised. Not so good. It is an ingenious format, though. There are tons of workouts and options (it says over 35 on the cover) and it would be a great place for someone who has never done yoga and stopped stretching long ago. Props aren't that expensive if they are the doorway to being able to touch your toes.

Still no yoga. I was sitting at my desk on December 22nd and a little lightbulb went off in my head. We had just received a donation of a two week pass to a place called Yogaworks for an upcoming silent auction and my assistant had raved about how much her husband loved their classes. I got online to see where they were located and they had an on-line store! With yoga DVDs! I called their location that is literally two blocks from my office, and sure enough, they had the DVDs in stock!

I went by on my way to the bus and, after reading the info on the boxes, I bought All Three DVDs. They were not expensive. What a great Christmas present to myself!

There are no props required. The first DVD, called Beginners AM/PM, promised a workout to help me wake up and another to calm me before I go to sleep and a 45 minute beginner basics routine. The second, called Fit Abs, promised a strong core, lose inches and lean abs. Couldn't pass that up! The third, called Body Slim, offered to sculpt lean muscle, increase energy and burn fat. . . just what I was looking for.

Here's the truth of it. . .

Since December 26th I have done the beginner routine five times. I've done the PM routine three times, the AM routine once and the Fit Abs routine once (made me too sore, so back to the beginner routine). It only took two sessions for me to feel completely better in my body. I am amazed.

Yoga makes me feel mentally "clear". It creates a calmness that lasts through the day. My body felt stronger right away. Literally after two sessions. I'm still a little sore and am still doing the beginner routine, but intend to move on to the other routines soon.

And, I've lost five pounds. No Kidding.

Yoga. It Does a Body Good.

What are you doing for your body? For your health? Leave a comment.