Sunday, November 14, 2010

Astanga

On Friday afternoon, a huge fog bank rolled in and covered the city for most of the night and into the next day. This is what it looked like from my balcony:


It was just fog, but for some reason, everyone was really excited about it. And then the fog lifted and it was back to life-as-usual. Today, it's rainy, but I'm happy to be sitting in my window seat and reading a book. I have a rare 'day off' today, so I'm making the most of it!

I woke up early-ish this morning for my full practice. I was on the mat by 7:30 a.m. I was feeling stiff and awkward, as I often do on Sundays.

My left armpit is bothering me, a side-effect of the flu shot I got on Friday. Usually, my deltoid hurts from the flu shot (last year's H1N1 was particularly brutal; it ached for a week). But this year, it's the armpit.

I didn't feel it in my chaturangas but definitely caught a hint of it in Urdhva Dhanurasana. At first, I was hopeful that the soreness was a sign that the shoulder openers I've been doing have been effective, but nope, I'm pretty sure it's just the shot.

Backbends were good today and Sirsasana is back to being awesome. I had a pretty good practice for a Sunday! I'm looking forward to a good yoga week.

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A quick update on my protein conundrums

I'm finally figuring out vegan protein sources and creating more balance in my diet. Last week, I bought some gluten flour and made my own seitan. I was amazed by how easy it is to prepare (and how very, very messy...geez!) But it's delicious, loaded with protein and freezes well. Thank goodness I'm not allergic to gluten, as I first though I was!

I've also been adding Quinoa to my brown rice, mixing them half-and-half. I'm not a Quinoa fan, but I have to admit, it's growing on me and the mix is a good compromise.

I finally figured out a way to use the Vega protein powder. The smoothies were not working out for me at all (they were making me sick) so I've been adding the Vega (along with Maca powder, flax meal, chia seed) to oatmeal.

It ends up looking like toxic sludge by the time I've added all the stuff to it, but it tastes okay and it gives me a great protein/nutritional boost.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

5 comments:

Kevin said...

I think it could be the shoulder openers and not the Flu shot. I am playing the same dropback/stand up games as you and my right deltoid is sore and aching.

Rachel@Suburban Yogini said...

Oh good, someone else who gets a flu shot (so many people have a go at me for getting one, but I can't run the risk of getting sick - even I know tea tree oil won't help that ;)). Do you mind if I ask do you ever have an adverse affect to them? I've been getting them for years and years, just fine but this year I've felt really rotten and run down and nauseous - can't work out if it's the flu shot or just me.

Kaivalya said...

@Kevin
I'm not doing much with dropbacks these days because I'm working on my alignment in backbends so I won't splay my feet out. But the shoulder openers definitely tweak my deltoids.

@Rachel
I've never had any ill effects from the shots, aside from a sore arm and maybe a bit of fatigue for a day or two. Like you, I'm self-employed so I can't afford to get sick. I have a weak immune system, so the flu shot is my friend (along with hand sanitizer, frequent hand washing and supplements to give my immunity a boost)

Kevin said...

I noticed that my left foot stays put, but its always the right that wants to splay out. So I have been consciously putting more weight into the right foot/leg as I go back, which seems to be working.

Lauren said...

i am a huge fan of nutribiotic brown rice protein to help me get more protein in right after my practice. it has nothing artificial in it and my tummy likes it. a little chalky but blended with some fruit and water it's really good!