Building a Better Band-aid (or pose)

I learned a great many things this week, but here's a biggie:
Road rash and Astanga are a nasty combination. Gee, we can send a man to the moon and produce shoes that fasten with velcro (and, in fact, these two things are interelated), but apparently we can't make a band-aid that doesn't immediately detach as soon as sweat enters the picture.

Also, as careful as I try to be, it's amazing how many different ways I can knock my body into the skin of my delicate, injured elbow. Particularly exquisite 'agony moments' include: Garba Pindasana, Baddha Padmasana and the exit from Tittibhasana to Bakasana (because I can never seem to get my knees far enough up my arms, though the cranky elbow offered a special incentive...).

A shalamate who works in the food industry and brought me a special gift of heavy-duty, vibrantly coloured band-aids. They definitely worked better than my wimply generic drugstore band-aids. Bonus: when one fell off, it was immediately evident because of the glaring neon hue (this is important for chefs because if a band-aid falls into the souffle, you kinda want to know about that; another new fact I learned this week).

A few of you wrote to ask how I was doing - thanks! It was a tough week. Over the weekend, I was not only dealing with the pain from the accident, but I also had a little bit of a cold so I wasn't sleeping well. Thanks to yoga, I'm long accustomed to parts of my body feeling sore pretty much all the time, so it surprised me how much the raw skin and bruising bothered me. I couldn't sleep on my left hip and my elbow throbbed at night. But it's all healing up now. The cold lasted a day-and-a-half (and my allergies are back with a vengence).

I practised through it all. I managed to squeeze in Intermediate on Sunday and Monday before my Ladies Holiday hit me like a tonne of bricks on Monday afternoon. Then I was utterly miserable for nearly two days, could barely get out of bed at times. It hurt to WALK. On Tuesday morning, I limped into the shala with a big, fluffy bolster and proceeded to shock all my shalamates by doing a restorative Iyengar practice for two hours. I was just glad to be there (and grateful that DT supports the option) and I felt a hundred times better afterward. Yoga really is magic! And DT even taught me a new trick for using a strap in Padmasana, which was very cool.

I taught a few classes on Tuesday night and as I was heading home, I abruptly realised that I was feeling MUCH better and I lept out of bed on Wednesday morning absolutely stoked to do some Primary Series. I had a terrific practice! My LBH poses have really been coming along in the past week. I've long sinced moved away from the wall for Dwi Pada. For a while, I was putting a rolled up blanket behind me to provide a wedge, then I would struggle along until DT came along to rescue me (we had a good system going - she usually tossed the blanket aside for me).

The blanket taught me something important: in order not to fall over backward, I kind of need to *lean* backward. It helps keep the left leg in place behind my head while I wrangle the right leg into place. I've roughly Dwi Pada'ed myself before, but Wednesday was the great day that I managed to come into the pose deeply *all* by myself. AND I lowered myself into Supta Kurmasana without losing my legs down my head, AND lifted myself back up with the legs still in place, AND I lifted up and nailed the Bakasana exit. And THEN (warning: TMI), I ripped my tender left elbow skin apart and cussed out loud. There's a 'win' in there somewhere, though. ;-)

I managed to repeat this feat on Thursday, though it took me a few tries. The first time I went in, DT swooped over. The second time (by myself) was a 'fail', but the third time, I managed to repeat Wednesday's success! I was having such a great practice that day (and the shala was a bit quieter - no one was waiting for my spot) that I went ahead and did the first eight postures of Intermediate too. Wow, Pasasana is SO much easier with all of that warmup. DT suggested I start working towards binding to wrist in that pose, but it still feels impossible to me. I had a good mid-hand grip going on my strongest side, though, without adjustment.

This morning (Friday), with my LH over and two days of Primary behind me, I decided to go ahead and do my Intermediate. I repeated Dwi Pada three times. I was getting into it just fine, but I was having trouble bringing my hands to prayer position and balancing there (without 'weebling'). DT instructed me to 'use my legs', which sounds kind of funny since they're tucked behind my back, but I know what she means. I need to engage my hamstrings.

It always comes back to this and this important lesson came up again and again in practice this week. In Laghu Vajrasana, DT swung by to talk to me after one of my failed attempts to hold the pose on the floor and come up again. I can get to the floor and back up most of the time if I dip (and I usually do a few 'warm up dips' using my skinny half-block). But I haven't yet found that magic alchemy to allows me to stay down there for five breath cycles and then come back up.

"You can't let go, you need to keep it all engaged", DT told me and she pointed out that this is true for every pose. In fact, I believe it's one of her pet peeves about me - it drives her nuts when I take a pose and then I 'flop' into it, especially the ones where I can rely on my flexibility.

This point was most clearly illustrated today during my weekly hot class. I went to the noon hot class because my meditation group meets in the evening. As I was waiting for my class to start, I noticed the person to my left taking a few warm up poses. Not everyone does this, most just lay in Savasana. But this woman was doing *fabulous*, deep backbends, one after the other and I was pretty impressed (and trying not to be too obvious about watching, but WOW).

I immediately assumed that she would have a fabulous practice and I was looking forward to seeing it. Keep in mind, in a hot room, there's less of an emphasis on strict Driste - in fact, you're somewhat encouraged to follow what the people around you are doing, especially if you're new. I also find that while the 'dialogue' is useful, it's kind of awesome to practice next to an advanced practitioner because you can pick up little things from visual cues that you might not grasp from the verbal ones (today, my neighbour to the right was one of those people, and I was learning a LOT from observing her form). Basically, you're allowed to look around a bit and it's not a big deal.

So, the class started and sure enough, my neighbour pulled off beautiful sidebends and her hangback went nearly to the floor and I was impressed and a little envious. But as we moved into subsequent poses, I was surprised. She would come into a pose, sometimes with surprising depth, but then almost immediately come out. This pattern repeated throughout the practice, especially in the standing balances, some of which are held for a minute at a time. Something about this was tickling the edge of my brain and I realised what it was: it was reminding me of *me*, only I do it in backbends.

And it reminded me of something DT says all the time: "You need to build the strength first." DT made this point when I first added handstands to my practice. So you can come into a handstand, big deal. Doesn't mean a thing if you can't hold it. Instead of coming in and out of the handstand, DT wanted me to come into handstand and stay there until I reached my limit of endurance. DT is also fond of pointing out that I'm 'flexible enough, just not strong enough' for certain poses.

Back to the hot class: I'm holding standing-bow (a standing backbend) for the regulation minute and gradually trying to deepen my pose by kicking my leg higher, while still maintaining my balance. By the end of the second set, I noticed something: as I held the pose for a minute and kept kicking up, kicking up, kicking up, I was attaining almost exactly the same depth as my backbendy neighbour. It just took me longer to find it.

I'm not naturally backbendy at all, but it felt as if the depth was coming from the strength of the pose. The stronger I kicked back and the stronger I made my standing leg, the more aware I was of the structure holding the pose together, and the easier it was for me to find the deeper backbend (while still maintaining my balance).

I'm finding more and more that if I don't have the strength, I don't have the pose. All of these poses that I thought I had 'in the bag' because of the length I've developed in my hamstrings (I'm talking Primary Series here), are the very ones that DT is on my case about because I'm not using muscle engagement to hold them together.

I need to take this awareness that I've cultivated very naturally in my hot practice (mainly because the dialogue provides a constant reminder) and apply it to my Astanga practice, especially Intermediate Series, because I don't think I'll find depth in these poses without it.








(photo credit: Bikram Yoga Dallas)

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When things fall apart

I know, I know...I've been *really* quiet lately.

February is a bare-bones-survival month. I just try to do the essentials, focus on stuff that absolutely needs to be attended to. Accomplishing anything extra feels like a major coup. This weekend, I visited the Grumpy Russian Guy and got my hair cut AND I gave Princess Fur her spring haircut. I also did the laundry. I felt like someone should give me a medal after all that, but no such luck. So I made brownies instead.

I *have* been practising, though sometimes it takes superhuman effort just to get on the mat. Here's a recap of the past week-and-a-bit:

Friday (this is WAY back, the Friday before last): I went to Cashew's noon hot class. I sometimes call Cashew 'Echo' because she does this thing in Savasana were she gives a relaxation cue, then echos herself till it fades off. This always makes me giggle (which isn't very relaxing, but I never stick around for Savasana after hot yoga anyway). Afterwards, I went out for sushi. Hot yoga does something to food. The lunch special is never *that* great, but after the class, it tasted SUBLIME.

I'm giving the Bad Energy Meditation Group another go (I returned last month and it wasn't so bad; the crazy lady is gone and the group is under 'new management', although Crazy Lady's apparently going around calling herself our 'spiritual director' now, which is kind of creepy). I ended up having a fantastic time with the group and even going out afterward...for Indian food...at 10 p.m. Wild! Usually I'm in bed at that time of night, so it was funny to be out and eating. I woke up the next morning with a full belly, so Saturday turned into a day off.

That's okay, though, because a nearby studio was offering free vinyasa classes over the holiday weekend. I went to the Sunday evening class, excited and full of enthusiasm but it was big disappointment; the instructor was HORRIBLE. I was shocked, given that she's a regular teacher at this location.

The Monday class was a rush to get to because it was right after my noon class, but I managed to arrive with 10 minutes to spare. Good thing I did, because the room was PACKED! (Interestingly, I ended up next to another Ashtangi) After the bad experience on Sunday, I went into the class a bit more skeptical, but I had a better experience with this instructor. I learned a helpful shoulder stretch - my shoulder injury seems to be at a point where it's tightening up as it heals so this will be useful.

All of this yoga tourism had a result I hadn't anticipated: it renewed my confidence in my own teaching and reminded me of the things that work for me (and don't work for me) as a student: Clear instruction, minimal chit-chat, logical sequencing, cues that emphasize alignment and movement of energy in the body. All of these things are basics, but they're key - it gave me good food for thought and some insight into what I want to emphasize in my own teaching.

On Tuesday morning, I returned to my full Astanga practice at home. I had a pretty good practice, though my hamstrings were tight. The gimpy shoulder was feeling significantly better (I did Urdhva Dhanurasana a few times in the weekend classes and it was feeling pretty good). I did held three UD for five breath cycles, no pain!

I went to Peanut's Wednesday morning hot class. Peanut was awesome, as usual, but I had a bad class. My balance was completely off! Half-way through the class, I got a 'flash headache' that plagued me through the seated poses, but as soon as the class was over, it was gone.

On Thursday, I woke up in a deep funk and didn't want to practice at all. I was tired, I was grumpy. I was scheduled to do my full practice. Instead, I sulked in bed and finally lured myself to the mat with a promise that I only had to do the Suryas and fundamental standing poses with finishing. I thought maybe I would be inspired to do more, but noooo...I wasn't. I grumped through it and rolled up my mat.

The reason for my ennui revealed itself the next morning: My LH arrived early. I rested on Friday and Saturday, but this morning I did a 40-minute vinyasa practice (YogaDownload, Yoga for Runner's #1 with Dawnelle). I'm hoping this will ease my return to my Astanga practice tomorrow because right now, I'm *dreading* it.

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On Thursday, after my sulky practice, I pulled out my beloved guitar, thinking some music would cheer me up, only to find that ALL the strings were lose. The ENTIRE bridge had detached from the body.

I was dismayed, given that this is my 'dream guitar', the $900 Alvarez that I paid off for months in lay away. It was supposed to last my lifetime. This is a major repair (I learned later that it's covered under the warranty).


I think it's an apt symbol of a month gone bad, when things were falling apart all around me and I felt constantly overwhelmed.

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The Gong Show

The week's practices have been the usual mix of hot yoga and Astanga. On Wednesday, I attended Peanut's class at Hot Central. I've adopted a new 'spot' in that room, near the upper left corner in the front row. Yeah, I'm in the front row now. I'm no 'Birkam Rock Star' but I decided that I like being able to spot for alignment in the front mirror. Also, it's less important to me now to be able to see my backbends in a mirror behind me - in fact, that was becoming a bit of a crutch.

The pose I'm working on the most in hot classes these days is Dandayamana-Janushirasana (standing head-to-knee). Today, for the first time, I was able to bring my forehead to my shin and balance there for a few seconds - on both sides! It's still a work-in-progress, but the skill set is readily transferring to my Astanga practice - Uttita Hasta Padangusthasana has never been so stable!

I brought my knee to my shoulder again in Pavanamuktasana. It's really not on the shoulder per se, but more on the front of the armpit-crease. In Astanga, students often hope to hear a 'Good!' from the teacher. These Bikram teachers like adjectives! As Peanut strolled by in Pavanamuktasana, he said "Beautiful, Kai!" and I got that warm, 'the-teacher-thinks-I'm-doing-well' heart-glow. I've said it before, but praise makes me work harder. I think that's why I always do so well in Peanut's class. He's very generous with feedback and he's good at pushing me in a way that's encouraging instead of defeating.

Thanks, boss! *grin*

On Thursday, I dove back into my Astanga practice, full Primary plus my Intermediate. After the futzy practice on Tuesday, I was determined to keep my focus. My vinyasas are still very 'bare bone'. I've been keeping myself inspired by maximising what I *can* do within the limitations of my gimpy shoulder. So I'm doing Chaturanga to the floor, into Upward Facing Dog, back to the floor, then doing a push-up to Chaturanga before coming to table pose and crawling (*sigh*) to the front of my mat for the next pose. It probably looks pretty dumb, but at least I'm building strength.

On Friday, I headed back to Hot Central for the Friday class. I'm starting to LOVE this class! It's one of the most entertaining yoga experiences ever! It's never difficult to 'get a spot' because all the regulars populate the front row and there are not too many of us. The last two rows are usually PACKED, usually with newbies or relative newbies. It's a community class so it's the perfect one to drag a reluctant friend to because it's only five bucks.

The class begins and the front row smoothly moves through the postures, while all hell breaks loose in last two rows. It's like 'The Gong Show' back there! People are whispering, falling over, sitting down abruptly, guzzling water, knocking over their waterbottles, playing with their towels and generally flailing around. I'm NEVER bored and since no one's going to 'bad lady' me about my Driste, once I get into a pose I happily watch the chaos break out behind me from the front mirror (balancing poses are my absolute favourite). It's better than reality television (and I understand Mr. Choudhury is on top of that idea too!).

Pine Nut wasn't there this time, Macadamia was covering. I haven't been to one of her classes in a couple of weeks. She usually runs overtime, but I don't care on a Friday because I'm just going home afterward. I had a great moment in Padangustasana (toe stand), balancing with my hands together for the duration, both sides. Then I totally fell on my bum at the end of the second side and cracked up. See? The front row can be entertaining too! :-D

This morning (Saturday), I just did the Primary Series. I'm going to stick to Primary on Saturdays from now on because I'm doing a lot of yoga back-to-back and I'm always tired because I seem to get to bed late on Fridays.

The shoulder felt sore today - I couldn't do Urdhva Dhanurasana, so I came up on my head instead and focused on working my legs. A few hours after practice, I started playing around with some hangbacks and I'm wondering if they might be a vible alternative to UD as I'm waiting for this shoulder injury to heal. They felt GREAT.





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Intention, meet Action!

Last week in one of my youth classes, a new student arrived - a little boy. He's around six years old. He asked if he *had* to take his shoes off. I confirmed that he must, so he carefully removed them, then unrolled the mat I gave him and sat down, cross-legged.

He looked me in the eye and said, very earnestly: "I'd like to learn how to fart in my own face."

I've never had a student more clearly state their intention for taking yoga practice.

Without skipping a beat, I replied: "Well, yoga can help you with that!" And I got him started on preparatory poses for Tittibhasana B.








(photo credit: Arjuna's wonderful website Ashtangayoga.info)

I'm sure DR and Miss Stan will be happy to know that the yoga mats they donated to my childrens' yoga programme are being put to such GREAT use, helping the next generation of Ashtangis to develop *ahem* important life skills!

;-D

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The end of week always feels very 'yoga-heavy' to me because I go to Pine Nut's Friday night hot class and go to bed almost immediately after coming home. Then I get up the next morning to do my Astanga practice. Yoga, yoga!

Last night's class was fun! As usual, the room was incredibly hot. These Friday night classes are very different from the morning classes I'm used to attending. The room is packed and there's a jolly atmosphere, like someone's having a party.

That 'someone' is Pine Nut, the teacher. His dialogue is energetic and fun and he keeps us all laughing. The sheer mass of people gives the room a bright, intense energy. And there are always a good number of brand new people which is SO MUCH FUN to watch and listen to. Hilarious!

Oh, and by the way, I'm not the only one bestowing nicknames at Hot Central. Actually, there seems to be a culture of nicknames in the hot yoga world (during teacher training, Bikram himself called poor Peanut "Bald Man"...lol).

My nickname appears to be...wait for it..."Miss Astanga".

Yo! REPRESENT!

I think I'm going to get one of those big ribbons to put across my chest - you know, the kind "Miss Universe" wears. :-D

I expected to have a difficult practice last night because it was SO hot, but I didn't. In fact, I had a terrific practice and nailed every single pose. All of my balances were solid, I brought my forehead to my knee in Dandayamana-Janusirsasana on both sides (first time!) and I held toe-stand on both sides.

Contrast this to last Wednesday's class, when the room was a more moderate temperature, yet I was suffering throughout the entire class. I always assumed my good and bad days in the hot room could be explained by temperature fluctuations. Turns out, just like in my Astanga practice, they're really influenced by ME (and, more than likely, my silly brain).

Good to know!

I really enjoyed my Astanga practice this morning. I moved through my Primary and 8 Intermediate poses, futz-free in 75 minutes. This still amazes me. I can still remember last summer when I couldn't get through Primary in under 90 minutes and it was sometimes nearly two hours.

My shoulder felt better today. No pain at all! (but I was backing well away from any transition that caused discomfort).

The highlight of my practice today was Sirsasana. I'm feeling strong in that pose and I think I may be ready to start extending my hold to a couple of minutes again.









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Breaking news! It's snowing! In Canada!

In fact, it's snowing pretty much *everywhere*. Except Hawaii. And Belize. We're having a storm!

Since I live in a Happy Little Yoga Bubble and rarely partake of mainstream media or news sources, this information came to me a bit late. I was teaching a kid's yoga class last night when one of the six-year-olds blithely informed me that a 'big storm was coming' and that 'school was cancelled'. I thought she was joking until I Iooked at the forecast.

The first snowfall hit overnight. It was enough to close ALL the schools, but not enough to keep me and 11 other people from attending Peanut's 9:30 class at Hot Central. And it wasn't enough to deter any of my noon students. I taught a fiery vinyasa practice to a full room!

But all of my evening classes were cancelled, which means I had a rare and wonderful 'snow day.' I spent the day curled up in the window seat watching the second snowfall cover the city with a white blanket. Then Princess Fur and I played in the park.


Princess Fur is not a fan of her winter gear. She averts her eyes and refuses to look at me as I put her boots on, then she stays rooted in one place, barely moving a muscle, abject misery written all over her face. Until the elevator comes and I force her to 'come'.


She's fine once we get outside. In fact, she loves the snow! She was a November puppy, so this is what the world is *supposed* to look like in her eyes.

Snow removal is a bit funny in our city. There are strict laws that govern the shoveling of sidewalks. Home owners are required to shovel the walks in front of their property - strict fines are levied if they don't comply. But the actually *streets* in our neighbourhoods are sometimes not cleared for days, as the city plows focus on the main roads.


And of course, the park ice rink is cleared right away, hand-shoveled by eager little ice hockey enthusiasts who are home from school! (I've done it, back when I used to volunteer for the rink - it's a heavy task!).

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Practice Report

Today, I took a class at Hot Central. Surprise! Midweek Bikram Yoga!

Last week, I went to the Friday community class and that was great, but I keenly missed Peanut's Wednesday morning class. Wednesday were always my favourite day!

I was mulling over various options for class passes when the universe firmly intervened. I was offered a discount on classes which brought the price into an affordable range and then that *exact* dollar amount magically dropped into my account. When the universe speaks *so* clearly, I must listen. I'm set for hot classes through the fall. I can even occasionally attend Almond's Monday morning class.

For the foreseeable future, the weekly plan is: 4 days of Astanga, 2 days of Bikram, 1 day of Yin (on Sunday, which is now firmly my *day off*; no classes and very light practice).

Ironically, I was feeling somewhat 'off' this morning; a bit low energy. The room wasn't too hot, but for some reason I was dizzy and queasy - a first for me. But I just carried on as usual and it was fine.

I warmed up with my usual hip openers and six Urdhva Dhanurasana, then stood on my head until class started. The standing poses were tough, but I was fine for the seated. Peanut is very generous with feedback and he pushes us without being an asshole about it. I learned a few new things about standing-head-to-knee today and with his encouragement, I touched my knee to my shoulder for the first time in Pavan Muktasana. Honestly, I never thought I would do that!

It was fun to see some of my Bikram 'shalamates' again. After 30 days of morning classes, I had started to know a few people. I chatted with the guy who always sets up his mat to my right. A local teacher also comes to these morning classes regularly. We rarely talk, but it's nice to see her around and to know there's a fellow Ashtangi in the room.

It felt comfy falling back into the easy routine I followed in January, even if only for a day. Tomorrow, it's back to Astanga.

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Bhujapidasana, where are you?!

Well, THAT was interesting! It appears I owe a debt of thanks to Mr. Bikram for keeping my Astanga practice *completely* intact as I rested my shoulder.

I did my full practice this morning and was able to do every single pose to the full expression I was capable of, pre-injury. This includes *all* the binds in the Maris and Supta Kurmasana. In fact, my bind in Supta K is actually more solid than it was before! Keep in mind, many of these binding poses were impossible with the shoulder injury, so clearly some healing has happened.

I have a bit of a confession though: after my fourth or fifth Bikram's class, I noticed my hips tightening up, so I added a series of hip openers to my pre-class routine. I think this was really good for me and had the intended effect. Even Baddha Konasana was easy peasy.

Not surprisingly, I was solid as a lampost ("Unbroken! I have no knee!") in Uttita Hasta Padangusthasana and I'm now the World Champion of Lifting My Heels in Kurmasana (there was a lot of heel lifting going in those Bikram's classes).

But there were a few surprises, too. Navasana is *very* strong. Chakrasana is smooth and effortless. And I can pop right up into Urdhva Mukha Paschimottanasana and straighten my legs without falling over (this is NEW!). I was going to give my new-found Super Bandhas credit for this, but Uth Pluthi still sucks so I guess it will remain a mystery.

Headstand is solid, but I'm just a bit nervous in it. I can still hold the pose for a couple minutes, though, and half-bend wasn't a problem. I think the nervousness is my just brain being silly.

That terrific breathing-during-backbends habit I developed in Bikrams carried through to Urdhva Dhanurasana today, but I know I've lost strength and flexibility in the pose. That's okay, though - it will come back with some practice. I'm hoping the breathing will stick around and maybe the new openness in my back (developed doing hangbacks into Ustrasana every day) will eventually translate in the pose.

I also did my Intermediate series poses. They felt strong and effortless and I've actually gained some ground in Laghu Vajrasana. But I expected this, given the spine-strengthening component of Bikram's. Also: No knee pain in Dhaurasana!

In my entire practice today, there was only one pose that was a big 'fail' and that was Bhujapidasana. I came into it awkwardly and just barely managed to get the crown of my head on the floor. But even with the strength and Bandha awareness I had gained over the past month, this pose was a complete mystery to me. This makes me wonder if it's more about physical mechanics and 'getting the knack' rather than specific strengths. Of all the poses of Primary, this is the one that suffered the most for lack for practice.

My practice took just over 90 minutes this morning, which was also a nice surprise. I've decided to stick to more-or-less the same morning routine because it was really working for me. I'll get up at the same time and hit the mat by 8:30 a.m.

I'm planning to do my full Astanga practice again tomorrow, but on Friday I'll be heading back to Hot Central for the Pine Nut's evening class. I may do Jivamukti on Saturday and I'm planning a bit of Yin on Sunday. Back to Astanga on Monday. I won't be doing a six-day practice, but I will be trying to do as much Astanga as my body can handle.







The sky through my kitchen window, just after I wake at 7 a.m.

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Bikram Yoga Tips for Ashtangis

Today was Day 30 of my introductory Bikram's yoga package at Hot Central. I had a great month with the 'Mixed Nuts' and I'm full of gratitude for their passion, enthusiasm and professionalism. I literally never had a bad class in those 30 days and the studio was always clean, the staff welcoming and the experience consistent.

In 30 days, they won me over and this wasn't easy to do. My previous experience with Bikrams's was not too rosy. After these 30 days, I would recommend this studio, and hot yoga, to anyone. I do believe it's a therapeutic practice and it has (at least temporarily) cured my Ashtangi insomnia issues.

I don't know if my shoulder is really any better, but that's a story for another day.

I gleaned a few tips from my 30 day hot yoga experience that I wanted to share here, in case other Ashtangis are curious about the style and decide to take the 40C (105F) plunge.

Hydrate *before* you go to class. It's takes up to 40 minutes for the water you drink to benefit your body. Drink lots of water in the hours leading up to class, but stop a half-hour before you go in (or you'll need to pee halfway through).

You'll get used to the heat. After the first week, you'll only notice it if it's unusually hot or unusually cool. Otherwise, it feels just like doing yoga in a warm room after being drenched by a bucket of warm water. And the Bikram's people aren't making this part up: It feels GREAT afterwards.

Don't drink water during the standing poses, and drink as little as possible during the rest of class. As I was struggling through my first few classes, I found this great article by Mary Jarvis, talking about water and why you shouldn't drink it in a Bikram's class. We don't drink water during Astanga practice so I was open to the suggestion. I decided to experiment and see how water affected me. I was stunned by the difference it made, *not* drinking water, especially during the first half of the class. I felt less exhausted and dragged down. My balance and focus was better.

Every time you think you need to drink water, breathe deeply instead. I can't emphasize this enough: Breathe, early and often. I also found that visualizing sipping cool water as I stood in Tadasana breathing was helpful. Topping up your oxygen will benefit you more in the practice than water. Whenever you find yourself at a standstill between poses (or in Savasana), breathe, breathe, breathe!

Save your energy! Stillness is your friend! Don't fidget, or play with your towel, or moan (really, moaning won't help you feel better). It's hot enough in there as it is, any extra movement will just add to your body heat. Save your energy for the postures and transitions between them. Also, there are mirrors - if you're tugging at your clothing and pulling out your wedgy, or making sexy little hip circles while you admire yourself, *everyone* will see you doing it!

Many poses in Bikram's look the same but have different goals. Learn them! In Astanga, forward folds aim to lengthen the hamstrings. In Bikram's yoga, a great many forward bends are 'compression postures' that put pressure on the glands of the body, especially the Thyroid. For example, Parsvottanasana is called Dandayamana-Bibhaktapada-Janushirasana (Standing Separate Leg Head to Knee Pose) in Bikram's. Entering this pose, you must tuck your chin to your chest and keep it there as you place your forehead on the knee. If your hamstrings aren't long enough to accommodate this, the front leg is bent. The important part is the compression, not the stretch.

Learn to love sweat and don't bother wiping it away - it will just come back. I found sweat to be most annoying during the first 20 minutes of the class, then it got better. The simple truth is, the sweatier you are, the less you notice it. Towels and 'wipe rags' are frowned upon in Bikram's. Also, don't use a towel to hold your slippery leg in Pavan Muktasana. The teacher will laugh at you!

Know your 'resting poses', they'll help you survive the class! To me, these classes often felt like a series of 'sprints' between islands of calm. My 'resting poses' might not feel that way to everyone (hello, Dandayamana-Bibhaktapada-Paschimotthanasana) but I knew that if I could just get to one of the easier poses, I would have the space to breath deeply and replenish myself for the next series of more difficult ones.

And one last nugget of wisdom: At some point you'll probably think you need to pee. You don't! This always, ALWAYS happened to me during the spine strengthening series and it always caught me by surprise. Yet, I never once wet myself during Shalabasana. Well, not that I know of, anyway... (I'm KIDDING!).

I also found myself getting weird food cravings in class, but I'm not sure if that's because there was a breakfast cafe upstairs. I do know that water tastes terrific after a hot class (so drink lots of it), Emergen-C is addictive and my morning porridge has never tasted so good!

Above all, have fun! You won't die (though there will be times when you wish you could) and you're going to learn at least one trick that will be very useful in your Astanga practice: expertly and *quickly* flipping yourself into Savasana. ;-)







- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Vinyasa

I did a Yogadownload class today, Heart Opening Flow #1, 60-minute class with Jackie. This is billed as an 'intermediate' class and I found it challenging but not impossible. The cueing was a bit over-the-top, though. It's difficult to pin down, but some teachers are a bit too 'dramatic' in their presentation. It's annoying and can be distracting.

The sequence was great though. It moved along, all the counter poses were there where I needed them. The pacing was good and there were plenty of rest intervals. I liked the variations on the sun salutation - fun!

I did all of the suggested advanced variations. I loved transitioning from bound Parsvakonasana (Extended Side Angle) to Svarga Dvidasana (Bird of Paradise) - that was new to me, and awesome! This is the stuff I miss when I'm doing Ashtanga practice exclusively. It's just nice to do something different.

This practice also had all kinds of standing backbends and there backbends in each 'Crescent Lunge'. It reminded me of the Anusara classes I was taking a couple of years ago. By the time I hit camel, I was feeling pretty good and I was surprised how deep I was able to go in the pose. This is definitely a class I will do again.

I slept in late this morning, 10 a.m. because I didn't go to bed until 2. Yes, as a matter of fact, I *did* go out dancing last night. It was fun I guess, but Holy Meat Market! I could feel the questioning gazes slide over me like slippery fish as I walked into my favourite bar. I haven't been there in awhile and it's an entirely different crowd than I remember; I didn't recognise anyone. I stayed for a half-hour and when it stopped feeling fun, I headed home.

Since it was a lovely summer night, I decided to walk. I noticed that a new Bikram studio has opened up around the corner. I don't like the one down my street . The director is an ass and he *hates* Ashtangis, goes out of his way to be a jerk if he knows a student practices Ashtanga. The last time I went in, he stopped the entire class mid-sequence and announced “Kai is doing Triangle Pose wrong. We will all do it again.” I was floored (and embarrassed). He also insisted that I round my back in forward bends and hyperextend my knees. I never went back.

Don't misunderstand, I do try to respect the traditions of the studios I visit and honour the instructions of my teachers, but not to the degree that I risk injury. When I see a hyperextended knee on a Bikrams advert, I actually cringe.

Anyways, I might have to give this new studio a try sometime. I've heard good things about the directors and I do enjoy the occasional Birkram Torture Session. ;-)