Thursday, April 1, 2010

Bring on the 30 Day Challenge!

Well, it's written in stone...I've signed up for the 30 Day Challenge. It's my first time to do so. Ever since I got hooked on Bikram Yoga at first sweat 10 months ago, I've been yearning to do the Challenge. I'm fortunate that my studio (Bikram Yoga Saanich) offers a lot of classes to choose from, catering to a varied clientele ranging from students, to stay at home parents, to working parents, to grandparents. The best time for me is 6:00AM on the days that I work, 9:30AM on my days off, and 7:30AM on weekends. I once dreaded the 6:00AM, especially during the winter months; I don't find it especially inviting to be heading out in the dark and cold! However, since I NEED to get used to this, I thought I'd give it a try. It was very difficult to get myself out of bed at 5:00AM. But I tried my best, and discovered that I just have to get used to it.

So today, on April Fool's Day (ha ha, yes, you will think I am a fool to "torture" myself in 100+ degree heat and 40% humidity for 90 minutes), my new adventure began. I was very pleased with my practice today. By this time, I am very comfortable not having any water during class (doubly foolish, you say!). What annoyed me more than anything is having to burp a few times just before I have to do back bends!

How did I do with the postures? The Standing Head to Knee is still my biggest challenge. I can extend my leg, but I still couldn't hold the posture the entire time. I couldn't hold the Standing Bow the entire time, but I noticed that I am able to keep my upper body down parallel to the floor. The Balancing Stick was a bit of a nuisance today as I wasn't able to keep my leg parallel and my hip square. I am very happy with the Triangle as I've discovered the proper alignment. I have improved on the Full Locust; I had been swinging my arms too far back instead of holding it just slightly up from being parallel to the floor. My spine is straighter during the Spine Twisting Pose and I am able to hold on to my knee. My Eagle Pose is improving in that I am able to sit down lower.

My daughter's teacher practised today as well, and she said she had thought about taking the Challenge. When she found out that I had signed up, she said that she will consider doing so since there is someone she knows who's doing it too. After class, she informed me that she has signed up. I felt very pleased about that. But what made me feel fulfilled even more was the fact that according to my daughter, she told her students about the Challenge today, and that seeing me there made her decide to take part as well. She also said that she will encourage her fellow teacher to do the same. I am so happy that I somehow helped someone go outside their box (as I have) and pass this on to others in the process. Maybe this is my Karma. Namaste.

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