Today was Day 19, but only my eighteenth class of of the Challenge.
It was also my fiftieth class in total since March 15th, 2006 :) Not exactly "every day for two full months", but not too shabby all the same.
I missed class AGAIN yesterday, bringing me into my third double (planned for Thursday) of this challenge. I read challenge rules posted on another studio's website and this isn't even allowed. However, it was kind of up in the air how many times you could skip class and make up for it at my studio so I think I am in the clear, but wow, it can't happen again. It is all on account of going out and drinking too much and then finding myself unable to get to class the day after, hungover, when I probably need it the most.
But I went to Whistler this weekend!!
So, I ended up doing my second double last Thursday instead of Tuesday, meaning I attended 6 AM on both days. I missed class this morning (attending 6:15 PM instead), but I'll have to do it again this Thursday as that's the day I plan to do my third double. I'm very inflexible at this time of morning and I find myself dreading a full day of work following practice. I need to get over these humps because it is really convenient to get up and start the day off with a nice practice, and then have my evening totally free.
I have found a little trick for increasing flexibility and stamina during class: a quick (under ten minutes) jog beforehand. I don't know if this would come recommended or is even good for me, but I've done it three times now and the result was the three best practices of my life! It seems to increase my energy at least two-fold, and if I can jog AND stretch before class, like I did this evening, my flexibility is awesome.
This notwithstanding, I've also had some crappy classes lately (namely, Saturday and Sunday morning, both at 8 AM). Also, my lower back hurt a lot over the weekend - it felt sciatic as it went down into my thighs. The two hour drive to Whistler and back was particularly painful and I even had to get out of the car to stretch. I've never had back pain like that before. However, it feels much better today and I can't help but think that it might have been a good idea to skip class yesterday, also since it was the beginning of my period. They say that Bikram's is clear for menstruating women as there are no inverted postures, but I had a pretty brutal class last month on the first day of my period.
I think I'm ready to go over each posture again and talk about any change or progression:
1. Pranayama Breathing
I’ve begun to develop a concern that I am moving my back on the exhale. I’m probably not, but it occurred to me a couple of times that if you don’t pay attention (and it’s easy to go on autopilot after all this time), you might cease to breathe correctly.
2. Half Moon Pose with Hands to Feet Pose
Vast improvement in Half Moon. I don’t go too deep in the first set but in the second I am able to go down much further, and I look right. No longer excruciating, and second set actually feels pretty good.
My backbend varies depending on how my back is doing that day. I have a lot of lower back pain, especially at the beginning of class if I am not very warm. On the forward bend, I really take it easy first set and walk my hips out for as long as possible. If I am not warm, it can be extremely painful.
On a good day I can sandwich my body against my legs and practically lock out my knees. However, I still have trouble touching my pinky fingers in back as my hands go out the side of my heels. I don’t know how I can improve this.
3. Awkward Pose
Arghh. I dread this pose now. First part drags forever, and I still can’t go down very far in second part without my right knee cap feeling really sore. I have my heels way up so at least my form is right, but I can’t get my thighs parallel with the ground. Third part is very good, but my knees can get testy.
4. Eagle Pose
I am still having trouble in Eagle with balance - I can usually get my toes right around my calf. I haven’t tried putting my hands in Namaskar as I don’t feel that my form is good enough yet. It’s improving, though.
5. Standing Head-to-Knee
Again, lots of improvement here but it has been fairly slow. I can kick both legs out on the second set for a portion of the pose, without losing my balance. My right leg is stronger than my left, and I can kick my left leg out for longer. I can hold first set for the full sixty seconds on a good day, but I still have a ways to go with keeping that knee locked out for the full time. I’m just not strong enough yet.
However, I’m developing some crazy muscle in my thigh!
6. Standing Bow
I came to realize a few weeks ago that I wasn’t really locking my knee in this pose. I am sure to now, and as a result, I often don’t go as deep. On a bad day, I have a lot of trouble holding my balance and I have felt disappointed in myself. Today was good, though, and I held the pose very well. I went deep second set, and my leg half-way up the shin is visible in the mirror on my right side. On the left, I can see just above the ankle. Also, my form wasn’t the greatest on the left side at first but I think I’ve almost overcome it.
7. Balancing Stick
Much better. Apparently, I DO look like a “T” now, I’ve been told! I find this posture invigorating and satisfying.
8. Standing Separate Leg Stretching
Another potentially painful pose. I cannot grasp my heels - I’m lucky if I can grab the sides of my feet with my knees locked out and not pass out with pain. My head isn’t on the floor, but it’s getting there. Slow, steady improvement.
9. Triangle Pose
Hands-down, the toughest pose of the entire series. Triangle calls for the most strength and the deepest concentration. I have to fight the temptation to make the twist before my thigh is completely parallel to the ground for some reason - I’m not sure why I’m reluctant as it’s easier this way. Laziness, I guess. On a bad day, I skip one set of Trikanasana. I know I shouldn’t but I absolutely can’t resist.
10. Standing Separate Leg Head-to-Knee
Wobble wobble wobble. Although I can’t keep my hands in prayer without tipping from side to side, my front leg is almost completely straight on a good day. During the tougher classes, I bend my knee or face crippling lower back pain.
11. Tree Pose
I look a bit better in Tree than I used to, standing up taller. Sometimes I lose my balance, strangely, and other times my concentration. It’s easy to drift off in this pose.
12. Toe Stand
Wow. I have come a long way in this pose. Today - on both sides - I was able to get one hand up in Namaskar once I was down, and I pushed myself up without any great exertion or danger of falling out. I was very strong in this pose today, and I feel much sturdier.
13. Savasana
Still loving it when this rolls around. Got to remember not to scratch and wipe. I have this problem where sweat drips into my ear and it really bugs me, so I like to wear a hair band in class.
14. Wind Removing Pose
A few classes ago a teacher told me that I was “hanging out” in the first part of this pose. Harrumph!!! So maybe I was…but I’ve been doing better. I can grip both elbows even when I am dripping with sweat in shorts now, so I must be getting stronger.
15. Sit-Up
I *need* sit-up for Head-to-Knee later on. If sit-ups aren’t going well, Head-to-Knee will be very painful.
16. Cobra
Okay, I finally realized how to do this pose properly. I don’t know what I was doing before, but I was using too much arm-strength. Now it’s almost entirely my lower back. Still, the easiest of the spine-strengthening series.
17. Locust
I love to slack off in this pose…I seem to have reached a plateau in height in the third part of the posture as I don’t feel I’m getting my legs up any higher than I was even a month ago. It’s probably because I’ve been slacking.
18. Full Locust
I try to give this my best shot, even on bad days. My sister said I looked good when she caught a glimpse of me a couple classes ago.
19. Bow Pose
Still super tough. Sometimes I find myself falling out of the pose early, which I hate to do. It takes a lot of effort to give maximum effort for the full twenty seconds on both sets.
20. Fixed Firm
My knees are starting to hurt in this pose. I can still go into it fully, though.
21. Half-Tortoise
I don’t see any improvement in this pose, so I’m not sure where I’m going wrong, if anywhere. I still can’t get my forehead to touch before my hands, I still can’t get my nose to touch, and I still can’t lift my hands up so that only the “razor-edge” of my pinky fingers are touching. Oh well.
22. Camel Pose
I never sit this one out anymore - I find it very valuable. Sometimes I don’t put my hands down on first set, but almost always on second. I still have concern that my hips, thighs and stomach aren’t far forward enough, but I feel improvement. They say you shouldn’t be resting any weight on your ankles, but I still do. Less, though. I like this pose very much.
23. Rabbit
This pose is tiring and uncomfortable for me. I have trouble doing both sets for the full length.
24. Head-to-Knee
I still dread this pose because the third part is so painful. I can’t stop repeating the words “if you can, you must” because I am always tempted to not lift my heels. I can lift my heels for the entire portion now, but it takes maximal effort.
Anyway, I had a huge breakthrough in the first and second parts of the pose today - previously I was unable to keep my individual legs straight and had to bend at the knee, sometimes quite a bit. However, somehow, today, I was able to flatten out my left leg completely and my right let just about. Unbelievable, what happened?!
25. Spine-Twisting Pose
I want to slack in this pose because it’s the last one, but I usually don’t. No major concerns here.
26. Kapalbhati Breathing
I finally got the breathing down - it took me an extra long time to figure it out. I used to get cramps under my feet and feel a bit dizzy, but all of that seems to be a thing of the past now.
Well, there they are. On a final note, I'd like to also mention that I have made it a point to stop wiping my sweat away at any point during the class, and I am much better for it.
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