Took a different way to work to see this hibiscus...
The teacher, Kelli, is about 4'11, petite and all muscle. I've heard about her before but I'm pretty sure that I'm relatively safe in a Basics and Beyond class. Although, the beyond part can be played with...
The Kundalini teacher (who taught the class before Kelli's) explains that her class is new and that she enjoyed Kelli's 15 minutes during the special relay class that happened during the studio's one-year anniversary but that she is strictly Kundalini and will have to work up to participating in Kelli's class...
Kelli checks in with everyone and hands out assist/no assist coasters. It's yogi's choice for how we start -- in easy pose or on our backs. I go with the back because, frankly, I didn't feel like sitting up. The beginning of class is so sweet. Kelli asks us to remember when yoga first came on our radars and what kept us going back to our mats; she asks us to connect to that feeling.
I almost laughed when Kelli said that we were doing "Turbo Dog" -- I'd never heard downward-facing dog referred to in that manner but, you know, I'm better at taking care of myself so I modified. Plus, my body had not fully recovered from the hours of yoga practice that took place last weekend.
Spent most of yesterday trying to work a wicked tweak out of my shoulder. Felt like a tight fist was lodged underneath my scapula. Kept thinking that I would pay someone to resolve the tightness in my shoulder but since there's no massage therapist hotline, I did arm circles, downward facing dog etc. Later on in the day, popped Cathe's Stretch Max into the DVD and that helped a lot.
Not sure if it was the stretching at the end of the day or the relatively quiet evening spent reading Everything I Never Told You and drinking green tea or a combination of both but I slept well and felt really rested this morning.
The pack rat a.k.a. me went through my iPod pictures because I remember snapping a photo of this little piece about downward facing dog and the amygdala. I have no clue where this article was published and can't find it via Google. I would love to read the whole thing in its entirety even though I don't need to but that's me. I should have been a researcher of something since I like to look up stuff and one reference is never enough for me...
Feeling depleted which is usually how I feel by Wednesday Thursday but trying to dig deep to make it through Friday with some goodwill and grace.
Did a light workout at home followed by yoga and it was the first time that I felt myself positioning decently for downward facing dog. I didn't have a mirror nearby but it just felt right-- a small victory for the weary one.
How I moved this month: 10 Minute Solution: 5 Day Get Fit Mix
*Cardio Kickboxing, 2 x's
*Power Yoga, 1 x
10 Minute Solution: High Intensity Interval Training
*HITT 101, 1 x
*HITT Explosion, 2 x's
*Rock Bottom HITT, 1 x
*Upper Body HITT, 2 x's
As sweat pooled under my chin and rolled from side to side, I realized why Neal Pollack named his book Downward Facing Death.
Okay, he didn't really give his mystery that name because of the amount of downward facing dogs done in a yoga session but that's the way I felt this morning as Gloria showed us DFD, plank and forward fold love. Whatever the reason for soreness and sluggishness I regretted my decision, based on the temperature, to wear full-length pants...
Alison told me that one of her fave teachers, Kate, would substitute for the Yoga Under the Arch series staffed by YMCA teachers so I rolled out of bed yesterday and hit the practice area at 8:58 a.m. The weather was perfect and it is stunning to lift one's arms, look up and catch sight of the Arch. Equally cool is doing downward facing dog, and getting a close-up view of blades of grass and the Mississippi River behind you.
The sun on my face during savasana was worth the trip. Did you feel that breeze? Alison asked after we finished practicing. Yeah, the breeze was just as nice as the sun.
Jen was having contractions every thirty minutes in last week's episode of yoga class. Still, she showed us how to check our downward facing dog alignment by getting into DFD and smoothly transitioning into plank -- full belly and all.
I had a gut feeling that Jen would not be in class even though the online scheduling system had not been changed to sub status and braced myself as I walked into the studio.
Despite being spotted at another studio yesterday, Jen had to throw in the towel for tonight's class.
Jen is totally into yoga -- with every fiber of her being -- and is a hard act to follow for sure. All trees are different, Kelly said as she talked about options for tree pose. Different teacher, different class and different me who walked in with a more receptive mind than I would have a few years ago.
Had ambivalence about a class being offered but signed up for it anyway. Attending class meant that I would miss Zumba, swimming and yoga and, you know, parts of the Slug Festival. Saturday's 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. session left me completely drained and whiny. I contemplated quitting and not showing up for the second part on Sunday but I don't like to give up. Plus, if the instructors-in-training could be present (on the sidelines) for observation purposes, who was I to throw in the towel?
The first item on today's agenda was self-care -- one hour and 15 beautiful minutes of it.
We connected our chakras, did Tai Chi and yoga. I kind of groaned with longing at the mention of yoga.
As we stretched our sides, the teacher said that her yoga instructor likes to say Energetically, you're creating fingernail grooves in the ceiling.
Regarding chakras, I now see why we do so many spinal twists in yoga and why Sara Calabro thinks that Downward Facing Dog is so important.
During class, we had to break off into pairs a lot. At one point, I got paired with the sole massage therapist in class. Guess who got a totally awesome hand massage?
Last week turned out to be a sustainable one. Instead of boxing and yoga, I went to boxing. Instead of climbing and swimming, I went climbing and instead of Zumba and yoga, I went to Zumba. As a result, I only practiced yoga once so I was more than ready to get back on my mat.
And the cherry on top of practicing yoga again: Cindy accompanied me to Gloria's class.
Gloria started off by reading a poem. Don't remember the name of the book but a line that I do remember and like is that yoga is not a command performance.
Certain things make me chuckle in yoga class -- like Gloria saying chin to shin in an asana or that downward facing dog is a resting position. I almost guffawed on that one and I'm pretty sure that I snorted. Next thing I heard was Gloria saying that some people call it damn dog. Hello! Although, I did enjoy shaking my leg as if water were on it while in one-legged downward facing dog...
As we took a breath, raised our arms, placed our hands together and came down the center line until our hands rested at our hearts, Gloria said that it was like hitting a reset button in between the sun salutations. For me, yoga is one big reset button.
During savasana, which Gloria likes to super-size, she encouraged us to commit to being still and we did.
After yoga, Cindy and I went to a coffee shop to eat a well-earned lunch since Gloria, in the words of that Roberta Flack song, kills you softly.
There was pre-practice talk between Gloria and another fitness instructor who recently tried hot yoga and said that, for her, yoga was about gentleness and stretching. Don't know if girlfriend planted a seed in Gloria's head or if Gloria already wanted to give us the gift of heat since it's so cold but...
Gloria talked about using the architecture of the body during downward facing dog. She wanted to make sure that we were using the arches of our palms and not just putting all the pressure on our pinkies and thumbs.
After doing prayer frog (deep squat with Namaste hands) with a twist and downward facing dog with a twist, things got heated and this guy in my vicinity basically grunted the equivalent of Oh my God! My equivalent = Holy Crap! I started laughing and so did others including Gloria who told us to go into frontal corpse and, while we were at it, to make our breathing smooth and even. My breaths were definitely rapid and out of control at that point.
We also did a side plank with a variation which made me quiver. We are building concentration, poise and strength in this pose, Gloria said. No doubt...
I told Patti that I had planned on going to Zumba followed by yoga but I had run out of steam. Instead, I took a really warm, salt bath then headed to yoga. Your evening sounds wonderful Patti wrote.
It was wonderful I wrote back. I sometimes forget to ruminate on the roses.
Madonna was in a saucy mood -- asking us to do a wicked boat pose from the wall. She would, though, turn around and give us a luxurious counter stretch.
I absolutely adore downward facing dog from the wall. As Madonna said, the wall makes you feel DFD in a whole different way.
At the end of class, I was touched by Gail who made sure that another yogi was comfortable during savasana. Do you need a bolster. Do you need a blanket? Do you need...?
As I sat at my desk today, I noticed my posture and there was marked improvement. There must have also been marked improvement in my mood because one of my coworkers told me that I am always so calm...
Had weird, intense dreams about my car. In one part of the dream, my car just stops all functions and everything goes dark and when I try to restart it, not a light or spark. Nothing. Later, some relatives come to tell me that my rental car has a flat tire...
I bought a group coupon back in May with the intention to try hot yoga at this studio in the fall. Going on Sunday meant that I would have to give up Pure Yoga ’s Sunday class but it’s good to try new things. Right? Except, there are days when I want to blend in and be anonymous which is hard to do when you barely have hair and your skin tone is quite brown and I had a feeling that I was going to stick out at this studio. Everyone was, of course, super nice.
I arrived early in order to register and I asked this woman about the locker room and she said that there wasn’t really one and that if I were leaving the class I’d better put my mat down first and it did end up being a sardine-like situation but no one seemed to care.
It was a Vinyansa –type class: chaturanga, cobra or up dog, downward facing dog etc. I have long known that my downward facing dog leaves a lot to be desired. The teacher, Seabrook, came over and placed her feet on my hands then tried to adjust my arms. Oh, you’re a strong one, she said. Yeah, I’m kind of like a tree in that way...
The next time Seabrook came over she helped me twist. I immediately told her that my shoulders were tight but I still got adjusted. You have tons of space, she said. The lesson from that interaction is that I should at least attempt things before I give up on them.
I kept thinking that the hour was a very long one but when I looked at my iPod I saw that class had been one and a half hours even though the schedule, I thought, said one hour. Thanks to my neighbor who asked me if I was okay when I showed signs of staggering...
Later On In The Day
When I arrived at my massage therapist’s office, she checked in with me as usual. I told her that I had migrating neck and shoulder tension. She wanted to know if it was from day to day. No, from fifteen minutes to fifteen minutes, I told her.
As I’m on the table, my mind is going 100 MPH. I tell myself: the face is soft…the face is soft…let go, yadda, yadda, yadda. Then she stretches my neck from the center to Timbuktu and I wonder if necks are supposed to stretch that far even though I’m confident that my MT knows what she’s doing. As my neck is in the Timbuktu region, I inexplicably and suddenly relax but feel like crying. Don’t cry I tell myself. Too late. They are tears of the silent kind that roll out like water from a faucet with worn washers.
My MT encourages me to let whatever it is come to the surface. I eventually ask for some tissue because where there are tears, there’s snot. I was going to offer to put the tissue on the floor and then pick it up later but she told me to give it to her.
Me: Thanks
MT: Wherever you are -- that’s where I’m at…
Went to see Pilobolus yesterday. They were brought by Dance St. Louis and, before the show, DSL put up facts about dancing and it makes me want to pull out my workout DVDs that incorporate dancing and it also makes me want to finally take a Zumba class.
One quote on the marquee still sticks with me: Dancers are the athletes of God. After seeing Pilobolus, I can’t disagree.
Starting singing that Erykah Badu line “my mind is gone…” because that’s what it felt like at the end of yesterday but when I thought about it, I could have used the other line “what a day, what a day…” And what a day it had been. I rolled out late, decided not to go to yoga, took a salt bath, drank coffee, read and didn’t leave the house until 2:30 to climb with five of my buddies plus a new one.
Cindy and Jeff Working Out the Forearm Kinks
After climbing, met Patti at Trader Joe’s then another grocery store. Patti was heading to Chipotle and, when I thought about it, I asked her about eating in because my ETA for arriving at home would have been about 8:30 and, by then, I was already tempted to take a bite of someone’s arm. So I guess what I’m saying is that I need assistance with chores and errands or something because the day was fantastic – I just wanted to accomplish a lot more…
I did go to yoga today. It was so packed that when we extended our right leg, everyone sort of looked back first to make sure that they weren’t going to kick the person behind them in the nose. When we did a full body yawn before savasana, I touched the feet of the person behind me. I told her that I thought her feet were clear but she didn’t trip off of it because that’s just the way it is in this class.
The Big Breather a.k.a. The Champion Breather appeared 15 minutes after class started. He positioned his mat against the flow of traffic because that’s the only way it would fit. I keep trying to figure out what he sounds like. It’s not that Darth Vader breath that teachers like to talk about and it doesn’t sound like someone who’s fogging up the window. Hmmm…
As we did sun salutations, Gloria told us to make it smooth and, after several rounds, of going from chaturanga to cobra to downward facing dog, my dog did smooth out. .
I was shocked when savasana was mentioned. Couldn’t believe it had been an hour -- guess I got lost in class…
Cindy retweeted a couple of hilarious yoga videos and I’m sharing the one about savasana.
Downward facing dog is a pose that I have trouble getting comfortable with. My hamstrings are tight and my feet never reach the floor even if I walk them in and I feel like DFD also agitates my triceps.
Of course Sharon, my teacher tonight, had us do one of her favorite sequences: downward facing dog to plank back to DFD to plank. For fun, she had us assume DFD again then we shifted the left foot over to the right and went into side plank then to DFD then to side plank.
Is it getting hot or is it just me? One of my classmates wanted to know and we all laughed.
There’s no need for hot yoga; you have your internal combustion, Sharon said.
Yeah, Sharon killed us softly...
At the beginning of class, she usually asks if anyone has requests. Someone wanted to work on spinal rejuvenation so Sharon brought out the yoga wall toys.
We did downward facing dog by getting into a pelvic swing, walking our hands out, placing our feet on the wall and getting on our toes. Once we walked our hands out, Sharon wanted us to get on our forearms and let our heads rest. That was the most amazing downward facing dog that I’ve ever experienced and my back felt properly stretched.
During savasana, Sharon was like there is nothing on your mat. No stresses. No worries. Nothing that is not beneficial to you. She also told us that our mat was a safe space. She said other meaningful stuff but I kind of got lost in my breathing and my internal cheerleading of Talk that talk Sharon...
Gloria a.k.a. Pure Yoga has a peaceful aura about her but, at the end of class, her face is even more serene as she gives a four-Namaste salute -- nodding to every area of the classroom...Yoga practice was a struggle as my hamstrings and just about everything else screamed at me but I don't regret rolling out my mat and can't wait to do it again...
May all beings be happy and free...Shanti.
(Pure Yoga's usual invocation at the start of class.)
Make the pose comfortable.
(Timely advice as I struggled with Downward Facing Dog)
Don't compromise the neck...
If you have big lats, this (eagle arms) may be a problem.
The aerial leg should be...
Your mind lives in your body so if you feel...
You clear the mind when you rest your eyes.
(Gloria had us warm up our hands by rubbing them together then placing them over the eyes.)
Spread the chest, sink into the heels...
(During Downward Facing Dog)
Most people only breathe from their chests. In yoga, you have an opportunity to explore the full capacity of your lungs...
Move the breath throughout the body especially during difficult poses. Most people have a tendency to hold their breath when the pose is difficult...
I’m still thinking about the Hot Yoga beat down that Bridget administered on Saturday mainly because my hamstrings and triceps are speaking to me but also because it was such a consummate thrashing...
I was excited to get back to boxing after a two week hiatus. We were odd-numbered so I was in a group of three. Lee told us to take turns but a few seconds later, I saw him heading in my direction with training mitts and it was the first genuine moment of lightheartedness happiness that I experienced all day. I could feel my face turn upward and my eyes light up.
Jab. Jab. Cross. Left Hook. Slip to the right. Cross. Left Hook. I made the mitts pop….
I’ve also made peace with shadowboxing. You know, whatever it takes to warm up and get the boxing gloves on.
After boxing, I headed to yoga where I experienced my second moment of happiness. Donna had us lift our arms and do surrender breaths and whenever we do surrender breaths, we usually say “ha” at the end. Makes me smile every time.
We also did wide-angle downward facing dog. Donna said, The energy is in the back of the legs. Sure was. Prompted by Donna, I moved my hips to the right then to the left. How did Donna know that I needed wide-angle downward facing dog? Of course, we walked the dog and that felt good too.
A line of yogis left and, somehow, this guy got to the door right before the second wave. He patiently held the door open for what looked like an endless parade of yogis with varied colored mats. That gesture was such a nice end to the night.
I have been in a foul mood today and it’s been brewing for a while – a curious state for someone who spent a considerable amount of time chillaxing in San Diego.
I wanted to go to boxing class but it was full and I had my eye on a substitute boxing class but that didn’t pan out but not boxing was probably a good thing because I’m quite sore from yesterday’s kettlebell beat down.
I went swimming and felt all of the tightness in my hamstrings. Afterwards, I really didn’t feel like moving from my computer chair but I decided to go to yoga which turned out to be such a good decision. Donna likes to tell us to imagine that we have an eraser and to just erase away everything that happened earlier in the day.
At one point, we did a wide-angle downward facing dog and I don’t think that we’ve ever done that before. While in DFD, we shifted our hips to the right then to the left. It was an amazing stretch for the back of the legs and my hamstrings are no longer tight. In fact, my brain is no longer tight. So glad that I went…
Backs and Biceps Class, 1 x
Bicycling, 1 x
Boxing, 3 x's
Kettlebell Class, 2 x's
Lawn Mowing, 2 x's Pure Barre Class, 1 x
Rock Climbing, 2 x's
Swimming, 5 x's
Walking, 10 x's
Yoga, 8 x's
We were supposed to be a party of four today but Patti's newbie backed out at the last minute. It seems to take rock climbing newbies a few false starts before they actually enter the gym.
Joe showed up -- that's him at the start of the Forever Loving Jah route. I climbed with Joe last Saturday while Patti was climbing outdoors.
Check out Patti on a route in Jackson Falls. Are you thinking the same thing that I am thinking? What is there to hold onto???
We had a great outing until I squared off with The Roadkill Helper route. Patti and I do our safety checks and I notice that she has her belay devices and I have my belay devices locked and ready. Only, I'm supposed to be climbing and looking at a figure eight knot and a back-up knot. You know that I never heard the end of that, right? Patti kept asking me if I was locked in...
After climbing, my upper body was all locked up and tense. I decided to do a little yoga but I don't know if Amy Bento's 10 minutes of power yoga was the best choice. I will concede that my body is not as locked up as it was before but, dang, I was tired after those ten minutes.
I do have to say that it's so refreshing to be barefoot. I really don't do it often enough. Since I've never taken an official yoga class, I often wonder if I'm doing downward facing dog right. My positioning is not as bad as I thought but, as with all things, there's definitely room for improvement.
Route tally:
5.5, The Five 5.7, Sponge Bob 5.7, The Seven 5.8, Bright Idea 5.8, Face Plant 5.8, Rainbow Bright 5.8, The Roadkill Helper
Is there really fun to be had while gutting it out?
Maybe I should say that I had a satisfying time as I exercised in three parts. I got physical on the adaptive motion trainer, treadmill and arc trainer. As usual, the arc trainer worked me over -- but it was a good over.
While I was on the AMT, this woman got off of the treadmill, did five regular push-ups then went into a downward facing dog position and repeated the sequence several times before getting back on the treadmill to run. I was out-and-out impressed and, I swear, it made me want to drop down and do push-ups although I've never done more than seven in a row and I've never gone into downward facing dog as a transition.
I managed to exercise 27 days this month. I took off on Fridays even when I felt like I didn't need the rest and I exercised by committee on some days. Here's how I exerted myself:
AMT, 11 x's
Arc Trainer, 2 x's
Bike (Stationary), 1 x
Elliptical, 2 x's
Stair Climbing, 1 x
StairMaster, 2 x's
Swimming, 12 x's
Treadmill, 2 x's
Walking Outdoors, 2 x's
And in the immortal words of James Brown: I feel good, I knew that I would...
Inhale as early as possible and for as long as possible.
Try to keep one eye in the water.
Keep your head on the same plane as your body.
from Freestyle Breathing Technique video
If it is in the wrong position, soon everything else will be, too.
In swimming as in life, you gotta get your head in the right place.
from Breathing While Swimming by Coach Dee, Excel Triathletes Blogspot
The greater the distance between your finger tips and your toes, the better.
Have Goggles, Will Swim, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Triathlon Training
In proper freestyle swimming, the head moves with the body to take the breath; it never moves independently. You don’t want any lifting of the chin to take a breath. You don’t want any looking forward or to the side of the pool to take a breath. You want to rotate your head in line with the your body…
Bob Bowman
Indulgences
Alexia Oven Fries (Olive Oil, Rosemary, Garlic)
Almond Butter, Creamy With Sea Salt (Trader Joe's)
Banana Split SO Delicious Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert Minis (Made With Coconut Milk & Agave Sweetened Center)
Bunny Grahams (Annie's Homegrown)
Chocolate-Covered Peppermint Sticks (Bogdon)
O'Coco's Organic Baked Crisps
Soy Creamy Mini Chocolate Sandwiches Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert (Trader Joe's)
TLC Banana Chocolate Chip Soft n' Chewy Bars (Kashi)
Kryptonite
Bahlsen Truffet (Meringue Biscuit with Cocoa Cream Filling and Swiss Milk Chocolate)
N.Y.L. (New York Laundry): Relaxing, Exercise, Shopping, A Fun Time, Being Seen In, Anything
Navy Blue Speedo Ultraback (RIP: Jan. 2009 to July 2009)
Steamfresh Specially Seasoned Southwestern Corn
Trader Joe's Multigrain & Flaxseed Water Crackers
Wasa thin & crispy rosemary flatbread
Mantra
The Best Life Diet is not a diet in the usual sense of the word. You don't go on it, then off it as the term diet typically implies. It is, instead, a diet in the traditional sense of the word: a way of eating - for life. It's based on a well-balanced regimen of interesting, satisfying, nutrient-rich, and easy-to-find-and-prepare foods...
Roasted Red Potatoes With Chive Butter Sauce (Steamfresh Lightly Sauced)
More Climbing Advice
To climb fluidly and under control, you must settle in and relax.
from How To Rock Climb! by John Long
Put your weight on them (feet), trust them, and utilize them to save your strength by resting on them... Feel stuck? Look for a foot hold, exhale, and move to it.
from Mock Rock: The Guide To Indoor Climbing
Motivation
I'm going to give it all that I have then I'm gonna give it all that I don't have.
