Day 3 + 4

Was far too tired to blog when i got home last night as i managed to do my first ever double (yipeee!). It was a spur of the moment thing, i hadn't actually planned on doing any doubles during this challenge cause i though it might be too much, but boy was it gooooood!
The first class was a bit weird (partly why i chose to do the next class) as there was literally nobody there. The studio where i go just re-arranged it's timetable so people obviously didn't know about the class. It ended up being me, the teacher and 3 other people! Not really bikram at all, more like a pose correction lesson, but it ended up being really helpful. She finally managed to help me lock my knee and leg (i was apparently bending it?! it's funny what you don't see when you think you finally have a pose semi ok) and just really improved my general posture during the standing series. Anyway, after all the useful tips she gave me i decided to just dive right into the next class, which was thankfully packed, and try and use all my new techniques. I was a bit worried i would be zonked and spend most of the time on the mat, but a coconut water sorted that out, and i actually felt really strong throughout all the poses, even half moon which i hate/am terrified of!

Now on to today, which wasn't so good. Firstly the room wasn't quite hot enough and i could feel a slight draft (or is it draught? apparently i can't spell today) during the floor series. It's funny as when i started practicing Bikram a couple of months ago all i wanted was a slight bit of air to come in the room. I used to live for the moment when the teacher opened the door for a few seconds half way through the class. Now i actually enjoy the heat as it really helps me open up my hips up and push a little deeper in the poses. Another reason class was not so good today, and I feel bad for saying this, was the teacher. I just didn't feel any energy off and her dialogue was really slooooooooow. This meant that i didn't push myself as hard as i should have and i hesitated between coming in and out of poses. I know at the end of the day it's my decision how hard i push into a pose but it's much easier when you have some one who really makes you want to push that extra millimeter, even when your whole body feels like it might snap in half!

Oh well, tomorrow is a new day (and a new star for my progress chart, yay!). Namaste.

Day 2...And she's back in the game!!

Today i had a really good class. The type of class where you think you could carry on for another couple of hours. I'm not sure if it was because I went in the morning so my energy levels were high, or because i went in there in telling myself it was going to be good, i don't know. The vibe in the room just felt so good today that we all really pushed ourselves to our limits. I know a lot of people say Bikram is a solo practice; you get yourself into the pose, you clear your mind, you stare ahead at your reflection and you block everything else out. But i think it's so important to be a room where everyone is strong and positive because it makes you more determined. As soon as i see someone sit out of a pose it makes me think 'oh well if they're having a little break, then I'm gonna too'. Not a good mind set to have, but then again i'm only a beginner so i need to break some of my bad habits!
Anyway it's late and i'm pooped so i'm off to bedfordshire. Good night.

1 down....29 to go.

Today was the first in a long line (30 to be precise) of Bikram classes. And it sucked. Big time. For starters i hadn't eaten nearly enough, just 2 pieces of toast and a bowl of soup, and considering i went to a 5 o clock class that is BAD! I also went in there doubting myself. Error and a half! Within minutes i knew it was going to be a bad session. Half moon nearly killed me and by awkward pose my whole body was on fire. It literally felt like i was burning from the inside out. But i refused to be overcome, it's just mind over matter right? So i stuck it out for about 30 minutes then I sat down. And it was good. So good that i pretty much stayed down there for the rest of the standing poses. That said, i threw myself into the floor poses with as much vigour as i could muster so i did redeem myself slightly.

So i'm now lying in bed pretty pissed with myself. I know everyone has up days and down days but surely your first few days should sail by? Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow. I'm going to go to an earlier class to see if that makes a difference to my mindset. Fingers crossed or it's going to be a very slow and painful month...!

A little thing i like to call crazy...

So as of tomorrow I am officially starting my first ever Bikram 30 day challenge (round of applause please). Tomorrow will also only be my fifth bikram class ever, so I'm pretty sure that puts me into the crazy category-yikes!

For those of you that don't know, although you're reading this blog so im sure you do know, Bikram is a 90 minutes class consisting of 26 yoga postures performed in a room heated to 105 degrees. Basically it is yoga performed in a giant puddle of sweat and i love, love, LOVE it. Or at least I hope I do, or the 90 pounds i just forked out for the privilege of going each and every day for the next month is going to be a big fat waste. hmmm....

So the challenge is to go every day for 30 days. No skipping, no cheating and no lazy, fat days. I've kind of been psyching myself up for the past month trying to decide if I really can make this commitment right now, cause it is a lot to ask, but I've decided to just bite the bullet and do it; what's the worst that can happen right? So as of tomorrow I officially have no social life, no love life, pretty much no life whatsoever just a whole lot of sweat and tears (hopefully in that order as i have a feeling crying in a lesson would probably be pretty embarrassing). That said i am majorly excited about this because i know this is exactly what i need right now. I've been neglecting myself lately and what i really need is some me time, and staring into a mirror for 90 minutes whilst sweating your butt off defiantly counts as me time. HA

So wish me luck.....!! More tomorrow after session numero uno...