Bikram? Part 1

Happy Christmas, readers! Hopefully you've been enjoying a bit of the magic that seems to come calling this time of year. We have an unanticipated (by me, anyway) blizzard warning for the area where I live, and being housebound is likely to enable me to enjoy some much needed snuggle time with my boys (all 3 - BIG one and small ones included!).

Every year, I have about a week off for "Winter Break", and it's always fun trying to plan out fun activities that we don't normally have time or inclination to do. This year, I thought I'd squeeze in a little "me time" among the other fun stuff by scheduling some time to take yoga classes - I do try to write a blog about it, afterall... There is a Bikram Yoga studio in a nearby town that is offering a "newcomers special" - 1 week of unlimited classes for $30! Seeing as a normal class is $25, I only have to go twice to amortize it and get a real bargain. So I decided to give it a go...

Most people know of Bikram Yoga as "Hot Yoga" - where you practice yoga in a room that is heated to 100 degrees. It is supposed to be a specialized sequence of 26 asanas, developed by Bikram Chowdhury (pictured above - love the skullet, dude), done in a "scientific order" to cleanse the body of toxins and deliver fresh blood to every last organ. I tried Bikram once about 10 years ago - before I was "into" yoga and practiced regularly - and was completely intimidated by the extreme athletes who were in the class. I'm talking ultra-competitive, less than 3 oz. body-fat athletes. I was completely out of place, and not really knowing what "regular" yoga was all about, this one Bikram Class almost scared me off. Thank goodness I didn't let it prohibit me from trying other disciplines of yoga, or I wouldn't be here today, writing my blog, trying out Hot Yoga again - all for the sake of "researching" and "commentating" on it for my readers (all 3 of you - thanks Kara, Evelyn, and Liz. My own mom doesn't even read my blog, so you guys rock.).

So Bikram Yoga is indeed "hot". The room is in fact 100 degrees, you feel it as soon as you walk into the room. The class that I took at 9am on Christmas Eve was also "hot" in the sense that it was p-a-c-k-e-d with people - at least 45! I haven't been in a class that packed since Diann was teaching Saturdays at the gym. There were college kids, there were grandmas, there were long, lean aggressive yogis, there were rounder, softer, go-with-the-flow yogis. Some people looked out of shape, but did every single posture, and some people looked like hard-core athletes who needed to sit-out a posture now and then. And there was me, tucked into the corner with my bright yellow mat and bright red face, sweating profusely, just trying to stay in the room for the whole 90 minutes. I did. Barely.

I attempted every single posture, and we did all 26 of them. Twice. The first time you visit a posture in Bikram, you hold it for 1 minute. You break, then return to the same posture for 30 seconds. If you do the math, you can see you're barely in asana for 40 minutes. Yet the class is 90 minutes...and you sweat enough for a marathon. I mean, it's logical that you'd sweat, and I seem to be making a big deal about something that makes sense, but I sweat from places I don't normally sweat from. My ankles? My shins? Under my eyes? It was weird. I started sweating right away. At first, the science teacher in me thought it was condensation forming on my skin - the room was so hot, and my skin was so cold that I was like a glass of lemonade on August 1st - but when it started dripping into my eyes, I realized it was honest to goodness sweat. But was it sweat that I had "earned"? Not so much. The heat was forcing my body to cleanse itself, but I think I prefer to cleanse my body the old-fashioned way - by drinking lots of water and doing regular old twisting postures that squeeze the kidneys and liver. The heat made my muscles warm and pliable, but I think I prefer to get my muscles warm the old-fashioned way - by slowly building up heat with a series of gentle postures.

So, I titled this post "Bikram? Part 1" because I think there's more to come. I'm not looking forward to it. At one point during the class, it felt like I was breathing in fire because it was so hot in there. My eyes were red. My face was red. The time spent in the 26 postures didn't even feel like I had been to a yoga class. But because every single article I've read explains that the benefits come after a few classes, I have to practice due diligence and give it another go. Plus, there was *one* really cool thing - after the class, my skin was actually steaming. I was driving home and the steam rising from my arms was steaming up the car windows so I had to roll the windows down. It was like 36 degrees outside, and I'm some loopy old broad driving down the road with the windows down. I must have looked crazy. I must BE crazy to do it again. All in the name of research, readers. All in the name of research...

"And looking back it was easy, easy, easy. 'cos I know that I can sacrifice" - Groove Armada

Ha ha ha. Good one, Groove Armada, good one.

POW! - Pose of the Week

My series on inversions continues...This week's pose: Sirsasana - because I certainly feel like I've been turned upside down lately!

What a week! I celebrated a birthday (twice), dealt with an aging dog who may or may not be developing Alzheimers, baked cookies and breads for the holidays, braved the stores, and also trudged through the regular day-to-day routines with my boys. Yes, I only WISH this turning myself upside down were serenely taking place on the beach, gazing out over the ocean instead of being metaphoric.

Despite the dizzying prospect of a headstand, turning yourself upside down certainly has it's benefits. Much like the previous inversions I've suggested, Sirsasana ironically improves digestion, strengthens spinal muscles,arms, and abdomen, improves circulation, and reduces varicose veins while relieving stress and anxiety. Sounds like I can use a bit of that this week...

Of course, this is quite a daunting posture, and I actually "cheat" and do this pose against the wall. I *have* (once or twice) done it free standing - away from a wall - but that was in the summer, when I was practicing daily and had a great sense of balance. These days, I'm lucky if I get in a session once a fortnight, so I'm using the wall. I'll build back up to a free headstand, but for now, I'll go with the flow, supporting my postures where I need to, and that's exactly what Yoga is all about. So don't feel daunted, get yourself near a wall, and surprise yourself by attempting a nice little headstand this week!

I have seen Sirsasana presented two ways: one with the forearms on the floor, hands hugging the crown of the head and the other as you see in the picture above, with hands forming a triangle with the crown of the head and forearms are parallel to the floor. Either way, you will reap the benefits of the posture. I'm most familiar with the method of forearms on the floor, so that's how I'll get you into the pose...

Kneel on the floor about an arm's length away from a wall. Interlace your fingers, forming a nice little cup where you can tuck your crown for support. With your forearms on the floor, place the pinky side of your hands down, anchoring yourself - this will become your base. Still kneeling, tuck the crown of your head inside this cup and slowly straighten your legs and begin walking your feet toward your head. Allow your hips to come into alignment with your shoulders, keeping a straight back. Bend your knees, and use the strength of your abs to lift your feet off the floor, extending the legs straight up in line with your hips, spine, and shoulders. Use the wall for security and support. With more and more practice, you can play around with the pose and gradually find yourself less and less dependant on that wall.

Concerned about compressing your neck and vertebrae while in Sirsasana? There are actually sophisticated props you can purchase to help you maximize the benefits of the posture. Gaiam has a "BodyLift" contraption on offer this week (just $99!) that can assist you with the posture. You avoid compressing the neck and can also use the prop as a mediation seat, but you will lose the benefit of pressure on the crown of your head (which stimulates circulation to the brain). Some people may find this pressure uncomfortable, so the "Body Lift" may be the prop for them. A video clip of the prop in action is linked below:
http://www.gaiam.com/text/videos/95-9225_video.html

Will you try a headstand this week? Are the holidays already turning you upside down enough? Maybe this will cancel it out and be just what you need to set your world right-side-up again...

The world looks different from upside down. Go ahead and give it a try!

Yogic Wisdom...

...from a tea bag:

"Let your manners speak, your deeds prove, and your delivery impress."

I'm here, dear readers! I haven't abandoned you, and I'll return as soon as I'm able. I have poses of the week, "props" and tools to help motivate you, and DVD reviews to share. It's just a little rough to carve out time during this season, but I did want to wish you a thoughtful, reflective Winter Solstice.

The holidays are really keeping us all busy and I'm sure we all find ourselves caught up in various matters. It can be overwhelming, it can be frustrating, and like me, you may be struggling to maintain balance. So now, in your seemingly darkest hour, know this: with the Winter Solstice, we are at the shortest day of the year. Looking forward, as I tend to do, that means that from here on out, we'll see the sun for more minutes each day. Those minutes will bring warmth, hope, and of course, light! Certainly something to look forward to!

Namaste!

POW - Pose of the Week!

This week's pose: Plow (Halasana) - because I'm only halfway thru my inversions series! There's more to come...

Well, dear readers, it's been quite a week! In the past 7 days, 3 of the 4 members of my family have been bedridden with a high fever accompanied with a runny nose and sometimes nasty cough. The only reason it wasn't all 4 of us is because the youngest one had it first, before Thanksgiving! I'm on the road to recovery...and thinking all the while, I should be practicing my inversions! Won't that clear out my sinuses? Well, it turns out, not really.

Halasana is nice for relieving backaches, stretching the shoulders and strengthening the spine and stimulating those neck glands (Thyroid and Parathyroid). Noses? Not so much. On the plus side, it will calm the mind as you focus, and thereby reduce some of the stress and anxiety you may be faced with this time of year.

I included two images for you this week (shamelessly ripped from the internet) because they show subtle variations...and the first image actually shows improper form! Notice how the model in red seems to be looking down the left side of her body. You should never turn your head while your feet are above your head. Keep your head and neck on the floor to maintain the natural curve of your spine and prevent any strains or injuries!

I think Plow is a slightly easier posture than last week's pose (Shoulder stand)...in fact you can easily transition from one to the other and back again, and FYI all you moms out there, doing this simple maneuver will actually give your abdominals a very nice workout.

Lying flat on the floor with your arms resting alongside you, raise your legs up so you look like a capital "L". Next, keeping an eye on your toes, then knees, and ending with the tops of your thighs, slowly roll your legs forward over your head. Keep your shoulders on the ground, and bring your toes to the floor above your head. As you can see in the first image, you can choose to point your toes or as in the second image, plug your toes. At this point, your hips should be aligned with your shoulders.

Stay here for several breaths, really settling in, OR, using abdominal control, slowly transition back and forth from Halasana and Sarvangasana. In plow, you can choose to clasp your hands together (extra shoulder strengthening) or not, you can choose to raise your hands above your head and gently pull your toes (extra calf stretching), or you can choose to bend your knees so they drape over and hug your ears a bit (extra lower back stretching). Enjoy, and breathe. Maybe those sinuses will open up for you, anyway.

This week, I leave you with a little bit of "tea wisdom":

You can run after satisfaction, but true satisfaction must come from within.