Touched my forehead to the floor on August 29th!

I haven't been blogging anymore, now that my challenge is over.  I am going to blog on this same page though next challenge.  So I wanted to record my achievement.

After ONE year and FOUR months of going to Bikram yoga very consistently,

I TOUCHED MY FOREHEAD TO THE FLOOR IN SEPARATE LEG STRETCHING POSTURE!

Oksana was teaching and she saw how close I was and started doing dialog just to get me down there and it worked!  I planted that sucker solidly on the ground.

AND I did it again the next morning at 11:30 am yoga with Roberta.

I am soooo happy!

Final Post: Hot with Reegan again, Ocean Beach and a Belly Button Ring

Yup, you read that right.  Final post.  I now have 6 classes to make up to get to 90 in 90 and just don't feel like putting that kind of pressure on myself.  So I made 63 classes in 63 days and I'm good with that.  I will do another challenge in January and will blog right here on this same website again.  

So yesterday was 12 noon yoga in La Jolla again.  Cassie came with me again and we had the same teacher.  The room was even hotter and I was sick to my stomach half the class.  Its not like I did anything strenuous the day before.....yoga, lay out at the pool, sushi and then saw the new Batman (awesome movie by the way!) so I'm not sure why I was such a baby...but I was...a big fat baby.  I took a knee several times and only did one set of several postures.  Cassie, on her third class ever did better than me.  She's very good for a newbie by the way.  Too bad the whole thing is cost prohibitive for her, because I could picture her really getting into it otherwise. 

So after yoga we layed out by the pool again and then went down to Ocean Beach.  We had the best fish tacos ever and then I went and got a belly button ring from a small tattoo shop.  The guy had pictures of Kid Rock and Rose McGowan getting tattoos from him.  I'm going back there someday to get the butterfly tattoo on the back of my shoulder that I've been wanting for months now.  I've had my belly button pierced before but it was ten years ago.  Ouch!  Forgot how bad it hurts!  So now I just have to put sea salt and wash it with anti-bacterial soap and it should heal in a month.  I'll probably get a different piece of jewelry for it eventually because the one that came with the piercing keeps disappearing into my extremely "inny" belly button and is not going to work out for the long haul.  I might need to get something slightly dangly.

After that, we went to listen to a live band who had a cool reggae flavor and were just awesome!  We danced and had a great time.  Cassie and I were especially letting our hair down.  She's a fun girl and I just love her to death.  Rob did good picking his roommate out!  The weather was once again perfect....sunny, 85, breezy...just gorgeous.  God I wish I could move down there right this very minute!  I got home today to the 104 degree Las Vegas ugly dusty desert and just immediately felt very sorry for myself.  Oh well. back to work and bowling tomorrow.  Then lots of school clothes shopping and a haircut for Ash this weekend.  Back to real life I guess.

Thanks to all of you who read my blog during my challenge.  

Namaste

Day 72: Hot in La Jolla

Ah, San Diego. I'm so in love with this area. Right now the window is open and the weather is perfect!
So today was 12 noon yoga in La Jolla with a teacher named Reegan. She was very no nonsense and taught a solid class. Cute little California looking girl. Blessedly, she opened the back doors halfway through the class. Right as Cassie was contemplating leaving. Cassie is the roommate of the friend (Rob) I am staying with and it was only her second time trying Bikram. The first time was in April, my last trip out here. Cassie did a great job, even wrapped her legs in eagle. She did every single posture...thats the benefit of being 23 and skinny! :) Cassie and I both noticed though that the room was a lot hotter this time and they do not have any fans. Yes, I get spoiled in Vegas with the fans. I haven't done yoga since last Wednesday (shame on me!) and have a ton of classes to double up on if I am going to make 90 in 90. It felt great to be there today...four days without yoga was not enjoyable for me. I missed it terribly. Funny, being in a different studio without my own mat and without my yogi toes towels I felt a little insecure, like my practice would be alot different, worse maybe. I guess it just goes to show how much of a comfort zone I've gotten into. So when I get back to Vegas, I plan on moving around the room, away from my normal "spot", cranking out some doubles, and trying to get into the small room whenever possible. Need to shake things up!
Ok, now Rob and I are off to sushi!
Love this city. *sigh*.

Day 67: Going out with a Solid Practice....

5:30 pm with Oksana, a solid practice.  I thanked her after class and she said "nice work Michelle".  So off I go, to missing TWO days (yikes) and trying to LET IT GO that I have to miss two days.  The progress I am making with my practice is amazing.  I can get through a solid standing series without really feeling like I'm dying....which is how I used to feel!  I am breathing in and out normally, always going back to my breath when the heart rate elevates, and I just keep breathing in and out through the nose and the heart rate always slows.  Its amazing how much progress I've made.  

A first timer was behind me, and she looked familiar.  Then in the locker room after practice she said "Michelle, you were incredible in there, how long have you been doing this?"  Click!  Oh, thats where I know her from....she works for the same company, different location.  Haven't seen her in years.  So I thanked her for saying that, told her how long I've been practicing and shared with her that I couldn't even pick up my foot for standing head to knee at first, nor for standing bow.  I told her I've never felt better in my life and the sense of well being you get from Bikram is unsurpassed by any other form of exercise in my book!  Hopefully she will come back.  It's always great to see people trying it for the first time.  It never ceases to take me back immediately to the place I started from and I pause, and go "OH! I've come soooo far!".  It helps keep me grounded.

I'll be back Saturday with a post, as I'll be doing a class after a two day break.

Confession: I packed my yoga bag and will bring it tomorrow night.  Because on the OFF chance that my team gets done bowling by 8, I'd be able to boogie on up to the 8:30 class.  If I miss that one, 10:30 is next and that's too late.  So no, I'm not in total acceptance of my two day break.  My team bowls slow, so chances of making that class are not good.  Bag is packed and waiting though!  End of Confession

Day 66: I saw my mat in Camel

Ash and I went to 5:30 pm with Oksana.  This is where the magic happened....where I saw my mat in camel!!

Ok, so some of you may be going "so what?"  Perhaps you see your mat everytime you do camel.  Not me, I'm usually hanging there staring at the bottom of the back wall, where it meets the floor.  I can see the floor leading up to my mat also.  But not the mat itself.  Today, in second set of camel, I really tried to relax my shoulders while still pushing my hips forward toward the front mirror and suddenly I was upside down staring at my bright yellow yogi toes towel laying over my hot pink mat.  HOT DAMN!  I could see approx. one fourth of my mat!  I was truly upside down!  Oh yeah, Oh yeah, do the camel dance!

Confession:  I am seriously stressing out about missing Thursday, Friday and Sunday for yoga.  I am such a wreck about it that I was considering going at 10:30 pm Thursday night after bowling.  Am I crazy?  Bowling is over by 8:30.  I'd have to sit around for almost two hours by the time I got up there and I would be exhausted for work the next day!  The fact that I am so distressed by missing three days really sets off warning bells, red flags, whistles, etc. in my head.  Whoa girl!  What is going to happen if you miss those three days?  Nothing.  I'm not going to gain back the 8 pounds I've lost, I'm not going to lose all of the progress I've made on my postures and I'm not going to get complacent and not want to come back.  There, I just shot down all of my silly fears.  That being said I am going to FORCE myself to let go completely regarding these three days and not feel guilty, not stress out and not beat myself up about it.  Yes, I tend to do that...beat myself up.  If I want to make the 90 in 90 I'll have four doubles to do.  No biggie, I have proven that I can knock those out when I need to.  End of Confession.

Day 65: Kill the Pain with the Pain

It's back.  The lower back pain.  I had to subscribe to the "kill the pain with the pain" mantra today  (one of Dray's favorites).

I took yesterday off from yoga and was out on Lake Mead boating all day.  The water was too choppy to do water sports, so we beached the boats and swam.  It was a very fun and very mellow day.  I for sure did not do anything to my back yesterday.  But lo and behold, the lower back pain came back with a vengeance last night.  Looking back, the pain happened roughly a month ago, and it was the "same time of the month" if you know what I mean.   So I suppose this is some new and exciting female thing I get to suffer through monthly and could be tied to doing so very much yoga and trying to open my back, and then once a month, getting cramps that constrict the belly/back area.  Hence the pain.  This was Connie's theory today when I spoke to her about it anyway.  She was at the studio taking the class before me, so I ran my tale of woe by her.  The pain was so severe today that I could barely walk, and I had to take 400 mg of Ibuprofen just to be able to sit in my chair without screaming at work.

Needless to say, I was looking forward to yoga today because I'm totally on board with yoga fixing back issues as was proven to me last month when I suffered this dilemma.  If I remember correctly, it only lasted a couple of days.

Tonight was 5:30 pm yoga with Dray and yes, it did help my back.  I could barely do the forward fold, and at the very end of the class, the stretching posture just before final spinal twisting killed me so I sat out the second set.  All other postures were fine.  I did take it easy on the situps, very easy.  Right now I feel much better.  I have some soreness still, but nothing like this morning.  I literally had tears in my eyes at work this morning, it was that bad.

As far as the "90 classes in 90 days" I am officially one class behind.  Its only going to get worse as I miss Thursday night due to bowling (with the changed schedule they now only offer 8:30 - bowling not done early enough...and 10:30- way too late for me, I have to work at 7:30 the next morning) and Friday night due to having a little party at my house Friday night.  Then Sunday I fly to San Diego and will be there until Wednesday.  I plan on going to yoga Mon/Tues in La Jolla, but that means I'll miss Sunday.  So that will be FOUR behind only a week and a half into it!  But I can do it.  This I now know!  I can bang out three doubles in a row when I get home and be well on my way to completing the 90 in 90.  I have faith.....in myself!

Day 63: Calming Connie....

Today was 5:30 with Connie.  She's a very calming type person.  I like her class, it has a nice flow and she really gives great tips on some of the postures.  My ears perk up and I catch new tidbits all of the time.  Then a light bulb goes on and I modify something.  Her class is great for working on form.  After class, she told me I had a nice standing bow!  How cool is that!

Ashley came with me and sat out probably 2/3 of the class.  Her allergies were acting up all day, she was sneezing like a maniac and had red eyes.  She didn't feel good but tried yoga anyway.  She did stay in the room though and layed on her mat alot.  I commend her for even going.

Tomorrow Ashley and I are spending the day on Lake Mead with some of my friends.  There will be two boats and some fun water activities.  Can't wait!  That does mean I will most likely miss yoga tomorrow and I already know I'm going to miss a couple of days next week.  Already I will have anywhere from three to five doubles to do when I get back from San Diego next week.  Its early in the month so I'm going to stay positive and just do doubles everyday on the weekends when I get back from my short trip.  I'd love to hit 90 classes by the end of August.  

I'm not even going to do a bonus post about week 6 on Jenny because the scale there was not nice to me this week.  It's my fault, because after three doubles in a row last weekend I was ravenous for the three days following.  And eating lettuce just didn't sound good to me!  I am really not bummed out or upset because my clothes are all very very loose and I can tell my hips are getting smaller when I look at myself in the yoga mirror.  So I am just going to stay on track this week and hope for a big number next weekend.  I realize this whole thing is more about the journey than the destination of "losing 35 pounds".  I will by no means be done when I get to my goal weight.  In fact, that's when the real work begins for me personally.  I have never learned how to maintain a healthy weight and stop the vicious balloon up, slim down cycle.  That will take alot of learning, dedication, focus and determination.  It will be the life equivalent of "locking the knee".  It took me months to learn how to lock my knee and it still is something I have to think about and focus on.  This is no different!

Day 62: A Peaceful Class

Today was 5:30 with Adele.  Adele is a nice, peaceful teacher who keeps the room pretty cool.  No smokin' us out with her.  I had a nice class and it went by fast.  The only problem I had tonight was still the sore, sore, sore butt, lower back and now HIPS! 

At least it's just soreness and not horrible pain, so its easy to work through and just keep going to yoga until it subsides.  

Sunday I will be out on Lake Mead on a friend's boat, so most likely I will be taking that day off as I can't imagine going to yoga after a sun-soaked day.

Have a great weekend everybody!

Namaste.

Bonus Post: Word Cloud

Thanks Karen! Cute idea....