Sixty Days: Day 34

Friday afternoon practice with K. The holiday seems to bring lots of visitors to the studio. Today I was lucky to have my peace challenged by Moaning Myrtle. Dude, it's hard work for *everyone* in the room, we're not moaning like porn stars! I smiled, caught my own breath & let Myrtle do the moaning for me.
My hips are tight tonight, as if I haven't stretched them at all -- a sign I may be slacking in my practice as I acclimate to the new studio conditions (my story, as yet unstolen).
Time to get back to work. On me!

Sixty Days: Day 33

Thanksgiving Day practice was absolutely the best place to be this morning. We had a full, sweaty, house.
I decided, on my drive, to surrender. Surrender to the dialogue, to the postures; allowing them to fill my mind and crowd out the internal chatter. E even used Surrender in her coaching :)
As we all found stillness in Tree Pose, the only sound was sweat dripping from all of us, like Oregon rain. It made me smile.
I was distracted by the panicked breathing of my neighbors, had to focus on keeping my own breath & smiling. By Camel, I was only able to do just that: breathe & smile. I wanted to cry otherwise. By Spine Twist I was resigned to my weak; instead E coached me through a beautiful strong finish Why are you doing it like that? You can do it like this, don't believe outdated information.
Ah, perfect. And my challenge is 55% complete.
~°~°~°~°~°~°~°~
In the dressing room:
Bea Arthur (younger & cuter, still Bea-esque) laments she'd worn her yoga clothes under her clothes & forgotten her underwear. General consensus that it's alright, you're just going home, afterall …
In the quiet & empty, after, I lean over to her I'd embrace the sexiness of running around town in yoga pants with no undies! Her face lit up immediately, said 60 is just around the corner and the chances to feel sexy were too few. Own it! I tell her Have fun with it! Commando!
As Bea left, she waved; shining brightly and rocking those yoga pants.

Sixty Days: Day 32

The heat feels like I'm a newbie again.
Tonight I was sweet and gentle with myself. Quietly, I moved through the poses, keeping my breath. I was so happy to have energy enough to lock my knees in the next-to-last pose & feel my heels rise up off the floor!
I'm not doing the impossible, I've redefined what's possible.

Sixty Days: Day 31

The second half begins! And much sweatier than the first. It seems the new heater wasn't working as it should; oh it is now!
Miss K led practice, killing me without letting me die. Bikram magic.
90 times I've practiced since July. 90 times I've had to look at myself, my whole entire almost naked self, in the mirror. A true gift. Yet another gift.

Sixty Days: Day 30!

A milestone! Thirty days of practice, not perfect.
Looking at myself in the mirror, I thanked me for my dedication, for the work done and the work we're striving to do. I am so grateful for this chance to take me on, every day; to realize this is not as difficult as I've feared.
Quiet. So much value in quiet.
Magic.

Sixty Days: Day 29

Tonight's class was led by E, commonly known as The Goat Chaser. I know in her classes, keeping my peace is my lesson upon the lessons.
Which I made look easy. I knew to keep my breath; less/no need to ever get it back this way. So I soldiered through, to her powerful standards, every pose, every time.

Sixty Days: Day 28

Did it.

Sixty Days: Day 27

Ran out of calories. I need to eat more & eat better.
The good parts: slow & steady rocks Standing Bow Pulling; strong glutes = strong Locust series; one legged balance *much* easier if weight is centered in foot, i.e. hip over knee over ankle.
Doing Bikram immediately before a big Interpreting job was the smartest thing I've done all year! My arms felt great & so did I :)

Sixty Days: Day 26

Strong practice. Every pose, every time. Today C opened with Look in the mirror and smile at your best teacher. So I did; and kept a close eye on her throughout class.
I decided to drop my self-sabotaging thoughts about the standing series. Funny how the biggest obstacle to deep expression is my own misplaced conversation. So I rocked my balancing stick and triangle(!). Discovered the benefit to abdominal strength in nearly every pose: pada hastasana, cobra & locust especially! Went into first toe stand without abs engaged and proceeded to flop & flail, working frantically (frantic + yoga = win, yeah?) to recover - didn't happen. Second set was set up properly and balance was easy. I was able to push my knee down, stretch up and lean back. Big, long stretch of stillness was my gift.
Then! I had my heretofore unnoticed vacation stolen from my camel pose! C came by with the yardstick, my fists are 8" not 6". With a much smaller gap, my camel stretch is as divine as it deserves to be!
Because that weren't enough, I lost my kickstand in spine twist, too. A totally different stretch when you're leading yourself around yourself by your own hand!
Whew. A great day, I'd say.
So good for you <3

Sixty Days: Day 25

Planning an escape/retreat for myself, to Los Angeles. Needing some distance & perspective & yeah, warm sunshine, to see this life of mine, anew.
Class felt like worthy practice.
After a very, very hot & not so humid 90 minutes, locker room talk was entertaining. New victims were upset with the "Listen to the words, don't look around" admonition. One had a Grand Story, possibly even a note from her doctor, justifying her Can't Can't Can't Tale. I said, Well, as long as you're listening to your mind tell you what you can't do in there, you won't be able to listen to the yoga. Should you, however, decide to listen to the dialogue instead of your voices, you'll do great.
Not a popular perspective, I know. American'ts abound! Myself included. Definitely a moment of teaching best what I need to learn most (Richard Bach). Learning is what keeps happening.