Day 3 of 30 (or 60): HARD or at least until yoga was over

This pic makes me immediately relax

Monday, August 15, 2011

I woke up today tired, groggy, achy.  I spent the morning looking forward to my seemingly simple day.  Work, Yoga, Dinner, Shower, Bed.  As the day wore on however.  All I wanted, was my bed.  I had excruciating pain in my neck and upper back. By the time I finished work, I could barely move or keep my eyes open.  But yoga was at 6 P. M. and I had to do it.

Maren and I, both sore, limped into class.  I laid on my mat trying not to fall asleep before we even began.  I wasn’t sure how my back bends were going to go because I felt like my back and neck were broken.  But I made it through. 

What struck me the most however, was my triangle pose.  I was right in front of the mirror doing it, and it looked nothing like it was supposed to.  My knee was not at 90 degrees, my hips weren’t right, and it hurt like hell.  I’m realizing more and more how inflexible and weak I actually am. 

My other weakness is the Awkward Pose, or good old fashioned squat. I’ve avoided these for years for fear they would make my leg bulky.  I curse the Shannon (the instructor) every time she calls for that pose. 

Maren did her first almost sit up and that was exciting, but for the most part, I think we are both still feeling stiff and awkward.  But hey, it’s only day 3.  I will say this though, in the previous two classes 90 minutes went fast, today, it felt like 90 minutes.

Each day we end in Savasana, deep relaxation.  The lights are turned down, we are told what an accomplishment we have achieved, and how our lives will change more each time we come to class.  Then Shannon said something that I can’t seem to get out of my head.  She said,

“Every day you will look in the mirror, and every day your image will change, because with every practice, you change.”   

I had been just thinking about that, looking at my frumpy reflection, hoping, it would change. 

As we were laying there she told us that Dax, the visiting instructor, the guy with the tiny red shorts who stood in front of me my first class and was my focus of balance and inspiration, is leaving to go back to his country.  After that first class, I learned he was an instructor and had been looking forward to being in one of his classes.  When she announced he was leaving, I was in Savasana and my eyes started to well up.  I was truly sad. 

After class I drove Maren home and we once again discussed our yoga triumphs and defeats.  Something that surprised me was that as soon as I walked out of yoga, even after doing the back bends and neck bends, everything that had been hurting me throughout the day felt better.  The pain was completely gone.  No tightness, no nothing, just an energy force flowing through my body.  I felt good.