Fall!

Today I totally got jazzed that it's the start of fall! I even went to Bath and Body Works to sniff pumpkin candles after work! MMMMM! Yummy! I love the smells and colors of fall. I also like that the holidays are coming (although, right around Nov. 15th I'm ready for them to be over).

So... to celebrate fall... one of my favorite comics

Yoga Day 7 (before class)

Today is indeed day 7 of Yoga.

I went on Saturday morning (day 5) and it was quite crowded. I squeezed in and got stuck near one of the side walls. I was doing great though! I held a lot of the stretches that I haven't been able to hold yet. I was feeling totally relaxed but focused and determined. A little more than halfway through the class I realized that there was a cricket on the floor between the wall and myself. Before some of the positions we lay down on our stomach and all face one way (we all face right or we all face left). The cricket was on the left side of me and we were taking a turn facing right. Lying there I was getting all worried that the cricket would start crawling on me if I wasn't paying attention to where he was. I turned my head around just to see where the cricket was, so I could shoe him away from me, but when I turned around... AHHH! The cricket was right in front of my face.

Yesterday was different than the others because I got Amanda and Aaron to go with me! Aaron had a hard time with the heat, but I'm so proud of him for toughing it out. Amanda... well we all know Amanda's the health and exercise nut in our little group, so of course, she was awesome. She nailed it (ESPECIALLY for her first time!)

Today will be my 7th class in 7 days. This is a big accomplishment for me. I'm really proud of myself for sticking with it and doing if for the whole 7 days. Really, I'm actually enjoying it. I feel accomplished when I reach goals (in specific stretches) and I feel healthier as a whole. It's actually brought me some hope because I had been pretty hopeless about my back ever feeling better (normal, actually) again.

So.... off to day 7!

Yoga Day 4

I'm tired and very very sore.

(yes, I did go yesterday too, but I didn't write about it)

After that...

Immediately following Aaron's read through "Yoga Day 2":

a: You purchased a yoga mat?
me: no!
where did you get that idea?!
a: uh uh!
you said it in your blog!
the blogesphere never lies
me: it lies
I tell you! It lies
...
ps - I used my BN discount on my new mat (doesn't that help!?)
a: I SUPPOSE so
So where's my mat?

blogs... they sometimes get you in trouble

Yoga Day 2

So, I went to yoga again. It was a lot different this time. I felt so much more comfortable because it wasn't a totally new place. I also had an easier time as far as the workout itself! I never felt dizzy or nauseous like I had yesterday. I felt pretty focused and motivated. I think I actually had a little bit of fun because I saw myself overcoming things I could NOT do yesterday. I also noticed I was able to focus on my breathing better, which kept me calmer and more focused on the positions - rather than panicked and totally unable to balance.

The people (teachers, owner, students...) at the studio are so nice too. The owner even remembered that I came for the 4:30 class yesterday. And the teacher remembered me too. Also, I met two people right before class today. The guy that I met had his last day of undergraduate college today so he was really excited. The lady was so sweet, asking how I was feeling after doing one day of it and asking what I think will get better and how it'll help me. They're so welcoming. It's fun! Vern, the owner, said the goal of the studio is to make Yoga the funnest part of the day. I like that. I can handle that :)

I bought myself a yoga mat today too. I told myself I'd hold off on that for a while to make sure I was really committing to this, but I'm so excited, and I REALLY wanna stick with it. (I hope I can afford it!)

Tomorrow Isabell (a friend from work) is joining me. I'm excited about having a friend with me!


On a deeper level:
I think our generation of Christ-followers has mostly grown away from silly rules and restrictions of associating with other religious practices, but still some might think it's odd that I practice yoga (yes, it is typically a religious practice... from India!). Here's my take, in brief - God has gifted people with the wisdom and knowledge of how to care for the body. For some reason, God gave yoga's founding fathers an amazing insight to the body; how wind is drawn and released, how muscles are built by contracting and relaxing, how minds are stabilized through rest. What these people have missed is that God created the body to be restored through these amazing processes and is, therefore, worthy of ALL praise and adoration. But because they've missed this point, should I avoid yoga completely? I say no - in actuality, the physical elements of yoga (the exercise part) honor God by proclaiming His product (the body) is a. worth taking care of and b. made in a way that could not have been done by anything/anyone other than a divide, all powerful, and creative being like Himself. For that, PrAiSe GoD!!!

Plus - what a GREAT place to show the love of God; a place where many are open to spirituality!

So... I press on - through the sweat, through the hurts (uh huh!), through the 90 minutes per day - toward a healthy body and better understand of God's complex creativity.

"Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another."
- Walter Elliott

Yoga Day 1

That's right... today I started up yoga again. I did it back in San Diego, kinda back in the day. I do it at a hot yoga studio (Bikram Yoga in Covina). They keep the temp at 101-103 degrees. It helps muscles stretch easier and makes you sweat like a mother! It's good because you sweat out a lot of toxins, but man is it sick. The worst is when you have to put your head down and the sweats runnin' in your eyes and... eck! And yoga aint no small thing. Man, I was gettin' dizzy and nauseated... I had to take a break and sit a few times. It's intense. The first week is always the hardest. But my plan is to go at least 4 times in the next 7 days, and 3 times per week after that. Before, in San Diego, it was really helping my back and made me feel really healthy - that's what I'm hoping for again!

Anyone wanna join me? $10 for unlimited classes for the 1st week!

Not a Professional

Apprently, I'm not a professional blogger. Not even close, really.

Sorry I've let you down, fans! Sorry I've failed to tell you about all the dumb things I think about all day! :)

Perhaps now that my phone has internet access (as if I need it to) I'll be more dilligent or something. We'll see, no promises!