Week 2 of my Challenge:

This week I feel a bit more tired but I have yet to hit the wall thankfully! The sore throat/dusty lung thing has passed. There are times when I have my doubts about this practice. It could just be my usual PMS-depression that hits me and is tainting my point of view. Plus I’m out of my new drug of choice—Circle of Health’s Anti-Stress Ayurvedic Rasayana. I think Bikram yoga might be a better health saver than it is a “body shaper”. It’s not that Bikram is making me flabby but like all things it may not be up to its hype. I can’t pig out all weekend and expect to have a body like Iggy Pop on Monday. It’s really what you put in your mouth that is most important. Like the ole saying goes, “Abs are made in the kitchen not in the gym”. Speaking of the gym, I actually miss the gym and having more variety to my workouts. I think my body just does better with cross training. I’m just too tired to go during the challenge. I have been bouncing on my trampoline, doing some arm/shoulder work with light dumbbells and doing a little ab work. Of course the challenge is only two months and I don’t think I will completely lose all my muscle. It’s not as if I’m some huge dude that can rip phone books in half and I have to protect my precious muscle. After my 60-days, I can then decide if the benefits are worth spending the $$$. Also, will I like this practice during the winter when I have to put on hot clothes in the middle of a sweltering and crowded locker room? I may just do Bikram half the year and then maybe stick with the gym and pilates the rest of the time. Also, I’ve always wanted to try out martial arts but let’s not get ahead of myself . . .

So let’s compare pros and cons thus so far. . .

What I like and the benefits I’m getting:
-I enjoy the practice itself
-Acquiring more confidence, patience and clarity
-If I eat right, I do feel like the practice makes me leaner
-Posture is better
-I’ve met some great people, the studio is really also a positive social outlet. The instructors are all really nice and knowledgeable
-Being inspired by other people’s stories gives me hope. I love a testimonial and the studio is filled with them!
-It forces you to eat in a more disciplined way, if you’ve ever eaten too much too late before a class you know what I mean.
-I think all yoga is really great for problem solving and removing blocks. I feel like I’m moving through some creative blocks.
-My knees don’t crack as much.
-Usually my sleep is better and deeper (except Sunday nights but that has always been my thing).
-I’m sure the practice is detoxing me and that alone makes this little experiment worth while.
-There are really great moments of pride and sheer happiness, especially when you see improvements in your poses. I believe yogis call this “bliss”.


What I don’t like:
-The time factor, commuting to the studio, the class itself is 90-minutes, the showering and time it takes to cool off after, etc.. This can easily take up 3-4 hours of my day. I hardly have any time for artwork. Basically, I get up wash my hair, do a mini trampoline workout; go to work; go to yoga; attempt to sleep and do it again the next day. Not a lot of time for anything else. If you’re going to do a challenge it can’t be during a time of year when you feel like you are missing out on a lot.
-The crowded women’s locker room is brutal. I do fine with the heat in class but the locker room crazy makes me want to faint. All the pushing, shoving and waiting for the only one bathroom is a total drag. I can have a great class and enter the locker room and the good vibes are completely gone. I’ve now learned to just chill in the lobby and wait for the crazy to go by.
-Which leads me to another con, file under “commitment”. I only have so much time and energy. I can’t do it all. So I have to limit time I spend going out, attending seminars and gallery openings.
-$$$ spent. I’m not yet an International Woman of Mystery. It’s a lot of money each month, while I think it is good it is really going to have to be perfect to get me to keep going. Plus you really have to watch not overspending on clothing, water, juice, sweatbands, seminars, etc. I miss being a girl and having money to spend on clothes and hair.
-The practice requires a lot of planning—drinking enough water, not eating too much or too little. You really have to be extremely intuitive to your body’s needs. If you misjudge, you suffer. Also, you can’t leave Bikram like a sweaty piglet and run off to a party.
-The laundry, having to have an endless supply of yoga clothes and towels.
-Washing my hair everyday. My hair type is similar to African-American hair so I have to be careful I don’t completely dry it out.
-I’m still not getting the physical results I want. I still don’t get why some students have jaw dropping abs and others don’t. I’m fit but I’ve never had the type of abs that look like a slim pole with tight taught skin stretched across. My flabby stomach is only slightly compartmentalized.
- Maybe Bikram is good for my spine but carrying this shit every day is probably not. And the wet clothes and towel at the end of class are heavier than the dry ones.
-Weird food cravings. Never in my life have I wanted salty food so much. I keep a little baggy of Celtic gray salt with me so I can munch after class. The saying you are what you eat is even more true when you practice Bikram Yoga, because you can smell it in your sweat and it stings your eyes.
-The ouch factor! My knees feel sore sometimes and my SITS bones really hurt too.
-Fatigue. I knew the challenge would make me tired. I just don’t want to end up being caffeine junky to keep up with my practice. I just don’t think that is what yoga is about. I only drink coffee once a week, twice max. I indulge in the more innocent versions of caffeine like raw chocolate, green tea and yerba mate. Some of the instructors told me that during the teacher training (which is doing yoga 2x a day and having a lecture in between for six days a week) that the raw foodists started eating McDonald’s. Bikram himself is known to down Coca Cola, eat McDonald’s and cheesecake. I like a good rare burger once in a while but McDonald’s, no way, that is not even food.

I think the process is worth two months out of my life but I’m not sure if/how I will continue with the practice. It’s a financial sacrifice. It could also at time be adding more stress to my life. I feel like I only have time for work, Bikram, making food, doing laundry, sleeping and that’s pretty much it. I’m due for highlights I can’t afford and my clothes are falling apart. If I had Madonna’s money and more time then certainly yes it would be. I’m still open to a miracle. If let’s say I’d heal my thyroid or end up with amazing set of abs I might still continue the practice. I still want the pros side to win. I’m still and optimist after all.