Mike's House

For those of you that live in unenlightened circles, the title is a lyric by Nelly.

Day 2, Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

Day 3, Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

Two days, back to back. Three days in a row of this crazy abuse.

These times, I’ve felt less inclined to pass out, having hydrated well for the entire day before class, and drank some potassium-filled coconut milk drink.

But I still am not able to perform all the poses, and need some long breaks to try and get my heart rate under control. I’m simply glad I can tough out lying in that heat, pouring sweat from every possible distasteful location on my body, until the end of the class.

I made some progress, inasmuch I can understand some of the flow of transitions from pose to pose, and see how they all kind of lend themselves to experiencing the next one.

In today’s class, at some point a man was told some comment by the instructor, and suddenly got up to leave the room. A big no-no, and a bunch of other people voiced their concern that he shouldn’t leave, no matter what. He didn’t, and then it was cleared up by the instructor – “If you put a shirt over your eves, you might as well not be here, as your mind goes away.”

It was a roundabout way to tell the dude to keep his eyes open and unobstructed. Oh well.

At another point, when we were all lying down, in semi-darkness, one woman began sobbing loudly. Nobody addressed this – and I kind of appreciate that. The instructor mentioned: “You are here because you want to be here. Nobody forced you to come here and put yourself through this.” True.

I found out later that the woman was one of the instructors-in-training or such, and that was kind of a great motivation for me. If others at that level find this difficult, then I shouldn’t feel bad that I’m finding it very hard.

A discussion with another random dude in the locker room after, in which I said: “I think this is about pushing your limits. Everyone’s limits differ, and as long as you’re pushing your own, that’s really what matters. Not if you can be a perfect half moon.”

Statement resonated within. Got to remember that. And the utter cliche – “Do your best”. Ugh.

My best hurts a lot. Looking forward to next class. Neil, the dude who seems to know what’s going on and runs the place, is 23 days into a 100 day challenge (with himself? unclear.) so hopefully I’ll see him there again tomorrow.

Day #1, Monday, December 21st, 2009

Some say the arrival of a new year is a good time to make resolutions, and re-evaluate one’s past year. I consider Monday a better choice, and that’s any Monday. Not the beginning of the year, as then you get to easily postpone your responsibility until then, but any Monday.

This particular Monday, I had in mind that I was going to subject my poor, out-of-shape body to a new experience: Bikram Yoga.

Also known as “Hot Yoga”, this exercise discipline differs from many others in that it takes place is a location with an average temperature higher than Death Valley, CA reaches in springtime (105 degrees Fahrenheit, 40 degrees Celsius), and about 40% humidity, bringing the Heat Index nice and high.

Armed with a little knowledge, not nearly enough, and delusions of grandeur, I packed a pair of shorts, sleeveless shirt, large towel and water bottle and headed to the Yoga To The People studio on 27th St.

Arriving, I met Neil, behind the counter, where he asked me if I had done this before, gave me a quick lowdown, and after paying a really small amount of cash for a health class, gave me a mat, towel and sent me on my way.

I changed in the locker room, and dragged my gear into the heated room, nice and dark. Found a spot to place my mat on the back row, covered it with my towel, put down my water bottle, and simply began to breathe in the heat. Wow. That’s hot.

As more and more people came in, an instructor’s assistant called on anyone who hadn’t done this before to come and learn the warm-up breathing method. This was interesting, and there must have been about 8-9 of us in the learners circle.

Back on the mat, class starts, and the Door Closes. once the Door Closes, you should not leave the room, unless it is a dire medical emergency, instead, sit down, take a break, relax, and continue when you can. There was absolutely no pressure to keep up, and working at my own pace meant that I could sit down, and nearly pass out, thanks to not enough oxygen reaching my brain in a stressful scenario.

I sweat more than I thought was possible, and tore my sleeveless shirt off about a third into the class – I couldn’t bear it any longer. Was a little better once it was gone.

You’d think I would shy away from such a painful experience, but I actually reveled in completion, and felt great. Today, I’m sore, so I’m going back again tonight for round #2.

Wish me luck.