Yes, that is me. That is me in the camel pose. This is the pose I worked hard to learn in Bikram. This is an intense back bend pose. When I first tried it, I was petrified. I had never bent back so far in my life. Just the thought of it was scary. And yet here I am today doing it without fear or panic.
Atmah Ja, my instructor, the one who is leading me on this journey beyond pretzelness, explained the benefits of this pose. It at opens up the chest, promoting lymph drainage, it tightens the thighs, waist and hips, while strengthening the arms, shoulders, knees and thighs and massaging the kidneys and bladder. Wow!
And there is more, the backward bending in camel stretches, stimulates and increases muscular flexibility of the spine. It’s great for those with drooping shoulders, as it helps to improve posture and relieve back pain. Practicing camel pose on a regular basis will prevent aches, pains and injuries to the back. If you’re an athlete, it’s important to have flexibility and mobility of the spine.And I am an athlete.
In class tonight we were told to focus on our breaths and to go at our own pace. In class there is no competition, it is all about being the best us we can be. I will admit that I feel that I get a deeper stretch sometimes in classes with heat (Bikram and warm flow). But there is something more serene and calmer about this class. I am challenged yet still in control. I do not fight for my breath, I do not focus on the clock. I can have a conversation. In fact it is encouraged. Questions are asked and answered. There is a dialog from time to time. Not enough to take away from the seriousness or the intensity of the class, but enough to make things interesting. It is true learning experience that allows us delve deeper into our private practices.
I am making progress in my journey beyond pretzelness. It may not happen this month or even this year. But the possibility is there. I can do the camel pose without fear and a few months ago I could not even imagine it. I am excited to find out what happens next.
What does Bikram Yoga and hair have in common? Rosemary Thompson and Carmelo Salon. I had heard about Rosemary from her sister Jackie in my water aerobics class. It came up when I mentioned that I was doing the Bikram 60 day challenge. She told me that her sister just LOVED Bikram and I should fine her in my class.
I asked her what her sister looked like and she said tall, thin, and blonde. Okay, I said “Do you know how many tall, thin, blondes are in my class?” So for the next few classes I was looking at people trying to figure out which one was Rosemary. Eventually we met and she told me that she had a hair salon. I asked her if she thought she could color my hair and she replied, “Of course. I am a professional.” I secretly wondered if she had ever done African American hair and especially locs. I did not ask.
Today I let her prove her statement. After getting lost trying to find the place. It is tucked behind the Sea Island shopping center past the little alterations shop around the curve. It is a place that my GPS could not find, but well worth the trip.
The salon is spacious, airy, and comfortable. There was no wait. She greeted me at the door and went straight to work. I love the color. It is a warm brown that I think she called a 6/7N combination.She even helped me re-twist the hair at the roots. Then she added some illuminating serum that made my hair shine.
Then came the part that I had not planned for. The cut. I had been saying that I would cut my hair AFTER I finished my degree. I started the loc process at the beginning of the degree and it symbolized my journey. That journey has been completed.
So once the decision was made, Rosie took out her scissors and moved like she had been doing this for years. She took off ab
out 5 inches of my hair. I love it. It looks clean and fresh. I feel so much lighter now. I cannot stop smiling. I will definitely go back regularly to get my hair done. It is cloes enough that one day I might even run there.
Today is a great example of what happens when you deviate from the norm. Not only did Bikram help reshape my body and allow me to run faster; I made a new friend. I made a new friend who did a great job on my hair. Who knew? And who knows what lies ahead if we just step outside of our comfort zones, pay attention to what God has to offer, and just be our genuine selves.
^5 to Carmelo Salon. Stop by and tell them I sent you. I promise you will not be disappointed. I wasn’t.
Mount Pleasant, SC 29464
| Phone | 1 (843) 856-3800 |
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It was a very icky day today. Can’t really explain why. Nothing went particularly wrong and nothing went particularly right either. I needed to go to yoga today. I had not done a downward facing dog in a week. Last Tuesday on the way to class my right contact decided to move up under my eyelid. Thursday was the board meeting for the Center for Women and Saturday was my workshop “It’s Okay to Toot Your Own Horn”.
Honestly, I could have been talked out of class today. I just wanted to hibernate or continue hibernating in my house. But my accomplice Melany had other plans. She is heading to England on Friday and wanted to get as many workouts in as possible before she leaves. So, we went to class.
As soon as class started, I was a bit apprehensive. I had never had a class with this instructor before. In all fairness, today was only my second class there so there are probably a lot of instructors that I never had. However as soon as class began, I knew I was going to like it. We started in child’s pose! My favorite pose. I know it is not pretzel-like, but it is relatively easy. And it does not require a lot of effort.
It was hot. Many people had to sit down. I was determined not to let my Bikram training go to waste, so I persevered. I was so proud of myself for going with the flow. Generally I am not a ‘go with the flow’ person, but today I was happy to. I moved almost effortlessly from pose to pose without hesitation. In my mind I looked beautiful and strong. In reality, who knows since the mirror was behind me. So you will just have to take my word for it.
I did not quite do the headstand. Okay, I did not get the headstand at all. But I was able to hold the shoulder stand for 30 full breaths. That deserves a major high five. And the one million downward facing dogs, upward facing dogs, regular planks, and side planks made up for the week I missed and then some.
What I like about warm flow is the flow. It is like a choreographed number. We all moved together to the best of our abilities focusing on our breaths. There was no competition. I barely remember noticing any of the other people in the class except when I was on the floor and I was stretching the wrong way. Hey, stuff happens.
Class flew by and I really liked that. I did not have a chance to think about what time it was or how much time I had left. And I felt like I sweat my body weight. It was all good. I needed that. I needed that and I would have missed it if Melany had not been insistent. That is what accomplices are for. I will be a pretzel yet.
One of these days I will get to bed early or on time before an early 5am run. One day, but that day was not yesterday. In my head I was rationalizing how I really did not need to run 12 miles today. I ran 11 miles last week. I can run 13.1, after all it is not a stretch from 11 to 13, right? Don’t I deserve a Saturday off? 
The conversation with myself continued as I drove to Sullivan’s Island to meet Yvonne for our 12 mile run. She had not gone to bed early either. Funny, we never do. We never do and we almost always run. Neither one of us wants to be the one to call it off. All I can say is thank goodness for Body Glide, Camelbak, and peanut butter. That is how I survived the run.
I am not sure how I ever ran long without yoga. Recovery runs are fine, but there is something about yoga that gets deep into the muscles and allows them to release. After 12 miles I needed a lot of releasing. My legs were tight, my shoulders were tight, my back was tight, and even my head was tight. I think my body was begging for a few downward facing dogs. Six months ago if you had told me that I would ever utter those words, I would not have believed you. In fact I probably would have rolled my eyes at you.
Fast forward to now. I need downward facing dogs in my life. They have great benefits other than stretching out my body. They reverse the action of gravity on the body and get the blood and lymph flowing in opposite directions, they strengthen and tone the arms and legs. Because of the weight bearing nature of the posture on the arms and legs it helps strengthen the bones and prevent osteoporosis. All of that in one pose.
Today, Atmah Ja had us (Yvonne joined me) do tons of downward facing dogs. That is even a bit more than I thought I needed, but I did not whine. I simply complied. Plus Yvonne was there and I could not show weakness. Really? Who says those things? Who thinks those things? I am sure she was too concerned with her own poses to even have time or the inclination to critique mine.
The music kept things interesting. No Ballywood anthems, just straight up dance tunes. Dance tunes with enough beat to make me forget about the pain in my arms from the downward facing dogs and the the anxiety of the pending planks including side planks. Okay, maybe not forget. Maybe just slightly distract.
Somehow some way I made it through the class. I feel so much stronger, I held my planks and in my mind I held the crow pose for more than a few seconds. In my mind my head stand was perfect. In reality, I have a long way to go. I have a long way to go and I have the building blocks to get to where I want to be. I am few breaths closer to pretzelness and possibilities.
I am so glad I went to yoga today. My hip flexors were very tight. I am going to blame that on running the bridge this morning and not stretching afterwards. That is one of my bad habits, not stretching after running. I could say that I forget, but honestly I just don’t want to. I understand the benefits, but for some reason I just cannot make it happen.
Today’s class focused on my breathing. Atmah Ja told us that our breaths control our thoughts and can assist in the direction of our energies. So for a few short moments I tried to figure out where my breath was channeling me. I could not, so I need more practice.
I managed to
hold my planks for the entire duration of the pose and even felt strong during the side planks. I am getting stronger in my core. I can feel it. I also flowed through the sun salutations. I think I am finally getting it. I am finally understanding the need for my body to move in these subtle yet powerful poses. I now understand how I will be able to become stronger physically and mentally with my practice. And I do want to become stronger.
I even managed to hold the tree pose. It has awesome benefits such as improving balance and stability in the legs, strengthening the ligaments and tendons of the feet, toning the entire standing leg up to the buttocks, and establishing pelvic stability. Yippee for me. I am making progress.
Today I moved my body beyond my normal limits. It was without fanfare or even a high five. It was smooth subtle and maybe only I noticed it. But that is just fine. I am the one who should notice it. I am the one who should celebrate my victories. If others notice and celebrate with me, that is fine. That is fine, but this is all about me and I do not feel guilty for acknowledging that.
Today I moved into the crow pose and held it for a hot second or maybe a hot nanosecond. The point is that I now realize the possibility. I always thought that I could do it, but today I felt it. The crow pose moved beyond a thought in my head to a physical manifestation. I am doing it. It isn’t pretty, it isn’t perfect, and it isn’t finished. It is a tangible goal that I can work towards.
Each day in yoga is a new practice with new challenges and new rewards. Every day provides me with renewed energy, strength, and possibilities even when everything around me is chaotic. I am working on the mind and body connection. The result is a greater understanding of myself, my abilities, and becoming a pretzel. So, the journey continues.
“Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is the only moment.”
~Thich Nhat Hanh
Today I stepped out of my comfort zone and took my first warm flow yoga class. For the first five minutes I had flashbacks of Bikram then I realized that it was only 92 degrees. That is much cooler than the 105 degree temperature at Bikram. I learned one thing, I do not miss the heat. I understand the benefits of the heat, but I am okay without it. That being said, I kept my cool and got my sweat on in a major way.
Today I actually flowed. My back was to the mirror so I did not actually see myself flowing, but I moved from one pose to the other without hesitation. At least until the time for the headstand. More on that a bit later.
I attempted the crow pose for the first time. I attempted it three times. I did not get it right, but yoga is more about the practice and the breath. The pose will come if I keep believing. It might happen in 10 months or it may take 10 years. The possibility is there and I like that. At least I dared to try. It has great benefits, it builds strength in your arms, in
ner thighs, and abdomen and also builds focus. What’s not to love about that?
The instructor kept telling us to close our eyes and not look at the bendy people around us. Today was not about competition, it was about being where we push ourselves and being perfectly okay there. That made me press just a little harder. I wanted to get deeper in my breath and in my poses. Some I did and others I had to be content to be and focus on my breath.
My high five moment came when it was time to do the head stand. Head stand, not hand stand. Head stand and not hand stand wall assisted. At first I froze thinking that there was no way I could do that. The instructor said not to analyze it, not to overthink it; just do it or don’t do it and be perfectly okay with that. So I tried it. I managed to do a half head stand unassisted.
It may not look very challenging, but it was. 
I mean it Strengthens your shoulders, arms and wrists, stretches and engages core muscles, improves your sense of balance, calms the mind and can help to relieve mild depression and stress. So it has to be powerful, right. Of course my nest step is to lift my feet up off of the ground and I will get there. I had no problems with the plow pose or the should stand. And a few weeks ago, I could not have said that.
One step at a time. One breath at a time. Maybe by the end of the year I will at least be a half pretzel and be able to do a complete headstand instead of a half one. But for now I am where I am and am perfectly okay with that on the path to pretzelness. I am closer than when I started.
I ran 11 miles this morning before heading to yoga. I will admit that I really wanted to go home, shower, eat, and do absolutely positively nothing. That is what I waned to do. But that is not what I did. If I skilled out on yoga I would have no blog today. Not only that, but my legs a bit stiff from the run really needed to be in yoga class today. So to yoga class I went.
I got there early and that gave Atmah Ja and me time to discuss my definition of pretzelness. We mutually decided (or really she suggested) that the first stage of pretzelness would be to be able to do the full lotus pose. At this point in time, I am unable to do this, but I will work on it. I did not realize that the lotus pose has several benefits: nervous system is strengthened.
In the lotus pose the spine remains automatically erect, circulatory system functions in normal manner and helps to cure sciatica and all kinds of rheumatic pain of legs and feet. Pressure of the heel during practice of lotus pose improves digestive power and cures problem relating to stomach and digestion. It also accelerates the concentration power of the mind and helps in process of meditation.
Although I want to master this pose so that I can climb the ladder to pretzeldom and beyond; I need to do this pose for all of its benefits. Right here and right now I can do sort of a half lotus pose. I just cannot get my knees to lie flat on the floor even if i do one at a time. I have much work to do. I am fine doing the work. I am committed to the journey.
My arms were shaking during the 50 downward facing dogs today. Can I blame that on the run? Or maybe on the many planks full and side that we did. I am not complaining, just whining a little bit. I think I am allowed, anyway my body will thank me for all of this later. Right? Someone told me it would and I will take her word for it. Plus I will be so happy when I become more than a pretzel. I know my friends will be so jealous.
Today, I was not one with the mind of the pretzel. In fact, I doubt I was even a potato chip. Class was difficult. Maybe I just just too tired to be there. I ran a good 5 .4 miles over the Cooper River bridge early this morning and another 3.15 along the battery downtown right before class. But I am not making excuses.
It is okay for class to be hard sometimes. It wasn’t because we did any death defying moves or maybe they did those when I had my eyes closed. Anyway, as hard as I tried I just could not completely channel the outside world to the outside. Stuff kept creeping in.
It wasn’t all a bust. I did manage to get some pretty deep stretches through my hips and hip flexors. I was able to hold the planks for the required amount of time even if I was told to pull my belly in a few times. I did side planks. Okay, I did a full side plank on one side. The other side would not cooperate and I was freaking amazing in the triangle pose. I did not have to get adjusted at all.
I even did a decent floor bow pose which I am learning to appreciate it because it improves digestion, reduces symptoms of sciatica, helps relieve menstrual problems, improves functioning of the large and small intestines, liver, kidney and spleen, and relieves back pain. That is a lot of stuff for one pose, a difficult pose for me, but one pose nevertheless. Had I known that is has all of those benefits I would have tried much harder to nail this one in Bikram. Better late than never, right?
I am glad we dd not do any shoulder, hand or head stands. I can only imagine what would have happened to me with my lack of focus tonight. Or maybe when the blood rushed to my brain during those inversions clarity would have appeared. Maybe, maybe, maybe not. We will never know.
I am glad I went to class. I did the best I could. Each practice is a different practice. Each day my body will respond differently. I will be back on Saturday after an 11 mile run. Hopefully I will be more pretzel than potato chip. I can only hope.
I had not been to Jivamukti class in a while and today it showed. I did not go last week because I just did not want to and the week before that I had a headache. Yesterday I was suffering from stomach distress and today, today I had no excuse. Plus, Melany my accomplice was meeting me for dinner after class.
Today focused a lot on chanting. I have chanted one time before in my first Jiavamukti class so I wasn’t as intimidated. Also I discovered that my chants were not worshiping another God, so I was more relaxed this time.
Next we worked on our sun salutations. I actually think I flowed through each one instead being choppy. There are no mirrors, so I am not exactly sure, but I felt flowy. And feeling flowy is something that I have NEVER felt before, so I am happy. Just when I got all happy and feeling on top of the world, it was time to do handstands.
My heart pounded and no amount of breathing through my nose with equivalent breaths could stop it. Oh yeah, we learned that we are supposed to inhale and exhale equal times. I don’t think I have been doing that. I don’t think I have been conscious of how I have been breathing before tonight. Another lesson learned. So I get points for that.
Back to the handstands, YIKES! Just the word sends chills up my spine. But I tried not to let my fear show and did my best to not make a fool out of myself. My feet kept slipping off of the wall and I did not even have Vaseline on them. I did not give up. I kept trying and slipping. Trying and slipping until the instructor came over and held my hips and I did it. I even managed to lift alternate legs off the wall and into the air!
That act gave way to infinite possibilities. It also reminded me that success often always comes with the assistance of others. That there should never be any shame in asking for help regardless of the situation. There is always someone who has been there done that and wrote the book.
Next we moved to shoulder stands. This was less intimidating because I do these in Atmah Ja’s class. This time not only did I get my legs in the air and my knees close 
to my ears, I got my feet over my head and my toes touched the floor. I successfully completed the plow pose!
This is a very very good thing because the plow pose is an inversion so it increases circulation in your thyroid, adrenal, and pituitary glands. This helps send out feel-good endorphins and hormones throughout your body, balancing your metabolic system. And who doesn’t need that.
I wanted to jump up and high five someone, but I could not get my legs down gracefully enough. But I had done something that I had never done before and I did it unassisted! I get MAJOR points for that.
I just wonder if I am going to be able to walk tomorrow. I mean, my legs were in positions that they have never ever been before. That is a victory. A HUGE victory. On top of that, I feel amazingly relaxed and stretched out. So, I am on my way to being more than a pretzel, that is for sure.
Well, today did not go as planned at all. Yesterday I had major stomach distress and this morning I let my ego push me out of the door to run fives miles at 5am. That would have been a good thing if I did not still have stomach distress and chills. Surprisingly, I got my mileage in just a tiny bit slower than normal. It still was not a good idea.
When I got home the chills increased and the ginger ale was not providing much relief. I decided after much deliberation to cancel my evening run. That does not seem like a big deal, but it was to me. I like running doubles on Monday. Now I will have to wait until Thursday.
Anyway, the stomach distress and chills severely impacted my plans for meatless Monday. The original plan was to cook gnocchi with dark greens and white beans.
Needless to say, I did not cook anything and all of a sudden my craving for a McDonald’s filet ‘o fish sandwich increased. I am not sure what brought that on. Maybe my defenses were down. Maybe I was delirious. Or maybe I was just hungry since I had not eaten anything since early yesterday morning. It probably doesn’t help that I have a buy one get one free coupon. I got it last month and frankly, am surprised that I have held out this long.
Major construction blocking the most direct road to McDonald’s is helping me not get the sandwich and when I dared go through the drive-thru after yoga at 10:45am I was told that they were still serving breakfast and I would have to come back.
Of course, I didn’t. I took it as a sign that I was not supposed to have the sandwich. Maybe since today is my meatless Monday my mind thinks I should have it. Maybe now is the time to call for an intervention.
In spite of my desire for a frozen square piece of fish with a tiny rectangle of cheese and lack of desire to cook, I still honored meatless Monday. I had a slice of spinach and mushroom pizza from a local place and crawled back into bed. I will try again next Monday.
aimed high and endeavored to seek out knowledge, expand my skills, and developed my talents, and I have empowered others to do the same. “Always Keep Moving!” is my life motto.
