Saturday, September 19, 2009

Namaste, ya'll...

This morning, I completed my first class of my 30 Day Bikram Yoga Challenge... *whew*

I am not a beginner to Bikram Yoga.
Actually, I've been taking classes here and there for the past 3 years.
I have never been able to discipline myself to make it a habit... and I should have.

For ya'll who don't know what Bikram Yoga is, allow me to copy and paste a spiel from one of my favorite sources:  Wikipedia :)

Bikram, or hot yoga, is a series of yoga poses done in a heated room, which is usually maintained at a temperature of 105 degrees Fahrenheit. Yoga at this temperature promotes profuse sweating, which is believed to help rid the body of toxins. It also keeps the body very warm, and therefore more flexible.


There are many benefits of practicing Bikram Yoga, and different people have their own personal reasons for putting themselves through this "torture chamber."


I have decided to share a few things that I hope to achieve from completing this 30 Day Challenge:

  • Routine
I consider myself to have insomniac tendencies.  I blame it on [Kuya ].  He is definitely an insomniac.  Me? I only have tendencies.  Sometimes I just can't force myself to sleep.  And other times I can knock out for hours.  Or fall asleep in the middle of the day.  Wow.  I may have narcoleptic tendencies, too.  Crap.  Even more so, my body needs a routine.  I'm hoping that going to yoga every morning will help mold my body into the routine it so craves.

  • Flexibility
So, I used to dance.  (I'm not gonna say that I used to be a dancer, 'cause I believe that I still am a dancer at heart, it's just unfortunate that I have been outta practice for awhile)  Being outta practice, you start to lose things- like your flexibility.  It sucks.  Getting older makes you realize these things.  I plan to start dancing again, so I'm using this challenge to help regain some of that flexibility.

  • Weight Maintenence
Notice I didn't say weight loss.  Not that I wouldn't mind losing some pounds, but that isn't my main focus.  I'll just say it:  I love food.  I do believe that one can find happiness in french fries and cheese and coffee.  I want to be able to enjoy the foods that I love, and not have to worry about being overweight because of it.  I have come to terms (for the most part) with my curves, and I am no longer ashamed of them.  I just don't want to add to them.  :P

Besides, I just bought 2 pairs of Super Skinny jeans from American Eagle, and I want to be able to fit into them whenever I feel like wearing them!  Haaa...

  • Personal Sense of Achievement
What can I say?  I am a competitor at heart.  My greatest challenge will be overcoming myself.  It takes a lot of mental strength to force myself to sleep early, AND to force myself to wake up early so that I can squeeze in a class before work.  I want to believe that my will is as strong as I know it is.  I almost feel as if doing this will remind me that I have the mental capacity to do anything I set my mind to.  Sounds kinda cheesy, right?


Fortunately, I have an accountability partner, [Japapino].  Hooray!  He has happily agreed to embark on this journey with me.  Hopefully we can keep each other in check and make it to the finish line together..


So here are the details of the Challenge:

  • All participants need to complete 30 classes in 30 days, starting the first class attended between September 19-21 (I started today, the 19th).
  • All participants may complete up to 2 classes per day to make up missed classes, or classes that you will miss.
  • There is a mid-term.  To continue the Challenge and to bypass the mid-term, participants must have 14 classes completed by the end of the 15th day.  If you don't have 14 classes, you have to pass a mid-term, which is rumored to be DIFFICULT.  *Yikes*

Here's MY challenge:

[PW ] and I leave for our Honeymoon / 1st Year Anniversary trip on October 15th...
Which means I gotta double up classes on 4 days... CRAP.


Ha.  I'll keep you posted.  Namaste, ya'll...


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