It is so had to believe week 1 is finished! It went by so quickly yet seemed so slow while I was waiting in line for hours to register, sign in for class, and watch Bollywood movies for hours in uncomfortable chairs. We did 10 yoga classes in 6 days, a record for me.
YOGA CLASS
Our first class was led by Bikram and he was gentle on us. The yoga tent was not up to 100% temperature or humidity yet so my muscles were tight and body stiff. AMAZING to be taking class from him. He sang us a song during the final Savasana. The first morning was led by Rajashree and it was a gentle weloming class and she told us to take care of ourselves, enjoy and have fun being here. Bikram was a bit more tough on us the 2nd night. I was just happy I was not the girl in the "Blue & Pink". Once he notices you, he picks on you the rest of the class. Note to self: Do everything CORRECTLY and don't do deeper into a posture until I'm ready. We have had Bikram every evening for the 5pm class and a humid as the week goes on, and I expect by the end of week 2 it will be to 100% Being a former endurance athlete, I am careful about my fluid & electrolyte intake, as I know this can make or break you. I have not been able to stomach the Nuuns, so I have been taking Emergen-C before & after class, and 2 bottles of sliced lemons, honey, salt & ice water during class. Seems to be working as I am able to complete all of the classes :-)
YOGA LIFE
It is amazing what you can adapt to! We get up at 7 am to hydrate before our 7:30 check in for 8am class. We are given just enough time to pee, shower, hand wash clothing, and grab food to eat while running to posture clinic/lecture at noon. So far we have been listening to about 6 hours daily of Half Moon Pose. Each of us has to get up in front of 400+ people and say Half moon Pose in front of Bikram ( while 3 students demonsrate on stage). I volunteered to go in the first group of people, I believe I was # 25. He stopped me right before I got to "Hips more forward.." and said "now THAT's personality!- NEXT". I assume that was good? I was shaking and trembling not because of the public speaking, but because I felt he could see right through me and I so wanted him to love me. We are usually given just enough time to pee, change into yoga clothes and sign back in for our 5pm class. AFter class we are given about an hour +/_ to eat dinner, shower, change for pm lecture. We have been doing Half Moon Pose from about 9pm - around 11pm and then Bollywood movies for a few hours ( If you have never seen a Bollywod movie, think 2 for 1) Thursday night we got back to our rooms at 3am. We are told we could be in there as late ( or early) as 6 am! Sleep deprivation will be my biggest challenge, I think.
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| Me & My roommate Kristina in the resort common area |
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| Donna, Me & Katy at mexican food! |
My roommate Kristina is so great! She is 23 and from Toronto. We met on facebook about a month before training so we collaborated on what to bring. I sort of feel like mother hen to her, making sure she eats enough and taking electrolye drinks to class. We decided to buy our food and make meals together to save time. It's amazing what creations one can create from a hot water kettle and a magic bullet. We also made 2 amazing friends ( Katy Otis, Seattle WA who lives 5 MINTUES from me!! and Donna Yoshida from Honolulu) I feel like we have known each other forever even though in reality it has been less than 1 week.
Saturday our day off we spent at the Laundromat & grocery store stocking up on food & water for the week. We went to get a hot meal for dinner at an Italian place called Sambuca in the Hillside neighborhood. So good to have a hot meal!
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| Cricket Wireless - LOVE you! |
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| Yogis at La Jolla Beach |
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| Katy & Kristina |
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| I have a lot of work to do on Standing Bow! |
Sunday we slept in and spent the day at Cricket wireless getting our wireless networks set up so we don't have to pay the hotels rate of $5 per day for internet access. Highway robbery! Now we pay $50 a month. So much better. After that we went to La Jolla beach to sun ourselves and practice dialogue.
