Tough Day Getting Back Into Bikram Yoga

Note to self: Do not go 12 days between Bikram Yoga sessions! What a mistake. I felt like I was back at Day One. Dizzy and body was stiffer. And I forgot Angie's sage advice about the back of the room being super hot in the late afternoon with the sun streaming in. Ugh. I was not a happy camper. Plus I was situated between two sweaty males, and somehow (no offense, Guys!), sweaty dudes seem to emit more of an odor than do sweaty gals. I always dab a little Vicks VapoRub ointment under my nose and around my nostrils to try to cover "sweaty male odor" and I kept moving the ointment around my nostrils telling the Vicks, "Don't quit on me now!" If I had had a can of Febreze Air Effects on me, I might have surreptitiously sprayed some to my left and to my right. Second note to self: Try not to park my yoga mat between two guys in the class if at all possible. Third note to self: Get to class a little earlier to have more choices of where to set up in the room. I tend to get there right before class starts -- a good way to end up between the really sweaty guys.

On a good note, the teacher announced that since today was the second Saturday of the month, we were invited to get 10-minute chair massages for free. What a boon! I took advantage of this free offer and found out that the left upper side of my back was much more sore than I had realized, thanks to the magic hands of J.P. the Masseur. My whole left side is a bit tweaked -- time to see my chiropractor. Yes, Dr. Scott, I will be calling you next week even though you may have forgotten what I look like -- it's been so long.

Enduring today's session made me feel even more impressed and amazed by the accounts I've read of Bikram Yoga practitioners who were dealing with a lot of physical pain and chronic illnesses when they started Bikram Yoga but continued on undaunted because they were able to anticipate that this series of Hatha Yoga postures would restore their health to some degree. To do Bikram Yoga when you don't feel good takes incredible determination and perseverance.

Today's class was my wake-up call that I need to go regularly if I don't want to feel like total crap during the class. No more slacking!!

~ Bathilda the Wilted ~