Yoga Love and the Miracle of Hot Yoga while Pregnant (or not pregnant)

I absolutely love the studio I've gone to for years. They treat me like family every time I'm there and I am constantly learning more and more about my practice. Being knocked up has given me the opportunity to learn even more about the practice, and how continuing can be very beneficial for baby and for pregnancy symptoms. Skip to the below post if you'd rather read this than read my Knocked Up Updates. ;)

Week: 10!    Official due date: April 29th! I was a bit farther along than we initially thought. 

Weight Gain: 2 lbs (At 125lbs, my goal weight gain is 20 lbs.. So, around 140-145.)

Minka, making sure her presence is known ;)

Sleep: Getting harder. I was an 80's kid before SIDS was linked to tummy sleeping, so not being able to sleep on my tum tum is pretty lame, and some nights I wake up still sleeping on my belly. And I'm a really light sleeper so I suspect my days of sound sleep are basically gone. Although, we have resolved the dog issue.

Miss Anything?  HOT BATHS. I take a much hotter bath than most, practically scathing, much like a hot tub.. So I really miss just soaking in a hot bath (to my standards). I just like being warm... Hot baths, hot yoga, steam rooms... Yeah, you guys know.

Symptoms: More mood swings, brain fog, constant fatigue, and my belly hurts a lot... Sometimes its the round ligament at the bottom of my belly and sometimes its higher, which I've read is probably my organs & internal tissues getting soft... not a lot of places for a baby to go in a woman my size. :) Sometimes the pains are worrisome, but I've been told not to.

My smells are on overdrive lately too! I smelled gasoline in our home and threw up everywhere! Funny thing was I could never figure out where the smell was coming from! Bad breath has made me throw up, the smell of the parking garage being cleaned at work... grease anywhere (like fast food type grease). 

Mostly it's a lot of barfing. For all the women who never had this, you have NO CLUE how lucky you are. It's impossible to predict when it will come for me. The other day it was in a meeting. On Saturday, it was DURING breakfast. Surprisingly, the prenatal vitamins don't seem to affect the nausea.

Women have suggested to me everything under the sun, and I've tried absolutely everything... Unisom, crackers at night, crackers during the night, crackers as soon as I wake up, ginger root supplements, ginger chews, ginger ale, ginger tea, tons of water, many small meals (which I do anyway), pregnancy teas, Preggie Pops (which do seem to help if I'm far from food, and am feeling the nausea come... although, I can't seem to find WHY these help. The ingredients are all sugars and essential oils. Tasty tho!), extra B6 during the day.. And still throwing up 6-7 times a day. I have no desire to be on any medication for this (Hello! Thalidomide was a disaster!), and am hoping I'm just hitting my peak of nausea & sickness.

Mood: Depends on my hunger or level of tiredness. :) Mamas, you know what I mean. The mood swings are CRAZY! I feel pretty bad for the hubs.. I really REALLY need to do something nice for him. He really is amazing.

Cravings: Fruit.. Except Bananas.. I am ENDLESSLY hungry. I have to deny myself a lot, but not like prep. I'm just denying things that sound instantly good but we know are completely empty - soda, ice cream... I've tried to turn to some FiberOne Bars just to keep my fiber up and avoid the dreaded pregnancy constipation yet still satisfy some sweet craving. Have been craving home food as the weather has gotten colder as well.. I made the BEST chicken pot pie last night!

Diet: Not that I'm complaining or anything, but this is so counter-intuitive for a bikini athlete/bodybuilder. Craving and eating loads of fruits lately. I binged on an entire carton of strawberries the other night. Mmmm! :) But honestly most of my diet is dictated by how I'm feeling... If the nausea is high, I'm tempted to only eat carbs, my breakfasts have pretty much only been bagels or cereal... Eggs, sausage, bacon.. all sound awful! But then also have to be careful about indigestion. I learned that on Cheez-It's a week or two ago. So, fruits have been my best option.

The saddest thing happened though this week, my taste buds changed... and coffee tastes awful. :( WAHHHHHH!!! Everyday my brain tells me I want coffee, but I have dumped an entire coffee every day this week. So, will probably just be making a switch to tea. (WOAH. Pregnancy really IS comparable to prep! haha)

Still working out: Baby and I have been doing hot yoga and cardio a couple times a week depending on where my nausea is at, but will discuss my love for hot yoga at the end of this post. My sickness has also dictated this, if I feel really sick... I don't work out.

Also, this isn't saying that I have loads of energy, it's mostly the opposite. I've been good about packing fruits and things to raise my blood sugar when I get too sleepy. But this is also a challenge when trying to keep up on my workouts. The fatigue is truly physical, but the battle is mental. It's easiest to compare this feeling to prep-depletion: Just get to the gym. I always feel better once I'm done!

The Sacred Pregnancy Obedience Rules: Okay, I quit Seafood.. And as far as the catbox, I just started wearing  a mask. Probably will eat clam chowder at some point. ;) I'm an excellent pill taker though, so the vitamins aren't an issue.

Goals for the next week or two:
We finally started our nesting projects! We did clean out and paint our master bedroom this weekend, so the next project is still one of my original goals:
1. Clean out the effing back room! It is a cluttery mess.

Onto My Real Post.... The Miracle of Hot Yoga (while or while not pregnant): 
With pregnancy comes loads of unsolicited advice. If you're a patient person, this might not bug you... but I, however, am not. I also used to be a GIANT people pleaser, so I now take any advice with a large grain of salt. A rock of salt, if you will. When I'm cranky and uncomfortable, I really want to tell some people to shove it.

"Do you really think you should be doing that given your condition?!" (Yeah, I heard that for real, last week)

I smiled as pleasantly as I could, although I'm sure she could see the irritation behind the smile, and informed her that I felt good and was perfectly healthy to keep up my exercise routine. I love how people think when you're pregnant, that you WANT to be squatting a large barbell or doing an hour of cardio (Okay, I do want to be squatting a large barbell, just not right now). On the contrary, in this first trimester, I don't feel awesome. But I ALWAYS feel awesome when I'm done!

My primary concern is growing a healthy baby. My secondary concern is keeping myself healthy and strong for a natural delivery. I've read from different sources that yoga is very helpful in keeping your abs & legs strong for delivery, and had even followed blogs in years past where women kept up their hot yoga practice throughout their pregnancies. All of them delivered completely natural, and had perfectly healthy babies. The power and grace these women exuded convinced me long ago of my intention to continue my hot yoga practice throughout any pregnancy I would have in the future.

And I have already been getting dirty looks of distress regarding continuing hot yoga into my pregnancy. However, you can find the Pregnancy Modifications to Bikram Yoga here, developed by Bikram's "wife". (I put wife in quotations because everyone knows Bikram is a giant man whore. He has two major rape lawsuits going on currently, which is why I don't necessarily feel the need to go to a designated "Bikram Yoga" studio. Did you know he charges studios $15K a YEAR to use his name?! Ludicrous. - Side note: I had to look up how to properly spell Ludicrous... Damn you Ludacris. LOL!)  I also found a posture by posture look at the alterations on bikramyogarichardson.com. This site is fabulous, it tells you at what stage in your pregnancy to begin altering what posture, and is way more comprehensive than Rajashree's guide.

Courtesy of Bikram Yoga Richardson - This woman looks so powerful in her postures!

Anyway, I was seriously doing yoga from weeks 1-6, obviously not aware I was knocked up, and felt perfectly fine! So, here I am, 10 weeks along and going to hot yoga fully aware I am with child... and suddenly I'm just supposed to quit??  If you're already accustomed to the heat, it actually feels amazing (and I suspect it really will as we head into the cold months). I walked into the hot room really just wanting to take a nap in there it felt so so good! As the first breathing exercise starts, Pranayama breathing, it is a challenge but once the second set has been completed, my energy level has picked up. Deep breathing and flushing my body with freshly oxygenated blood... Ahhh.

Yes, saunas & hot tubs are contraindicated for pregnancy. However, if you look into the science of hot yoga, if you are consistently practicing in the hot room, your body becomes accustomed to not raising its internal temperature in order to make it through an entire class. Which is why you see yoginis never getting sick throughout a class. But some women bring a thermometer and test themselves just to be sure (which I'll probably do). Bonus: The studio I go to has a class called "Beats" which is the same Bikram style series, but to low lights, music and minimal words. Perfect for a yogini to just do yoga and meditate into the practice. I love to talk to my baby during this and invite growth and love into our body.

Since I've had the soreness in my belly, which I guess is the stretching of the round ligament in your lower belly, and totally normal for a first pregnancy, I focus on the postures that stretch the belly. Half Moon feels wonderful, especially the backbend which I've been able to do at about 75%, once I feel the stretch, I don't push it further.

The only postures that are uncomfortable at this point are the backbends that push your belly into the floor like Floor Bow or Full Locust, but I got the chance to learn most of the alterations for when I get too big to do do the tight forward bends, which I suspect will be soon. I intend to give up the spine strengthening series in the next couple of weeks, and add in some Vinyasa/Flow postures. However, CAMEL... Give me this! I feel like the most powerful woman in the universe coming out of this backbend, and once I get to the ground, my body feels like it's melting into the earth. Camel is meant to flush and pump your cerebrospinal fluid (which is why many newcomers get dizzy and sick in camel, it can have those effects if you're not used to it), and I can only imagine that baby is reaping those benefits too.

My approach to practice has had to change, however.. I typically went into yoga as an athlete ready for the long haul, deep into every posture, pushing 100%, but now, slow and steady wins the race. I listen to my body, when I feel sick or dizzy I sit down until my heart rate has lowered completely. I leave yoga on cloud 9, my body feels good and surging with energy. And in fact, my pregnancy symptoms are not as intense the next day. I don't feel AS fatigued, or AS sick, nor as crazy with mood swings! It also relieves my body of any edema (holding water)!

After yoga (and my gym workouts), I give myself plenty - I snack on strawberries and chug coconut water on my way home. And sometimes a protein shake, depending on where I'm at nausea-wise. Sometimes the protein exacerbates it.

I just want to say this, that getting knocked up has really reinforced my desire to be who I am, and not  change my preferences and routines just because others wouldn't do it themselves, or because their pregnancy experience was bad. It is very easy to absorb the stresses and worries that others have, but my stress and worry is eased with the passing days. But I feel that their worries, are really none of my business. Just like my body, is none of theirs. Absorbing their stress, will not help me or baby. So, thanks... but no thanks. :)

How is everyone else doing these days??? Say Hi when you can!! Love you all!! :)

A Short Lesson in Credentialing

I may or may not have ever mentioned this, but my chosen profession is physician credentialing. I got into it completely by accident, as I was simply looking for a hospital job. I had started out taking some nursing courses before figuring out that others' bodily fluids wasn't my game. But I loved learning about anatomy & physiology (hence my love of bodybuilding)! 

Given that I've been beyond swamped in my jobs, I figured what better time than to share how incredibly crazy and important positions like this are in the world. This is exactly how I feel that I fit in to the health care setting, and provide an invaluable service to patients: By not allowing questionable physicians even into our hospital or touch patients until they have proven their competence.

Although I technically just push a bunch of paper, it can be much more. There are days where I feel like a psychologist, myself, learning all about the psyche of a doctor. 

And then there are days where I feel like a detective, sorting through bullshit with logic to find questionable health care providers. 

Question of the Day: What do you call a doctor who graduated last in his class from medical school?

Answer: An M.D. Sad, but true. 

While I'm not here to train you on how to do my job, I am here to give you a small lesson in sorting through bullshit.  

There has been a physician who recently entered the ranks of the IFBB, who shall remain nameless for now, that I happen to know he/she is claiming to be a board certified physician who is IN FACT, not. I'm not here to tear this person down, or ruin their career (not like my little blog really could), but I do want to warn those out there willing to listen in how to sort through the information themselves.

Heatlhgrades.com - An excellent resource on doctors and hospitals. 

Google - believe it or not, a pretty good resource in finding just about anything on a doctor. And when it comes to their profession, rumors can be true.

RED FLAGS. Meaning, these are immediate flags to me to look deeper into this person's background... Not necessarily that these are poor practitioners.

-Solo Doctors: While you might think seeing a solo practitioner would be great, because it means they have an entrepreneurial spirit and are an expert - not always so. In my world, that usually means they do not work well with others, and do not want to be subject to evidence based peer review. Meaning, they don't want anyone reviewing their work and finding problems. Also, if you are having anything done by a solo provider, and something goes wrong, they usually cannot provide any kind of service to you in a hospital setting, as all providers must have 24 hour hospital coverage to their patients. If they don't have partners, they can't do that!

-Doctors claiming to be board or not board certified at all: Okay, first I should clarify my highlighted point.... All doctors are going to claim to be board certified, and mostly, they will be. If you ask about your doctor's board it should be something like American Board of XX (Orthopedic Surgery or Internal Medicine). Sometimes doctors will tell you they are board certified and they are truly falsifying (which you may not ever know, because it takes someone like me or your state's medical board to find out), or a doctor can become boarded in a less than reputable board... So like I said, it should be something like the above... If its like North American Board of Orthopedic Surgery  - QUESTION THAT! These boards are usually easy to pass, and are for the lesser trained/skilled/competent physician or surgeon. Unfortunately, sometimes when a doctor is practicing solo, they aren't held to any specific standards - because they have no partners checking holding them accountable. 

If a doctor is not board certified within, say, 8 years of graduating their residency or fellowship... I'd ask why. Don't be afraid to ask your doctors office if your doctor is board certified or not. The only exception I would make in this case, is if a doctor is within 5 years of retiring and they let it lapse - That's pretty reasonable.But other than that, this IS important. The American Boards are all governed by the American Medical Association and provide reasonable proof that your physician or surgeon is keeping up on their education, and new skills and practices among physicians in their area of study. 

-Providers doing something they are not trained in: My biggest fear on an airplane, is to hear a frantic attendant call overhead, "Is there a doctor on the plane???" Doctors are not one-size fits all. Yes, they all went to medical school and have basic training... but when a practitioner has been studying only 1 field for the last 30 years, they shouldn't be doing something else. A cardiologist cannot deliver babies, or should not anyway. 

My point here, is that it should concern you if you're seeing a family medicine doctor claim they also do cosmetic surgery. Doctors do not both go the medicine route and the surgery route. They are one or the other.

-Providers who are hesitant to answer questions about their background: I have a lot of patients call asking questions about their doctor. Unfortunately, being who I am, I can almost never release information on doctors other than the most basic info. However, their offices can release whatever they want. They should be able to tell if you if your doc is board certified, and in what. A lot of doctors take a personal interest in certain topics, like if you're an endocrinologist (the study of the endocrine system - hormones & glands) you might take a special interest in post-menopausal hypothyroidism, but many times only their offices will know this information. If they don't want to answer about his board (or other certifications), I would be very hesitant...

-STATE LICENSE: This is a little piece of information that you might want to hold onto, a LOT of state medical board queries, are FREE. Just Google "(Insert State) State Medical board" or "(insert state) state department of health". You may have to search and navigate a bit to find it, but you can usually find your doctor by name, and see the following:
- Name
- License Status
- License Expiration Date
-Actions (Sometimes. This is true in the state of Washington. We can view at any time any action the Medical Quality Assurance Commission, as its called here, has taken against the physician, what the case was, and what the outcome was. Seriously great knowledge to be able to find out on your practitioner.)

I basically protect people from guys like this ^ - I would flat out fire him as my doc.

Getting to the Point.

There are a lot of people out there, offering a lot of services... And we, as consumers, are left to trust businesses when they claim they are something or can do something. But the reality is, if someone is offering a service - they are there to make money. Most people do not ask to see credentials, but what if you had paid your trainer a heap of money... only to find out he/she wasn't really certified?? 

Have you asked your trainer HOW they are qualified to prep a competitor for a body building competition?? Before you fork over all your hard earned cash, and start choking down only boiled tilapia, make sure you know who your trainer is and what they are asking of you. You're not going to put a donut in your mouth just because a trainer told you it was calorie free, so make sure you know what they are about before you go taking their advice and wrecking your body just to do what you're told.

If anyone has a lot of time and money, I have a great business idea for this (And you guys know how often I get business ideas, which I offered to the NPC, btw... If they take this idea, I at least want the credit. They could call it the Bang System. HA!):
There is an online verification system for doctor credentials, in which I can verify their dates of residency and where, or that they even earned their medical degree - Its though the AMA - American Medical Association. It does cost money, but let's be honest... I'd be willing to pay $10 (or some nominal fee) in order to see my trainer was truly certified by a professional certifying board (In theory, Jacques, I've already tested your services and know you rock).  And the system could go further, trainers could pay to be listed on this query system showing what their specialties are, etc. I can just see it now...

You could query, simply by name and city of business and  perhaps get a little report that could say something like:

Trainer:  Lacey M. Bang, CPT Place of Business: Spokane, Washington (licensed to see clients in Spokane, Spokane Valley, Liberty Lake and Cheney, WA) Trained by: Online - Eastern Washington University - March 2013 Special Interests/Training: Trained to work with Diabetic patients, Certified Contest Prep Coach. Personal interest in NPC Bikini Posing/Coaching. *Trainer is up to date with on-going education as of 7/2013 Contact Information: Banging Bodies Consulting (TEE HEE!) 12345 W. 5th St. Ste. 300, Spokane,WA 99204 Phone: 509-555-5555 Email: Website: www.shesinyourface.blogspot.com Verified by the National Physique Committee 7/22/2013.

JUST SAYING! Obviously, it could be TONS more robust, or even more simple. But I think its a stellar idea. The NPC never responded to my inquiries, but my credentialing skills are up for hire! I'd rather my skills be used toward an industry I am passionate about. :) Plus, there is huge potential revenue in this... Possibly in the millions.

DEAR NPC  - CONTACT ME! or I might just patent this idea!!!

(Plus, NPC, this could potentially bring a large number of new competitors to the NPC... If people are only logging on to "verify" their trainer, they may navigate to other portions of the page and become interested in competing. Just a little nugget for thought).

PS - You could take this a couple of different routes too. The public could query a person individually, or by city to find all truly certified trainers in the area that do contest prep etc... This could help competitors who are looking for a new trainer find who is around them.

Don't be afraid to hurt my feelings, I've got plenty more things on my plate to worry about. I know that as an overweight person, I would have used this in a heartbeat back in the day when I first started training. So let's take a poll, would you use a service like this?!

Meal Prep with Lacey

ALWAYS extra rice around!

Many competitors I know have done blog posts regarding their meal prep. And while my meal prep isn't new or fun or exciting, I believe that sharing my meal prep may help many of you, as I do face challenges in regards to diet and making it work for me and my schedule.

*First off, I will warn you: I am the type of person who can eat the same thing day in and day out. If I find something I like, I stick to it. Portions change at times, but for the most part its the same. Also, I prep meals for the whole week at one time. I spend 2-3 hours in the kitchen for this, but mind you I am cooking for more than myself.

One challenge I face is being a good cook. No seriously! Patrick loves my cooking. Since we have been together, over a year, he has made me approximately 3 meals: 2 were for holidays and 1 because I was sick... and that was only once because he tends to get sick when I am and vice versa, which means I still cook even when sick. Patrick loves a reasonably healthy diet: high in protein, high carb, low in fat to help him get through 10 hour days and working out on top of it.



Welcome to my kitchen!

I accomplish this chaos of making both our lunches through LARGE batches of rice and chicken.

I start with rice. You can see my batches of rice in the far counter, and his batches of rice in the near counter. As well as dinner in the bowls :) I differentiate our lunches by putting them in different containers so as to not confuse. Also, I'm boiling eggs for Patrick's lunch.

That's 3 lbs of chicken in that container there. I portion to feed both of us.

Another challenge we face, is we are that couple. The couple that is always going. When I wasn't on contest prep, I would face challenging days. You know the ones. The ones where you come home, completely depleted and have NO CLUE what to make for dinner. The only places within 20 mins of us are Subway (not a bad choice, but you can expend a lot of calories and carbs there) and a grocery store (better, but doesn't have healthy prepared meals). The all too familiar phone call to Patrick "Babyyyyy, will you stop by Subway on your way home...??? Pretty pleaseeee?!" cannot be heard for at least the next 15 weeks.

As many of you may know, being on contest prep virtually magnifies ANY feelings you have about anything. So, when you feel great, you feel intensely amazing. But, when you're tired, depleted, and hungry those feelings can make you feel desperate. Knowing myself, I had to consider a way around this. And like many of you, you have to FIND a way to make it work for you.

Since I am so busy, and often come home thinking "Uuughhhhh, I have to make dinner still?!" This is what I do... I buy bags of frozen lean chicken breast in the 5 lbs variety. I like ground turkey as well as fish but get sick of both of them quick (although I know I will likely need to incorporate them into my diet). And I do this:

I start with 3 containers, all with different spices: (left to right) asian spice mix (cumin, red pepper, garlic, olive oil, and soy sauce), hispanic spice mix (cumin, garlic, onion powder, hot sauce, salt and olive oil), and lastly what I call fresh mix (just garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, rosemary and salt).

When I prep the chicken for lunches, I cut ALL 10 lbs of chicken at one time so it ends up like the cooking chicken picture above and the mixed prepped chicken looks like:

Blurry, but you get the picture. But then, once the larger batches are cooked when I cook on a Monday or Tuesday, then I only have to reheat those chicken items!

I will also pre-cut veggies for quick steaming:

Container FULL of pre-cut green beans. That's a LOT of chicken in the back, and hoisin sauce for Patrick's lunches.

The end result is a fridge full of options for quick pull. I can pull it out and throw it in a pan with very little olive oil per poundage of chicken. Another bonus is it has been marinating for days! I tend to throw everything in its pan, put on low, and jump in a bath. Sigh, it makes my life easier just knowing that dinner is easier! I have no option for eating bad when all my meals are ready to cook.

I always leave a large space for our lunch bags as I always prep those the night before.

Bottom drawer is reserved for MY lunches, so Patrick KNOWS not to touch:

My rice & chicken lunches, pre-cut cucumbers and greek yogurts.

Lastly, my dry goods cupboard:

Full of pre-measured protein powders, vanilla up top for Patrick, chocolate on bottom for me.
Pre-measured cereal for Patrick and don't even ask how I can manage prep with Nutella in the house. :)

Bonus Round: Another challenge many face is the issue of eating healthy at work, step into my health food aisle:

Complete with extra measuring cups, supplements, bananas, stevia, rice cakes, peanut butter, flax oil, mugs, tea, gum, almonds, bananas, protein powder, and Jack3D in case I forget it! AND some Mio for the days I can't resist a sweet craving.

It is just a little cubby above my desk, but it makes ALL the difference in the world. Maybe someday I'll show you my drawer in which I keep an extra toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, tampons, floss, makeup and earrings. But that has nothing to do with prep. :) Just for when I'm running late!

The moral of the story is if you have an issue, a challenge, or a problem... you can break it down and find a way to succeed. I would rather fail others than fail myself, so for me there are no excuses. Don't focus on what you can't do, focus on what you CAN do!

There IS a way around each and every challenge we face!

No Longer Overtraining

Wow. My overall energy has completely improved and my workouts no longer feel stale. And after doing research on Overtraining Syndrome, it is a wonder it took me so long to realize it. After all, it really is about balance so performance never plateaus.

Another awesome blogger at DreamingOfArnold just posted about her own possible over training (I am borrowing the post idea, just don't want to take credit!), and I thought it would be a good time to attest that same statement as an athlete who is feeling my body come out of it. We all mentally lose desire in our physical activities at times, and if you feel the following symptoms coming on it may be time to consider overtraining.
Common Warning Signs and Symptoms of Overtraining Syndrome (found at sportsmedicine.about.com)

• Washed-out feeling, tired, drained, lack of energy
• Mild leg soreness, general aches and pains
• Pain in muscles and joints
• Sudden drop in performance
• Insomnia
• Headaches
• Decreased immunity (increased number of colds, and sore throats)
• Decrease in training capacity / intensity
• Moodiness and irritability
• Depression
• Loss of enthusiasm for the sport
• Decreased appetite
• Increased incidence of injuries.
• A compulsive need to exercise

The compulsive need to exercise and depression is how I knew I was overtraining, amongst having almost every other symptom. I even admitted to Handsome just last week that I was feeling depressed and couldn't figure out why!  I've booted my fasted morning cardio for now, so I can focus all my training abilities to my afternoon. Down to only 2 days of lifting, and back to more cardio & conditioning-which I know I've already mentioned.

And no joke, changing my diet has done everything! Why did I ever really think I should eat very little carbs all the time?! Especially when eating fruit, yogurt, and double fiber english muffins were working for me months ago?! (Is my excitement being conveyed adequately???) AND! I'm no longer forcing myself into activities I hate... *ahem.cycling.ahem*   The diet really has changed everything. Almost no desire to cheat and I no longer feel bad when I only get in 3 miles of running. HELLO?! I couldn't even RUN a year ago!!

Today my workout was:
3 miles running around our property with the dogs. Little Zekey was able to keep up for the mile I ran him. Molly, however, about pulled my arm off. Especially when she saw horses for the first time! That was a shoulder workout in and of itself! That girl is better than a treadmill, she MAKES me run faster.
Along 18 mins BodyRock.tv's Only Girl In the World Challenge.

Diet: 1513 Calories, 111g Protein, 183g Carbs, 40g Fat along with 120 oz water.

Follow Directions

As far as I am concerned, the most important skill a yogi can learn is to:

FOLLOW DIRECTIONS

No joke. And let me tell you why. And I will use myself as the silly example.

There is a point to staying with the teacher, things are in a specific order and specific timing. I don't know why but I get royally annoyed when yogis bring the hand up to the center of their chest too early during Tree Pose. I just say in my head "Yes, everyone can see that you know how the posture goes."

And I will admit that I have done that. You get excited that you know what's next and that you are starting to "get it."

This is a rabbit trail but let me finish it out... ;) And I am working hard on focusing on my own practice, but there are some habits you lose when you don't practice for even a small amount of time. Like staring at yourself in the mirror. I consider yoga my "me time" and somehow I look at everyone but myself. I hear teachers say all the time that Savasana is often the hardest thing to do in yoga because we feel the need to constantly be busy.

I disagree. I think the hardest thing to do for a yogi or yogini is to concentrate on yourself. It is your time to fix yourself and deal with all the issues in your life and body. It feels so uncomfortable to look at just yourself, to see yourself for what you really are. Most people feel such negative emotions when looking at themselves. And the challenge is to look in the mirror, see yourself in an honest light, and love yourself. A very difficult feat.

Back to my story. So, here I am. I've been practicing for over a year now and we were prepping for Awkward.  Arms up, arms parallel to the floor, fingers together, triceps tight... and.... Boom. I sit into the chair too early. And not only that, I brought 3 other people down with me.

Now, I felt silly. I stood back up and waited to sit until my hips touch the chair with the rest of the class.

I realized my mistake and corrected it. But there are the people who don't. And they are usually the ones who have been practicing for just a couple of months. They are starting to lock their knee more and learning to breathe only through the nose, and feel stoked that they can anticipate what comes next in the class.

Now that I think about it, my main topic and rabbit trail do tie in together!

As I am learning to pay attention only to my own practice, I am not as affected by the girl who starts kicking out too early in bow pose. Or the other girl who goes into Balancing Stick too early, and her earliness ALWAYS causes her to fall, which sometimes causes me to fall if I am not focusing on my own practice.

It is a realization that staying with the teacher causes the group momentum and energy to stay high. And it is not realized because they have never truly felt what the momentum feels like. To feel so many bodies moving at the same moment. Such power and it's tangible.