car yoga

a recipe

all one needs to practice yoga in the car is two young children in the back seat and a long drive ahead. for me, this is how the practice unfolded.

we started out listening to music, but soon snacks were in order. i passed a snack back to daughter number 1, then twisted myself into a pretzel to pass a snack back to daughter number 2. and the magnadoodle, and the books and the everything a young person could possibly want during a long car drive.

i used my flexibility and strength to really make it happen. happy car travels to you!

yoga with a friend

60 minutes - vinyasa 1

i met a girlfriend at the yoga studio tonight for an evening class. it was geared toward level 1 and i'm glad she chose this one because the last time she practiced was during pre-natal yoga. we were pregnant at the same time and our little ones share a birthday. they are 20 months old now.

it felt kind of strange to practice next to someone i knew. i felt like i had to pay attention to her and we kept lining up so that our arms would crash into each other as opposed to staggering on our mats. and i felt like i had to really do great at everything since i've been practicing more recently. in my brain, i know it's not a competition, but my mind kept slipping that way.

and...

i got my heels down in downward dog! not for long and only after i had warmed up, but they were down. i could finally push through my heels and my hands at the same time. maybe if i keep this up, i'll be able to do it consistently and not just have them touch for a couple of seconds per vinyasa.

i did it!

supported hero

30 minutes - nice and easy morning practice

yesterday morning, i started my practice in mountain to find my breath and get centered. i cycled through some sun salutations, standing and seated poses. then, instead of ending in savasana or corpse pose, i decided to sit in supported hero pose. (to add support, place a block under your sits bones. if it's too much of a stretch to sit in the full pose, this adds some height and helps if your feet tend to fall asleep.)

frankly, i was afraid i would fall asleep if i totally relaxed into corpse pose so i chose something more active to settle myself.

i found that i got lost in mindfulness, just noticing and letting thoughts pass through. i let go of my breath and just paid attention to my body. then i realized i didn't know how to get out. usually, i wiggle my fingers and my toes when i'm ready to start my day, but this time i didn't have a familiar pattern to undo my silence.

fortunately, M started shuffling stuff around in the kitchen and it provided just enough distraction outside myself that i could open my eyes. i started my day in a good place. and it was a good thing because i ended up working until after 9pm.

bikini belly

25 minutes - strength, toning and crunches

this morning i modified the workouts my sister sent me. i did body weight squats with arm curls, pressing all the way up, holding in plank position, resistance band rows and a mess of crunches.

i was supposed to do 4 sets, but i only made it through 3. i'm thinking yesterday's yoga plus packing up the basement gave me quite a workout yesterday and my body is still tired.

one of the nice things about the class yesterday was that the instructor adjusted me a couple of times and i got way deeper into my seated forward bend than i have in the past. my hamstrings get so tight and this certainly helped, but now i'm feeling it.

happy monday.

hot yoga

90 minutes - vinyasa 1/2

i went to the 8:30am class again this morning and remembered how warm it was friday morning. rather than wear my usual yoga pants, i chose a running skirt to keep myself cooler. just in case you were wondering, a running skirt is not shorts. no one needed to see that.

as soon as i got in the studio and took a comfortable seat, i realized my error. and that instructor worked us. we warmed up and the room warmed up. i just kept getting hotter. i forgot my towel and we did all kinds of great move which raised my legs over my head.

poor choice in apparel today. any recommendations for yoga shorts?

high probability of falling over

60 minutes - vinyasa 1/2

i went to the 9am class at the studio this morning for the vinyasa level 1/2 class. i was surprised by how many people were there, but it was a great class. we did a great flow and focused quite a bit on the 3 locks- the chin, the middle and the lower belly. it brought a higher level of intensity to my practice.

at one point, we moved from table top to threading the needle. i don't know if that's what it's really called, but it's when you move one arm under the other with the shoulder and the head rest on the floor. the instructor gave us a couple of ways to move through to the full pose. she said there's a high probability of rolling over by losing your balance. i started in the basic pose, got one leg up in the air and thought i felt balanced enough to raise my supporting arm.

nope. i totally rolled over onto the floor. fairly loudly. at least it was funny, but i still felt a little silly.

no harm in trying.

sleepytime yoga

25 minutes - vinyasa flow

i really wanted to stay in bed this morning, but i didn't. my alarm finally woke me up and M finally got me out of bed. i did a nice little morning practice, but i really wanted to sleep instead.

ultimately, i'm glad i made it out of the bed, but i'm still pretty sleepy. *yawn*