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Posts Tagged "Hot Yoga"
I just completed a 30 day challenge at the Moksha Yoga Hamilton studio. I don’t know if I have ever fallen so hard for a brand before. This brand has stolen my heart. It all started when I found myself suddenly at loose ends with my exercise program, as I had stopped one thing and was looking for something else. I decided to sign up for 21 days of yoga at Moksha Yoga for $30. (I think the price may be even better now) I didn’t really plan to join, but it seemed to be a great thing to do and then I would have 21 more days to figure out what I wanted to do next. That was all well and good, but then they gave me a little card with prizes to be won and I figured out that if I attended 21 times in 21 days, my first month was free. Hmmm! That would be awesome! And I like a challenge. Jordan, the woman who led my first class, gave me great information about lying down on the mat when I was too hot. She helped me to feel safe and welcome and like I belonged there. I won’t talk about my yoga journey here. You can read that here if you want to. Right now, I want to talk about my experience with the Moksha Brand. After the first day, I felt like coming back the next day. I also learned that I never wanted to leave hot yoga again without showering first… UGHH! I came back again and again. Each teacher was welcoming, kind, loving, and seemed genuinely excited by my journey. This summer we went to a French Immersion Family Language School in Sancerre, France. While we were there, my family talked about the skill the teachers had of acting genuinely impressed by our French, which drove us forward and helped us try things that felt new or foreign without feeling self-conscious. The teachers at Moksha have this...
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I have been doing yoga now for 28 days straight. I started with a 21 day challenge and then signed up for a 30 day challenge that was starting near the end of my 21 days. I just completed day 28 and thought I would give you an update about what is happening with me now. First and foremost, I have lost 7 pounds. While the first part of the challenge was about tolerating the heat, now I can focus on diet, and I can make it through most of the physical parts of the yoga practice. I have added in the Fast Metabolism Diet and it is a great fit with the 30 day challenge. I am starting to feel muscles all over my body. It is exciting to see muscles growing. I am feeling peaceful toward my family and more in control of my life in spite of the huge time commitment of the challenge. I am feeling more gentle with my family–more connected with Mel. I have noticed that I am craving more time with the boys. Getting up early to do yoga and my rush into the kitchen just in time to do lunches keeps me from morning snuggles in bed and getting them up and dressed. Doing some afternoon classes might be a good idea but those times continually get sucked up by something else. The early morning class is the one reason this is successful. Nothing gets in the way of a 6:30 class. I love that! I am now able to do most of the poses. I feel strong and vibrant as I move from pose to pose and I am better and better able to participate in each one. I hear the voices of the teachers from the previous days of classes in my head as I stretch into each pose trying to get each angle right, to stretch my body to make the best possible pose. I feel like it is happening. I...
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How did it end? I thought I would go to class today and I would stay in Shavasana but the instructor was so good, I ended up doing most of the class. Strangely, today, at the studio, I didn’t know any of the staff. All along the way, they have cheered me on and told me I am doing a great job. Today, there wasn’t anyone to say they were excited that I finished the challenge. I notice my attachment to this and realize this is a personal journey. It is my journey and it is up to me to attach any celebration to it. I realize I am feeling very happy that I did this challenge. What’s different since the 21 day challenge? I feel stronger and more peaceful than I did before I started. I am now able to be still for long periods of time and I am learning to still my mind. I love the physicality of yoga along with the slow movements. It feels so peaceful and powerful. I love the stretches. I am starting to feel like my body is stronger. I am finding muscles in new places–back, shoulders, forearms, thighs. I feel like my core is stronger than it has been in a long time. I no longer think about my back being weak as I lie on my mat. I feel strong and completely comfortable lying on the floor for an hour. I hardly feel the heat now. I feel the physical exertion as my heart rate goes up and I feel the sweat on my body but the heat feels so good now, at least most of the time. I find myself looking forward to it. In February, I started working with a personal trainer–Suzanne Conroy at Workfit. She was fantastic. When I started working with her, I could barely walk a kilometer. I could have never done this yoga challenge. With her help, I have improved to the point that I can do...
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We have a big family excursion to Stratford Chef School today to experience my daughter’s first Stratford Chef School lunch. I have prepped everyone that we will leave very shortly after my return from yoga. It feels like I am taking a lot of time for me with yoga. I am not used to having so many activities just for me. It feels good and like I am prioritizing my health. Going first thing in the morning means not having to disrupt anyone else’s day. Also, it is hard to find distractions and conflicts at 6:30 am on weekdays or 8:00 am on weekends. I am feeling successful at setting my practice for the early mornings and sticking to it. I am usually up at 5 or 6 anyway so it really is a great time for me. I enjoy my workout. I am getting bendier. There are many of the poses I am better at but I am still struggling somewhat with Child’s Pose. It is hard for me to sit back on my knees. I do notice that when I am tired and am pushing myself, it hurts more to be on my knees. When I am rested and “fresh”–usually from an hour of Shavasana the previous day, my knees hurt less and I can do more on my knees. I take my towel “donut” every day and use it if I go down on one knee. It works. I am also starting to try to push back and sit further back in child’s pose, stretching out my knee. I have a sense I will eventually be able to sit back on my knees again. It will be a long, slow process, I imagine. Like what you are reading? Sign up for a free membership (Tire Kicker’s Membership) to the Crucible Bookii and be notified about new posts. Want to read all the content on the site and support this project? Sign up here for founding membership ($9.95 per...
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I want to take a moment to thank the teachers at Moksha who have given so much to me in the last 19 days. They have been welcoming, helpful, kind and encouraging in a way that I have never experienced before. They have been a powerful and sweet force in this challenge. They are helping me change my life. I notice some of the teachers go above and beyond in every class. They are using every minute to correct a pose, push us forward, call us forth. I love this kind of rigor and their words stay with me class after class. How to align my body in a pose. How one body part needs to be over another body part. Can I see my toes? I particularly appreciate Erin. She is creative and uses some variations that make her class a little harder physically. But even though I am completely stretched and pushed to my limits, her classes work for me as a beginner. She pushes just a little extra and as I write this morning, I am so appreciative of her happy style. She makes yoga fun! Having a teacher who will ask me to stretch a little more, improve a pose, and talk to everyone about how the pose can be improved, really ups the game for us all. Like what you are reading? Sign up for a free membership (Tire Kicker’s Membership) to the Crucible Bookii and be notified about new posts. Want to read all the content on the site and support this project? Sign up here for founding membership ($9.95 per...
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