Spring Cleaning and Bikram Yoga

You may be scratching your head and wondering how those two things can go together, but in the World of Erin there are many such strange pairs of things. In this case there is a natural parallel to these two things. 

 

It is nearly the end of January and though there is snow on the ground where I am, it is mostly melted in other spots and very soon we will be blessed with snowdrops (the flowers, not the flakes) crocuses, and daffodils outside. The arrival of the warmer temperatures and the longer and longer days (hooray!) puts thoughts to the projects outside and the cleaning and, well, airing out, that needs to be done inside after a long winter of closed doors and windows and recirculated heat and air.

 

My home is not overly dirty, but it is dusty with ash (a natural by-product from my wood stove) and since I have a forced-air furnace, there is also circulation of that ash and dust to all of the other rooms. In short, the house needs a damn good airing out and cleaning – but that won’t be tackled until the snow is gone and I have a warm (ok, I’ll settle for warm-ish – even 10*C would do!) day with sunshine outside to inspire open windows.

 

That will also, most likely, be the day that all of the window screens get a wash and get re-installed and that the front door screen gets put back on. 

 

Note to self, I seriously needs to wash all of my windows – so I will need to get my hands on a proper window squeegee (that would be an awesome scrabble word!!) and a decent (read: safe) ladder…

 

Spring cleaning is meant to let all of winter’s miasma and stale air out of the home, and to bring in the fresh clean joy of spring – along with clean new air.

 

To me, Bikram Yoga is like spring cleaning for the body, mind and soul.

 

A quick little bit of background: Bikram (or hot) yoga is a series of 26 Hatha Yoga positions and two breathing exercises that are practiced over the course of an hour and a half in a room that has been heated to a (stinking hot) temperature of 40*C with an approximate humidity measurement of 40%. In short, it is yoga done in a hot sweaty hell. The thought of practicing something I love (yoga) in temperatures that I hate (hot sweaty hell) wasn’t appealing to me at all – but I have a number of friends who have tried it and they swear by the benefits of it.

 

I did MUCH personal research before attending my very first Bikram Yoga class at Bikram Yoga Comox Valley. Bikram Yoga allows you to get the most out of your usual yoga practice. Since you are not starting from a “cold” position, your muscles loosen up much more quickly and you are less likely to injure yourself. There are some offsetting risks that need to be considered – Bikram Yoga practice can be dangerous for those with heart and/or blood pressure problems and there is, of course, a serious risk of dehydration – so being well hydrated before attending a class is a must. I have taken two bottles of water in with me – one to sip while in practice and one to guzzle when done. The need for water and electrolyte replacement is understandable when you realize just how much sweat can come out of your body during practice.

 

My first class was an awesome experience – I hadn’t taken a yoga class for roughly 3 years – I was on the Island of Jersey for my last class! I went with one of my girlfriends who had been to classes previously and I was way at the back of the room where, with my glasses off, I could look to the postures of the people around me so that I could adjust accordingly. The instructor (David Milanovich, also one of the owners) kept his eye out for me and made certain I was OK throughout the class – and in a room filled with 40+ regular participants, his attention to the detail of each student’s practice impressed me.

 

All in all, I had an amazing first experience with Bikram and promised myself that, when I could afford it (it is rather expensive) I would be back.

 

November of this year rolled around and - Woo Hoo – Island Daily Deals had a week special for Bikram Yoga Comox Valley – one week unlimited!! I bought my pass, planning to use it during my week of vacation in early December.

 

Well, I have been sick every month for the last three months – so that pass has been waiting and waiting for me to use it before it expires… I FINALLY made it in yesterday for the first of the three classes I will be able to attend this week. It was GREAT. I sweated out a ton of toxins, I am certain, and had loads of excess energy for the rest of my day. I am a little stiff this morning, but will be attending another class tonight and that should, hopefully, drain out some of that stiffness. I will be attending another class on Wednesday night and then my week pass will be kaput because none of the other classes offered through the week are ones I can attend because of my work schedule.

 

One of my dear friends, who also practices Bikram Yoga here in the Comox Valley attended a charity auction before Christmas with some friends – and one of her friends won a 10-pass gift certificate to the studio. That friend, knowing my friend practices, gave her the certificate – and since she and her husband already have their classes bought, she gave the gift certificate to me! So once I finish out this week, I can pare down to two classes a week for the next 10 weeks!

 

Next week I am seeing a Naturopath for the first time... I am seeing her to find ways to boost my immune system and general overall health so that I am NOT sick every month for another three months - so this spring I am looking forward to spring cleaning my home, my yard, AND my self.

With love across the waters,

Intensity

The word intensity raises all sorts of feelings in me – emotional ones like fear, anxiety, excitement, exhilaration, and physical ones like headaches, excited butterflies and knots in my guts.

It isn’t a word I choose to seek out to describe my day or any planned activities I might want to try – and yet… well, intensity is the perfect word to describe something I tried for the first time ever today – Bikram Yoga.

WHEW.

The pre-activity nerves were intense – could I do this? People commented freely to me on how hot it would be in the room and I am so not a hot weather girl.  Can’t sleep when it’s too warm, don’t want to move when I’m too warm – would MUCH rather be feeling cold rather than feeling warm because I can ALWAYS put on more clothing.

Speaking of putting on more clothing – yes, part of the pre-attempt nerves also surrounded what to wear.  Yoga pants? Tee-shirt? Singlet? Shorts? Hm.

I ended up settling on a skin tight lycra tank top with a built in bra and a pair of lycra running shorts I had bought myself a few years ago when I was still able to run.  Things I would NEVER wear in public where actual people could see me - I know how I look!

Anyhow, in light of the amount of sweat I anticipated I would be losing, I elected NOT to have any boozy beverages at the cabin yesterday and have been drinking LOTS of water for the last few days.

I got to the Comox Valley Bikram Yoga studio and almost swallowed my tongue – the guy behind the desk (who also turned out to be the instructor) was GORGEOUS.  I mean OH MY GOD gorgeous.

He was also, however, as most yoga practitioners and teachers tend to be, extremely peaceful to speak with and very genuine in his desire to put me at ease with what to expect. He explained a few things to me and told me that if it got to be too much for me, just to lie down in corpse pose and breathe.

I dropped my stuff in the ladies change room and headed into the studio itself and walked into a wall of heat and humidity – one that reminded me very much of how it would feel to leave the nice cool air conditioned office at the end of the day (when I was in Ontario) and walk into a wall of hot smoggy air to get to the train station to head home.  Thankfully this was just hot.  BC doesn’t do smog!

I settled myself at the back of the room, set my things out (I now understand why two towels – thank GOD I read the website instructions!) and lay down in the dark to wait for things to start – and also to try and acclimatize myself to the heat.  What I read online warned me to expect 105*F (for us Canadians, that’s a good solid 40*C) (yes, you read that right!)

The instructor came in and turned on the lights and it was time to begin.  I glanced around once and noted that in spite of how little I felt I was wearing, I was still wearing more than many of the others in the room.  He welcomed us to the session (and me in particular as the only total newbie in there) reminded us all that even if we couldn't manage the whole session that the most important thing to do would be to only leave the room as a last resort, and then got us started with a breath exercise to warm us up (literally AND figuratively) and then we were off to the races.

I started to sweat as soon as the first breath exercise started.

Impression? Intense.

I was most definitely not the only person who had to stop every once in a while and re-group my bearings.  I managed *almost* all of the poses – and the ones I couldn’t manage were ones I have ALWAYS had issues with – namely balance poses where you are trying to be on one foot. I am carrying a lot of extra weight now, and so some of the poses were simply not manageable because I can’t reach around myself as easily as I could when I was running regularly and slimmer than I am now. I also had trouble with the breathing exercises done at the very end of the session - they were short burst breathing exercises that, when I started them, made me feel dizzy and lit off a whole pile of sparklies in my head - I stopped that, and went back to a long slow breath pattern and the dizzies went away.

I was not the only one running with sweat. Even my knee caps were sweating – I have NEVER seen sweat bead up on my knees! 

I was not the only one breathing like I was in the middle of running the hardest sprint ever.

I was not the only one who, toward the end of the class when the instructor opened the door, reacted with an almost audible noise of relief at the cool breeze – I thought I had died for a second there!

And then, at the end of the class, I was not the only one who was smiling. A couple of people came up to me after the class was over and commented on how well I had done – and my girlfriend Steph (who came with me for moral support) was almost as proud of me as I am.

It was hard.  It was hot.  But you know what? It wasn’t as hard or as hot as I thought it was going to be.  This is something I could see myself doing on a semi-regular basis. Yes, as Steph told me, it kicked my ass in a BIG way, but the verdict (which was “in” as I was driving home) is that I am going to try and make one class a week work for my schedule and my budget.

I now understand some of what makes this so addictive to people. I also now understand how one of my other friends could call a yoga class a cardiovascular work out. The first time she mentioned to me that Bikram is her cardio, well, I admit it, I thought she was nuts. I mean really, how the hell is yoga a cardio work-out? 

Wow - did I ever eat my words today!

With love across the waters,

Namaste

Last Gasp of RRSP Season & Closing in on End of Tax Season

Well folks, we’re in the final few days of RRSP season – that wonderful time of year when you can make that contribution that will get you money back when you file your taxes, or at the very least, reduce the amount of taxes you are made to pay… Officially (according to the Canada Revenue Agency’s web site) it ends at midnight on March 1st, 2011. That’s midnight, this coming Tuesday.

Banks will now be in full swing of trying to meet clients’ needs in getting their contributions done, but if left to now, chances are that you will not be able to get in to see your account manager. Not to fear! If you deal with a major Canadian financial institution, chances are that you have a few other options available to you to help you get your contribution made in time. Telephone banking and Online banking are the other “go to” options. My suggestions at this point is that, if you already have an RRSP set up, and you are an Online Banking client, try making your contribution VIA your home computer. You can always get in to see your account manager AFTER March 1st and have the initial RRSP contribution investment option changed, but at this point you want to get your contribution done ASAP.

Income Tax Season has another couple of months (just – March and April for a filing deadline (for most people) of April 30, 2011. Final slips are generally in the mail and we should see most (if not all) of them by mid-March. Personally, I’m still waiting for two slips, but if I really wanted to, I could file now as both slips will just be deductions that I will be carrying forward into the 2011 Tax year.

I think that I mentioned in my last Income Tax-related blog post that I use a tool called TurboTax (formerly known as QuickTax) – my copy is all loaded up and I have almost all of my data already entered. With the exception of the year I moved overseas and the following year (when I moved back) I have used this tool. There were even a couple of years where I had a home-based business, and it was still easy to use and quick to process. In my humble opinion, if you have a home computer, this is the way to go!

What will my refund money be spent on…? Well, a couple of things. I’m going to set aside a few hundred just to spend on me. A Feng Shui Consultation (with Terri Perrin from the Fine Art of Intention Feng Shui) for the outside of my home, some Hypnotherapy and some private yoga lessons are on my “fun spending” list. The rest will be responsibly allocated to my VISA card and my line of credit.

With love across the waters,

Meditation

I am a fan of meditation – I have incorporated it into a couple of aspects of my life and try, most days, to spend time in quiet meditation. Some days it is when I am winding myself down at night before I sleep. Some days it is when I have just awakened and am preparing myself for the day ahead. I have also participated in guided meditation – which is a great first step to learning how.

A number of years ago, my brother gave me a book called “How To Meditate” written by Lawrence LeShan. It’s a great book that talks not only about the “how to” of learning to meditate, but also discusses some of the psychological and physiological effects of meditation (how the brain and body react to it) and therefore just a couple of the many “why to’s” of meditation.

There are many schools of thought on meditation – all of which agree on the benefits. The key to getting into a meditative state is to start with breath – it’s the key - rhythmic breaths in, rhythmic breaths out. What I found interesting was the personal discovery that I could also get into a personal meditative state while exercising. Well, rather, when doing specific exercises.

Yoga – no surprise there – yoga is all about the breath! As one moves through each pose and into the next the breath is always the focus. Well, that and maybe not falling down when in a complicated pose. I have found that when working one-on-one with a yoga teacher (I’ve done this off and on for a few years now and am about to get into another ‘on’ phase) the simplicity of the practice comes out and the focus returns naturally to the breath. An hour lesson feels as though it only took 3 minutes.

Funnily enough, I am also able to get into a meditative state when running. I have to focus on my breath when running and my body seems to go into an “auto-pilot” state where my brain shuts off for the duration. Yes, things can interrupt the state, but it returns to breath and my brain just quiets. I may not come in from a run with answers to life’s questions, but I have come in from a run understanding something, seeing a solution to a challenge in front of me or simply a little more settled with a current situation that has been causing angst.

Today I completed run number three – and am still (happy to report) not feeling any undue pain on or around my left knee. What was wonderful for me today was that I was able to get into my most comfortable running breathing pattern and *snap* just like that, my brain shut off and I could feel my body doing what it needed to. When I finished I felt good – both physically AND mentally.

With love across the waters,