As it was, I arrived at the studio to find that I was the only car in the parking lot. Had I read the schedule wrong? Nope, I really was just that much of a keener. Turns out that the impeding blizzard and early hour had dampened most yogi's spirits. Not all, however. In the end I was not the only one to show my bright and smiling face. However, I was probably the only one who forgot her wallet...
Perhaps it's the rapport that I've built up with the studio over the past five years, or maybe it's the fact that I made up 25% of that morning's attendance, but they let me stay for not one, but two classes without paying.
That's right! On my first day of the challenge, I did a double! I had no where else to be, and nothing else to do that morning so I sought refuge in the studio. Three hours of yoga before lunch, check!
The first class was everything that a yoga class should be... the second class was anything but! Just for the record, I suck at meditating. Most of the time I don't even try. I occupy my mind with silly games and Madonna songs while my body does it's thing and 90 minutes go by lickity split. After 90 minutes though, I've run out of games and memorized lyrics and my mind turns in to a six-year old in the back seat on a long trip "HOW MUCH LONGER?" and then I notice how much my arms/legs/back/neck and every other piece of my body hurts, and the very last thing I'm thinking about is my breath. This is one of the things that I know I need to work on during this challenge and will purposely be doing several back-to-back classes to increase the endurance of my mind, as well as my body.
Upon emerging from "Bikram's torture chamber" I promptly went home, ate the contents of my fridge and took the world's best nap, ever.
Was doing a double really the best way to kick this challenge off? I guess I'll find out tomorrow!
my "smiling happy face" (before I knew it had snowed).
Notice the hopefully-green buds... and the snow. Looks like mother nature played a trick on herself!
