Gaining Perspective

This has been a very interesting week. On Monday, I celebrated one year of maintaining my pescetarian diet! This was a huge milestone for me considering I’ve been a carnivore most of my life  (although I did go 6 years without red meat). I feel healthier, weigh less, and am at more peace with myself knowing that I’m doing my part in helping the environment and animal welfare. It was much easier than I thought it would be. I guess the only annoying part was having to explain to people what it meant to be a pescetarian. I usually kept my answers short and to the point, and moved on. I plan on continuing the diet going forward, perhaps with a little more leniancy.

Speaking of moving on, Monday was also a day I faced some serious personal issues when a HUGE road block came my way. I found myself reacting and defending myself at first, but slowly accepted that the road block was there and there was nothing I could do to change that. Tuesday, I evaluated the block and how I could get around it. By Wednesday, I retracted and found myself reacting again, so I went straight back to being present, loving myself, and accepting the situation on the best note I could leave it on. By Thursday - and after much reading of inspirational quotes and watching hilarious YouTube videos & late night TV(laughter really IS the best medicine!) - I was already seeing so much progress. This goes to show that PERSPECTIVE, OPTIMISM, and ACCEPTANCE can be such powerful tools. I’ve been blessed to have a solid head on my shoulders and while my emotions may get the best of me sometimes, my resilience always come through at the end of the day.  Yoga, great friends, a sense of humor, and my loving family helped me along the way, in their own individual ways. Today, I open myself up to new experiences and thank God for blessing me with another day to live.

How do you cope with the major road blocks in your life?

Bottomless Tummy

Week 4 of P90x is almost complete, and I have to be honest – I’m surprised. I thought this “recovery week” would be easy. Instead, I’m finding that I crash hard once a week (falling asleep as soon as I get home from work & sleeping through the whole night) AND… my appetite is endless.

I literally will eat anything in sight. All. The. Time.

Well… except for sweets. And this is coming from someone with a significant sweet tooth! I’ve cut sweets out for the most part except for Fridays, which is when I give myself a free pass.

My roommate’s boyfriend, a personal trainer and body builder, suggested upping my calorie intake. I’ve slowly begun to do this but have been careful because I don’t want to revert all the progress I’ve already made (lost 5 lbs, toned up like crazy).

Being conscious of all this, I’ve been getting better about keeping healthy options around me so I’m not gorging on nasty junk. It’s hard though, since my 1-year anniversary of pescetarianism is coming up on August 8th – sometimes I still feel like my food options are still limited and I find myself sneaking a fatty egg sandwich on starchy white bread at 7-11 on the way home after a late night. However, this all goes back to my lack of motivation to COOK! All it takes is a little extra planning at the beginning of the week. More thoughts on this to follow.

For now, think healthy snacks.

Next step, meals on the go…

Adventure Runs and P90X

Adventure Runs are Gaining a Lot of Popularity in 2011!

Seems like a big fad for 2011 are these “adventure runs” which is basically like a running race with a twist. I completed the Warrior Dash a couple months ago; a 5k run including about a dozen obstacles, half of which involves gooey, sticky, smelly MUD. It was some of the most fun I’ve had in my life! Despite a sprained foot.

Last weekend, I tried Metro Dash which I honestly have to say was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life (apart from running 2 full marathons). It came down to me just not being prepared enough…but I’m also convinced that I wouldn’t have been able to finish it without my lovely team “Dash Divas” - 3 of my best, most athletic girlfriends! Although we started at a later wave time (5:30-6pm), the heat + 30 intense obstacles + hot parkign lot pavement really took a toll on my body and I experienced my first exercised-induced asthma episode. Literally could not breathe after I finished and had to take a seat and regain my composure. Nevertheless, I was happy to finish it and swore to myself I wouldn’t try anything like THAT again! (Note: mud runs are an exception. )

My jiu jitsu expert / hairdresser / great friend Chanel proposed that we try P90x together a couple weeks ago, and I hesitantly agreed. So she’s been coming over to my house every day at 7am so we can do the videos. The first few days were hard since I wasn’t in tip top shape… but I’m starting to really see results! Already shaved off an easy 4 lbs. She took some before pictures, which I’ll post along with my 30-day pictures in a few weeks. I already have a love/hate relationship with Tony My goal is to look toned and feel amazing by the time I go to Dominican Republic for my 30th birthday in September.

In addition to all of this, finally found my motivation to get back to Bikram Yoga after a couple month hiatus. So, replacing the P90x yoga video with 90 minutes in the hot room, plus a few more times in the evenings the rest of the week.

Will give an update very, very soon!

Honoring a Legend with Ashtanga

Yesterday, I decided to try an Ashtanga yoga class at my gym for the first time. In fact, this was my first time ever stepping foot in Lifetime Fitness’ yoga studio and was pleasantly surprised by the tranquility and simplicity of the room. Our teacher, Jaime, started off the class on a sad note. With tears in her eyes, she shared with us that her yoga teacher, Larry Schultz, had just passed away. I felt her pain even though I did not know him (but have heard of him before). He was the founder of It’s Yoga and created Rocket Yoga, amongst other accomplishments. This is a great loss in the yoga community. We dedicated our practice to him last night.

Ashtanga was way more intense than I anticipated! Lots of holding difficult postures and breathing into them. Same principles as I had learned in Vinyasa and Bikram, but taking it to the next level. We started with a chant, followed by 3 om’s. The practice included many sun salutations to warm up (although it seemed a bit different than what I’m used to)…and much more fast-paced. I found it hard to keep up at times. After 90 minutes of balancing postures, twisting postures, and seating postures…I was thoroughly spent. Still feeling it in my abs, hips, and shoulders today! I will likely try this again if I’m looking for a challenge but don’t really see myself doing this style regularly.

10 days until my first race of the season!

Next in line: athletic yoga.  Stay tuned…

Hiatus Complete

After the 30-day challenge, my lazy side kicked in and I dwindled in the amount of times per week I practiced. I think my body just needed a chance to recover from the intense 1-month fitness regimen, along with some other personal issues that came up immediately after. I’ll be honest, I haven’t been back to the studio in about 12 days and can really feel the effects. I have, however, been working out but can tell how much tighter my body feels since I haven’t been doing the yoga to stretch & balance me out.

I decided to keep my gym membership at Lifetime Fitness in order to train for the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day 8K in March. While I love to run and do yoga, I have been really, really itching to try out boxing. A friend of mine recommended LA Boxing so I think I’ll be trying out the free day trial in the next week or so. I just get so bored with the same old gym routine (which I haven’t been following this week, did an intense kickboxing workout at my gym yesterday and I can barely move today!). I feel like if I really got into boxing, my fitness level would be good enough so I could run an 8K without extensive running training.

My only reservation is my ulnar nerve entrapment from an injury 5 years ago. With too much strenuous activity, my left arm has a tendency to get really tight and the hand becomes numb.  I have done tons of research online about how to prevent this from happening but can’t find anything. All I can think of is wearing an elbow cover to protect my elbow if I choose to box (if any pressure is placed on my funny bone, the pain is excruciating and my hand goes almost completely numb). Anybody have any experience with this or know someone who has? I definitely plan on talking about this with a personal trainer and getting some recommendations.

Day 30: Challenge Complete!

Well… I did it. [26 + 2] x 30.

It still hasn’t really hit me yet… and honestly I don’t feel that much different. I guess I’m being modest but overall I’m happy that I completed it. Over the course of the past month, I have learned so much about myself. The benefits that I received were tremendous. I hit some road blocks on the way. But at the end of the day, I learned way more than I thought I would.

It’s more than just writing your name up on a wall and getting stars placed next to each day completed. More than just sitting here and writing my story for the world to read. More than a pat on the back. I walked into this challenge with the idea in the back of my head that I wanted to try 30 new things before I turned 30 this September 2011. The first was falling hard for and letting all my guards down with a man that means the world to me, and being 100% honest about everything with each other up front, from day one.

The second, this 30-day bikram yoga challenge. It has humbled me  beyond belief and I can truly say at this point that I’m more comfortable with my body and my mind than I’ve ever been in my life. I’ve finally come to (almost fully) accept that I will never have a flat belly, and I’ll never always feel like walking into the hot room with just a sports bra and shorts on (that’s rare to begin with anyway!). My body is all I have and I have to take care of it each day. Any harmful addictions I’ve dealt with are far in the past. I’ve found my new addiction not only in hot yoga, but in daily meditation and other forms of exercise and wellness practices. It’s what keeps me happy, sane, and balanced. I no longer feel like I need to rely on others to keep this balance and harmony. Only I can take care of this body and soul. And I’ll certainly continue to do that from now on.

I want to thank the following people, for without you, this challenge would never have been possible!

• Carrie, for your enthusiasm and lighthearted personality;
• Swyann, for your calm demeanor and delightful aura;
• Rana, for your discipline and meditative encouragement;
• Francisco, for your sense of humor and unending knowledge;
• Insel, for your strength, wisdom, and impenetrable determination;
• The entire staff at Bikram Yoga Rockville. It was with you that I discovered my passion for hot yoga in November 2009; and
• My friends, family, and loyal blog followers… for your constant encouragement and support!

…and of course any other instructors from Bikram Yoga Tysons that I may have left out. I appreciate each and every one of you.

Stay tuned. I will continue to write about my regular practice going forward, and other exciting adventures as I explore myself more deeply through my “30 by 30.”

Namaste

Day 29: Inspiration in This Moment

Got up early again this morning to take Swyann’s 6am class. What a breath of fresh air she is! With a calm and soothing voice, she instills motivation, inspiration, and confidence in her students.  Her entire aura is just immaculate! She told me after class that she really loves being at the studio, and I responded by saying that it really shows. Today was day 3 in a row of not skipping out on any postures (although I admit I thought about it a couple times).

During savasana midway through class, she read an exerpt that really stuck with me. All I remembered after class was “your body is your child,” so I Googled it as soon as I got into work and found the quote (not the whole thing… but this really sums it up):

“Your body must be disciplined like a child, calmly but forcefully. You are, in fact, reeducating your body and as the various areas are convinced that you are serious, they will begin to obey. Your body is your child.” —Richard Hittleman

I love this because it really shows the connection between mind, body, and soul. While I’ve somewhat been in touch with the connection amongst the three for some years now, I feel it more and more as I practice daily.

She also reminded us to stay present in our bodies throughout the day. It was a reminder from a chapter I read last night in Eckhart Tolle’s “Power of Now”…on feeling the body as a whole as much as possible no matter where I’m at any given moment in my day.

Just one day left!!!

Day 28: Bittersweet

Took the 6pm with Insel today. Walked in with a clear mind, and for the first time in this last month, I managed to really center myself in savasana before class commenced… to a point that I had a slight smile on my face for the entire 90 minutes!

Got through every pose with no rest again. Second day in a row doing that feels amazing. I think the thing I really enjoyed the most today was bow pose. Insel came out of nowhere in my second set and literally pulled me off the ground from my ankles! My body naturally leaned forward and the wind got knocked out of me for a split second. But the stretch…was…devine. I saw Francisco do the same thing to a 10-year old girl and refer to it as the “picnic basket” as he swung her back and forth. So cool. Insel told me after class that he could tell my spine was really strengthening and I’m more flexible than ever. Four hours later, I still feel the tingling.

I made the decision to do my last 2 days in the early mornings. I want to end this challenge on a relaxing note and I’m not sure if I can take the packed room in the afternoons.

This final week has been bittersweet so far. But as I’ve mentioned before… I’m going to keep up my regular practice

Day 27: Crack of Dawn

I managed to get my booty out of bed at 5am and attend 6am practice. I can’t believe this is only my 2nd time in the last 27 days that I’ve done this! I mean, it really sucks having to get up that early from my warm and toasty bed, but the benefits outweigh the brief heartache. The type of music (or alarm) that you wake up to really, really, REALLY makes a difference. This morning, I chose to have ‘Break U Off’ by The Roots wake me up…and I did so with a smile on my face. I’ve learned that loud obnoxious alarms do nothing but piss me off and make me want to sleep more, LOL

Experienced another new teacher this morning, Kristen. Very laidback, very to-the-point… just what I needed to keep my mind focused and yawning at bay. The only slight problem I encountered was the nausea – I downed a banana & glass of OJ before leaving for practice. Since I don’t usually eat much that early in the morning, ever, it didn’t sit well with me. I didn’t give myself enough time to digest. It even lasted through half hour after class was over. But I started my work day with more energy than usual and the stomach ache eventually subsided.

Day 30 is this Friday… I’m already thinking of doing a double on Saturday as the cherry on top! Any takers?

Day 26: All Downhill From Here

For the last week or so, my favorite instructor Insel has been away from the studio. Today, he came back and I attended his 6pm class. Another super packed one as anticipated, so I’m glad I showed early.

It was another strong day for me despite the extreme heat and intense energy in the room. But it didn’t start that way. For some reason, I got really lightheaded during pranayama breathing and almost had to kneel. I think my mind was wandering too much and I slightly panicked as a result of the sensory overload all around me. Just as quickly as that feeling overcame me, I conquered it. And it was all downhill from there

Here are some of the major improvements I’ve been seeing in myself over the course of the last few weeks (I’ll expand on these in my final day’s post, and give a few tips for anyone who’s thinking of doing the challenge themselves):

• Strength: Unlike my regular running days a couple years ago (which slimmed me down & strengthened my leg muscles), I’ve increased muscle strength all over my body.
• Flexibility: Each day, I’m able to go juuuust a little bit deeper into my stretch. I wish I could’ve had someone photograph me in each posture in day 1 and compare it to now. Big improvement!
• Breathing: My lung capacity has grown tremendously. I admit I used to be a casual smoker (picking one up only when I had an alcoholic drink in my hand), but since starting this challenge, I’ve stayed away for good. And cut back on drinking significantly.
• Confidence: Although I started this challenge with a healthy level of confidence, I feel like this part of me has grown but not to a level of cockiness or self-righteousness.
• Compassion: I am gentler and listen so much better not only with others, but also to myself. It’s like I’m more in tune with my inner voice.
• Mental Stability: Road rage? Gone. Mood swings? Dampened. Panic & anxiety attacks? No more. I can go on and on. This is probably the greatest benefit of all!

I know I’m probably missing a few items but I know I’ll think of them before post #30