I tried yoga and went back for more

This past Monday I went to a yoga class taught by a former colleague. It was a 60 minute power flow class based on the Baptiste Power Vinyasa style of yoga. After a warm up of stretches there are a series of pose sequences that get more challenging as the class goes on. We do a lot of core work toward the end of class before a nice cool down and savasana (basically laying like a “corpse” and removing all tension from your body for a few solid minutes….I almost fell asleep)

My colorful trio: water bottle, towel and mat.

The room was warmed to around 80 degrees. Surprisingly, I really enjoyed it. I was really surprised by a lot.

photo: strenthwithinyoga.com

1. I knew more poses than I thought (warrior, tree, child’s, downward dog)
2. I always thought I wouldn’t be able to “sit still” for yoga but this class was perfect for me as we moved fairly quickly through sequences of poses.
3. It was challenging! I loved hearing the instructor call out ways to get more out of the pose. Pull the belly in or squeeze the knees together, etc etc. I broke a sweat and felt my core working hard.
4. I immediately found myself thinking of goals. I want to master crow pose. I want to be able to hop to the front of the mat from downward dog. I want to be able to move through the poses continuous without having to rearrange myself on the mat. (You’d be surprised how many times I found myself hanging off the front or side of my mat.)
5. I was soaked when class was over—partly from the hot room—partly from working so hard.

Sweat Out the Small Stuff: Vinyasa Style!

I went again last night for my second class to see if I would still feel as positive about the class and I did! I’m excited to continue this practice and hope to be able to attend 2 classes a week. There’s something so wonderful about discovering new ways of moving my body and staying fit.

I started hiking every Wednesday with a local hiking group every Wednesday night and immediately became addicted. I hated missing out on the hikes for the 6 weeks my toe was injured. I’m hoping yoga will be a similar addition and help me focus on stretch and strength combined with the mental aspect it brings as well.

Just doing some glute work at home with an audience

So my toe was feeling so good I actually forgot I had ever injured it until yesterday when I guess I started out a little too briskly on my brisk walk, combined with the damp weather i found it achy and sore. But after yoga it felt better and today it seems back to “normal”. I’m assuming this will happen a lot over the next month or so as I completely heal. My other foot, however, is feeling a bit sore and achy from spending so many weeks compensating so I’ve been icing it.

My goal is to try and run just a short distance next week and work my way up to 3 miles by next weekend. I’ll have to see what my body wants but I’m optimistic.

In other news Duncan has been displeased about the rainy weather we’ve hadAnd after 2 years Mr. SOTSS finally finished renovating his bathroom so for his birthday I framed some photos that i’ve taken over the years all based around a water theme to decorate.

The large photo is from our trip to Lake Louise in Banff, Canada. The small ones are from a sailing trip to Port Jefferson Long Island, Cape May, New Jersey and Lake George in New York

And yesterday my beautiful niece turned 17 and passed her road test!

I miss this….She used to want to hold my hand all the time.

And now she’s all grown up.

It always makes me feel like I’m “growing” or “evolving” as a human when I go through something crappy only to discover something wonderful. From discovering running after feeling stuck in my grief over the loss of my husband, to discovering yoga while on running hiatus. There is ALWAYS something to be grateful for and there is ALWAYS something to bring positivity.

**Thank you to those who have commented here and on my Instagram posts as well with such kind words of encouragement and advice over the last 6 weeks as I’ve been working through this toe injury. It means a lot.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Have you ever tried yoga? Do you like it? Favorite pose?

Currently tree pose for me but I can’t wait to master crow.

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