The Other Side

Okie so I’ve read quite a number of posts here on Tumblr from yogi/yogini beginners saying that they’re experiencing pain after their first try at yoga. See, this is exactly the reason why you should sign up for classes. So that there’s a teacher to make sure that you’re doing the poses right and not injure yourself.

Most people have the misconception that yoga poses are easy to do, simply look at the photo and copy. It’s actually more than that. Even if we do our poses in front of the mirror, we can’t really tell if we’re doing it right because it has to be seen from a different angle. Especially if we’re a beginner.

Well, I’m not expert myself but I have been practicing yoga for awhile now and I’m beginning to learn how to recognise the signs of whether I’m doing the poses right or not. Other than that, I seek advise from yoga experts at the yoga studio I go to or read them up online. Here are links to a few of my go-to sites.

• Yoga Journal
• ABC of Yoga
• Yoga Basics

You can also head on down to YouTube and there are many yoga gurus that you can approach and ask your questions. If that doesn’t work for you, then you can always drop me a line. I will try to answer you as best as I can or ask my teacher about it.

Just remember, when doing yoga, if its causing you pain, then you’re not doing it right.

Namaste.

Believe it or not, 30 mins to my Monster Hot yoga class on Saturday and the red soldiers decided to pay me a visit. I can’t possibly cancel class now could I? And it’s a Saturday, I have two classes on Saturday. I didn’t want to miss it. So I went ahead with it as normal. But I did cancel today’s class.

This is the first time I had to experience my period while I’m actively practicing yoga. I wasn’t sure if it was safe to do yoga while in the cycle. Apparently there’s a debate about it. Some say its not advisable, other say its okay as long as we don’t so inversion poses. Some say its better to do it as to avoid having cramps and bloating. Alicia said, “As long as you’re comfortable, it doesn’t matter what other people say.”

Well, I’m not comfortable. Only on Saturday, it was exceptional. Besides, I wasn’t sure if the cramps are going to be bad so I didn’t wanna risk it and simply cancel class before hand. But I have decided that I would do restorative poses at home. I found a few sites that has suggested a few. Which I will try.

I also read an article from Sunrise Yoga Dartmouth that its good to have off days while practicing yoga. Just like how we have off days during our work week. And when our period comes, its like a ladies holiday. So that’s what I’m doing, I’m taking a break from yoga. I’m letting my body relax. I’m enjoying my Ladies Holiday. =)

I’m actually feeling quite bumped about this morning. I registered for two classes today; Hot Yoga Basics @ 0700hrs with Yun and Yoga Zen @ 0900hrs with Crystal. It would have been my first time working with Crystal. It was also my first time attending a 7am class. I arrived about 5 mins to 7 but the door was locked. The lights were on so I rang the bell, twice. But there was no answer. The studio would usually called if you’re gonna be late for class but no one called me so I was sure I wasn’t late. Turns out, I was. I called the studio later in the day and dear Sylvia (one of the front desk lovelies) mentioned that there was a class going on. Hmmm…apparently they started without me. *inserts super SAD face* I actually cancelled my 9am class as well and hit the gym instead. Oh well…learnt my lesson on the 7am class. Come extra, extra early next time.

On a lighter note, I attended a Reiki Meditation workshop with Ms Elaine Grundy in the afternoon. One reason why I decided to attend it is because I feel like I am so out of touch with Reiki. I feel kinda bad actually. I had a wonderful experience at the workshop. I was able to feel energy from different people (we took turns exchanging energy) an I enjoyed doing Reiki on others and recognizing their Hot Spots. Looking forward to the next one.