Monday: Ashtanga Yoga, 75 minutes
Tuesday: Ashtanga Yoga, 75 minutes
Wednesday: Ashtanga Yoga, 75 minutes
Thursday: Ashtanga Yoga, 75 minutes
Friday: Ashtanga Yoga, 75 minutes
I am so excited! For the first time ever, I did six days of Ashtanga in a row! I am so happy I have committed to making this practice my priority for the time being. I am getting so much out of it, on the mat and off. By going so often, I'm seeing some really amazing progress in a few of my poses. The rest may take longer, but I don't mind. Even small accomplishments feel fantastic, and I know I'm getting stronger even if it isn't totally translating to deeper poses yet.
I was really surprised by Monday's practice. After working so hard the Sunday before, I expected to feel tired and less flexible. Instead, it was my most flexible day yet! I still felt strong all the way through Suryanamaskara A&B, and my forward bends felt so good. My balance was even steady! Mike must have noticed too because he helped me go deeper into some of my poses, like Marachyasana A. I'm still pretty wiped out during the vinyasas by the end. Working so hard on my jumping back just leaves my upper body pretty spent by the end. But the only way it's going to get better it to keep working it, and if I'm feeling wiped out because I'm working harder, well that's fine.
Tuesday's practice was even more of a surprise. Usually, the third day in a row finds me stiff, tired, weak, or some combination of all three. But today was the opposite. I felt strong, and was the most bendy I've been in months! Mike noticed and commented on it as well. During standing pose, he pulled my leg higher than it's ever gone. And my forward bends got me positively smooshed. It felt soooo good!
Wednesday was a bit tougher. Hard to get out of bed, and I definitely didn't feel as strong as the day before. I could tell from the start, during Suryanamaskara. My practice still went really well despite that. My flexibility didn't suffer today, just my strength. And at the end of Savasana, I felt like utterly relaxed and noodley all over. :)
Thursday and Friday were about the same ... I was tired and definitely feeling all those practices earlier in the week. What I love is that even though I feel tired, and I can tell that I'm tired, once I get into my practice, I seem to just go with it. It's not that I completely ignore the tired, or that I push past it ... it's more that I acknowledge it, respect it, but then go about the business of my practice. Keeping the focus on my breathing and staying present in the poses makes all the difference. Sure, I sometimes end up flat on the floor during a vinyasa, but while I'm on the mat, I'm present and I'm committed. And that attitude seems to be coming with me off the mat, at least more than it used to.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment