Image from Pinterest
Summer is just around the corner here in Australia and it's time to get serious about getting into shape for bikini season! I usually train twice a week at a class at my favourite gym, Spudds. It's an intense 45 minute workout that combines cardio, weights and boxing. This coupled with my weekly netball game keeps me pretty active.
A couple of weeks ago my work friend received an email about a 31 day Bikram Yoga Challenge at the yoga school across the road from our office. She was keen to do it and asked if I wanted to join. I said yes and the next week we signed up, paid our money and committed ourselves to 31 days of one and a half hour yoga practice in a 40 degree room. Just typing this out make me wonder what the heck I was thinking when I said 'yes' to this madness. But not one to shy away from a challenge (yet), I am determined to stick this out.
Walking into the carpeted hot room for the first time in a long time I was hit by the wall of heat and instantly felt like a wilting flower. Half way through the first class sweat was dripping from my body and coming out through my hair. I paced myself through all of the poses and recognised the ones I needed to improve. By the end of the first class I felt proud of myself yet totally overwhelmed by the prospect of going to another 30 classes!
For the last month bikram yoga has been my second priority to work. Setting a 5am alarm to get up and go to class each day (I chose to do it first thing in the morning to avoid not wanting to do it after a long day at work), packing my clothes, showering, getting dressed, washing my clothes and doing it all again was a constant and sometimes exhausting cycle in itself.
Having now finished the challenge, successfully (!!!), I can look back on those days when it was all too much and know that when you put your mind to something and you perservere, through the good and the bad, you can do absolutely anything. For me personally the mental benefits of completing this challenge have been far more rewarding than the physical. Yoga teachers say some pretty wise things and one saying that I now think in my head almost every day since is "mind over the matter". Something might be really frustrating you, whether at home or at work, and you can't help but stew on this one thing - this is when you need to put your mind, and all of the amazing energy and power it has, to forget about the pesky problem and move on to the next thing.
Life is full of highs and lows. Whether you look at the highs and lows of each day or week or month, they happen to everyone. Knowing how to focus on putting the lows into perspective, to focus my mind on pushing through them with positivity and sometimes taking a step back from things that are out of my control has made me feel like a much balanced person... now I understand what people mean when they want to be "balanced".
I'm not sure if I will ever do another 31 day bikram yoga challenge but I can safely say that I will continue with at least regular classes and look for new types of yoga to practice and would definitely encourage anyone and everyone to at least do a few classes to reap some of the lifelong mental benefits!
