Love

Class: Yoga
Date: November 21^st, 2010
Time & Location: 7pm at Lakeside Lodge

Last Tuesday my boyfriend and I went to yoga at Lakeside. There were about ten student’s total, almost the same number of boys and girls. We set up towards the back of the room, in front of the teacher. We did the normal routine, but she added some extensive calf workouts. There was a position that required us to be in a lunging pose, holding our back leg’s ankle with our hand. I was really proud of myself during this position because I was the only person in the room who was able to do it, besides the teacher of course. I looked to my side and my boyfriend was falling over, with a face full of agony. It was pretty entertaining. During savasana, the noises coming from Papa John’s started increasing. It was a challenge to focus my attention. I focused on my breath and concentrated on a light I concocted in my mind. It was the only way I could focus during the savasana practice.

This is the third to last class of the semester. I will be going to her classes next semester because I really enjoy them and they are conveniently located. She did say that she wanted to find a better class location, which would be great. I’m really enjoying these last few classes because she’s really pushing and challenging all her students.

Meditation...

Class: Yoga: East Meets West

Date: November 17th, 2010

Time & Location: In Class

So today we had our regular yoga class. We were supposed to have an instructor, Marcello, come in and teach us guided meditation, but he never showed up. So instead, Laurie taught us some in the last fifteen minutes of class. All of us sat on the floor around her as she instructed us on what to do. She said that if we have a hard time sitting up to lean against the wall, so I did. Since Monday, my neck and back have been in immense pain. I can hardly move my neck and my back hurts whenever I do pretty much any movement. This is why I propped myself up against the wall. Laurie instructed us to focus on the breath on our upper lip and invision the cold air that we are breathing in and out. While doing this, I made the air visible by giving it a smoky appearance. The soft white air would slowly be inhaled and then exhaled as it scattered in different directions after hitting my upper lip. She then told us to relax our eyes and jaw, which I immediately was very tensed up. Then we were instructed to focus on any parts of our bodies that hurt alot, focus on the pain, and associate a shape with that pain and wait till it goes away. I tried to do this with my back and neck, but it hurt so bad. In fact, it made the pain worse and made it almost unbearable. After that, I don't remember anything. I didn't fall asleep, but I did completely zoned out. I don't remember if i was thinking anything in that time or if any thoughts were running through my head. The minute she said, "open your eyes," i snapped out of it. All I can remember is my head swaying back and forth in pain. It was a pretty weird experience. I definitely want to take another meditation class.

Lakeside

Class: Yoga

Date: November 11th, 2010

Time & Location: 7pm at Lakeside Lodge

So on Thursday, my friend Dave and I embarked on our journey to Lakeside Lodge to take another yoga class. When we got there around seven, the teacher was not yet there. She showed up a few minutes later and the room was not ready for us as usual. The drop down monitor was on and playing the news and Papa John's was blasting their music. She quickly moved some of the tables out of the way and asked the workers at Papa John's to turn their music down. Then we started class...

We did basic sitting, standing, and twisting yoga poses. The one thing I notice about these classes at Lakeside is that the teacher makes them progressively more difficult with each class. She had us do more balancing poses, which i found very difficult. She also made us hold the poses for longer amounts of time. Another new concept that she introduced to class was the ability for us to control our own movements. She gave us a sequence and would let us do it at our own pace, fast or slow. I really enjoyed this because I didn't have to worry if i was doing it in the same time as her, instead i was doing my own pace. It gave me a chance to close my eyes and not worry about what was going on around me.

I really enjoy this class and if it is still offered, I'll still go to it even after this yoga course is over.

Gentle Yoga and Pranayama

Class: Gentle Yoga

Date: November 4th, 2010

Time & Location: 4pm at Yoga Nine

Last week was insanely busy for me, much like this week will be for me. I decided that Gentle Yoga at Yoga Nine was in the best time slot for me last week, and it was a beginner class so it would be more my speed. I took my friend Keith with me. He was eager to try it, even though his jeans made it difficult for him to really get into the positions. We arrived on time, but class started a little late because Keith had to sign the health waiver and get adjusted. I was really surprised to see my Introduction to Social Problems teacher, Elinor Lerner, there as well.

We started off on our backs and did leg stretches. From our backs we eventually went up to our knees, all fours, and then standing positions. The one thing I noticed about Gentle Yoga is the frequent use of child's pose. It was very slow-paced compared to the other classes I've taken. The class was more my speed, but I was often bored at times. I'm so used to continuous movement and a more challenging atmosphere. I found the balancing exercises the most challenging. The instructor placed a lot of emphasis on breathing exercises. With every movement she would say, "inhale" and "exhale." The breathing stayed consistent throughout. She was helpful because she would often say "Don't forget to breathe," which in turn would make me catch all the times I would stop breathing and I would start concentrating more heavily on my breath.

In my past experiences, much emphasis has been placed on pranayama. I have done single nostril breath. One finger covers a nostril, leaving the other one open. Heavy concentration is focused on the breath and managing it. Teacher's will often make you focus on pranayama in the beginning of class, and let you keep it going throughout the remainder of it. It is through repetition that I have seen the importance of breath. Consistent breathing makes it easier to perform the different postures and allows the movements to flow evenly. I often forget to breathe during exercising, but now I catch myself doing it more often.

Yoga Flow Plus.

Class: Yoga Flow Plus

Date: October 27, 2010

Time & Location: 7am at Yoga Nine

I woke up before the sun today, ready to head over to Yoga Nine for my 7am class. I scarfed down a microwavable breakfast I bought yesterday just for this morning. It was pretty sufficient. I arrived at the yoga studio about five minutes before class was supposed to start. In truth, I feel a little out of place because all the students are older than me and they already know each other. I normally just keep to myself, and perform the rituals that I've adapted after only going there once before. I walked in, took off my shoes and put them in a storage square, along with my purse. Then I took off my jacket and did the same with that. Then I walked into the room and laid down my mat farther to the back of the room. I spent a little more time observing the room itself today because Laurie was in the shop screaming about a spider that she left under a cup, urging one of her friends to kill it for her. Ha ha. There are two photos on the wall. One is of a sitting elephant, and the other one is off a yogi performing a posture. She has more props than I remember being in there previously, ranging from cushions, to mats and blocks.

We started off class laying down and focused on our breath mostly. We did this for a good amount of time because all I remember thinking was how relaxed I felt at that moment. We went through class like I remember from last time, and I think I'm making a small step of progress. I'm flowing through class easier, not having to look up at Laurie constantly. I'm starting to understand the warrior poses more when it comes to how to position my thighs. I was sweating a considerable amount by the time the class was half way through. What I find most remarkable about the class are the abilities that some of the older men possess. These are middle aged men, all in pretty good shape. They're really flexible, at least more than I am currently, and they have excellent balance. I'd expect it from the women in the class, but not really from the men for some reason. A new thing we did in class were handstands. We started off walking our one leg up the wall and then having the other one meet it at the top. Then we had to push off the wall and hold the pose in the air. I actually tried it, but was too scared to actually push off the wall. Perhaps that will be my next challenge to myself.I'm really starting to understand the importance of breathing. It seems like when I stop focusing on my breath, my postures fall apart. All in all, it was a great way to start off my day.

Sivananda.

Class: Sivananda Yoga

Date: October 20, 2010

Time & Location: In Class

On Wednesday, we had Arlene Vogt visit Yoga class. I found the practice very similar to what I've been experiencing the past few weeks, but with a little twist to it. It was much more relaxing. The fact that I was insanely tired that morning might have been a factor, but I found myself really dazing out during practice. One thing I noticed about Sivananda Yoga is the frequent savasana's that are practiced throughout. We would do one set of multiple postures three or four times, and then go into savasana. This really allowed the body to completely relax in between movements, so I never got too tired and overwhelmed. This had its positives and negatives. On the plus side- I got to dream for about two minutes every ten minutes, but I never got the physical satisfaction I normally get after practicing. I felt like it was a bit too mellow for me.

The one thing that frustrated me the most during practice was that I couldn't go into halasana (plow pose). I have done it before with little to no effort, but I just couldn't no matter how hard I pushed myself. There was also a point where we were doing a pranayama pose where we covered one nostril with one finger and left the other open. We then held our breath all together and let it out. I found this really relaxing. There were points where I forgot what I was doing and would completely let go of my nose in an awkward daze. Overall, I found Sivananda Yoga interesting. I also really enjoyed Arlene's ability to demonstrate her postures and really engage us in the practice.

Yoga Nine.

Class: Yoga Flow Plus

Date: October 20, 2010

Time & Location: Yoga Nine

So I decided to change it up a little bit and go to Yoga Nine. The only class I could fit into my schedule was the 7am Yoga Flow Plus class. Surprisingly, I really enjoyed waking up before the sun. The air outside is so cool and calm at 6am. I showed up to Yoga Nine at around 6:50am and was eager to see what was in store for me. I walked into an adorable free trade store, full of unique jewelry, clothing, oils, fragrances, and much more. Laurie Greene started the class soon after. I really liked the room that the class was held in. The lighting was perfect, dim but not dark. Relaxing ethnic music was playing in the background.

There were about eight people in the class, give or take one or two. Out of all the students, only two were males, which is a trend I've seen in most of the yoga experiences I've had so far. All the students were Caucasian, except for me of course. All the students were middle-aged except for one woman who looked like she was about 60. As I looked around the room, I saw mats, blocks, and other yoga objects. Laurie started the class out with standing postures, which included warrior poses and an array of balancing postures. I really wasn't expecting the class to be as challenging as I ended up finding it, even though I should have gotten a heads up from the flyer that said the course was for advanced beginners to intermediates.

Throughout the class we did various things, such as upward dogs, downward dogs, one legged downward dogs, warrior poses, planks, forward bends, extended triangle poses, lunges, side plank poses, bridges, and much more. Laurie also had us do headstands and I was really surprised at the amount of people in the class that could do it. I didn't even try for fear of making a fool of myself in front of all these yogis who were obviously more experienced than me. Yoga Flow Plus was by far the most challenging yoga class I've taken so far this semester, but I really enjoyed it. Every time I couldn't do a posture, I would go into child's pose and wait for Laurie to continue. During savasana, Laurie went around and applied some kind of scented oil to everyones' necks. With every breath I took, I got a whiff of the smell. It was an indescribable pleasant smell, like an herb or something to that extent. I spaced out during savasana, relaxing every part of my body. I realized that I'm starting to really benefit from yoga on more of a spiritual level, which is something that I never thought would happen when I started this course. I really am enjoying practicing yoga.

By the time I left Yoga Nine, I felt full of energy and ready for my day. I'm almost positive I'm going to Gentle Yoga tomorrow at 7am!