Bikram Yoga Review

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Made it out alive. That's the key point to remember in all of this. I'm alive.

Attended my first Bikram hot yoga class last night. Right before class, I was talking to BFF Trisha who asked if I was going to the class alone or with someone. 

"My friend Amy is going with me," I said.

"What's she like?" 

"Tall, blonde, pretty, about 24 years old." 

"Really? Maybe she's super flexible too so you both will have so much in common!" 

You can see why we're friends. =)

So. Class. Not so bad. Really. I'd expected my breath to be taken away by the heat, like when you enter a sauna and can feel the embers scorching the back of your throat. Walking into the bikram room was nothing like that. Warm, yes. But sitting still on our mats before class, it was almost comfortable. 

Of course, that didn't last long

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First Bikram Yoga Class Tomorrow

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Having discovered a previously unsuspected addiction to purchasing deals through Groupon, I am now the proud owner of thirty days worth of unlimited bikram yoga classes. I start tomorrow. 

Bikram yoga is more commonly known as "hot yoga." The class ia an hour and a half and the room is heated to 105 degrees Fahrenheit.

Seriously.

A few people have told me how much they love bikram and how it's great for releasing all the toxins in the body. Of course, a few other people chimed in, namely:

  •  Christie, who told me she threw up after her one and only attempt at the class
  • Ben, who felt fine during class but ended up with nausea and diarrhea later that night
  • And Christopher, who today informed me the room smells like a foot locker and his friend got ringworm from one of the mats. 

 I've drank 78 oz of water today and will do the same tomorrow before class.

Stay tuned. The next post promises to be doozie. 

Switching Up the Workouts

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I am a creature of habit. I eat at the same restaurants, watch the same programs, drive the same route, and the first thing I do every morning when I get out of bed is brush my teeth. NO EXCEPTIONS. 

The creature of habit thing serves me well in exercise, at least with marathon training. I've used the exact same program, no deviations, to train for my last 3 marathons, and I've PR'd in each of them. Lately, however, I've felt the need to mix up my routine. 

Why? For one thing, I'm bored. My routine for over two years now has been run 3 days, bike 2 days, weight train 2 days. If I get a wild hair, I throw in a day of yoga. More than that, the days I do each of these exercises has been set in stone. Run T-TH-Sat, bike MW, weight train MW. Can you say "rigid," boys and girls?

So, thanks to marathon training being over (until July) and the magic of groupons, I'm branching out.

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