Missed Class - Studio's Fault

Went to the 6PM class last night.    This time the teacher did not show because she thought there was a sub for the class.   So instead of just going home like everyone else, I cranked up the studio heat and did a primary series.   Having the studio to myself for almost an hour was nice.  

Missed Class - My Fault

I had to get my hair cut  (hence I needed a "haircut",  never thought of that twist of the English language before),  so I piled my Yoga clothes,  mat, towel etc. into my car to get it done before class as I planned on changing in the studio. 

I drove the 15 minutes after my haircut to the studio and realized that I did not bring my shorts  (they were where my pre-piled stuff were).  So there is a missed class,  a wasted 1/2 an hour driving back and forth  and a disincentive to practice as I was on a time crunch  for the evening.   I did do a quick 40 minute practice  (basically my core, warm up and sun salutation sequence) but it was not what I wanted.   I really wanted to go to class (I had been away for nearly a month).    

If I was a women,  there would have been about 50 pairs of yoga pants to choose from to buy from the studio.   They have zero clothes for men there..    I should sue them for discrimination..   :)


Lesson learned:  Make sure you have everything before you drive away..


Namaste

Outside Open Air Yoga

The apartment I am staying in is still a bit hot and it was 75 and breezy out on the Western Prom here in Portland Maine so I took the opportunity to do a Primary Series out on the park overlooking the bay.    What a great idea.   I was a bit nervous  but with the sun on me and the breeze it was one of the best practices I have had in a long time.  I got over the self consciousness  pretty quickly and the park was fairly empty.     Should have brought the camera....   Some older woman and her husband came for the sunset and she seemed very intrigued by what I was doing.    

Namaste...

NY Times Q&A on Middle Aged Yoga with an MD..

It's good to know that I am on the lower end of the middle age scale. 

This is a good read,  though he is a bit of a Iyengar proponent.


Here is a good sample..   (Though he ignores the economics of the student and the cost of individual classes)

Besides these readers, Big Bird from NYC and SH and Pinotman from Chicago wrote in wanting to know the best place and the best way to begin or resume yoga when you are over 50. The absolute best way is to find out what your liabilities are, and this is an individual matter, requiring a medical visit or summary. The next step is an appointment with an experienced and smart yoga teacher, one on one. Group classes are an artifact of urban economics: the teacher cannot afford to live in the city in which she teaches any other way. But chronic conditions are cumulative, by definition: when you’re older you need the individual attention that yoga has traditionally offered.

I believe the teachings of B.K.S. Iyengar are the most anatomically sophisticated and therapeutically oriented, but there are many other good types of yoga. You’ll need a resourceful and sensitive person to get you started, and to introduce you to an appropriate yoga practice that you can do every day. Then, after a month or two or three, you should go back to that person for a reassessment and suggestions about how to progress to the next step. Yoga, practiced consistently, does good things to your temperament and perceptions.

There are are three parts


http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/08/booming/advice-on-practicing-yoga-in-middle-age-part-1.html?ref=booming

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/15/booming/advice-on-practicing-yoga-in-middle-age-part-2.html?pagewanted=all

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/22/booming/advice-on-practicing-yoga-in-middle-age-part-3.html?pagewanted=all

Fats, Fake Diets, In Shape,

This morning when I was preparing my breakfast I realized that I bought full milk Greek yogurt instead of 0%.    The first thing I did was check the nutritional information and found out that 1 cup (8 oz or about 225 grams) contains 225 calories of which 160 are fat and this one cup  (I had about 1/2  of a cup) is 28% of your fat calories and 54% of your saturated fat for the day.  

Now I am cheap so I will eat the yogurt and adjust but it made me think about how much I am cognizant of what fats I am eating in my diet.   Outside of some cheese,  ice cream rarely and olive oil,  I pretty much do not eat any fats that are not from vegetable products like nuts and avocados.    While I do not gram count my fat intake,  I turn down lots of things  and eat smaller portions of ice cream or the rare cake that I eat because I really am afraid of putting too much fat into my diet.    This considered thought of about almost all that I eat has done me a great service and in the long run is much more healthy than crash diets,  special mixes etc.

A couple of weeks ago,  a co-worker of mine, who while not obese is overweight and probably has a high body fat %, told me that I was too thin.     I beg to differ,  and while there is no doubt that I am slim,  my body is toned,  I barely have a gut and there is no double chin.   My weight according to my doctor is right where it should be for my height.  I have a slimmer, less muscled body of what I was when I was 35 and lifting weights all the time  (I am maybe 8 pound lighter from then and 15 pounds lighter from my high weight)  but I feel better.   While I have less muscles,  I am more flexible,  I feel strong though out my body and I generally feel good.  The reason for this is many fold,  a lot of yoga which has really toned me,   heavy core work which has given me stomach definition for the first time in 15 years,   my veggie diet that has eliminate animal fats and calories,  and a conscious thought about all the food that I eat and an awareness of  what I am eating.     It was hard work and will continue to be hard work.

A former co-worker of mine is a sales representative for a product called Body by ??.    The product sells powders and drink mixes to replace meals in a persons diet.  It is also supposed to be part of an active lifestyle.  I give my friend credit, she lost some weight that she recently put on (she was generally always active and in good shape),  but the product ingredient list has 50 items that cannot be spelled.        Why eat that crap when you can eat a salad with broccoli,  carrots,  beans,   spinach,  cukes and tomatoes with some carbs like whole wheat couscous.   It takes maybe 10 minutes to make it,  it is a hell of a lot less money and except for the couscous,  you are eating vegetables.  You are not drinking a high protein chemical shake.    Sure,  you may be slimmer but is your health improved while doing so.

Another rant I guess.    You have to work hard,  watch what you eat.  If you eat meat, keep it to a minimum and really try not to eat bacon.    That is secret to long term health and a toned body.   Not some chemical that 90% of  people will fail using. 

Hot Yoga Classes: Not for the out of shape.

I am on the road for July so much of my practice is in the place I am renting.     I have been looking about for a class to take  so that I can get some human contact during a practice or two.   There is a studio not to far from me that offers 2 or 3 hot Vinyasa flow classes each night.   According to their website,  it is anywhere between 95 and 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

Most of the hot classes that I have taken have been in the low 90's and I find that more than adequate.   The heat does make things much more difficult  (especially if you do not hydrate well before hand) and it is something that does  (in my opinion) take away from the yoga experience and makes it somewhat an endurance test if you are not used to exercising in that type of heat.     I personally prefer a class in the mid 80s because you are still warm but the heat is not oppressive.    Also, when the class is very hot, you sweat a ton,   your mat gets slippery unless you have a yoga towel, and any pose that requires you to balance using contact between different parts of your body  (Crane for example) ,  becomes more difficult because of the lack of friction due to the fact that your body is covered in sweat.   When you get out of the class, however, it is a good feeling.

There are some yoga styles  (Bikram especially) where the room temperature is > 100 degrees.   I think Bikram is done at 105 degrees and higher.   Why do they do this,  self torture I guess.  There is an argument that you sweat out the toxins in your body but again I believe it takes away from the class.   I read in the NY Times that people are pushing the heat envelope over the 110 degree mark.   

NY Times Article on Heated Classes

 Also,  if you are not in good shape,  a hot class can be dangerous.   I am quoting Wikipedia here  (which we all know is not the full truth on anything)


"there is a risk of hyperthermia which is overheating of the body. Symptoms include nausea, dizziness, or fainting, which can lead to a heat stroke. People with heart problems and high blood pressure or those who can't bear high temperatures, should be especially careful with hot yoga."


So,  I do take hot classes but I do not see the need for extreme  temperatures.     I will try one of the 95 - 100 degree classes to see how the are.   I would prefer lower temperatures,  but who knows I may actually like it. 

If you are not in very good shape,   I would stay away from hot classes for a while.   They can be un-fun, possibly dangerous,   and can turn you off from Yoga.  Even the Bikram website says

"It is not unusual to feel nauseous or dizzy during your first class.  Practicing yoga in a heated room reveals to us our present condition, and inspires us take much better care of ourselves."   Namaste...  

Traveling and drop in to studios.

When I travel,  I generally just practice where I am staying.   Since I am in Maine for July,  I decided to try some local studios to get out and to see how classes are different. 

I took a class up in  Brunswick, Maine at a studio called Jai Yoga. It is a Kripalu based studio.     The studio is in an old mill building at the end of town  (the town itself if very nice and is sustained by Bowdoin College) and the floor was obviously as old as the building   (wide pine planks).    It was labeled as a Vinyasa flow class and the temperature was ambient   (unheated) .   

There was only one other person in the class (a college senior) which was very nice.     I would rate the class itself  "fair" as I thought we could have been a little more intense  (I never really felt very warmed up) and we spent a long time on breathing and introducing ourselves.   It was also the first class where I had to "om"  and not once but three times.  

One thing that I did note was contractions between what I have been taught in my home studio and what the instructor taught here.    We practiced headstands and her finger placement suggestions were different than what I have been taught and her way of getting out of the headstand was to roll forward in a ball  which in my opinion is a recipe for injury if you were not like her at 4 feet 11 inches and 90 pounds.      I have been practicing bringing my legs back while moving my hips forward so I could gracefully place my feet back to its original position.    There is no way in hell I would ever try what she suggested.    


Single drop ins are not cheap and it cost me $16 to go to this class.    I did get a couple of things out of  it.    She was good in showing us how we should align ourselves when in Mountain pose and where our backs should be as we work toward a forward bend.    It is something that I will be cognizant of going forward.


So,  tomorrow I try Freeport Yoga as today is the 4th of July and most studios are closed.