Bikram

Health, Work

Another Day, Another Bikram Deal on Another Social Coupon Site…

Well you know how I feel about social coupon deals for bikram yoga classes… It’s a great idea for both customer and the studio in theory (Cheap classes! Allows the studio to attract people outside their average customer base!) but the studio has to be able to handle the increase in yogis.

Here’s an example of how crazy it gets. Look at the number of people that have bought that Groupon with an hour left to go. 1,624 people. I would hate to be a Funky Door customer, because all hell is gonna break loose in that studio. That is too many damn people! Limits people, limits!

 

Health, Life

I Went to Sausalito and Didn’t Even Eat the Cookie

If you think physical activity and social interactions are key components of happiness, then by all means this weekend was a success for me. I took Friday off again, so I did another yoga double. It was fine, but afterwards I was toast. Saturday was beautiful, so Ryan and I rode to Ocean Beach, then made it back in time for yoga (en espanol!), followed by a blow-out housewarming party. Sunday we had planned to do a bike ride with my friend Tristan, and even though the skies were gloomy, we set out for Sausalito. The summary, in crappy phone pics:

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Having a short break in the Presidio. Things were pretty smooth up to the Golden Gate Bridge. By the time we crossed over, it started getting miserable. Rainy, cold, windy, yuk! We huddled under the trees with the wet tourists, ate some fruit leather, then vowed to plow on.

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I was happy that Sausalito pulled out all the stops, including providing me with my own street! Yes, that is a bike seat in my hand. Yes, I’m paranoid about bike theft!

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Things were pretty dead, what with the tourist-unfriendly weather. We decided to duck into a bar and wait out the next ferry with irish coffees. There was a horrible waitress and a cantankerous jazz band in the bar, but all in all it was a great way to pass an afternoon.

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On the way back we had to stop for burgers.

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Because hello, it has a rotating grill thing! Look at it! Look at it! In the words of Alexis K. Tylor “It’s on fire!”

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Things continued to be quiet.

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Ferry ride back. Goodbye Sausalito!

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Hi GGB.

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We were still wet, but who can be upset with an awesome burger?

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Also magical- there were gulls that basically kept circling the boat, then lagging behind, but never truly losing us. It’s like the boat had spirit animals.

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Blahblahblah Alcatraz blahblahblah

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HOME!

The adventure didn’t end after we made it back to SF. Ryan fell over on Market St. and Tristan got half his bike stuck in a BART toll booth. By the time we made it to 16th St, it was raining harder than ever… Whew! What a day!

Health, Life

Well, they broke me. I finally had my breakdown. This one was different from all of the other yoga freakouts I’ve had in the past.

In my class today there were so many people. More than I’d ever seen before. I tried to count and it looked like 60-ish to me, but you can’t be sure. All I knew was that this was a big class. My mat was an oasis in the a sea of skin and sweat.

The things that went through my mind during my freak out:

1. This teacher is phoning it in. Her voice is killing me. I wonder if she’s having a bad day… Who cares, she should fake it. How am I going to make it another hour and 15 minutes?

2. I wonder if someone is stealing shit from Ryan’s bicycle right now. This studio really needs to get a security camera or figure that shit out. It’s in their best interest to create a safe environment.

3. Why did they raise their prices from $14 to $18 a class? That’s 29%! This overcrowded class is not worth $18. Or maybe they raised the prices so less people would come…?

4. If you’re going to do a promo on Living Social or Town Hog, you need to have the capacity to handle it. Shoving extra people into the room does not solve the problem.

5. They need to set a cap on class size. What is the fire code? Is this against the law?

6. Why are we doing this to ourselves?

And on. And on. And on. While these things were going on inside my head I sat on my mat and stared at myself.

Somehow I got over my panic attack and back to it, but the facts remain: classes have been too crowded for the last month, bikram is going to be expensive after my challenge special pricing is over, and it’s not safe to leave my bike locked up down there. Is it time to find another studio?

Health, Life

Well, here we are at Day 6 of the 30 Day Challenge.

I have gone to yoga 7 times in the last 6 days. Only 23 more to go! HA. HA. HA.

On Friday I did my first “double” – went at noon, took a break, then went back again at 4:30. It really wasn’t as physically rough as I thought it would be, as I paced myself all day long, taking many breaks and not pushing myself as hard as normal. Psychologically I was a little off, but no emotional breakdowns, so success!

I won’t lie, today I’m feeling the newness and excitement wear off. I am anxious because I’m exhausted and things feel like they’re getting harder. Ryan and I are headed out to Austin in the middle of the month for vacation, so I need to fit 3 more doubles in to complete the challenge. Somehow it’s gonna happen. Just not going to think about it too much.

In other news, the Bike Thief has struck again! A month or so ago, in the indoor courtyard at yoga where we park our bikes, the Bike Thief stole Ryan’s handlebars and my back light holder. Ryan fixed his handlebars, this time adding in ball bearings so the bars would be unstealable. Last night the Bike Thief tried to steal his handlebars again, and when that didn’t work out, they took his back brakes! And then today the Bike Thief stole 2 seats from bikes parked in the courtyard. I saw one of the victims trudging down to the bike shop with her seatless bike today… Depressing!

Not sure what to do about the Bicycle Thief, but definitely walking to class whenever I can. :/

 

Health, Life

Doing the Bikram Challenge

 

Arda-Chandrasana with Pada-Hastasana

Well it’s really happening! Ryan and I bought a 60 day unlimited pass for the Bikram Challenge at our yoga studio. Normally I think these things are nuts, but Ryan got really close to making it happen last month. I’m feeling inspired by him-so I think I’m going to do it! Why the hell not? Here are the details:

  • Go to yoga 30 times in 30 days or 60 times in 60 days
  • You can skip days by going twice in one day but not three times in one day (I heard stories of one teacher doing 8 classes in one day- that’s the stuff of legend.)
  • If you make it, you get a t-shirt. But more than that, after 30/60 days you will either be blown out or zenned out, physically and emotionally. Can’t wait!

It is my belief that you are more likely to accomplish goals if you have a clear vision, so here is what I want:

  • I would like to do the 30 Day Challenge
  • I would like to lose a couple pounds (not that I need to, it just seems like it would be weird if I DIDN’T after all of that)
  • I would like to go a little crazy
  • I want a little less pain in my left shoulder, knees, and right toes
  • I would like to get really great at locust pose

I will be updating my progress on this blog, so do check back! I predict tears and self doubt by next Monday!