DAY 29 CLASS 28 AND 29!!
ALWAYS DOUBLE DOWN ON 29. Always. It was a successful double this morning. I was nervous (surprise, surprise) but knew that once I got there I would be fine. My co-worker Damonte came with me to the first class.
We walked over to the studio and we went through the check list – water, mat, towel. He didn’t have any. We “borrowed” bottles of water from the bell stand, a towel from housekeeping and he rented a mat at the studio. I asked him if he was nervous, but he was really more just eager to start.
I went into the locker room to change while he signed in, and ran into one of my favorite instructors. She’s the one I see the least, and she asked what day – when I told her it was #29 and I was in for a double she said “Oh good! I’m teaching the next class.” I immediately said “Duh, as if I didn’t check the schedule!” She’s very calming and supportive so I knew that her as my 2nd class instructor I’d feel confident.
Damonte and I walked in to the studio and he said that he thought it’d be hotter. He immediately set up his mat and towel and sat down on it. I set my mat up next to him, but then when my instructor friend came in and set her stuff up in the front row, she invited me next to her. So I ditched Damonte and moved to the front row. Haha. I think it was better because then we weren’t in each others soft focus.
The first class went by quickly, because all I was thinking about was the next one and trying to pace myself. It sounded like D did really good! The instructor for the 8am class was the owner of the studio, the one that threw me off that one day. He was really great talking D through poses as he was the only newbie in the class. When we got to camel pose (which is 3 poses and a breathing exercise from the end) the instructor said “Don’t worry Damonte, this is our half way point.” Everyone laughed, including D, who knew he had to be kidding.
When the class was over Damonte was just full of energy and smiling ear to ear. He was so proud of himself and felt so accomplished. He said he really enjoyed the class and is going back on Sunday for the 8am.
I wish we had taken a before picture, because that shirt is light grey, not dark grey. That’s sweat…
He left sweaty and proud and I was left to myself to complete my 2nd class. My mat was left in the front row and I came back to it ready for the next 90 minutes. It’s funny that before the 2nd class starts it’s extremely daunting to think of 2 classes however once it starts it’s like you just got there. I could tell some poses were easy but I wasn’t as flexible as I thought I’d be for a double.
There’s a saying that goes the way you are on the mat reflects the way you are in life. So someone that is fidgety and constantly wiping their sweat away, is someone that gets annoyed easily. Same goes for everything and anything you can relate to, I’m sure. Today I realized something.
I realized that some days after class, I do not feel fully spent. I feel like I spend half of my energy trying to conserve energy so that I can make it all the way through class. This realization made me sad because I feel like that is sort of my life right now, where I don’t try my hardest all the time because I’m constantly afraid of burning out, or left feeling empty.
I hold back with a lot of things – emotions, creativity, dreams, adventures. There’s a lot. I’m realizing this now, which is good and the next step would be to make a conscious effort to change that. It’s scary because there’s always the fear of “what if I give it my all and that’s not enough.” However, I know that when I’m old and settled down my heart will know if I truly tried or just did enough to get by.
Right after this realization we went into balancing stick. A 10 second leg stand with one leg and arms directly out and up, so that your body looks like a capitol T. They say “make up your mind – you can do anything for 10 seconds.” I had just decided to give it my all, not hold back and just then the teacher said “excellent job, Duffy.”
There is definitely something to this yoga challenge. 29 days in the bag, I will see you tomorrow for the big day — #30. I am so proud and feel so good. This has just been the most amazing experience.
Until tomorrow…
Adventures of the untoward 