Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Damn, that's HOT!

I've recently discovered that my leg issues (from running) have not gone away. And because I have no intention of quitting running, I've got to figure out a cure for these leg problems.

I went to physio. Didn't help. I went to a reflexologist/chiro dude. Was sort of helpful... but not enough.

So now, I've turned my hopes to yoga. Not just any yoga, though. I'm talking about a new-fangled type of yoga that may or may not be considered just a trend among the latte-drinking-downtown-dwelling hipsters. Either way, I tried it out last night... and I loved it.

I'm talking about Hot Yoga. You've heard of this, yes?

This is where you, and many other people in very little clothing, file into a small-ish room and do various stretching and balancing and posing, all in a heated environment. Now, when I say "heated", I don't mean a snuggly warm, toasty, feel-good room. I mean a "feels like you're in the nexus of hell" heated room.

Last night, as I was twisting into a downward dog, listening to the instructor exclaim: "Wow. Like totally just stretch to the sky. Wow. Yes. Reach with all your energy and spirit", I had a moment where I thought to myself "What am I doing??" The sweat was literally (and I really, truly mean literally) pouring off of me. I've never felt my eyelids sweat before last night. My shins were drenched. I didn't even know shins could sweat!

Anyway, at some point in between getting used to all the sweat and wondering if I was going to vomit or not (due to the heat), I started feeling really good. My body felt... good. At the risk of sounding like Moonflower the Instructor, my body felt light. And at ease.

If you think about it, I had been stretching for about an hour. In a heated room, so my muscles were instantly warmed up, meaning I could stretch further for longer. No wonder I felt so good.

Anyway, so now I'm hooked. And I am totally putting the "hot" into "hot yoga", baby.

4 comments:

  1. This sounds like it might be the answer you have been looking for. I have heard people rave about it. Good luck.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think you and are are destined to agree to disagree.
    I tried Hot Yoga a couple months ago - myself and two friends who associate discomfort with doing something good for your body.

    I was *so* uncomfortable during the session that I could not concentrate on the yoga at all. I just wanted it to be over. I normally love yoga.

    But of course, my masochistic friends LOVED it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Haha! Yes, we probably will disagree. I truly felt good. I was on a total high! And afterwards, I had a hot shower and slept like a baby... It was great!

    Also - as corny as it may sound - our instructor kept telling us to honour our bodies. So, if something felt uncomfortable, I wouldn't do it. And, if I got too hot, I stopped and just focused on my breathing for a moment.

    But anyway - to each his own! :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. My cousin's wife is around your age and one of those crazy runners - she just wrote a blog about running that you might like:
    http://tinypants.wordpress.com/2008/08/22/lovehatehokeyness/

    ReplyDelete