Going back to Bikram Yoga

Tonight, I picked up my yoga mat again and sweated it out at the Bikram Yoga Manila studio in Makati. It's been exactly a year today when I found out that I was six weeks pregnant. And it's been exactly one year ago that I did my last practice in my beginner's form in the hot room. 

Yoga essentials: yoga mat, yoga towel, water bottle

Months before I found out the biggest surprise of our lives -- tadah! we're pregnant, I was actively doing yoga: once a day, seven days a week. In early 2014, I came back to the studio to improve my posture, sweat out the toxins and hoping against hope, to lose some unwanted inches. Perhaps, it too prepared my body for pregnancy. I was practicing the whole six weeks of my pregnancy because I didn't find out until the sixth week.

Night after night, I'd go home with aching muscles. There's nothing else much that I was capable of doing except to prepare my yoga clothes for the next day. The one benefit that I swore to be the best is being able to sleep soundly at night and wake up the next day renewed and refreshed. 

In the weeks of my practice I've also noticed that my eating habits have been adjusted. I ate a controlled portion at lunch. No more snacking in between lunch and yoga practice or else, I'd pay for it inside the heated room. Dinner after yoga has been reduced to small portions of light meals because I feel like am still very full -- well, considering that I chug a liter of water before practice and another liter during the one hour and thirty minute practice...

After a year of no practice and practically leading a sedentary life, I decided to go back again. It has always been in my horizon that I'd go back after I gave birth... that I'd find a way to fit it in my schedule. 

But the reality is -- the first time, the first instance of commitment is always the hardest to start. So what tipped the scale? 

My 15 pounds (7 kilos) bundle of joy loves to be carried. She bounces her feet when we're heading out to the lobby, the pool area or even just at the hallway of our building. And boy, she loves it when we do bursts of sprints along the short length of our hallway. Her squeals of delight send me to mommy heaven. But I always end up breathless and panting after such a seemingly simple activity. 

And so it dawned on me that I should do something. I may not be able to outsmart time but at least I can ease myself into delaying the setbacks of ageing. 

Commiting to practice yoga and living an active (read: it's definition is relative ha ha) lifestyle will help prepare me for the days when my baby's idea of play time is running, climbing trees, scaling uphill grounds, and rolling in the hills. 

It would be a bonus if along the way, I'd lose my pregnancy weight. So, here's to my 30-day challenge. 

Namaste. 

Xx

Sheng

Yogini Wannabe

I have a confession to make. My life has narrowed so tightly to just work, yoga and the occasional hangout with friends -- after yoga. In between, I squeeze in a little quality time with the husband. 

In January this year, I made a vow to practice yoga at least 3x a week. My reasons are as varied as the stars in the universe. But one thing that kept me on my toes has been the stark reality of aging, wellness and motherhood-dreams.  

I have never been the athletic type growing up. I dabbled in badminton and bowling but these are all just recreational pursuits. Nothing really for health and fitness. In my early 20s, vanity was second nature to me. Next to the mall, my second most frequented place was the gym. Yes, I signed up in an insanely expensive gym and bought ridiculously overpriced gym gear so I stay motivated. 

Those were the years that I'd firmly stick to gym first before hanging out with friends. I even go to the gym immediately after church service! But those years were gone. And those stick-to-it-tiveness mantra slipped away with the wind more than a decade later. 

I saw myself growing extra layers around my mid-section, little by little. But I got paralyzed into inaction. Instead of doing something about it, I let it go. And then one day, something snapped in me. 

Last year, I made the decision to go back to practicing bikram yoga again. About five years ago, I tried it. I sort of hated and loved it. And it kept me going. However, work-life got in the way and I allowed it to be a definitive excuse for living a sedentary life. 

From then on, my life got a little more complicated. I developed a hypo-thyroid which makes my metabolic rate slower than it already is. And the constant dinner out and fast food meals added to my ONE BIG FAT SELF. 

 

Look at my round belly! This nasty shape was taken in January 2014.

This February (2014), my tummy became less protruding; less scary.

Last year, I made a re-entry into the health club. I went back to my old Bikram Yoga studio. It was a struggle going to the studio because of the incessant temptation to just go to the mall, dinner out with friends and just plainly succumb to laziness. 

The road to fitness for myself is long, winded and an uphill battle. Showing up with my mat at the studio is an everyday mental challenge. January 2014 saw me struggle and juggle work and my yoga practice. It saw me ditching conference dinners in favor of attending a yoga session. 

I've shown up in work events with my yoga mat, in tow, in the hopes that if and when the event ends before 7pm, I shall make a dash to the studio. I've had close calls where I arrived at the studio with just literally one-minute to spare before the class starts: setup my mat and towel and change into my yoga outfit. 

I made a pact with myself: if I make it to the studio 21x then, yoga will be my way to wellness. Everyday, I cross off the date on my calendar that I've gone to yoga. And it gives me great satisfaction that in spite the work schedule (local business trips), I have attended 34 sessions in total for January and February. Yay!

I set out to do yoga so I am able to help ease myself into a healthy lifestyle. I eat less. I have substituted rice for easier to digest carbs. I have given up soda and other flavored drinks. I drink more water, at least 3000mL everyday. I sleep better at night. 

It's been two months that I religiously went to the studio. I began with the goal of just being active albeit low impact so I can correct my habits and lifestyle. Two months later, I discovered that I can now touch my toes, bend my back and fit in my clothes better. Two months later, I lost 3 inches in my mid-section; 5lbs from my overweight being. And I gained several inches of renewed hope that I will get to a better shape before the season ends. 

 

A photo taken last 22 Feb 2014. Notice my tummy? hehehe

Everyday, our battle cry is to deliver the plan. And to bend it like Bikram. 

I am a long way from there but I can see that the end is in sight. The road may be slippery but I will hold on regardless of the endless soreness on my thighs, on my arms, and on my back. And anywhere else that has been stretched, pulled, and tightened. 

My Yoga Buddy, Dawn is an inspiration. And my accountability partner.

If you want to see if Bikram Yoga can be your vehicle to fitness, go check it out. Click here. You might just love it. And it would be so awesome to meet you there. And I tell you the teachers are superb, fabulous and kind. There are so many yoga studios that have sprouted around the metro but I found myself just loving the first studio that introduced me to the hot room, Bikram Yoga Manila. 

Dawn and I are really inspired to take our yoga journey seriously that we are writing a diary about it. 

Good luck on your hot, hot, hot date! See you there! And please watch out for our Bikram Diaries.

Xx

Sheng

Birthday Wish List

Needless to say, June is my favorite my month. That's because it's my birthday month. Yay.  This year marks my 35 years of adventure in this world. I have done many things, switched jobs and careers, moved to different cities, traveled (but not as much as I want to), bought a house and got married. 

At 35, I think it would a steadier year. Breaking new grounds, gaining more friends, living a dynamic married life and consistent blogging are my serious wishes for the year. I do sincerely hope and pray that they be granted. I pray  the prayer of Jabez that my territory would also be enlarged.

But if it rained wishes-do-come-true on other things like consumables, I would gladly have these awesome stuff:

1. I love writing notes. And so I would love to have one or two of Isabel Gatustlao's flat note cards. They're awesome. I think I would easily get one of these as good friend Erika Saenz offered to gift me one.

2. I would like to trade my iPad 2 for an iPad Mini. I love it (iPad 2) still but it's just way heavier than the mini. I don't really watch movies and videos on it so no hard feelings. I think the Mini would be perfect size and weight for my reading fest. And even blogging. 

3. Bikram Yoga pass. I kept on postponing enrollment. I would really want to go because it's good for my thyroid.

 

4. Photography classes. I want to attend a class on digital photography. Preferably one that zeroes in on the use of just digital cameras like my trusty Olympus. If the world is kind I would want an OM-D.

Photo Source: Virtualsciencelab.blogspot.com

5. A nice bag. Promise this will be the only bag I will buy have this year.

6. A sleek 11-inch MacBook Air will thrill me to the bones. 

 Sigh. A girl can dream, right?

XX

Sheng

Bikram Yoga: A novice's tale

A few years back, I enrolled myself in Bikram Yoga. Primarily to lose weight. Secondarily, to stretch my sleeping muscles trapped in mounds of fat. 

Back story: I didn't just wake up one day and saw that I have gained almost twice my original weight. I saw myself progressing, pound per pound. Blame it on the job and the place where I got assigned to for work. Being in field sales didn't do any good to my already wobbly will to engage in active lifestyle. 

From that day on, I spiraled and bloated. I had my failed attempts at losing the extra pounds -- gym, diet pills, running/jogging, die-eating, and then, yoga. And not just any yoga, I chose Bikram Yoga. 

Bikram yoga is practiced in a hot room. The heated room is set at 38 degrees Celsius. Hot, hot, hot! It's meant to allow the muscles to stretch by warming them and the sweat generated by the heat detoxifies the body, thereby, flushing out toxins. 

It is composed of 26 poses, repeated twice. One session is a good 90 minute practice. 

The first time I practiced, everyone around me was sweating buckets but me. Not a drop. The succeeding days saw me experiencing dampness on my face and my limbs. Then, over a month of regular sessions, I started to experience what sweating really meant. 

And that's when I started feeling the looseness of my tighter clothes. And I felt more limber. So, I should have continued, right?

Wrong. I got sidelined. I started taking the easy route. Going to the mall, hanging out, dining out. Then, I kept gaining and retaining all the fats I've ingested. But I was unfazed. 

What was I thinking? Nothing. I wasn't thinking. For a long time. Brisk walking for two hours helped but the rain gets in the way. Hihihi. 

So, last night I went back to the studio. Enrolled myself. And practiced my first session together with good friend, Cathy. Ah, the first few minutes spending in the dark heated room meant for practitioners to relax already made us sweat!

I was nervous. The heat can induce nausea and vomiting. Mid-way to the session, I felt dizzy. So, I had to sit down. Otherwise, I feel that I'll throw up. 

And then, the poses were just so hard to follow? From the outset, it looks easy enough. Bending here, stretching there. But doing it right is a different story. And holding it in for a few more seconds and defying your limits (gravity) is another twist to the story. 

This morning, I woke up with aching limbs. It feels like I've been in a fight the night before. I was tempted not to go to work. Ha! Sleeping in would have made me feel better. 

But no, I moved along at a snail's pace. The first thing I did? Fix my yoga mat, yoga towel, my clothes for the hot room, my small travel essentials (for shower afterwards) and change of clothes. 

Am I going back tonight? Yes, definitely. I want to make my muscles remember the poses and learn to enjoy the heat and the practice. Hopefully, in the process I would lose a few inches. And my money gains mileage. Bikram Yoga is expensive. Sigh.

Why do I keep on trying? One person inspires me the most. She used to be my yoga teacher. She's become a good friend. And whichever part of the world she goes, she teaches and practices bikram yoga. 

Joyce, send me some good vibes from miles away.

Someday, I'd like to practice with you again. Hopefully, I'd be able to be at least half-decently able to do the poses, right. 

Namaste. 

Should you want to check out Bikram Yoga Manila's studio, click this link. 

XX