40 Days - Week 1 Presence

My yoga studio is holding a free 40 Days to Personal Revolution program in honor of their 10 year anniversary.  I decided to sign up for it because 1) It's free, so that's a no brainer and 2) I have been so sick and fatigued with this pregnancy that it has been really easy for me to skip my 7pm yoga class.  So I mostly wanted to sign up to to hold myself accountable.

What is 40 Days?  

The 40 days program is based off the book 40 Days to Personal Revolution by Baron Baptiste (I practice Baptiste yoga which is hot power yoga).  The book is divided up into weeks and each week we have a reading to do followed by some excavation questions.  We have a weekly meeting with the participants (250 people are participating at my studio) where we do group discussions, partner work and work within our small groups.  We also have to practice yoga 5 times per week at the studio and once at home, meditate twice per day, write in a  journal and focus on eating healthy, fresh foods.

Week 1 Presence:

The first week started with a kick-off meeting at the studio.  We were put into small groups where we discussed our reasons for joining 40 days and our goals for the program.  Yoga is such a solitary thing where we arrive, focus on ourselves, practice solo and then leave.  This has been great to meet other people who love yoga as much as I do!  It also made me discover that I had a third reason for joining the program:  meeting more like-minded individuals.  

We were given our assigned reading for the week: 100 pages!  By far the longest reading of the program because the book went into depth on the 12 Laws of Transformation before getting into our weekly theme of presence.  I did not want to do my usual behavior where I wait until the night before to read everything so I actually spread it out over the week and was finished by Thursday.  The book has been pretty interesting so far.  It's not all new age mumbo jumbo, Baptiste really has some insightful information and he draws a lot on both Christianity and Buddhism when he is discussing presence.  Each weekly chapter focuses on the theme of the week, this week is presence, and how we can find presence in yoga, meditation and in our diet.  

The end of the chapter has excavation questions that are designed to get the reader thinking more deeply about presence and to prepare us for week 2:  vitality.  Examples of some of the questions are:  Where in my life am I fully present?  Where in my life am I hiding?  Where in my life am I flirting with disaster?  The idea is that we contemplate all of the questions during the week, journal about them and then discuss them at the next weekly meeting.

So far I am really enjoying this whole program.  The book, questions and meetings have me thinking and doing some self-reflecting that I usually do not do.  The yoga aspect has absolutely held me accountable.  I completed all of my yoga sessions last week and now actually crave yoga more than ever.  I wish I had time to go to multiple classes per day!  I've even fully researched the yoga studios in my upcoming cities of travel (New Orleans and Charlottesville) so I have no excuses when I am on the road.  I am still lifting weights and doing cardio but yoga is my top priority so if I have to skip a workout during the day, I make sure it is not the yoga.  I've also noticed that my yoga practice has improved.  I have become more fluid when we are in flow and I can go deeper into poses.  Of course, I still have to take more breaks that usual since I am pregnant and the heat definitely tires me out more than it did before!  But I can feel myself getting "better" on my mat each class.  My yoga instructors are so inspiring too.  Most of them are participating as different weekly group leaders so they focus on the themes of the week during class.

One thing that has been totally new to me has been meditation.  Prior to this week, I had meditated once, a few weeks ago.  After the 11:30am yoga class on Sundays they offer a 15 minute meditation and I hung around once to try it because I love that particular instructor.  It was...interesting, but I found my mind drifting the whole time.  In this program we have to meditate twice per day.  First starting at 5 minutes and eventually going up to 30!!  I looked up some 5 minute guided meditation podcasts because I was pretty sure I could not just sit there for 5 minutes listening to nothing.  The first couple of times I did the 5 minute meditation, it was a struggle, but by the end of the week I was finding that the time was flying by.  I work on letting go of my thoughts as they come into my head.  Some days it's harder than others, especially if I have a 2 year old and a cat trying to climb on me but I try my best.  I usually do my first meditation some time after breakfast and my second one right before I get ready for bed.  I do find that I am very refreshed after my meditation sessions.  It actually feels like I just woke up from a nap.  I'm not sure how I will ever find the time to get in two 30 minute meditations per day, but I will cross that bridge when I come to it!

I've been trying to journal each night too.  I think last week I managed 5 out of 7 days journaling.  I just use the Notes app on my phone and only take pen to paper when I'm doing the weekly excavation questions in our guidebook.  

On Sunday night we had our weekly meeting where we shared with a partner.  I shared with a girl from my group who has a seriously amazing yoga story.  A few years ago she was in an awful car accident and could not walk.  She was doing physical therapy but it was not doing much for her.  She ended up getting a beginners yoga DVD and all of her yoga healed her better than PT!  Her doctors were shocked!  Now you can't even tell that she had an issues walking before.  Isn't that awesome??

Our meeting also had a bunch of people doing "pop up shares" and sharing with the group their answers to the questions.  We ended it looking forward to week 2:  vitality, and discussing how we can take our answers from the question "Where are you hiding" and turn that into vitality and committing to growth.  

Week 1 I definitely learned that I need to work on being more present in my life.  I am looking forward to seeing what I learn in week 2!  So far so good!  The hardest part so far has been those 10 minute meditations!

Hot Yoga Tips for Newbies

I went to my first yoga class in 2004  After a year of classes, I moved to another city and away from my gym.  This led to a few years away from yoga. It wasn't until 2010 when I found P90X, and its weekly 90 minute yoga workout, that I started to practice again.  My practice was mostly at home, with a few free classes that were offered around the city in 2011.  I loved those free outdoor classes!  Of course during my pregnancy in 2013 I did prenatal yoga but after the pregnancy, I returned to practicing at home.

This past fall I really felt an urge to start practicing at a studio again.  I researched all of the local studios and found a great one only a 10 minute walk from my house.  The only problem was that it was hot yoga and I had never tried hot yoga before.  I wasn't sure I would like the heat and being extra sweaty.  But I gave it a try and am in love!  I've been going regularly for 6 months now.  I average 3 times per week because we travel a lot and I had a period of sickness where I skipped class for 3 straight weeks, but my goal is 5 times per week.

I've had a few people ask me about hot yoga so I thought I would write up some tips for newbies who are curious about venturing into the sweatier side of yoga.

1) Drop expectations

Every yoga studio is different.  Mine has no music or mirrors.  Other studios have both of those.  You have to find the studio with the vibe and community that feels right to you.  Each time I practice at a different studio, or even practice with somebody different at my studio, I learn a pose I didn't know.  Or I will learn new ways to approach a certain pose.  It's OK to not know every pose and to look around to see how it's done.  Nobody cares, trust me.  Everybody is focuses on their breathing and their focal point to worry about what somebody on the next mat is doing.

2)  Get a yoga towel, or three!

I went to my first two classes without a yoga towel and I was slipping and sliding all over my mat.  I honestly had no clue that people even used a yoga towel! They are essential because they keep you from sliding while you are dripping sweat all over.  I love my Lululemon yoga towels.  I have 3 fun colored ones that I rotate.  These towels are the same size as your mat.  When you get to class you put down your mat, cover it with the towel and spray the towel with water so it sticks.  As you sweat on the towel, it stays in place pretty well.  They also have the added benefit of prolonging the life of your yoga mat, which is always a plus.

3)  Hydrate

You will be sweating A LOT.  My classes are 95+ degrees.  Hydration before, during and after is key. I'm usually starving after class, which most times is a sign that I need to chug some water.  Definitely do not go to class without a water bottle.  I have witnessed people not bring any water to class and they spend a lot of time running back and forth to the water fountain.

4) Don't be afraid to take child's pose

Hot yoga is hard.  I think it is much more difficult that it's non-heated counterpart.  I do hot power vinyasa (Baptiste yoga) and sometimes I just need to rest.  Or take a minute to drink some water (I drink a ton during class).  Nobody judges.  Everybody takes child's pose at some point.  Yesterday I had a particularly hard class and took child's pose quite a few times. I wasn't the only one.

If you love yoga, hot yoga is definitely something to try.  It's not for everyone but I personally love the feeling of sweating it all out.  All that sweat is supposed to detox our bodies too, so that's an added benefit.  Since committing to regular hot yoga I have absolutely improved my practice.  I can do poses I never could before, including some that I had never even heard of.  I also really love going to a studio and learning from different teachers.  They all approach the practice in a different way.  I know which instructor will kick my butt with a hard workout.  I know which one will really make me focus on myself and my thoughts.  I know which one encourages play and trying new things whether you fall over or not.  

If you are in the Charlotte area, I highly recommend dropping by my studio for a class.  It's fantastic and I promise you will fall in love!  Yoga one:  www.y1now.com

Spartan Race Tips for Newbies

A little more than a week ago I ran my first Spartan race.  This was something I wanted to do for years but due to physical therapy and a restriction on running, I did not feel I was ready for it until this year.  Before the race I read a lot of articles and joined a Facebook group called Southern Spartans (this group is a fantastic resource for anybody in the South interested in Obstacle Course Racing).  I thought I would take what I learned and my experience as a first timer and write a blog for newbies who have no clue where to start.

What is the Spartan Sprint?

The Sprint is one of three races that make up the Trifecta.  It's the shortest so it makes sense for beginners to start here.  I definitely plan to earn my Trifecta in 2017!  The Sprint is 3-5 miles and 20+ obstacles.  The other two that qualify for the Trifecta are the Super which is 8+ miles/25+ obstacles and the Beast which is 13+ miles and 30+ obstacles.  The race I ran was 5.25 miles and 24 obstacles.  I learned that most races tend to be on the longer side than what Spartan states.  To get an idea of how long the Sprint takes, the average time at my race from the previous year was 2 hours and 15 minutes with the fastest time by the elite male winner at around 50 minutes.  My time was 2:17 and that was done without much running beforehand.  I absolutely expect my next time to be much better.

Training

For my race I started doing the Couch to 10K app about 4 months in advance.  I already did regular cardio and lifting so I just needed to log some miles and needed to ease myself back into running.  I ended up getting extremely sick for 2 months of my training and in the 2 months before the race only ran twice with my longest distance only being 3 miles.  Obviously if I had to do it all over again, I would have run more (like I planned).  One of the guys on my team had only ran 2 miles as his longest run and he managed to survive the race too, so it's possible to do this one without much long distance training.  The longest stretch we ran without an obstacle was a little over a mile at the beginning of the race.  However, you absolutely need endurance to keep running after doing obstacles and/or burpees.  

Trail running is also very important since the race course is usually hilly and through the woods.  Everybody told me how important trail running would be for this race.  It's just a different animal than running through the city or on a treadmill.  My course was on a farm and even the flat ground was full of little holes.  It was described as a flat course in the Spartan world, but we ran up and down hills, through the woods, over logs and in streams.  Trail running really would have come in handy!  My team's coach said most people underestimate the running.  

Upper body strength is also very, very important in these races.  Obstacles include scaling walls (up to 8 feet!), monkey bars, carrying a heavy bucket, carrying a heavy stone, carrying sandbags, rope climbing, etc.  Even though I was consistently lifting for 2.5 years before the race, upper body strength is still a major weakness of mine and it is something I know I need to work on even more next time.  I was obviously not very good at wall climbing, monkey bar type obstacles and ropes.  Thankfully, I had my husband to help me.  Even though other racers can help you over walls, you can never have too much upper body strength for these races!  Dead hangs really help develop grip strength (pull-ups do too, obviously, but not everyone can do those!).  I will work more with dead hangs to prepare for my next race.

Burpees are also key to practice.  Each obstacle you fail you have to do 30!  Going on a run and stopping to do burpees throughout is a great way to mimic parts of the race.  Burpees get really difficult after you've been running and climbing for over an hour.  

In addition to endurance and strength, the biggest thing that's needed during one of these races is mental toughness.  It's one thing to run 5 miles.  It's another thing to do a series of difficult obstacles, to get wet and extremely uncomfortable and still keep running.  I can't wait to do the Super and the Beast and see how those races challenge me.  

What do you need?

Since the Sprint is the shortest, you don't really need to pack a bunch of snacks and a CamelBak.  My race had 3 water stations spread out throughout the course so I never needed any more water.  I ate a Quest bar shortly before the race so I wouldn't end up starving halfway through.  At the end of the race you are handed more water plus a FitAid, plus a Clif bar, banana and beer ticket.  They take care of you at the end!  I did pack some Gu gel chews just in case and ended up eating a pack at the third water station.  I brought gloves to assist with rope climbing but they never ended up coming out of the bag.  I will probably nix the gloves next time.  The rope climb was at the very end, covered in mud so by the time we got there we were frozen and could hardly work our hands so the gloves would not have helped at all.  Obviously, many burpees were done.

Good trail sneakers are also a must.  I saw a few people slide and fall down when running downhill.  I even saw one fall while walking downhill during the bucket carry.  My shoes had such great grip I could run up and down hills without any problems.  I also followed a tip to put some duct tape on the heels of my foot so I would not get any blisters.  I went against advice and wore brand new shoes on race day (thanks to me being too sick to break them in on trail runs) and I did not have any problems at all with blisters or soreness.  The duct tape was amazing.  It held in place despite the water (we ran through a stream pretty much right away) and I did not even notice I had the tape on my feet.

Clothing is also very important on race day.  I repeatedly read people exclaim:  NO COTTON!  So I wore a long sleeved Under Armour cold gear shirt, some Under Armour capris and compression socks.  My race day was very cold and windy but I was completely comfortable in my outfit (until the very end after I was submerged in ice cold water with the wind blowing on me).  Some girls wear short shorts and sports bras...I think that's a little crazy since you crawl under barbed wire.  My race the ground was all rocky.  I'd image if I wore less clothing I would come home with some scrapes and cuts to go along with all of my bruises.

Another seemingly random thing that is good to have with you is mustard.  Mustard helps with muscle cramps.  I grabbed a handful while walking through my mall's food court the night before.  Neither my husband nor myself needed any, but we did give a pack to somebody on the side of the course, rubbing a sore muscle.  So they did come in handy, even if we didn't use any ourselves.  

I go by the motto better safe than sorry.  Between my husband and myself we had 6 Gu gel packs and 4 mustard packs.  On a longer race we would have more supplies (protein bars, other snacks, a CamelBak).

The Spartan Sprint is definitely designed so anybody can finish it.  It's not too crazy long where you need a lot of long distance training runs (like the Beast) and teamwork can help you get through the obstacles.  Everybody is very nice and helpful.  I slipped at the top of my climb up the slip wall and some random man grabbed my hands and hauled me over the top.  It's also a great way to challenge yourself.  If you have been thinking about trying out one of these runs at all, I definitely suggest going for it!  Plus you get a cool medal and a finisher shirt at the end to show off!