Human Lota Should be Expected in Bikram Yoga

Onzie Bandeau Top and Shorts

Earlier this week I felt like the human lota, perhaps appropriate since lota in India refers to a "small vessle, usually used to carry water or milk." My dad has one, it's a magic trick. I've never seen a real lota, only those in magic acts, though I suspect they are similar in design. My dad's magical lota usually holds water that gets put into a glass, then later in the show, he dumps more water into a glass, completely emptying the lota. Later, he pours more water from the lota into a glass and this goes on and on throughout the act. It's quite funny. It isn't quite as funny when you ARE the lota, but it is still kind of funny, especially when THAT is what you are thinking about in class when you are suppose to be focused on yoga.

I got this great gift from Onzie, a bandeau top and yoga shorts. I'm not typically a fan of bandeau tops, mostly because of two reasons, one, they fall down on me (not a lot there to hold it up) and two, if it doesn't fall then it slowly inches down from the top and up from the bottom so you end up with this tiny strip across your chest that looks like a distant cousin of the original bandeau. So when I got the bandeau I wasn't sure I was going to like it but lots of people are wearing them here and no one seems to mind if the tops end up looking like strips of ribbon so I thought I would give it a shot.

Wow, I love it! It doesn't slip at all, it has a lining in it that "grips" so it doesn't slip or slip and it stays the same size as when it started! I noticed when I was wearing it I tugged on it a few times out of habit but it wasn't really moving. Loved it so much I bought two more. And the shorts? Those are great too, simply, short yoga shorts that are a great lightweight fabric. Both wash well too.

On to the lota. So I am in my new bandeau top and shorts and I have a pretty good sweat going on. We step to the left of our mats to do Standing Separate Leg Stretching Pose and as I go down, sweat slowly streamed out the top, middle part of the bandeau! lol (where my cleavage is) I'm suppose to be looking at the floor at this point but I'm busy watching the sweat stream out of my top onto the floor. Then it stops, like it has drained out all it can.

So we do the second set and the same thing happens, I bend down and sweat starts to slowly stream out of my top in a nice line, like I am the darn "vessle" and my top is the spout where it comes out! I'm the human lota! I laughed quietly to myself for the next few postures. I've been the Human Pin Cushion (magic trick) before but the Human Lota is new ground!

Halfway Done Already?!

Halfway point! Wow! It is hard to imagine half of teacher training is over, I feel like I just got here. It has really been an amazing experience so far. Highs and lows for sure, good and bad, fun and not so fun...but all great learning experiences and opportunities for me to grow. I'm really trying to take each experience and improve myself. (And I think it's working!)

My roomie and I were talking a few days ago about how going back home will be kind of a culture shock all over again. We have really been spoiled here, only having to take care of ourselves and even in that task, most of the days events are planned and we just have to show up. Going home after 9 weeks, back to responsibilities, family, friends, work, my cat....it will be a big change from my life in the yoga bubble.

But back to the here and now. Body is feeling the effects of doing yoga twice a day, every day. Legs are sore, sciatic nerve is P-I-S-S-E-D O-F-F. Muscles I never knew I used much are feeling tight and knotted up. My postures are getting worse and it is harder to stay in postures, mostly because, well, my sciatic nerve is  P-I-S-S-E-D O-F-F. We did learn in Anatomy that the issues we are feeling because of the sciatic nerve aren't really things wrong with the nerve but more the muscles are pressing against the nerve, making it signal the brain to feel pain. Nice right?

The other day it was so bad I had some pain in my side hip, more under my butt and when I pressed on it, a shooting pain went all the way down my leg to my toes! WOW! For those of you that don't know, the sciatic nerve goes all the way down the leg.

So I've been using the foam roller I bought when I got here, such a life saver! It isn't really fixing the issue, that probably will require rest and no stretching, but it is helping and certainly does wonders for knotted up muscles.

I'm also getting fat. Not really. I'm um, retaining water. Yea, that's it. Or the other thing I hear around here... "you are gaining muscle and it is pushing the fat out, so you just LOOK fatter." Whatever right? All I know is my jeans don't fit and I keep thinking of all the clothes I have at home that won't fit when I get back.

My roomie had to buy a tape measure so I borrowed it and took my measurements. Not going to share here but lets just say it was um, uh, not good. I am sure the cake, gummie bears, marinated artichoke hearts, fried rice, gum drops, yogurt covered pretzels and the other "yummy" things I've been eating aren't helping. One would think practicing yoga for over 3 hours a day would give you a pass so you could eat what you want but that is NOT the case....apparently. So, new regiment, right after I finish the bag of gum drops, is to eat better. LOL For those of you that really know me, you know that isn't going to happen. Heck, my training at home should just be glad I haven't had a latte every day with a friggin pastry!

Aside from body hurting and getting plumper, things are FANTASTIC!

Forgetting to Sign In Results in More...You Guessed it, Yoga.

Today I had to take two yoga classes; we normally take one. But I forgot to sign in one day when I got to class early and the penalty for that is taking a second class on Saturday. I had most of the week to think about the class and most of the people that knew I had to take the class felt very sorry for me but after a few moments of being annoyed with myself that I had forgotten to sign in, I was over it and didn't think it was that bad.

Besides, it is just one more class...who cares right? We take class twice a day 5 days a week, what is one more day? So today I got up and packed extra water, snacks and electrolytes so I didn't have to come back to the room before the second class.

The first class was fine, not that hot but hot enough to be an ok class. Jude taught, she is awesome. She also lead my first posture clinic, she has such a great voice, you can't help but do what she says!

After the first class I decided to sit outside and work on my dialog. There were 68 OTHER people that had to take the second class with me. Sixty eight! Can you believe it?! You have to take a make up class on Saturday if you miss a class or lecture or if you forget to sign in. Which means 69 people, including me, did one of those things...so sad. LOL What is even more funny is there were a few people with 3,4 or 5 classes to make up and there was one guy that had EIGHT classes to make up! WOW! I felt a bit bad for him, he will be taking two classes on Saturday every weekend.

The general feeling of the group seemed to be mild annoyance they had to take a second/make up class. Some felt they should have been excused, some just were irritated a second class was the consequence for not signing in and others just shrugged it off. A few people were sitting near me when they were discussing their "pleasure" of taking the second class and I said "we are getting to experience ALL of the teacher training. Those that don't "get" to take a make up class never really fully experience 100% of the teacher training. So really, this is great because now you get to really experienced 100% of teacher training and you will now what it is like to take the make up class and everyone else won't!" LOL They just looked at me.

I said the same thing to another person as we were going into the yoga room, I was told I was "way to positive about the whole thing." LOL

Truly the second class was great. I was planning on taking it easy and just floating through class but I found myself really working hard and pushing myself to do my best. I even allowed myself to lay in Savasana at the end for a long time to really enjoy the moment of being done and the joy of completing two classes today.

So, lesson today? Don't forget to sign in...or eventually, in the future....another make up class will be in my future!

Week 2 Accomplished, Yoga Jane Shows Up at Trader Joe's

Week 2 of teacher training ended with a Saturday morning class that was not an ideal temperature but we made it through anyway. It is a good lesson for when we get out in the "real" world, heating systems don't always work and you still need to get the students through the class. After class we did our regular errands; laundry and "grub" shopping. Yoga Jane came with us to the laundry mat and to Trader Joe's. She was a trooper, never once did she complain! We had a side excursion to Walmart to get a "well talked about", "Highly sought after", "Rarely imitated" wooden bowl.

Yoga Jane at the Laundry Mat, in balancing stick, waiting for the clothes to dry.

The infamous wooden bowl: 

Simon, Mark's roommate has a friend here that got a wooden bowl here in Las Vegas. He apparently has wantend once since he saw it week one. So we are at Trader Joes and he wanted to go to Walmart to get one of these wooden bowls. None of use knew where a Walmart was so we all tried to convince him of other options; using a plastic bowl, getting a different wooden bowl, buying a wooden bowl on Amazon and having it shipped to him, anything but going to Walmart. We even told him Walmart couldn't possible have a great wooden bowl, it is such a cheap place to buy stuff, he probably would like a wooden bowl from, say, Whole Foods, or Whole Earth Provision more than one from Walmart but no, he was set on getting THIS bowl from Walmart. (They don't have Walmart in New Zealand so I think part of it was the fascination with Walmart.) 

We are all standing around discussing how we don't know where a Walmart is and Simon walks off to ask someone at Trader Joes's. He comes back with a minute or two and cheerfully announces there is a Walmart almost across the street from us. So, we go. While on the short ride to Walmart, Simon goes on and one about the bowl and how great it is. I was laughing so hard, it sounded like a magical bowl...I told him if it was THAT great, I needed one too!

Here is the bowl: 

It IS a pretty awesome bowl, and CHEAP! It was only $5 at Walmart! It is part of the Canopy Collection, made from Natural Acacia Wood. We bought the last two at Walmart, I think everyone from training went and got one! 

Yoga Jane, at Trader Joe's. Can you see her?

Lara and Yoga Jane in Standing Separate Leg Stretching at Trader Joe's.

After our errands we decided to go "somewhere quite" (AKA Starbucks) and study our dialog. Right as we got there and sat down outside, a demonstration march started down Sahara! So much for a quite place to study! 

Immigration For America Demonstration March Outside of Starbucks.

Yoga Jane Spotted at Las Vegas Hilton Buffet

Yoga Jane in Camel at Buffet