This Blog is Temporarily on Hold
Head on back to http://www.wafelenbak.wordpress.com for general updates.
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I am feeling worlds better thanks to some adjustments of the medicines I take, and the fatigue is gone. In fact, Thursday and Friday I worked out after work and even stayed up past 10pm! Amazing!
I am hitting the books again but I’m a little stuck right now on the “spiritual science of yoga” (subtitle of the textbook I am reading at the moment). Particularly, the concept of chakras.
Chakras are “energy pathways” that the life force travels in and out and through. Different chakras affect different ways of thought and feeling. Or something. Honestly, I really have never bought into the chakra thing and am struggling to accept it as a concept.
If I take it out of the really spiritual sense, it kind of works. I mean, higher level chakras have a better affect on our thoughts and feelings (heart, brain or “third eye”) and lower ones (lower gut, reproductive organs) have a more base effect. To me that’s just a bunch of symoblism though, not something I think really conducts energy through my body.
Oh well. I only have to memorize it and know it for the test. I was doing a lot better with the bones of the foot, though.
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Temporary Setback
You’ve probably noticed I’m posting less frequently and with less enthusiasm, and yes, there is kind of a reason.
I’ve been dealing with some really bad fatigue issues recently. Like, cardio is almost impossible and I’m sleeping 14 hours at a stretch more often than I should. I went to the doctor today to get my blood worked up but mostly we are playing with some of the medicine I take and hoping it improves in a week. Initially my doc thought that my blood pressure was too low, but that proved not to be the case. (it’s low, but no lower than usual)
So everything outside of work and sleep and social activity is exhausting me (and those except for sleep to some degree as well). I have been studying, mostly the review questions because I got so far ahead on the reading. But I have not made much time for the lectures. It’s okay, I am still ahead for the month but I need to make the time. I am hoping to spend more time with the teaching lecture tonight. So that’s what’s going on.
My enthusiasm for the practice has not waned, but my ability to express my enthusiasm, physically or otherwise, has taken a huge drop. I am still hitting the yoga, and I think last week I made it about 4 days which was actually pretty good. My goal is more though, and to get the cardio back up to speed (pun intended) Let’s hope a week of playing fast and loose with medicine gets me back on track like the doctor hopes it will…
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Hello Hello Hi
Sorry I’ve been AWOL. It’s not for lack of practice, interest, or studying. I just haven’t had enough time or energy to stop by and update.
These days I am learning about how to teach, which is cool and interesting. And my practice is going well–I am feeling differences in each pose and in my body just based on the few critical alignment specs I’m gaining from the guided plan.
I need to carve out time this weekend for terms review. I noticed I lacked a little when looking over the study questions. But the reading is pretty much ahead of schedule just need to take some time to review.
I am waiting to hear from my advisor and requested the time off for the July 16th retreat! I don’t know the specifics, but I want to make the time for it b/c I think it is important this early in the game.
Hopefully a more insightful post is on its way!
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What You Need
One of the latest revelations I’ve had in my yoga studies is that part of being a yoga instructor is about tuning in to what your students need. I never really thought too much about this. I mean, I notice when I take classes that the instructor will usually ask about any injuries or special requests from the class. But my teacher training talks specifically about scanning your class, noticing things like age, gender, whether the individual seems tight or loose in the class, and what kind of emotional state people are bringing into the room. Is someone carrying themselves in a sad, slouchy posture? Or a tense, upright one? Or maybe just a happy and relaxed way? One of the exercises for my “homework” is to think of a person in my life and reflect on what I perceive they need from a mind, body, and spirit perspective.
This was super freaking cool to me.
I’ve often wondered what the heck kind of job I could do (other than what I do) that would apply my skills for scanning and analyzing people (which makes me sound like a cyborg, btw). What could I possibly do to put my ridiculous and sometimes exhausting empathy to good use? I never thought I could manage as a psychologist or counselor because I also get too emotionally invested in people. I would go home miserable in a job like that every single night, I think.
But, I think it’s pretty safe to say that tuning myself into my yoga students (when the day comes) is going to be pretty awesome, life-affirming, and re-energizing. It’s only been a week, but I am learning a lot–about yoga, and about myself.
(Also I keep dreaming about caring for a baby that is not my own, which apparently means you need to either nurture your inner child or you have found your hidden inner potential. Hmmmm…)
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What I’ve Learned So Far
First of all, I learned that I will, in fact, get up at 6:00 in the morning to do yoga. I did just that today. Wow and Yay!
A lot of people have asked me, half-jokingly I think, what I have learned so far. And so far I have learned that two functions of the body are very, very important: digestion and breathing.
Both are things we take for granted, right? But I never realized exactly how convoluted and how extensive the digestive process is. And it’s linked to the respiratory process, because once we take in oxygen it helps move the nutrients around the blood stream and then we release waste in the form of carbon dioxide. You knew this already, right? Yeah, me too, but I sort of forgot.
All of this is very important and BREATHING is something we do wrong all the darn time. One of the books I am reading is talking about how when we are babies, we pretty much breathe perfectly. Because mostly what we do is breathe and cry and eat and nap. As adults, we wear restrictive clothing and sit in restrictive postures and we breathe too fast when we are stressed out or angry or overly emotional in any form. We have to make a conscience effort to do something we once did naturally–breathing calmly. Not breathing calmly or correctly has been shown to create strain on our heart, increase our blood pressure, and create a wealth of other health-related issues.
So when people ask me what I’ve learned so far, it’s that yoga is going to help me breathe better and digest better and that is going to help me live and feel better.
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Studying Yoga, Not Doing Yoga
This is exactly what has been happening.
Friday I was sick, yesterday I was sick, today I am going hiking and tomorrow I’ve been invited to go play beach volleyball (yay!). I don’t want to overdo it coming off this cold so the soonest I envision myself doing yoga is tomorrow and that’s still a maybe. Boo.
Tuesday night I have a birthday party, Thursday a theater show, Friday a party…which leaves Wednesday and Saturday. Um, no. I can’t start my serious yoga practice like this.
So I am going to try getting up early and doing yoga in the morning. We’ll see how THAT goes. I am notoriously NOT a morning exerciser, but maybe getting up to do yoga will be more appealing than…oh, getting up to do most things before I actually have to be up.
This month’s poses are mostly warmups, so I figure I will do those first and then my regular yoga dvd’s or class. Which means about 1.5 to 2 hours I should plan for yoga. This is not going to be easy. But at least I am getting my cardio in on the front end of the week this week!
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Yippee!
I was very surprised that my course materials arrived yesterday (while I was home with a cold). Hooray!! I guess they mailed them early because of the holiday weekend? Who knows.
So I started studying shortly after ripping the box open and examining all the books.
There is a book on breathing technique, a book on anatomy, a book on poses, and a book on philosophy/theory/meditation. I would throw the titles out but I’m too lazy to get up and go get the books. 😛
I also got a big binder that has reading materials, study guides, questions, etc etc etc. The 1st quarter exam is tucked in a sealed envelope in the back of the binder. I’m still confused as to how that works, but admittedly I skipped over some of the orientation materials and went straight to studying the digestive system.
I also need to try to run out today and buy a cd player. Hilarious, right? I threw mine out not long ago. The lectures are on cd though, and I don’t feel like trying to fight to convert them to mp3’s just yet. Listening to lectures is going to be hard for me because I am a terrible auditory learner. Thankfully they come with an outline, but still. I picture myself tuning in and out while doing other things around the house. I’m not even going to try listening to them on the train b/c god knows my mind wanders enough in transit.
So here we go! If I’m feeling up to it, I’m going to the coffeeshop this afternoon to continue reading about the circulatory system*!
*I did take biology in high school and always excelled in science, but man, that was a long time ago. I clearly have forgotten how much gets accomplished by the liver in a day.
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Anticipation
As I mentioned, I am (im)patiently waiting for all my course materials to arrive. They come a month at a time, around the 5th of the month, and are focused on asanas (poses), philosophy, anatomy/physiology and teaching skills. Neat! I already read the syllabus and study guide*. But I want more!
I’m going to yoga class & practicing at home just as I have been on and off over the years, but mostly more. The program wants you doing 4 days a week, ideally 6. It’s a much different fitness routine than I’ve done in the past…that is, I am trying to keep juggling my cardio and strength training alongside it, and the strength has really taken a back seat. I feel like I am gaining weight, but that probably has more to do with the booze and funnel cake and pizza I had over the weekend. Gotta cut that out. (Not totally–I’m a firm believer in everything in moderation, but there is a section of the course devoted to mindful eating and I’ve done reading about it in my meditation books. It’s the same concept as my personal training was–basically, garbage in/garbage out.) This should have nothing to do with weight loss, but admittedly, I worry that I’m not being active enough to keep where I want to be. I have to just trust that the lifestyle will guide me to the right and healthy choices.
Anyway, as dorky as it sounds I am totally psyched to park my (flexible) butt in a coffee shop and start studying. Like, this weekend. Because it’s Memorial Day weekend, and I have all this TIME, and you know the materials are going to arrive and my schedule is going to explode.
*They recommend studying 4 hours a week which seems like peanuts to me–reading about something I find interesting anyway. Plus no papers. This is going to be a cakewalk compared to grad school, or even the PHR** Certification exam.
**Professional of Human Resources, alternately known as the alphabet exam. Memorizing labor laws is not as fun for me as memorizing asanas.
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How I Found Yoga
Or, alternately, how yoga found me.
I’ve been thinking a lot about this story and I love telling it. So lucky you! Here it is!
Back in 1999 (yes!) I was dealing with a lot of back pain from two different car accidents in the span of 2 years (neither was my fault, fyi). The 2nd was brutal. I mean, I was okay, but the wreck itself was ridiculous. A guy on the highway stopped when he missed his exit. STOPPED. And a four car pileup resulted. I was over in the far left lane, but to avoid smashing everyone else to bits, a Winnebago swerved over to my lane and slammed into the side of my car, sending me spinning into the concrete median. The impact plus my attempts to turn the car around (tremendous force in my arms and upper back) caused me to sprain the muscles from my wrists up my arms and into my shoulders and back. Ouch!
Anyway, sometime in 1999 my boyfriend at the time bought me Bryan Kest’s Power Yoga on VHS. Oh yeah, VHS. I didn’t even have a yoga mat, or know what one was–I did yoga on the carpet in my apartment. I loved it. And it felt SO GOOD. While Bryan Kest is very…west coast, and at times a little giggle-worthy, I still do his Power Yoga series (usually level 2 and sometimes 3, 1 if I need a breather). Over 10 years later, look where that VHS tape brought me!
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The Yoga Diaries 