Week 2! 6 more weeks to go!

I don’t know where, what, or how to start this recap of week two of my yoga training.  To be honest, it started out pretty rough. My body was sore, I was exhausted, I wasn’t eating enough food, I was getting enough sleep, and felt like I was a ping pong ball running all over Boston trying to wake up for a morning hot yoga class, hop on the train to make it to work on time, leave work to take another yoga class in the evenings, or go to training until late, get home, pack my life away for the next day, sleep for what feels like 1 minute and then start the continued saga again.  I wasn’t listening to my body and actually giving it the rest that is calling and craving. I felt too guilty to take a break and stop, eventually causing me to hit a hall on Monday- just the beginning of the week! Unwilling I decided to give myself Monday and Tuesday off from yoga to catch up on meal prepping, getting to work on time, sleep (even though that didn’t happen) and mentally refocusing my energy. Needless to say it was the best decision and the week ended so strong. What can I take away from that? Always trust your instincts and what your body is telling you. It's always right. Don't fight it.

Since Wednesday I’ve managed to do a double everyday (except Sunday and Monday) and even have taken back-to-back classes of sculpt and hot power yoga.  It also helps when you’ve met amazing people to help give you that extra push you need and motivate you through classes. This week I have learned somewhat, not mastered, how to balance my time between working full-time, blogging, sleeping, yoga, training, and life.  My body feels so strong, energized and my practice and mental attitude towards yoga and myself has changed tremendously just in last week. I’ve begun to put less pressure on myself and have let go of expectations. I have started to realize that the more pressure I put on myself and the more I let my mind wander towards the future, the less I am able to accomplish. I’ve realized that my body is a lot stronger and more capable of what I’ve given it credit to in the past.  Taking these daily yoga classes, as in every single day, twice a day, does really change your perspective. It’s cleansing and a learning experience about yourself. I’ve realized that every time you show up on your mat it is a direct reflection of how you are feeling, what you did the day before, what you ate, how you treated your body, or how many hours you slept. It teaches so much about you as a person. You begin to learn what you need to do to treat your body right in order to continue to show up each day not only on your mat but also in life to perform the best you can, not perfect, but the best you can given that day.  

During this week of training we spent a few hours going over different postures, cues, breathe, alignment, and energy lines (chakras). Having all of the information thrown at you in a short amount of time is overwhelming as I have mentioned before, but it takes practice to learn and once you begin to understand why you are moving certain ways or why you need to breathe at certain times, the postures and cues, I am sure will become second nature. (I hope!). We also took a break from this part of training to learned about the history of yoga, The 8 Limbed Path (which I think you should all take a look at and see if you can practice or become more self aware!) and I began to read, Baron Baptiste’s book “Journey Into Power.”  I’ve always been a huge fan of his style of teaching so I am excited to continue to read his book, so far it has helped bring a powerful yet gentle approach to yoga, explaining the poses and philosophy in a very straightforward and honest way. 

The best part of the whole week? Sunday. We had to round robin and practice teach! It pretty nerve wrecking but at the same time it was a lot of fun. Which I am surprised that I am admitting. We all had to set up our mats in the studio and were randomly called upon at any point during the “class” to teach until we were told to stop. Yes, the trainers helped us if we were stuck, or calling the wrong poses, but it was up to us to help guide the class through the poses. I actually think my body was in more pain after that class because we had to act like beginner students and do exactly what the “teacher” was telling us to do and couldn’t move from certain poses until we were told to.  It was hard! I definitely confused my left and rights and at times completely blanked on the post-basic poses. It’s funny how your brain works that way, huh!? I think I did a fine job for the first time and I am proud of myself. You can’t get mad yourself in these situations or let them defeat you. It is the only way you are going to learn- learn by doing. You can’t be scared and you have to let go of your nervous energy and just trust your instincts and yourself.  I’ve learned that you have to practice and you get what you put in. I’ve been practicing a lot, taking so many yoga classes, and showing up for training each night. If I mess up, I mess up, I know that I’ve done the work, and I’ll get it eventually. During the third week of training we are learning the rest of the sequence and on Sunday we are doing another round robin and eventually we will start the Anatomy section of training. I am moving into this week with a much different attitude than the last, I feel more prepared but ready to dive deeper into training because there is so much more to learn, stronger mentally and physically yet my body is and continues to be overworked, and I am motivated to take classes. I am all around ready.

 

Now to the good part! What is getting me through the week?!

1. I treated myself to this Beyond Yoga Wild Heart Cut-Out Bra. I bought it in red. How sexy is the back? They have quickly become my favorite yoga brand to wear. Their clothes are so comfortable! 

2. I have been obsessing over these Super pop Protein Nu Butter Bars. It honestly feels like you are eating a block of nut butter and I am 100% OK with that. My favorite one is the peanut butter and honey. They are creamy, surprisingly crunchy, and so addicting. 

3. One of my favorite skin care lines is OSEA, an all natural, non-toxic skin skin care line. You've probably heard me take about it before and if you haven't checked them out- it will do wonders for your skin...life changing. This has been my go to this week. Their Ocean Cleansing Mud. It has been perfect for long days, taking two classes, training, and sweating in between but not having time to properly wash my face. I use it at night before I go to bed and makes my skin feel brand new, smooth and tingly!

4. Meal prep these for the week and thank me later. Katie over at @twist_of_lemons made some delicious peanut butter and jelly granola bars and they didn't disappoint. They have PB in them, so how can you not like them. 

5. This, this makes me really really happy.

You guys have any suggestions to help me get through the week? Most played songs on your playlists? New snacks you are into? Recipes? I would love to hear!