Is there anything more annoying than waking up in the middle of the night, eyes wide open, unable to get a wink in? After weeks of this terrible pattern, awake at night and zombie during the day, I had to do something!
I am totally scared of sleeping pills, mostly the sleepwalking – and the suicidal thoughts, so I headed on over to goodyoga. After my fitness challenge at Human@Ease, they offered me a 1 month Yoga challenge, to attend at least 3 classes per week. I turned it down at first because of the time commitment, but after endless sleepless nights I realized I needed it.
It’s not that anything particular is on my mind, it’s that EVERYTHING is on my mind. My to-do list is a mile long (ahem Greenpointers) and it’s excitement that keeps me awake. But I heard somewhere that excitement has the same affect as anxiety on the body, so the solution is some focus and some calming energy.
The first class I attended in desperation was Abigail’s Karma goodflow class. Karma Classes are offered on a donation basis by brand new graduates of our good200 advanced studies program. Well if you want a “delicious” practice, check this out. It was just what I needed, not overly intense and mellow, with a nice long relaxation at the end that involved warm stones and scented oil. I slept like a baby. And haven’t had any sleep problems since. It’s a miracle!
After talking to goodyoga owner Flannery about the logistics of a month of yoga, she recommended the daily Mysore, which is a self-led Ashtanga class with Amy, weekdays from 7-9am. There is only one time of the day when I am guaranteed to be free, and that is before 8am. Generally my schedule is all over the place.
This would be a great way to bring some regularity to my totally unpredictable life.
The first day, I was waiting outside at 6:45am like a nerd. Flannery opened up, wiping the sleep out of her eyes and poked some fun at me. What can I say, give me a challenge and I am an eager beaver!
According to the goodyoga website: Ashtanga is a series of “dynamic yoga postures” straight out of an “ancient text” and “in the Mysore class, each student memorizes the Ashtanga Yoga sequence and comes to develop a daily personal practice with the one-on-one guidance of a teacher.
And Amy, our teacher is the bomb! She looks really sweet, but don’t let her looks fool you, she is a total badass and know her ashtanga, and is really good at helping you memorize it, which is half of the class. Each day she adds on another few postures, which you build onto each class. In one week I have come pretty far, I think.
It’s also pretty cool to be around other people who are at different stages. Some people are doing amazing things, and if you forget something you can kind of look around to follow their lead.
There is promise that with all the stretching I may grow an inch or two and my complexion will improve, two things I could use.
Routine is good, it makes the brain happy. So does the end of each practice, the relaxation period, which is like dessert of yoga. Usually I take yoga in the evenings and look forward to a nice glass of wine on my cozy couch afterwards. In the mornings, when I get distracted during relaxation, it’s usually because I am thinking about my first shot of espresso. My method is to lie down and starting with my toes to tell each and every part of my body to relax. In my head it sounds like this: “balls of my feet, relax. ankles, relax,” straight up to the crown of my head.
Stay tuned for my follow-up in a month. After a week it’s already done me so much good, and my sleep is luxurious. Right now I am 62.5 inches short. Will check back in a month with height change and levitation abilities.
Goodyoga will be participating in the Greenpointers Gallery Tour in 3/10/12 with an exhibit called Drishti. A sneak peak at the work promises to be an awesome and fun show!
And we’re doing a Chutney Class with Drake from DP Chutney Collective on March 14 at 7pm.
goodyoga
73 Calyer St