My Yoga Journal: Finding the Peace

[Shae]

I finaly found somthing for me in fitness besides walking!

Well, in all honesty, I've been in lots of stress at home and trying to find a good way to get a good paying job so I can move out. With the pretty anorexic wallet I have, I can't go to a gym or get weights. With all the stress on me at home and finding a job, I can't focus on doing some crunches or push-ups. Fortuneately, I found a yoga class at my school for a decent amount of money and good quality. I found yoga to be better for me because not only I can relax my mind and tear away the stress, I give my body a good work out. Mostly, I want to focus on my upper body and legs because I do lift my disabled sister, Jessica a lot when I transfer her from chair to chair. And I tend to get a little weak when I do it a bit too much. So I know yoga is going to do some good for me. For my body, and my mind.

In my yoga class, I am told to write in a journal. I need to include how positive or negitive my day was, what positions (exercises) I did for the day and for how long (how many breaths), and I need to write about how I felt being in the positions I was in and see what I need to do a bit better so I could feel comfortable going through the yoga work out. In addition, I need to add how I felt physically as well as mentally. So I figure that I should share with you as well, as my class.

If there is anyone doing yoga like I am, feel free to give imput. If you want to know a bit more about yoga and the positions, I will be happy to inform you about what I learned as my class goes on.

So, here we go...................................................................................

Day 1:

--> Did some work on my upper back, my shoulders, and my arms with the downward facing dog position. If I counted right at the class, I did that 6 times for 5 breaths. If you want to know what the position looks like, here is a picture:

I felt pretty weak at the arms when I went through that pose at the 3rd time. But I know that I want to get better.

--> Did some work with my spine in the child and cobra pose. Like downward facing dog, did that 6 times for 5 breaths. It cleared my mind a lot as well as I felt my spine stretching a bit.

child pose

cobra pose​

--> Worked on my legs and arms with the warrior pose (6 times for 5 breaths). That felt real good stretching my legs like that.

--> Did corpse pose so I could relax. That pose I did for between 10-15 minitues so everything could loosen up and I could relax.

After the yoga work-out--> Allready, I could feel my upper abs and shoulders tightening a bit in just 2 hours. In terms of mentally, I felt pretty much at ease and forgot the bad things that have happened durring the day.

So lets just say, I found some exercise thats going to do me some good physically and mentaly. And I am going to practice the poses I learned every day untill I learn new poses on the Fridays I have my yoga class. And hopefully, I will acheive in getting some strength so I can help with Jessica more and have a relaxed and clear mind from stress.

 

[b_reed23]

Shae!!!!! so glad you finally started a journal!! I also do yoga occassionally, and I love Cobra and Warrior the best! Cobra makes my back feel sooooo good! I like warrior because it just FEELS strong..it's really hard to hold though I'll be following along, and I think it's a great ideas to post pictures with it!

 

[King Silverback]

I'll be here with ya!!! Glad you found something to drive you, good luck Sister Shae, glad your here!!!

 

[Shae]

When I do my yoga classes, its Friday nights. That way, I would drive all the negatives I've had and forget it by focusing on the poses. But when I do it the rest of the week, its entirely up to me. Since this is my 1st week, I want to experament and try to do my routine once on a certain part of the day till I find a part of the day that is best for me.

And now for Day 2:

I did my poses that I have learned at the first class about an hour after I got up out of bed. This is what I witnessed:

--> downward facing dog : I got weak after the second round of 5 breaths (my usual I need to do is 6 times for 5 breaths). May be its because my body is still waking up. On day 3, I want to try to do this position later in the day (may be at noon time), and see what happens.

--> child and cobra : Did well with both (6 times and 5 breaths for both). That especialy felt good when getting up in the morning. I feel a bit more limber and flexible after I do those 2 poses.

--> I have done tree pose before because I saw it on a video that my mom bought so I tried to incorperate that into my routine. Here is what the tree pose looks like:

tree pose​

I did that 4 times for 5 breaths. It pretty much focuses on the legs and overall practices balance. That is somthing for me to work on besides the downward facing dog. It just has to do with having a clear mind.

--> warrior: Did that 6 times for 5 breaths. I felt really good as the legs were strating to tighten up. So that was a good pose for me to do in the morning.

.......................................................................................................

Over all on my day 2, I have sort of figured that there are some poses I can do in the morning some poses I can do another time of day. But here are my questions: Is there a certain time of day that you do your work out? Do you do all of the exercises for certain parts of your body or just do certain parts then go on to the others the next day?

For day 3 going (tomorrow), I want to try to do all of the poses I learned in the noon time and see if it makes a diffrence. And I want to see if I can find the chants people do before they do their yoga and after. Its somthing positive to say to help you clear the head of bad thoughts. Will post day 3 tomorrow.

 

[P-funk]

yoga is so hard! I like it though.

 

[Yanick]

cool stuff, i'll be following along. good luck with your goals.

 

[The Monkey Man]

- Yayyy yoga -

 

[Shae]

Beginning chant

Om
Saha navavatu
Saha nau bhunaktu
Saha viryam karavavahai
Tejasvi navadhitamastu
Ma vidvisavahai
Om santih santih santih

The beginning chant in English language

May both of us together be protected.
May both of us together be nourished.
May we work together with great energy.
May our study together be brilliant and effective.
May we not hate or dispute with each other.

Om, peace, peace, peace​

 

[Shae]

End chant in sanskrit

(repeat 3 X)
Svasti prajabhyah paripalayantam
Nyayena margena mahim mahisah
Gobrahmanebhyah subhamastu nityam
Lokasamasta sukhino bhavantu

(repeat 3 X)
Kale varsatu parjanyah prthivi sasyasailini
Desoyam ksobharahito bramana santu nirbhayah

End chant in English language

May all of human kind be happy and well.
May the great noble lords protect the earth in every
Way by the path of virtue. May there be perpetual
Joy for those who know the real nature of things.
May all the worlds be happy.

May the rains fall on time, and may the earth yield
its produce in abundance. May this country be free
from disturbances, and may the knowers of thruth
Be free from fear.​

 

[Shae]

The language the chant is originally is sanscript I believe. I can say the English version much better but I can't dare say it in sanskript. But it sounds pretty though. Its a chant I am going to use beginning and after my yoga work out.

 

[P-funk]

what type of yoga do you perform in class?

 

[Shae]

what type of yoga do you perform in class?

The title of the class is called "Yoga Basics". So I learned the basic poses like the few I've mentioned allready. When I am able to do the basic in the 1st class I am able to do more harder stuff.

 

[FishOrCutBait]

Sanskrit

 

[Shae]

^ I figured I did somthing wrong with the spelling. Thanks Mr. Fish!

Day 3 is going to be crazy. I wanted to try the yoga practice in the noon time but I have to take my little sister to a birthday party. So I made my decision about the time of day to do it and its the evening. It lets me focus the stress on the yoga and lets me have the great results in terms of how many times I do certain poses and for how many breaths. And the greatest positive I got from doing yoga in an evening (ex: my class on friday) lets me sleep extremly well. So everybody, stay tuned for day 3...er, shall I say evening 2). The first class I had last friday, I slept like a baby.


So stay tuned.

 

[Shae]

Day 3

Hey, I finaly found time to get some stretches in. And I figured I could fit some more time in before I go to bed to make sure I sleep good.


--> cobra and child pose: 7 times for both for 5 breaths
cat stretch: One I learned in class so I incorperated it into the w/o today. Here is what the cat stretch looks like:

Another pose I like to stretch the spine.

--> warrior pose: 3 times for 5 breaths for both left and right leg

--> tree pose : 4 times for 5 breaths for both left and right leg

--> downward facing dog: 3 times but 2 of the times were for 5 breaths. 3rd time was for 2. (Now I know I need to do these practices at night. lol).


Downward facing dog,warrior, and tree pose is what I want to master without stopping for a rest. It takes more concentration then the other poses that I have learned. Tonight for night 2, I want to try and focus on those three positions. And hopefully I will master those. I allready mastered, child, cobra, and cat. Now I want to master dog, warrior, and tree.

 

[Shae]

Here are some info if you are curious to know:





The word YOGA is derived from the Sanskrit root Yog meaning to bind, to connect, to join, attach and yoke. It thus means a union or communion of the soul to God. Yoga is a complete science of the human being. It takes into account the physical, spiritual and metaphysical aspects of man.

Practiced for more than 5000 years, yoga is one of the oldest forms of healing therapy, yoga provides one of the best means of self-improvement and attaining one's full potential. In the advanced stages of yoga, superconscious states are attained which result in a feeling of bliss, deep peace and the emergence of psychic powers.

Yoga was developed and perfected over the centuries by philosophers and mystics in India. It is basically a method by which we increase the body's supply of energy and remove any interference to the transmission of energy throughout the body. Yoga has specialized in this subject for thousands of years, and streamlined the methods to attain this aim.

These days, yoga classes are being held at most health and wellness centers around the World. Along with meditation, it is probably one of the most popular alternative therapy. Many physicians, who are skeptical about the efficacy of alternative medicine, support yoga with a passion. There are many clinical studies that show the effectiveness of yoga. And the best part of it is that it is something that can be done in the comfort of your home. A few breathing exercises recommended by yoga will go a long way towards better health and relaxation.

 

[Shae]

Spent night 2 taking my sister and her 2 friends for a swim. Went for a good hour and a half and it felt awsome! I guess just wrestling my sister around to get her in one of those inflateable boats and back into some floaties did some good. That little girl is 70 pounds of weight plus tone (stiffness). Hey, I got a pretty good work out of it all.

 

[Little Wing]

this is a very cool journal shae.

 

[Shae]

Night 3:

--> Cobra and child pose: 6 times for 5 breaths

-> Downward facing dog: 3 times for 5 breaths

--> Warrior: 5 times for 5 breaths

--> Leg bends: 6 times for 5 breaths (both legs)



Had fun because Jessica was trying to do 1 of the poses (leg bends) with me.

 

[Shae]

Highlights and low lights of the day: I was focusing my anger on the Night 4 yoga work out. My faveorite teacher (his name is Anthony), got punked out by my supervisior (I call him French Bastard), at the restuant I work at. The air conditioning went out in the kitchen area. And Anthony wanted the door open so the cooking staff could be cooler while they ship out the meals. French Bastard said it will ruin the whole dining room area. So night 4's work out was somthing else.

Night 4

--> child and cobra pose: 6 times for 5 breaths

--> warrior and tree pose: 6 times for 5 breaths (each leg)

--> downward facing dog: 7 times for 5 breaths

--> leg bends : 6 times for 5 breaths


Geez, all that anger I kept in me did some good in my work out. Sometimes, I amaze myself.

 

[Shae]

Night 5:

--> Downward Facing Dog: 6 times for 5 breaths

--> Upward Facing Dog (Yes, I tried! ): 4 times for 5 breaths And here is what it looks like for those who are wondering:

--> Cobra and Child: 6 times for 5 breaths

--> Tree, Warrior, and leg bend: 6 times for all for 5 breaths (each leg)


I was feeling the stretches in my tummy tonight besides my legs and oh my, it felt great!

 

[Shae]

Nothing special for night 6. I was just doing similar to what I did last night.

--> downward and upward facing dog: 5 times for 5 breaths

--> child and cobra: 5 times for 5 breaths

--> tree and warrior: 5 times for 5 breaths (each leg)

And here is somthing nifty that I found: The pose finder

 

[b_reed23]

Viparita Karani (Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose)
this one looks like it would feel GREAT on lower back and legs!

your journal is looking awsome, it is definetly unique to IM

 

[Shae]

Will post up night 7 and 8 tomorrow. I have class in about an hour and I bet I'm gonna get worked up till I sleep like last week.

 

[Shae]

your journal is looking awsome, it is definetly unique to IM

I've been known to stand out.

 

[Shae]

I am surprised I am still awake! Well heres how it went down for night 7:

In the class, I was doing some opening up of the heart and chest muscles as well as stretching the arms and legs. Did the usual downward facing dog and cobra like allways but here is some new stuff I learned...

1) I'm not sure if I mentioned this but you can use a towel, strap, stirofoam block, or bolster pillow to help you with problem areas for the poses. When I tried to kneel on my feet so the class could go into discussion, the tops of my feet were hurting like crazy! So I try to situate myself with having a blanket under my feet to situate myself.

2) Downward facing dog or child pose can come into play at anytime. They are like the base poses that you return to after you do other poses. I was told by Georgeanna (my instructor) that I need to try to straighten up my back and bend my knees a little when I do the position. That puts more weight for me to hold. That is somthing I need to practice till my next class on Friday.

And now for night 7. And there are a few poses added in with the usual poses I have been doing the last week.

--> downward facing dog: 5 times for 5 breaths

--> child and cobra: 5 times for 5 breaths

--> hero pose (that was the time I had problems kneeling on my feet): 3 times for 5 breaths

hero pose​

--> Warrior 1: 5 times for 5 breaths (each leg)

1​

--> Warrior 2: 5 times for 5 breaths (each leg)

--> Warrior 3 (the one I had my balance problem): 5 times for 5 breaths (each leg)

3​

--> corpse pose: Now this is somthing diffrent. Did a modifyed version of that using 2 styrofoam blocks. 1 was under my back between my shoulder blades and another was behind my head. And I layed on the floor for a good 5 minitues. Opened up my chest entirely and it felt so amazing. And I did the usual corpse pose for 10 minitues without the blocks.

......................................................................................................

Great night. I felt good. My arms and legs were all stretched and felt great. Not to mention It felt awsome to feel my chest open up.

 

[P-funk]

on the hero pose, are the yoga blocks there for a reason? Or is it just to dempostrate how to do it if you are to tight to get your butt to the floor to really stretch the hip flexors?

 

[Shae]

on the hero pose, are the yoga blocks there for a reason? Or is it just to dempostrate how to do it if you are to tight to get your butt to the floor to really stretch the hip flexors?

Like I said about the stuff I learned....

you can use a towel, strap, stirofoam block, or bolster pillow to help you with problem areas for the poses.

....................................................................................................

People have diffrent levels of experience when it comes to yoga. Lets say, the hero pose. Some are real experienced and can kneel on the feet with ease. All body is in place and they don't need anything.

Others have places when they kneel where they feel uncomfortable. Like me, I can't kneel on my feet because I feel uncomfortable. So I stuck a pillow under my feet so I would be comfortable.

Another good example is what also happened to me when I went to warrior 3. My balance is pretty bad so I use the blocks to hold myself up. But it felt great in a way because I'm doing some work on my arms as well as my legs.
.......................................................................................................

So putting it in a nutshell, you have these tools to just help you to do the poses better so you feel comfortable. It gets your body in line. You can say that it can help stretch the muscles like the hip flexors.

 

[Shae]

Had a short w/o for night 8 because I was helping out at the banquet fund raiser (read Fish's Whoring thread for details). So it was same as night 7 but I just did 3 times for 5 breaths for all.

Feeling a lot of stretching in the legs. I just realized I had a nicely shaped butt when I was getting ready for the banquet this morning. That and I felt like my hips grew a little smaller.

 

[King Silverback]

Awesome job in here!!! Glad it's going well for you my Friend!!!