For almost three years I've been wanting to do hot yoga, but never was willing to shell out the money for it. You see, I'm not the kind of person that feels comfortable spending money on a gym membership when I can workout for free.
Back in 2006 my mom and I took a yoga class at our resort in Hawaii. That was the only time in my life I've ever done organized yoga. Other than that, I've DVRed free yoga classes on tv and OnDemand. The hottest I ever got to hot yoga was doing on on tv while my the temperature inside my house was 83 degrees without air conditioning. I like yoga, but it's a pain because my dog always sits on my mat or tries to jump on me.
How could this be the face of guilt?!
But a few months ago, Groupon offered two weeks of unlimited yoga for $10 at a studio not far from my house. You bet I jumped all over that. This week, I finally found a clearing in my schedule allowing me to almost visit daily.
I've only been to a handful of practices and my thoughts on it are very, very cyclical. The first day when I walked into the studio, I was overwhelmed by a really pungent menthol scent. It was actually nice, I was thinking it'd get stuffy and sweaty, but not the case. As for the actual workout, it kicked my butt! It was 101 outside that day so they kept the room down to 97 degrees with 30 percent humidity.
I was told this was the advanced class, and if I needed to lay on the mat the whole time for my body to adjust to the heat, that would be acceptable. The instructor warned me that it takes about three to four times to get used to it. That being said, I was able to hang for 75 percent of the workout. The heat never truly bothered me until the end. I was also doing advanced poses in modified ways, unthinkable for someone who's done yoga less than 10 times in her life!
Afterwards I was DRENCHED in sweat. My clothes were wet the entire ride home until I threw them in the washing machine. But I felt good, refreshed and my skin felt all tingly and cool, in contrast to the very warm weather outside. I knew I'd love to get back and do it again.
Gross, but feeling great!
After the first day, I had to take a day off since my biceps and hip/buttock muscles were sore. With proper hydration and stretching, I felt a little more at ease on the second day, but my stomach still hadn't gotten used to the full 80 minutes of yoga. About 60 percent of the way through, I had to sit out a series of flows. I felt utterly gassed and almost unable to peel myself off my mat. Being in a hot room for over an hour makes you painfully aware of how much liquid your body really needs. Eventually, I mustered up the strength to get up and finish. I was so exhausted by the end and literally felt every one of my muscles. My third trip was much like the second, but my body was slightly getting used to the heat.
After just four days, I was able to power through the entire class. I was doing some of the more advanced poses, I never needed to sit out a flow and my stomach didn't hurt -- as much. I am by no means still accustomed to it, but I'm getting better! After a day off, my fifth day saw me acclimated to the heat again, but my balance was way off. As I said, it is a veritable roller coaster of emotions!
I also am noticing muscle definition already. It is most noticeable in my abs and legs. Seriously, this is fast results in a short period of time (don't kid yourself though, it's HARD work). Remaining on my account is one more week. My goal is to try and go every day to get the most out of my $10, but also to push my body and see if I'll be able to do the entire time without taking a break! The studio is very costly, so I don't know if I am going to continue with a membership after the two weeks expire. Who knows, we'll see...!
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