Day 04 - Yoga X
I think I can understand why some people don't like it and skip over it. But I can also understand why it's so important for a well-balanced fitness regime.
Sure the music is calm and Tony talks in an almost hushed tone. But don't be fooled, I was already starting to sweat 5 minutes into it. Ultimately, I think I almost sweated as much as I did from Plyometrics! Holding poses and balancing and stretching and such is
a LOT of work! As usual, I did quite a bit of modification. This was my very first serious attempt at doing yoga of ANY kind, so it took a lot of getting used to.The Moving Asanas portion started off okay. At first I was sort of able to maintain my shaky and wobbly version of the Runner's, Crescent and Warrior Poses. But after a short while, I found I had to stand up when transitioning to and from the Downward Dogs. Once I stepped into the Runner's, it was easier going into the other poses.
On the Triangle Poses, I was unable to get my raised arm completely straight up, but I held it as high as I could for each duration. The Chair itself was very shaky, but the Twisting Chair seemed to be easier to hold. Right-Angle Pose was okay, but I couldn't get my hands to meet for the Extended Pose & Grab, so I just pulled my hands in as close as I could and maintained it.
On the Prayer Twists, again I had to step into instead of Downward Dogging into the Runner's leading into it. The Warrior Three to Standing Splits was the first one I encountered that I could not do at all. I couldn't hold up the raised leg for very long, so I stretched that leg back with the foot on the floor and did the arm movements from that position. Half Moon to Twisting Half Moon, again upward arm was not straight up, but up as far as I could get it.
In the Balance Postures, things got a bit shakier. On the Tree, i was able to stand on my left leg without too much wobbling, but on the Right leg, I found it really hard to stay balanced and I kept dropping my left foot. I found a little bit of comfort in seeing that Tony seemed to have a little difficulty here, too. Royal Dancer looks easier than it is. I could grab hold of my foot, but when it cam time for the extension, I totally lost my balance. I ended up just raising the extened leg back without holding it and stretching my arms outward. On the Standing Leg Extension, I found it easier to hold the raised leg bended rather than extended.
Now, down to the Floor Work. Crane. No. Nope. Nada. I already knew that wasn't happening at this juncture, so as suggested by Tony I went for the Child's Pose here. I did a modified Seated Spinal Stretch by grasping the raised knee with the opposite hand because I could not get my elbow inside of it. It seemed to work okay. Cat stretch was totally easy because there was no contortion involved.
My limited flexibility made the Frog very awkward, but I think I came fairly close to form on it. I held a reasonably good Bridge, however the Wheel is probaby in my distant future, so I just did the Bridge again. That Plough into Shoulder Blah-Blah-Blah . . . also not happening just yet. I did some modified raised leg moves to simulate as close as possible what Tony and Friends were doing. I think I did a decent Table. My hips could've been a little higher. And the Cobbler Pose was only hindered by my girth. As was the One-Legged/Two-Legged Hamstring Stretches. I could only reach my shins, but I held the poses.
The Yoga Belly 7. On Touch the Sky, my legs were pretty much at a 45 possibly 50 degree angle instead of straight up. That's as far as I could get them. The Boat and Half Boat were hard to do with my legs raised, so i ended up with legs on the floor while doing the arm extensions. Same deal with Scissor, lower leg stayed on the floor. Torso and Deep Torso Twist Holds were murder, but I was able to hold a very shaky position on them for most of each 30 second duration. Luckily for me I have done Side Twists and Glute Stretches before, so they went very well. I love the Happy Baby, even though I had to hold my feet from the outside instead of inside my legs. And the Child's Pose was a breeze.
Now my favorite section of the entire Yoga X workout!! The Corpse Pose. Lay down and breath. I can do that! Fetal Pose Lay on your side in the fetal position. I can do that, too!! and finally the Medition (Lotus) Pose. A great ending to a roller coaster ride of a workout.
A few short notes:
I need a yoga mat! My feet would periodically slide on the carpet, so i had to put on my rubber-sole slippers for most of the workout. I shall hopefully get a mat before next week's session.
I quite enjoyed Yoga X. Again, I can see how it can put some people off, but I have to say it's not that bad at all. Even with a couple of impossible (for now) moves, with the modifications I made, it was fine. At an hour and a half it is the longest workout in the series. But once you really relax and breath and get into it, the time actually goes by rather quickly. so put me in the group that LIKES Yoga X!
In honor of my inaugural Yoga X workout, today's song is "Twist and Shout", the original version by the Isley Brothers. Enjoy and see you back here tomorrow! Namaste . . .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhN-GhH5oxU
X^D
No comments:
Post a Comment