Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot – Yoga!

My new gym buddy, and old friend, Stephanie convinced me to try hot ashtanga vinyasa yoga at Fuel the Soul on Long Island.

Side note: I really need to find an exercise class that lets me keep my blowout (shout-out to Laura, author of werkitinnyc, for making this a regular heading in her blog posts). So far body sculpt is the least sweaty workout I’ve had and only because I didn’t pair it with kickboxing. 

So back to yoga – I really liked the studio; apparently their practice differs in that they use “far infrared heat” which is supposedly more sanitary and has all these benefits in the way it heats your body from within like they do with babies in the NICU. Infrared heat transfer heat to your body instead of heating the air, so it’s also good for people with respiratory problems (this coming from a girl who usually gets a bronchitis/upper respiratory infection combo annually). I have never taken hot yoga (I’ve actually only taken 1 yoga class ever and it was for beginners and it was at least 2 years ago), so I can’t say how this method of heating compares to the traditional way, but I liked it because my muscles felt extremely relaxed (since Sunday I’d taken a 6 mile run and gone to spin and sculpt classes, so I was a little toight) and the increased sweat factor made me feel like I was getting a “real” workout in.

As a yoga newbie a lot of the terms are Greek to me, but I followed the crowd and caught on pretty quickly. The focus in Vinyasa is breathing; you’re supposed to sync your movements with your breath. This works great for me because, as silly as it sounds, I often forget to breath when I’m working out. I get so caught up in the combinations and being in sync with everyone else, that I forget to focus on what I’m doing.

The only negative that I could really come up with was that it was slightly maddening to lay there for what felt like 20 minutes in the cool down period (it was probably 5, but I have workout ADD). The studio offering an inversion master class this weekend and of course I’m annoyed because I think inversions are awesome, but it’s only recommended for people who have idea of what they’re doing. Boo.

Bottom line: Apparently it was an intermediate level class and Gary, the owner/instructor, said I did well, since I’m a sucker for a compliment, I bought a one month unlimited pass for $49.

Session Lessons:

• Come equipped: Bring a towel and a mat (fitness places love to charge for the add on more than restaurants like the up-charge during Restaurant Week.
• There is probably going to be someone less flexible than you. There is probably going to be someone much more flexible than you. Just concentrate on your breathing and MYOB, you’ll be grateful you did when you don’t lose your balance and fall over.
• In hot yoga, the heat is your friend. A wise bootcamp instructor once told me that the best place to stretch is in the shower because the heat relaxes your muscles – the same goes for the heat in these classes, it allows you to get into your deepest poses.
• And on a less serious note… it is inappropriate to laugh at the instructor when he mispronounces “envelope” or says “Yin Yong” instead of Yin Yang, so you’re going to have to hold it in.

Cardio Sculpt: The Morning After

Last night I tried my 4th new class at the gym: Cardio Sculpt with Cleo.

I’m getting more comfortable and creating more of a routine with this whole gym thing; I remembered to bring a water, I realized that there are lockers in the corner of the room (I’d been keeping my bag and sweatshirt on the workout floor, thankfully no one tripped on them), and I’m more social with the people in class.

Cardio Sculpt seemed to involve a lot of upper body work, but that could just be because that’s my weakest area so I noticed more. (It’s like my muscles get less toned as your move up my body.) So while it did feel like my arms may fall off in the middle of our 80 push-ups, I made it through.

Today my chest and back are sore, but (so far) that’s it! Must be getting the hang of this whole “fitness” thing. That’s not to say that my chest and back won’t be racked with stiffness and discomfort tomorrow, but I’ll worry about that when it happens.

Cardio sculpt wasn’t all that different from Bootcamp, not that I can see anyway. They both combine a cardio warm-up with muscle toning exercises in the middle and a cool-down. The music was high energy at both classes, which really helps to keep me motivated. Cardio sculpt was more crowded last night, but I’ll attribute that to the fact that Christmas is over and everyone has more time on their hands. It definitely wasn’t a New Year’s Resolution crowd as I seemed to be the only one who didn’t know what she was doing at points.

When comparing Cardio Sculpt to the Bootcamp class I took, the two instructors are the main difference. Cleo’s more maternal and Nia, of Bootcamp, is more of the hardcore trainer type you might see on The Biggest Loser. It’s just a matter of who I respond to better. Cleo is quicker to say you can stop if you can’t handle it, so I felt less compelled to push myself, but she’s a good back-up to Nia who I obviously prefer.

I’m still avoiding the main gym like a hornet’s nest. I had to go in last night before class because my card wasn’t registering and my glasses fogged up the minute I entered and I just felt like people were looking at me (perhaps my stellar gym outfit of my burnt orange bar softball t-shirt, black cotton shorts and black leggings had something to do with it) and I wanted to exit ASAP.

My goal is to continue taking classes so that I’m toned and healthy at my cousin’s wedding in May. If I keep going at this rate I should be right where I want to be.

Up and at ‘Em

2 days after Bootcamp my muscles decide it’s time to be sore. Every muscle in my body resisted getting out of bed this morning.

During the abs section of our workout Nia told me not to pull on my neck so much, “you might need that someday” she quasi-joked. Today I feel why; the left side of my neck is tender to the touch. Oops.

She gave me a helpful hint though: while doing bicycles think shoulder-to-knee rather than elbow-to-knee. This is also harder on your abs, but I suppose that’s the point.

I have some house guests this week and they’re staying on the level with the treadmill, so working out at home is out. Looks like I’ll have to work some extra walking into my trip to the city tonight.

My friend Steven’s in town so me, him, and our friend Laura are going to dinner and then to see American Idiot on Broadway. I can’t say that it’s a show I would have selected on my own, but it’s received good reviews so I’ll give it a shot.

Review to follow.

Bootcamp Breakthrough

Last night’s bootcamp class, I am pleased to report, went way better than expected.

For starters, it was just me and 4 other women, which was far less intimidating. Apparently we were the only gym-goers with an hour to kill the week before Christmas and I cherished this because I’m sure it’s going to be miserable once all of the New Years Resolution people join in.

I arrived (ON TIME!), got my mat and began running in place. Bootcamp is more cardio than body sculpting was, which is good since that’s my strong suit, so I would definitely need the water I brought this time.

We shuffled and lunged, lifted weights and passed a medicine ball down the line, and when it came time for abs we were all actually excited because that was the easiest part of the class so far (the woman next to me commented on how she’s never thought she’d look forward to doing abs and I agreed).

With the smaller size it was easy to build a rapport with my classmates and I was less self-conscious of how I was doing; I even asked our instructor, Nia, in between “Mountain Climber” sets if I was positioning myself correctly because my back was killing me. She assured me that I was, my body just probably wasn’t used to it and I assured her that she was correct.

Bootcamp transitions straight into body sculpting, with a quick aside from Nia that anyone who wasn’t staying could leave at that point. As I got up to leave she told me she’d like me to stay and do some extra stretching (I’d confessed over the course of class that I am “new to the gym – is it obvious?” so I’m sure that played a part in her request), which I had not done after body sculpting, and I definitely think it helped. Today I feel a bit sore, but not unable to move.

As I was leaving I thanked her and gave a quick promise of, “I’m going to get better,” and I’m confident and excited that I will.

…Yeah, I know, ew, I’m totally one of those gym people right now.

Bootcamp

So far I’ve tried yoga and body sculpting at the gym. After yoga I felt relaxed and nimble from all of the stretching. After body sculpting I was sore for 2 days, to the extent I couldn’t sneeze without wincing, but at least it was the good kind of sore.

The body sculpting instructor was hardcore, she even had on a headset, and I was all sorts of psyched when I started the class. Unfortunately about halfway through she had us break for water, which I had not brought with me, and looked at me with a mixture of pity, disdain, and disbelief and simple said, “you should always bring a water.”

During the 2nd half of the class my common sense won out over my pride and I sat out, lest I pass out, for a set of lunges. The instructor almost looked appreciative that I at least had the intelligence to do that. I got right back on the proverbial horse with the next set though.

I almost finished without incident – almost. Unfortunately while we were doing leg lifts with a weight tucked behind our knee I dropped the weight. After it thudded to the ground the instructor simply said “you gotta hold on to those weights” without even looking at me, but obviously knowing which dud had caused the thud.

Tonight I’m trying her bootcamp class. Hopefully I’m less disruptive this time. I’ll report back later (or tomorrow if this class kicks my butt like the last one did).

Until then, this is Mjr. Spaz, signing off.