Yoga Quest Day….I’ve lost track really

I went, I saw, I was conquered.  By my self.  Not as in on my own, but as in I conquered my self.  I went way too hard at the beginning, pushing myself super deep, sometimes deeper into the stretches than I have yet, which was great, but I didn’t take into consideration what my day’s activities prior to yoga would do to my practice today.

I was in the hot sun all day at USC building the Vroman’s Bookstore booth at the LA Times Festival of Books.  Also, last night my roommate was working on his final for Art Center at the table right outside my room so it was minimal sleep, maybe 4 hours, and lifting and moving all day in the hot sun.  I was beat.  Destroyed.

This is what I didn’t take into consideration as I came into my practice today.

I did have a really good time though.  It’s wasn’t terrible in any sense.  The instructor was a man I have never had and he was super good.  I just had no focus and my breathing was way off.  So, after pushing myself way hard I ended up hitting a wall right around 15 min from the end.  I just laid there in the heat and practiced relaxation and breathing.  This even was hard for me.  I honestly thought it was the teacher, then I was talking to a gentleman in the men’s are and he said he felt the teacher is lax. When the other men agreed I realized it was just me and my gnarly day leading up to this.

This is good to look at though.  How my day affects my practices.

I also need to practice love and compassion with myself.  I stress the word need.  It’s not something I do much, if at all.  What happens to me is I lay false expectations upon myself and push so hard that I burn out and collapse.  Tonight’s class was case in point.  Honestly, I have only been practicing yoga since April 1.  I did like 6 classes in 8 days, went to Hawaii for a week where I didn’t practice at all, then this in my 2nd day back to practice after that.  Maybe I need to not push sooooo hard.  Push for sure but not push this hard, I should let the yoga come to me, let the stretches come to me instead of me racing toward the stretches.

Love and compassion with myself.  That is my search for the next while.  Everywhere in my life.