Day 4: Early morning class

Today, Jason and I braved the 7:30 am class so we could still practice together but not have to miss out on Friday night fun. I'd never been to such an early class before and I must say, I kind of loved it. I like getting up and doing yoga first thing. Not only does it mean I don't have any anticipation during the day of having to go to class later, but it also means I get to enjoy the benefits all day long. Done with yoga by 9 am? Yes, please.

Most of my poses were kind of unremarkable. I felt a little unfocused. There was a lot of talking in the room before class started which made it really difficult to just focus on my breath, which in turn I think affected my pranayama breathing. The standing series was a bit shaky for me in places, but I did my best. Sometimes it's really hard to pull yourself together after you get that first wave of dizziness. I just worked on focusing and tried to stand as much as possible. I only went to the ground if I felt like a black-out would happen if I stayed upright.

The best pose of the day for me was definitely bow. I've got my brain wrapped around this one pretty solidly and I'm shocked at my depth. I still need to work on keeping just six inches between my knees and feet. Also, I have to figure out the shoulder rotation a bit better. There's a certain point when my shoulders need to rotate so I can continue pushing up with my legs without hurting my shoulders. Finding that point and relaxing into that while still pushing up is tough, but I like the feeling. I swear, I almost saw my feet over the top of my head today! It's going to be SO exciting when I do. Hopefully by the end of this challenge!

I also felt good in spine twist, which is usually not a great posture for me. I think I've finally got a handle on how to put pressure on my knee with my elbow to get the maximum twist in my spine. I can actually feel the twist now, which must mean I'm doing something right!

All in all, it was a solid class. And now I have the whole day in front of me! I've done my yoga before I'm normally even awake. How about that!