Still locking it!

So yesterday was my official breakthrough day for standing bow, when I locked out the kicking leg on both sides. I didn't consider it official until today, though, when I repeated this feat in the 3pm class. I had been kinda scared that it was a fluke and would never happen again!! But nope - I still had it today, which I think means it will probably stick around. YAY!!

I love having breakthroughs - they are so satisfying. I was talking to one of my yoga friends tonight who says that she gets chills every time something like that happens to her. I am pretty different - I think I always end up having my breakthroughs when I am really relaxed in class and not THINKING too hard, so then when something new does happen, it just comes really easily and unexpectedly, and I'm like "oh - wow - so that's what this pose feels like - this is pretty cool." I get much more excited AFTER class ends when my brain catches up to my body and I realize that I've done something extremely cool!

I was kinda sore today tho. My quads were really sore, which is unusual, but since those are the "LOCK THE KNEE"muscles I took that soreness as a very positive sign.

Heard something about Craig coming to give a posture clinic - in like 9 days from now!! Craziness abounds!! They haven't yet figured out what to do about work-study's like me, since they want to give priority to paying students, but honestly I'd like to see them keep me out. I just can't imagine they would have it in them to do that! If they don't let me sign up I will still totally show up with cash in hand and stand outside the door crying the whole day, and then Craig will be all like "what's wrong with that girl? you guys have a weird studio, I'm not coming back here anymore" and then they'll have to let me in so they don't look really bad. It's a foolproof plan. :-P

Not practicing -> great class?!?

Today was unexpectedly great! I feel like Christmas and New Year's made my practice VERY sporadic for the past couple weeks; I only got to practice 4 days during the week of Christmas, and then I missed New Year's Eve due to being at work all day and New Year's Day due to being hungover and then having to go to work. Since it's been AGES since I had 2 consecutive days without Bikram, I was slightly apprehensive about tonight's class.

Class was AMAZING. One of my best. The teacher's tone was definitely more relaxed than usual, due to a huge influx of first-timers and people returning to the practice after weeks or months away (yay for January). But he still taught a hard, hot class. I just felt totally RELAXED the entire time. I definitely worked hard and "killed myself", but mentally I felt totally serene the whole time and my breathing stayed very slow and even. And here are a few things that happened:

• I balanced with my head to my knee in head-to-knee for much longer than I've ever done - probably a good solid 15 seconds, instead of holding for 5 or maybe 10 and then bailing.
• I found and held my balance in toe stand WITHOUT resting my butt on my heel at all - something that I've been struggling with for a month or two.
• I went straight into standing bow - no dawdling in the set-up - and locked out the kicking leg on BOTH sides, both times!! I have been locking out the left leg in class for a couple weeks now, but I had NEVER locked out the right before, in class OR out. HUGE surprise - felt great!!

What a great beginning to the New Year! Granted, any practice that I did today would have been the best of the year by default alone, but this was a REALLY good one. Yay!