Yoga Injury

I had a "brilliant" idea on Friday. I decided that I was going to go to two yoga classes in a row. I thought this would be a great way to test my limits and learn something new about myself. What I learned: It is stupid to go to two hot yoga classes in a row.

I started at hot hatha, which is basically a class where one holds several poses for long periods of time to work on strength and focus.  I was rocking it in the first class. My leg went over the back of the head while I did the dancer pose.  I was able to do a few poses where I was balancing on one leg and I was in head stand for a significant period of time. I looked at the back mirror while doing a backbend.  I was feeling very self-righteous and unyogic.  And then I went to the second class.....

It started out okay, but I could tell that something was not quite right with my back. I felt a twinge right over my right hip, so I was like, cool, I will be so super awesome and do the modified versions of the poses. But the twinge was still there....and then I did warrior one, I was working hard to move my hips in line and then did a slight back bend and.....*$#%^ .....no more yoga for Elissa. And, the self-righteous feeling, gone.  First, I tried to move my broken frame to my mat and lay in child's pose. Child's pose was not possible, my arms flailed out in front of me but I could not sit on the back of my legs. Next, I rolled over and tried savasana (corpse pose), but laying on my back was excruciating.

So, I did the next best option, I quietly ratcheted myself up and moved quietly out the door. I walked around the building until the class was over and as I went back in to pick up my mat, it actually took my a minute or so to get back to a standing position to get to the car.

But I decided that this experience was actually very good for my yoga practice. Doing stupid things is a good way to learn how to silly people can be.

Lessons Learned:

1) Yoga is not a sport and so trying to do advanced moves as an advanced beginner is just silly.
2) When the body first twinges, STOP then.
3) Over confidence almost always leads to some sort of humbling experience.

Next class: will listen to my body and do what I can......