In my last week of the 21 days introductory offer at Fierce Grace Brixton I was recovering from Thorpe Park Half Marathon.
Monday was obviously a rest day. I really wanted to go to hot yoga but a friend recommended to rest until my legs feel better. My knee was hurting due to a road race and the heat would expand the muscle more and maybe I could feel more pressure on the knee.
Tuesday, I was surprised how quick my recovery was, so I went to my usual after work class. Fierce Grace was on the schedule. This was a more challenging class with many balancing postures, I described in my previous post.
Friday: Deep Core: was just what I needed before the weekend. Lots of twists, hip openers and a good stretch.
Saturday: WILD, a cardio-yoga class, I never tried before.
With such a variety on the time table I had to try WILD midday on Saturday. The class was not as busy as the other classed during the week. The temperature was warm but not as hot as the usual hot yoga class, that’s what I noticed straight away.
The class started with a warm up running on the spot. I was feeing fine with a higher heart rate and thought, good that I was in a few hot classes before. My body was getting used to the heat. This class was like described above. It reminded me of different gym classes I have been to. The strengthening exercised on core and legs were great and I felt challenged. What was standing out, compared to usual gym classes, was the breathing exercises like “breath of fire” which comes from yoga. The breath was moving quickly in and out your belly. I found it quite energetic.
This class would be perfect as a change in-between your yoga practice. The dynamic movement combined with strengthening and breathing exercises will tone your body and energise your mind. If you are more into classic yoga with a dynamic flow and relaxation at the end, this might not be your cup of tea. But you only know if you try it once.
Pic: NITRA relaxation class Sunday afternoon.
Hot Yoga Challenge:
I was new to hot yoga. Over the past 3 weeks I learnt a lot about my body and exercising in a hot environment.
My first class experience was very intense. I struggled with the heat but I leant how important it was to listen to my body and take it slow. I thought I never sweat that much before, it was a new experience in so many ways.
After the first week and trying different classes I got to know the variety and my body leant all twists and yoga poses very well. I felt more confident, still took it slow and listened to my body. I loved the most how the heat helped me to relax as well. I let go.
While training for the Half Marathon race I used challenging classes to strengthening my body and the relaxation part of it to balance out my active lifestyle. Especially helpful was NITRA to fully relax and feel refreshed after one hour laying down. Week two, I was really into it.
Week 3, I couldn’t believe that the trial period was over. I managed to go 3x a week and wished I would have tried a few more classes, but I managed to get to know Hot Yoga. Very interesting to feel that my body got already used to the heat after two weeks. If I compare my confidence in moving from one pose to the other now versus my first class, wow there is a big difference.
Overall I enjoyed the classes and know now that I should slow down my life style a bit and find more relaxation. Exercising is so good for me but sometimes I forget to relax. London is a lovely city but I will try to handle the dynamics more and find balance. One option is yoga.
I can recommend to try new ways of exercising. If you don’t like it, you are not committed. Perfect and a win at the end.
I gained more experience and found something I will enjoy more regularly.
Always try new ways, don’t stand still and be openminded.
Enjoy HOT YOGA!
Thanks,
Sabine
PS: All above are my on opinion, this was not a sponsored post.