Let’s say that you’re firmly (if reluctantly) located in that wide demographic known as “middle aged.” And you’re on blood thinners, strong medicines needed to fight off clotting in both legs. Due to those factors, your fitness level has dropped, just as your weight has gained. Despite a previous lifetime of semi-athleticism, your last few years have seemed like the “before” segment of a fitness reality show. Let’s say that’s you.
Or let’s just say that’s me.
The above characteristics might not suggest heading to the nearest Bikram yoga studio for 10 straight days of intense, hot, 90-minute, full-body workouts. But being a sucker for a challenge, I went ahead and gave it a shot. Here’s how it all went down.
After trying Bikram earlier in 2010, I was short-circuited by my second major round of clotting issues. After the requisite few months of feeling sorry for myself, I was ready for a change, predictably tied to the New Year. The good folks at Bikram Yoga of St. Louis extended my old membership with a few extra sessions added, allowing me to work out for three weeks straight, at my discretion. On January 2, I headed into the Clayton studio and was reminded of the hallmarks of the Bikram style: the hot, brightly lit room; the instructors who don’t mind giving you the occasional verbal brush-back if your form is off; and that unusual smell that reminds you exactly where you are, a sensory whiff that only comes into your life when visiting a Bikram facility.
My first day back was predictably tough. Well past the end of our last reclining posture, I even had to ask a fellow attendee, a fit-and-trim Bikram vet, to make sure I didn’t bite the dust on my walk into the cool hallway. After benching myself in the tight locker room, my spirits revived. Within the hour, I’d partake as if I’d been on a long journey to food-and-drink-deficient lands. A gallon of water disappeared and calories were consumed at a prodigious clip. But I was alive and, interestingly, nearly-buzzed a few hours later.
Over the next handful of days, the 26 asanas, or postures, began to feel a little more comfortable, even if a beginner’s form is always shaky. By the sixth, maybe seventh, class, some of the bits of discomfort were wearing away and by the sought-after day 10, I was able to execute some asanas that were nearly impossible for me only a week-and-change before. Yoga is a life’s pursuit, with progress measured in months and years rather than days and weeks, yet I was able to get through those first 10 days with something like confidence.
Oh, yeah, I also lost about eight pounds and a belt loop. Practically speaking, things were working out just fine.
After an relatively uneventful day 11, I went for a dozen trips straight and met The Wall, which I hit with a Wile E. Coyote-style intensity. Flat on the floor, trying to regain my senses, I started to lose it a bit, a disoriented fish flopping on a dock. My head was spinning, I was tightly surrounded by unfazed yogis, and cold cramps started washing over me. The room was especially warm that day. Maybe the 12-in-12 approach for a beginner wasn’t the most sound. I summoned instructor J.J. (whose encouraging style gives her contender status for World’s Nicest Person) and begged out. Having seen three others depart the room over the past dozen days, I was now the humbled number four; at least I walked out, unlike someone who crawled through the door a week before.
All that drama aside, I think my Bikram challenge was the best thing I’ve done for myself in a good, long while. My eating and drinking habits were refined. My body felt more together, even in that compressed period of time. And for someone who didn’t think a feeling of athleticism would come back anytime soon, each day’s conclusion brought a feeling of success.
The takeaway: I’d completely, unreservedly tell friends to give the Bikram style not one, but two or three classes, to see if the form works for them. As for myself, I might head back, too, just as soon as my embarrassment from that day 12 tap-out recedes. That might take a minute, but the results will probably call me back well before the next New Year.
