Week 9: DONE!

Hallelujah! It is done and over with! Apologies that it took so long for me to get around to doing this update... Things have been crazy. But here you go!

I Learned Dialogue?

I know. I know. I haven't posted my Week 9 update. That's because I haven't done it yet. I decided I wanted to wait until after I teach my first class on Thursday morning.

And I am totally freaked out about that.

I truly and sincerely (no fucking shit) can NOT remember the dialogue. At all. All I can recall are the order of each pose, and the Sanskrit name. But the dialogue? Nothing but Sit-Up and Savasana are in my brain. I have been up tonight studying. And I will study tomorrow when I can... But holy shit... My first class won't contain much dialogue. My brain is too full.

It's funny... I look at the words for the dialogue now, and I wonder, "Did I actually recite this in posture clinic? Did I actually do a good job on it, like everyone has told me I did? Because I don't ever recall saying these words."

That's the thing about training and posture clinic... The dialogue truly is only in your short-term memory. People keep telling me, "You'll be fine! The words will flow out of your mouth like diarrhea."

But I think my brain is constipated. Badly.

We'll see what happens in class on Thursday AM... I apologize in advance for the shitastic class, if you attend. But I promise to work hard to get better.

Hello. (Pause) My Name Is Heather. (Pause) I Am Your Yoga Teacher.

We are done!!!!!

Well, we still have graduation tomorrow afternoon... But we are officially Bikram yoga teachers now!

I never thought this day would come. And it seems like that first Saturday that I got here and was running around town in a taxi to get my room stocked with food and the essentials was so long ago.

Ahh!

I am very excited and not at all sad to be leaving training. I'm not the sentimental-sappy type though. I was ready to go home and was hanging on by mere threads by the end of week seven. Overall, training is an amazing experience. And I 100% recommend someone go if they love the yoga and want to broaden their knowledge of it. Even if they never intend to teach the yoga... There is tremendous value in going to training just for the hell of it.

Here's the breakdown of all that I have accomplished while here:

• Strong dialogue delivery for all 26 postures
• 97 yoga classes
• NO MAKE UP CLASSES
• Never yelled at by Bikram
• Never once left the tent
• Never cried out of frustration
• Swore a whole lot... Even invented some new swear word combinations
• Basic CPR certified
• Passed anatomy
• Still like 98% of the people here
• Only dislike 2%

I will be doing my final video blog update when I get home on Sunday night. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments below!

HUMP DAY!!!

Oh thank you Sweet Baby Jesus on Christmas morning! This show is almost over!!!

We just have...

• 4 more yoga classes
• 3 more evening lectures
• 2 afternoon lectures
• 1 graduation ceremony

And tomorrow my husband will be arriving! SQUEE! It's been NINE WEEKS since I saw him last. I can't believe how long it's been!

I have loved this experience. But I am ready to get back to the cold city of Toronto.

Week 8: THANK GOD!

Week eight is done! Bring on Week 9!

Posture Clinics... DONE!

Yay! Hooray!

We are DONE with Posture Clinics!

We finished up this afternoon with Ardha Matsyendrasana, the Spine Twist pose. We got all 45 people between the two groups through the posture... Which was amazing as we only usually get like 18-25 people through the dialogue during posture clinics.

Now it is time to go back and begin work on retaining the dialogue in our heads permanently. My first class is in exactly two weeks.

AHH!

Tessism: Spring 2011 TT Trainee.

In case you were curious, and I hadn't made it clear, the purpose of this blog is share my teacher training life with others... In the hopes that it may inspire them in some way.

Inspire them to try Bikram yoga... Inspire them to try a 30-day challenge (or a 101-day challenge!)... Or to come to teacher training themselves.

The blog is meant to give a general overview of everything that happens, but not get too specific about everything that happens in the "yoga bubble." When I am happy, you will know it. And you may even know why. When I am having a tough week, you will know that too. And I will share the general reasons why.

This is because I want people to understand that teacher training will bring out a wide variety of experiences and emotions in you.

You will get exhausted.

You will be giddy beyond words for no reason.

You will surprise yourself by what you can actually do.

You will get angry at times.

Etc...

That said, I am beyond flattered with one reader (who started off reading my other blog) who found some of my tips for newbies to Bikram yoga helpful. She's followed me since then... And went on to do a number of challenges. (AMAZING!) And now, she plans on being a part of the Spring 2011 Teacher Training class.

AWESOME!

You can read Tessism's blog here.

Weak 7: Seventy-Six Classes Down!

We are 76 classes into training! Only 21 classes left!

I can NOT wait to get back to a regular practice schedule. I am so over the constant hydration and food intake you have to do here at training. I feel so bloated.

Anyway, here is this week's update.

P.S. Why do I look high in the still from this week's video? I guess I am a little "yoga stoned."

P.P.S. When I refer to the "assholes at training," I am referring to other trainees. There is one in particular I want to make do Standing-Head-to-Knee 100 times in a row, and force him to hold it for three minutes at a time.

Happy Guy Fawkes Day.

It's Bonfire Night. Let's build us a big bonfire and throw some unreasonable view points on the sexes, gays, AIDS and artists in it.

It's a new moon today. How about we burn some sage (as I like to do at the start of a new cycle) and start over with some perspective on what our key audience is?

Bikram Yoga & The Female Body.

We've done 67 classes of yoga now that we are at the start of our 7th week here at Bikram Yoga teacher training. That much yoga in just over 30 days does things to your body.

• Eating a lot.
• Not eating at all.
• Peeing a lot.
• Not peeing a lot.
• Pooping too much.
• Not pooping at all.
• Delayed menstruation.
• Menstruation coming early.
• Random colds that show up one day and are gone the next.

Lots of stuff. We've all talked about it here. But for me, all this yoga did my ovulation cycle in a little. It delayed it by about 5 days, and made it really painful.

So painful, I could barely get through class this evening.

I couldn't side bend or back bend... As ovulation pain shows up in my lower backsides. Usually just on one side. It's typically a dull ache. But tonight it was full on cramping, on my right side. I couldn't even do the spine strengthening series.

I am counting down the classes till I can return a normal Bikram practice schedule. (Only 30 classes left.)