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Ok,
So Wendy and I have been going to Pilates once a week since September. It’s been TONS of fun, and more relaxing than any actual hard athletic work. Anyway, my instructor also teaches hot yoga at this place on Stafford Street, so this week, after lots of research and pondering over whether the heat would cause me to die of embarrassment after fainting in front of a room full of strangers, I decided to venture on over there on a Saturday morning with Mrs. Kalandra Dueck to give it a shot.
We got to the facility and it was very nice and clean- beautiful tile in the main entrance and changerooms. Our instructor for the morning- Leah, showed us around and helped us pick a spot for our mats. We then sheepishly went to the changeroom and got our clothing on… and sat for a while. We were there early because we didn’t know how much paperwork would have to be filled out (you’d think they’d make you sign a more detailed waiver when placing you in a room that is 40C and you’re exerting all of your energy, but alas, they didn’t. It was short and sweet).
So now was the time to enter the room. Holy crap. The heat made me think of Nevada in the middle of summer. It just hits you and almost knocks the wind out of you. My glasses fogged up. The room smells like Brett’s hockey bag after a tournament. I took a sip of my nicely cold water and relax in savasana (dead body pose), trying desperately to keep my breath under control and to adjust myself to this almost unbearable temperature… am I really going to get my heart rate up to like 160 in this heat? How on earth can I do this? I look over at Kalandra, who seems to be calmer than I am in this whole situation… has she done this before and isn’t telling me?
So the class begins and we start some breathing exercise, exactly what we do in pilates, which makes me feel much more comfortable. It’s hot. Sweat is already running down my butt crack. Long shorts were a very bad choice. I should have gone shopping. It still smells like gym socks, but I’m noticing now that it’s my armpits that are beginning to smell as well, so whatever.
My pilates instructor comes in late and sets up shop right in front of Kalandra and I. Great… just focus on myself, that’s what I’ll do.
Second and third pose are also exactly the same as pilates… YES! What’s this feeling I’m having… oh.. I’m extremely dizzy. Perhaps I should take a knee. It is insanely hot in here! Just breathe! Ok. Now we can have a drink of water! MMMM ice cold refres…. nevermind. It’s room temperature now. At least it gets my mind off the sweat pouring off my body!
Back to posing and such. It’s going well so far. About 30 minutes in now, and I’m insanely lightheaded. Leah told us that it’s ok to sit stuff out if we feel dizzy… not to feel pressure to do everything. So I do only 1 of 2 sets for 4 or 5 poses and get back into it, having sips of lukewarm water along the way. I don’t even notice the sweat anymore.
Now it’s time for floor exercises! YES! After every pose, you do 20 seconds in savasana to calm yourself. Even more awesome. Why can’t all other forms of exercise include 20 seconds of rest for about 45 seconds of work? With each pose, the breaks seem shorter and shorter and my heart is beating like a hammer, faster and faster with each rest period.
Finally, at the end of 90 minutes in this horrible heat we are released and leave the room. I feel pretty good. Once I get to the changeroom, I notice my clothes are so wet that it seems like I just got out of the pool. Gross. I take the coldest shower humanly possible and get dressed.
Kalandra and I head out to the reception area and run into pilates instructor. He chats with us for a bit and encourages us.
As bad as that sounds… when I got home I felt great! Only a headache in the evening to complain about. None of my muscles hurt, and I noticed in my pilates class yesterday that I had WAAAAAAY more flexibility. I can almost touch my toes sitting down without bending my knees.
I think I’ll go back again. If you’re going to torture yourself, you might as well do something that lets you rest this much between torture poses!
Have a great week!
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