Beep, Beep, Beep…..It's 4:55AM and time to get up for yoga. I quickly do the math in my head, "OK, if I push snooze I'll get 9 more minutes of sleep, then it will be 5:04." Just enough time to brush my teeth, put on my yoga clothes and drive to class. And so the day begins. What on earth could posses someone to repeat this ritual day in and day out? Two words: Bikram yoga.
My journey to Bikram yoga has been an active one. It began when I was enrolled in my first tumbling class, then competitive swimming, cheerleading, aerobics and step classes, weight lifting, kickboxing, spinning and running. You name it, I did it! Eventually all of this pounding and repetitive motion started to wear on my body and annoying little ailments would pop up here and there. Mostly just a sore knee, minor feet problems or a tweaked ankle, but all of this came to a head when the doctor told me that I had a stress fracture in my femur. Needless to say, this put the kibosh on my active lifestyle for a while and gave me chance to reflect on what my body was saying to me, or rather SHOUTING at me.
I came to the conclusion that I needed to start giving back to my body. After all, look what it had done for me through the years. Not to mention, I've only got one, so I need to take extra care of it. I had done some yoga in college, and as I was recovering from my stress fracture, I began to take more yoga classes at the gym. I loved the way I felt after class and decided that I wanted to do yoga at a "real" studio. I did some research on studios in the area and came across Bikram Yoga. Reading all the testimonials really intrigued me and I knew that this was something I had to try. I was hooked after my first sweat dripping class.
Two-plus years later, I'm still hooked. Not only have I seen my body change, but also my state of mind. Looking at myself in a mirror for 90 minutes has really helped me accept my body and appreciate what it does for me. You can't help but leave class with a sense of accomplishment and pride….you can't get that from some cardio machine.
The success I've had with Bikram Yoga is largely due to the exceptional teachers at the Grapevine studio. The support and encouragement that they give each and every student is unsurpassed. Stacey, Sherri, LaDonna, Teresa, Sami, Jay, and Carla, THANK YOU. And a special shout out to Stacey for providing all of us with a beautifully remodeled studio…I think it's helping my postures!!
- Kylie Riesselman
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