I took my first yoga class last year to fulfill a promise to a friend in Atlanta that I'd try yoga a least once in 2005. Since Bikram Yoga Grapevine is barely a block from my house, it made sense to try it here. I was close to having knee replacement surgery and thought I'd take the 10 day introduction class to try it out. I loved it, and attended almost every day, right up until a day or so before my surgery. I think it helped strengthen my knee particularly and my body in general before having surgery and being out of commission for weeks. Just before my surgery, I bought a 50-class yoga pass as incentive to get back to yoga after my knee had healed up. While I was recovering, I kept my yoga mat right by the front door to remind myself of what I had to look forward to.
My recovery was pretty hard - I've had a knee deformity since birth and there was extra work needed to get the knee replacement right. I was on my back in bed about 23 hours a day for a month with my knee in a machine that bends it back and forth for at least 8 hours a day. I slept a good amount of that time, and was taking huge amounts of pain medicine. I had in home physical therapy for awhile, and then further therapy at a rehab center in Coppell for a few months. It took 6 months before my knee didn't hurt most of the time, and by the 9-month mark, I was ready to come back to yoga. Bikram yoga has been a godsend for my knee in terms of strength and flexibility that I'm certain I wouldn't have otherwise. Stacey was wonderful, and went through a whole class with me, assessing what my knee was capable of, and finding alternate positions to those I couldn't do. I'll likely never be able to do some of the positions, but absolutely know I'm getting full benefit from those I'm doing. When the specials came up in February, I didn't think twice about signing up for an annual pass - what a perfect gift to myself (and I love the towel service..)!
I've found that yoga also does wonders to counteract stress. When I'm driving to work in the morning after 90 minutes of yoga, I feel like a kind of superhero - that I can do anything today. When yoga is hard, I do it for my mother who has been bedridden with Multiple Sclerosis, or my 16 year old niece in California who needs this yoga (for all of its benefits) but doesn't have access to it. I think of them and work just a bit harder to stay in position, maintain balance, or try to get my form right. In my mind, I give my yoga to them as a gift of sorts.
It's funny how our bodies change so slowly but so surely. One day, I'll have a breakthrough and suddenly triangle pose feels just right after months of struggling with it. Yoga used to feel like a fight against my inflexible and unbalanced body, but more and more, it feels like a dance. I love the stretching, and miss it when I'm traveling. Stacey said recently in a class that stretching is good for depression, and I think it's probably true. I've never felt more at peace in my life than I do now. I love the fact that the older I get, the better I feel and the healthier I am. The best is yet to come.
I'm so proud to be in the group of students at Bikram Yoga. I don't think I've ever seen dedication that I see morning after morning as we all show up. I talk myself out of getting out of bed with a half dozen reasons each morning (got to bed too late, didn't sleep well, am not feeling too good, have a long day ahead, etc.), and then all it takes is knowing how great I'll feel and how I love how my body's improving to pop me right out of bed and into the shower. I'm a far cry from a morning person, but enjoy the time spent talking with my yoga friends before or after 5:30am class. Our teachers are terrific - each unique and perfect at not just getting us through class, but encouraging us to try harder. I'm inspired by them and all the people around me each morning. We all work so hard, and push ourselves to great things. I'm honored to be part of such great company.
- Barbara Adamson |
