BEHOLD…HOT YOGA…

…on a budget! hahaha
It works, seriously. Oh my muscles felt so warm and loose. Mmm.
Costco heat lamps rule. We barely turn on the heat in the house (we keep the thermostat around 65F) and we just use the space heaters and it saves so much energy. The only thing that sucks is leaving the room and you realize how cold it is in the rest of the house! ;)
Anywho, back to yoga talk.
Yesterday something inside me sort of clicked and I fell in love with yoga!!!
It was like I was running in a grassy field and I saw yoga off in the distance. We both began running toward each other, arms outstretched. It was in slow motion, running, and more running, and finally a twirling, loving embrace.
Yes, it was that good.
Monday’s Lunchtime yoga:
I did Crunch Yoga on my lunchbreak for about 25 minutes. I went back to work energized and ready to roll.
Sarah Ivanhoe is a good instructor. She explains things well. I really enjoy the Crunch yoga DVD because it is great for beginners. I can do the entire 40 minute DVD!! Amazing I know. It is a real confidence booster for beginners. They also offer modified movements in case you can’t do the ones that Sarah demonstrates. The first 30 minutes is yoga and the last 10 focuses on abdominals. And let me tell you the ab stuff is HARD!!!
I did 25 minutes over my lunch break and it was just lovely.
This block is probably the best purchase I made, in addition to my Green Lululemon Biodegradable Align mat.

It is a yoga block and it is great for beginner’s who find they can’t do certain poses. You can put your hand on the block instead of the floor and it gives you a few extra inches! I can maintain my form much better when using the block. It is a real confidence booster! I love it.
The only thing I have been a bit disappointed with in both the P90X and Crunch DVDs is that I find I can’t really zone out and relax because the instructors talk the whole way through the DVD. Does anyone else find that? I guess when I get used to the DVDs I can mute it and put on my own music! Nothing against the instructors, but it is just a bit distracting. I prefer silence or soft music.
Monday evening, I found myself craving more yoga!!
Because I wasn’t in the mood for another instructor-talking DVD, I decided to just print some poses and try it on my own!
Of course, I posed the following question on Twitter:
“Does anyone know where I can find yoga poses to download and print?”
@Janine9148 said to check out yogajournal.com
@balanceisbeauty said to check out yogadownload.com
I checked out Yoga Journal’s pose guide. I love that website and used to frequent it last winter when I was doing yoga a lot. Yoga Journal has something quite fun and unique; you can create your own sequences and print them. I selected about 8 poses and printed it off.
Next, I went to Yoga Download. Another awesome website. I clicked on Yoga Download Printable Guide. It was exactly what I was looking for!
It is 2 pages…

I glanced at all the poses and I was surprised that most of them I could do! No super advanced stuff here.

I simply put the guide in front of me and follow the poses in order. It was SO much easier than I thought!!!

The best part of it was that it was quiet! I totally zoned out. This was the first time I have ever been able to really zone out and feel like I was truly relaxing. No voices…no music…nothing.
The child’s pose is SO amazing for my sore back and shoulders. It is unbelievable how stiff I get from baking all day.

Sketchie makes me giggle. He is definitely the weirdest yoga instructor around!

hahaha!
For whatever reason, when I do downward dogs, he HAS to walk underneath me. It’s like he’s challenging me to stay up longer! I warn him that I could fall and crush him at any given moment, but he doesn’t seem to care.
Might I add that my body is sore from yoga? It most certainly is a hard workout. My arms are really sore this morning from all the downward dogs I did yesterday!
Demonstrating the yoga block!

It adds a few inches to my arms and allows me to keep a better form than if I had to put my hand all the way on the floor. I wish I knew about these blocks last winter! They are a real confidence booster for beginners like moi.
I finished off my evening yoga by really challenging myself- I tried the CRANE!!!

I have only done the crane successfully 2-3 times in my life. It is the ultimate challenge for me. I knew I had to try it out after seeing Alex and Krissy rock one out the other night.
After a few attempts, I did it!!!! I guess I found the ‘right’ spot because I held it for a good 8-10 seconds. I yelled for Eric to take a picture but he missed it. :( You’ll have to take my word! It was awesome. I felt so good and I was just beaming with pride! The only thing is this crane pose really hurts my wrists. Is this just because I am not used to it, I wonder?
I highly suggest printing the pose guide and trying some poses out on your own. It was so calming for me. I will certainly be doing some solo (DVD free) workouts today and this week.
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Do you use any fun yoga equipment?
I am so happy I bought the Align mat and block. For one, I was slipping all over the carpet with no mat, and two the block helps my form so much. Both worthwhile purchases in my opinion!
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See you later for a GLOWING and energizing lunch and the winner of my 1st year Blogiversary giveaway!
Enjoy your Tuesday everyone. :D Make it glow…
Don’t forget to enter Krissy’s Glo bar giveaway! Last chance to enter!

“Keep these concepts in mind: You’ve failed many times, although you don’t remember. You fell down the first time you tried to walk. You almost drowned the first time you tried to swim. . . . Don’t worry about failure. My suggestion to each of you: Worry about the chances you miss when you don’t even try.” Sherman Finesilver
ahhhh isn’t that amazing? Gives me chills!
I love using a block as well as a strap for deeper stretching or when my hamstrings are uber tight.
Glad you like yoga, I’m getting back into the groove too and it feels so good!
I love reading about your yoga journey, Angela! Crane pose (bakasana) – it’s CORE STRENGTH first, arms second.
I LOVE my black Manduka yoga mat – that’s my #1 yoga accessory. After that I really like my Hasta Pada Yoga Belt (vyanayoga.com) and my yoga MUSIC! The right music helps create the right mood.
The great thing about yoga though is that you really don’t need anything – just close your eyes and turn inward, listen, and your practice will emerge.
Congrats on getting the Crane pose!! I haven’t made it there yet ;)
The yoga block looks pretty cool & really helpful, I think I might have to pick one of those up!
I’m still ‘getting into’ yoga, but so far I love it!
I do yogadownload.com too. I was a bit skeptical as a newbie to yoga if I was going to be able to follow along. And I agree, it was so, so much easier than I thought!
As far as yoga equiptment goes. I don’t really have any. I am sure I’ll be adding some to my Christmas list :)
that heat lamp/fan looks awesome. haha i was looking at the same lulumon mat the other day, i might have to get it. i looked at that printable yoga guide last night, i think i’ll have to print that sucker out!
I love to see people LOVING yoga! And I think I am going to steal the heat lamp idea. We live in a 3-story house and I hate pumping heat through all of it for only a few rooms.
I just got a Costco heater this weekend!
Thanks so much for the link to the yoga poses – this is so great!
I love my block and strap. Due to my back surgery I can’t do things like the bow or dancer without a strap but I love them so I broke down and bought a strap.
I will totally be checking out that yoga download page. I want to be able to do yoga while watching TV (yeah I’m crazy) but I always blank on poses to do that flow together.
Your “hot” yoga idea is brilliant! I will need to try that this week. I have made it a goal to do a yogadownload once a week.
“It was like I was running in a grassy field and I saw yoga off in the distance. We both began running toward each other, arms outstretched. It was in slow motion, running, and more running, and finally a twirling, loving embrace.”
HAHA this was such a great description – I felt like I could see you in the field ;o)
I love the idea of just using the yoga download poses without the podcast – i find all the chattering really distracting too! I should get a mat of my own. The mats at the gym yoga classes are always gross and sweaty from the body pump people :\
You are so creative! I love your ‘HOT yoga’!
Thank you for the info. on yogadownload. I am definitely going to look into that today. I would love to go to a yoga class but prefer to do it at home because I can save some cash and because of my schedule I wouldn’t be able to make it to a class. I have also heard YogaToday is a good webstie that offers free yoga classes.
Sham
Oh my gosh, I completely agree! I don’t really like it when the instructors TALK the entire time. That is one reason why I stopped physically going to class and decided to save money and practice yoga at home. I want peace and quiet inbetween poses and I think sometimes they try talking to get your mind off of holding the pose for so long.
Yoga blocks are awesome! They help you on so many levels with so many different poses. I’m excited that you’re really into yoga now.
Namaste. :)
I definitely need to look into yogadownload! I love the hot yoga ;) Have you tried a Rodney Yee dvd? They don’t talk very much it’s like being in a yoga class. Um crane is way over my head I can barely handle downward facing dog.
I love that ending quote so much! Being a perfectionist, failure is one of my greatest fears. The quote really helps to put things into perpsective! Glad you’re loving yoga- I need to get into it more!!!
I love love LOVE MTV Yoga. It is good for beginners and if you get better, it is good for experts too. I really like how it is a routine and the instructor doesnt talk too much. I have been doing it since I was in college (I graduated in 2003) and I still love it and it still challenges me.
Yeah yoga! I am off to my third class today! It’s hard in the midst of it..but so worth it in the end. I feel so happy and relaxed after! So happy to see you are experiencing the same. I actually find my wrists hurt more when I do it at home. No idea why? I should try “hot” yoga at my house with my space heater! :)
How cool that you were able to do the Crane pose! We believe you!
Our cat likes to walk underneath my husband when he does yoga as well!