“These people are nuts,” I thought when I first heard about Bikram yoga.
Little did I know…
That I’d be doing it myself a couple of years later — desperate for anything that would make me feel like I was living rather than dying.
Cancer. That’s what drove me to try anything — even Bikram! I’d found a lump, had it biopsied, had gotten the terrible news, and now, several days later, cancer was all I could think of. Day and night? Night and day? 24/7? Hell no. More like 48/7.
Bikram is tough — the heat, the poses, everything. All classes are considered beginner level, but just getting through the heat definitely takes extra strength — or in my case, absolute end-of-the-rope desperation — to get through.
The poses are challenging, but to Bikram’s credit, they’re only as challenging as one makes them. What matters is how hard you push yourself.
I pushed myself as if my life depended on those poses, because they did. My mental health decimated by cancer, Bikram made me focus. Each 90-minute class was a mental vacation — being forced to get through that heat, to truly listen to instructors, since they don’t demonstrate poses — made me not think about cancer. What a relief! As treacherous those 90 minutes were, they were also a refuge. A respite from contemplating the myriad decisions I needed to make for my grim situation. I’m not great at meditation, but the classes taught me laser focus!
In an hour and a half, my body, my mind, and my soul were pummeled. Sweat rained out of me. As my body became strong, balanced, flexible, and focused, so did the rest of me.
“Bikram’s Beginning Yoga Class,” the book Bikram Choudhury published with the help of Bonnie Jones Reynolds, helped speed the process.
It’s everything one could need from such a book! Without wasting a lot of ink, paper, and the reader’s time, it starts with how Bikram put together his workout. Then explains the do’s and don’ts of the 26-pose routine he designed to address every part of the body. In his words, the sequence heals one “head to toes, bones to skin.”
Photos abound to thoroughly demonstrate poses, some modeled by 1970s celebrities, such as Dick of the Smothers Brothers in his Speedos.
Thank goodness for the non-celebs in it, too. They illustrate how women and men, oldsters and youngsters, huge and petite, can do this yoga! Simple, direct, straightforward, and best of all, inspiring and effective.
All yogas have benefitted me more than no yogas. Here’s the great friendly place I currently attend that even offers a free class a month.
Here’s where I talk more about cancer and about the wonder of public libraries that house many more marvels besides this book.
What’s worked best for you to stay mentally and physically fit?
Happiness Between Tails by da-AL 
I promised myself a course one I’m back on my feet, literally. I’ve always wanted to try it.
On and off, I did it on my own, following people on utube, but I sure need a proper course to show me all the stuff I need. I feel rusty, so I bet it’s gonna be painful.
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lol the 1st time back would indeed be horrible — but one good thing about getting out of shape is that one seems amazing improvement so quickly, unlike later when one is fit
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Sounds promising.
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lol
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[…] desperation, I thought a detox could be the answer. If the lump could be sweated out, then hot yoga might do that. Insane with fear as I was, suddenly the prospect of exercising in 105-plus-degrees […]
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Hi Daal, I’m home from spending Christmas with my daughter and her husband. Good to visit your blog. Awaiting for your book launching party! I did yoga for a couple years. The gym seems to lose good instructors frequently. I hope they’ll have stable, good instructors soon because I love doing yoga. Follow to get more of your posts!!
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your encouragement means a lot, Miriam – thank you!
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You’re very welcome! See you around!
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Thank you Daal for letting into a part of your life. All the best.
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Thank you for reading & your sweet comment 🙂
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When I was recently in Latvia, I read about the technologically very advanced treatment they offer at 2 hospitals: it’s called CyberKnife. In Latvia, the cost of treatment is 8000 euros. Not sure, how much in North America, but, I would think, it’s much more. They offer these treatments to patients from abroad, too. 90% success rate. It’s available in a few hospitals in Canada, and most likely, in the States, as well. Realistically, it’s probably offered only to difficult to treat patients, but I would think, it is possible to apply it in any case because it really decreases side effects to minimum. Hopefully, you have some not advanced stage and might not need something like that, but if you would ever do, I’d say go to either Germany for their extremely alternative treatments with very high success rate, but one has to observe abnormally strict discipline and diet, or for this very much healthy parts and tissues saving robotized therapy. Treatments are so advanced in some countries (not sure if available to everybody in the USA) that there are huge chances not to suffer from regular, widely applied standard treatments, that, in fact, cause abnormal harm.
Other than that, I would love you stopped by in the future at my lifeschool blog, because I always was having huge interest in the ways energy affects us, in the way we create, consume and release energy. That involves also developing our mental perception and working on ourselves. I just got huge new knowledge about many processes, and I am about to try delivering it to people who are suffering from different conditions. That mainly is helping ourselves which you are already doing. I wish you all the best, but especially patience, strength and internal toughness.
Yoga is lifestyle and mental focus, it’s nice you can accept it.
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Thank you 🙂
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