Digging my Well

I woke up early this weekend to make an 8:30am "Juicy Yoga" class offered on Saturday at Blue Lotus Studio in Raleigh- an urban (yet quiet) yoga studio near great dining and galleries. Also a pretty quick 30 min drive from my house. Would probably make another fun date activity for the hubby and me.

There are inspiring quotes on the glass walls as you enter. I snapped a quick picture of this one;

"Be Courageous and discipline yourself. Work. Keep digging your well. Don't think about getting off from work. Water is there somewhere. Submit to the daily practice. Your loyalty to that is a ring on the door. Keep knocking, and the joy inside will eventually open a window and look out to see who's there".  Rumi

I wasn't really sure what to expect from Juicy Yoga, the description said:

"Yoga is a simple and ancient practice that joins two parts of our humanity -- our minds, which are often busy or distracted, and our hearts -- our innermost nature, which naturally seek spiritual focus and awareness.This 90-minute class is for the inexperienced and the experienced! All you need is a willingness to learn and find out about things your body can do!Come and play and get juicy!!!May want to bring a towel and water."

Since I am eager to learn and generally willing to play, I thought, hey why not get my gypsy yoga project taken care of early in the weekend and I'll have the rest of the weekend to myself. Plus I have been looking at their 9 month teacher training program and I want to get to know the studio.

For this class I arrived early, no rush. I practically snuck out of my house at 7:45am with no one but the dog seeing me leave, her fluffy tail wagging me a fond farewell.

I'm thinking that getting here early is a bonus regarding parking if you want to park close to the studio. Since I am a bit fussy about setting up my space I like the quiet time before a class to get settled. The teacher, Yvonne asked me if I had done yoga before and asked me if I knew about this class, "only from the online description" I said. She informed me that this particular class was only offered once a month and that we'd be doing a form of Kundalini Yoga with Kriyas mixed with flow yoga. The Kriyas were movements / exercises done for 4 mins at a time. We would be building heat she said.

I wasn't sure about a class with a Kundalini slant. I was a little nervous, but interested to see what was going to unfold. I took a Kundalini yoga class many, many moons ago in Boulder and my only take away was feeling light headed. The teacher wore a turban and was kinda spooky. I probably ended up leaving early....."Old moths as an old friend used to say.

Juicy Yoga filled up very quickly, about 30 people filled up the studio. We were in rows- mostly regulars I am assuming, a variety of ages, both male and female, everyone seemed to be decidedly fit and experienced yogis. My only choice was go with the flow I would not fold.  Yvonne proceeded to take us through a balanced class of intense yogic exercises mixed vinyasas. The class got my heart rate up, focused me and relaxed me at the same time. A good workout, both for the mind and body. I am glad to know my body well enough know that I can modify anything to avoid injury, and I can push myself when I feel inclined. I remained on the edge of discomfort during most of the Kriyas, but still allowed myself to move in new ways. I'm glad I didn't walk out, though I don't think I could or would ever walk out on a class again, I'm just too interested in what's going on! I wouldn't recommend this for a first timers or even for someone not used to group exercise settings or breath work.

I'm not sure why this particular class is only offered once a month, I should have asked- it certainly filled the room! I'm not sure if I would do it again- except to bring a friend to check it out. I do know that I liked the set up of the studio and that I would like to go back to try out different classes.

Interesting side note: after this class I felt a real rush of creative juices regarding a home project I am working on, normally I am very wishy-washy- hesitant and undecided when trying to get things done. But after this class I had several creative inspirations, regarding special projects and personal ideas. Kundalini rising? Who knows?

Thank you Yvonne at Blue Lotus for being a new inspiration to my yogi journey.