Dry Shampoo & Hot Yoga

My hair is dark, coarse, naturally wavy, and waist length.  It takes over twenty four hours to dry on its own and about twenty minutes for me to dry it with the blow dryer if I’m not actually trying to make it look good.  It’s also naturally dry and I apply alarmingly large quantities of Moroccan Argan Oil to help with the dryness and I don’t like to wash it everyday because excessive washing causes breakage.  Some people find that very gross but I assure you it’s not—lots of people can’t wash their hair every day for the very same reasons!

Bikram Yoga throws a wrench into everything.   The sheer amount of sweating that goes on in the hot room makes it necessary to alter my hair care routine. When my hair is piled up on top of my head in a bun for class, the bulk of it doesn’t get sweaty but my scalp and the first few inches are drenched by the end of class.  I’ve taken to leaning over a sink and shampooing my scalp and the hair that touches it after class in order to buy myself just another day before washing the entire length and further drying it out.   

Today, I really needed to wash my hair in its entirety but I was doing a double at the studio—the 6 am and then the 4 pm classes—and I didn’t relish the idea of washing my hair after the first class, having wet hair all day at work and then going to the 4 pm with wet hair.   I decided I would skip washing my hair until after the four pm class even if I did feel a little gross at work.   After the first class, I went home and quickly showered and got ready for work.  I combed out my hair and then put it in a low chignon to keep it out of my face.  

But, by lunchtime I couldn’t stand it any longer.  My head felt itchy and unbearably disgusting.  My friend and I ran to the grocery store on our lunch break to pick up some food for lunch and I purchased some of that L’oreal dry shampoo I’ve heard to much about and an inexpensive brush to use since the back of the bottle said a brush was necessary.   Back at work, my friend got lunch ready while I went into the bathroom and gave the dry shampoo a try.

Disaster.

I followed the directions carefully, lifting sections of hair and spraying the dry shampoo in short bursts at the roots.  It looked horrific—it looked like I was graying at the roots and my hair was sticking up oddly.  I’m not going to lie—it sort of looked like I was rocking some Einstein hair!   I let it set for a minute and then I massaged it in.  When I began to brush the product back out it turned into hundreds and hundreds of tiny white flakes.   It looked like I had upended three salt shakers on my head.  I began to panic and brushed faster.  I cursed as a snowstorm of dry shampoo swirled around me.

My friend came in to see what was the matter.  She was speechless for a minute and then said something about the one time she tried dry shampoo a couple years ago.  ‘Did this happen to you??!’   I leaned closer to the mirror to see if ANY of it appeared to be brushing out.  It wasn't.  She told me she didn’t remember but she had never used it again.  Hmph. 

There was nothing else to do but attempt wash it out with soap and water.    I wasn’t thrilled about having to use Dial antibacterial hand soap on my hair because nothing is more drying than antibacterial soap but there wasn’t any other choice.   I leaned over the tiny bathroom sink and scrubbed at the roots of my hair and then rinsed.   The little flakes of dry shampoo were gone.   But…

Now, there was a paste!   Yes, a paste.  Sort of like in that episode of Friends where Ross is wearing leather pants and calls Joey for help when he overheats and can’t get them pulled back up in the bathroom of his girlfriend’s house.   Don’t know what I’m talking about?  Watch the video clip here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbZVlKKd7I8  

I nearly cried.   It took three more washings with the hand soap before all of the dry shampoo paste was gone from my hair.   My hair was revolted at this treatment and stuck up every which way for the rest of the day.  It refused to be smoothed down.

I’m refusing to ever use dry shampoo again.

Third Class is the Magic Class

Missy and I took the ten am class on Saturday because we wanted to sleep in a little bit after being out together late the night before for drinks with some mutual friends.   I was looking forward to the class because it was with the teacher who had been my favorite teacher the first time I tried Bikram Yoga.  I enjoy this particular teacher because he is an inspiration to me and I like the calming but quietly encouraging tone of his voice.   He always gets me to push just a little bit more and just a little bit harder.

Class was a little more full than it had been the previous two days at six am but it seems reasonable to expect that some people want to sleep in a little bit and some people who usually take an evening class want to get a morning one in on their off day.   I set up in the back row to one side of the podium and had a perfect view to the mirror ahead of me.  I have a love/hate thing going with an unobstructed view of the mirror.

I dashed out of the hot room one last time to use the bathroom before things got started and when I got back my Favorite Teacher walked in just a moment behind me.   As always, class began with Standing Deep Breathing and I was pleased to find that much of the tightness in my shoulders was absent.   Both sets did not seem to go on forever as they had the first two days and I took this as an auspicious sign.

Each posture I felt a little bit better than I had the day before and I concentrated deeply with no thoughts in my mind other than the words of the teacher.  I breathed a little deeper, stretched a little bit harder, and before I knew it class was over.   Was I perfect?  Not even close!!   But I was the teeniest tiniest smidgen better than the day before.   I lay in the final Savassana with a huge smile on my face.   I knew every class wouldn't feel exactly as this one did but today it was just right.

I really think there's something about the third class.  It's magical.   I remember this from the first time I took Bikram and I've heard others say the same thing.   I think the first class your nerves are as tight as tight can be and it's blistering hot and you didn't know it would be THAT hot.  You wonder if you are going to suffocate, throw up, pass out, or have the sheer good luck to merely fall down dead and the class seems endless.   Maybe you couldn't even attempt a few of the postures, maybe you had to sit out a few but finally you make it through and feel pretty darn good afterwards.   You come back for a second class and within minutes of it beginning you are questioning yourself.   Are you out of your damn mind?  This time you KNEW how bad it was going to be and yet you came back?  What the hell were you thinking?   No!  You weren't thinking at all, were you?      You come back for a third class and it's mainly because of peer pressure or guilt that you paid for this and you are going to get your money's worth.

But then something magical happens.   This third class you walk in knowing two things.  You know the postures now and you know you survived two classes already and most importantly, can do it again.   You're not the new person today!  There's someone else in the hot room taking their first class and sort of hoping they quietly die over there in the back corner.   You're not going to die.  You're bad ass.  You've got this!   Your mind is relaxed and your body is able to release some of its tension and you find yourself pushing yourself in each posture and enjoying that wobbly feeling you get when you are stretching to your personal utmost.

You're even more drenched in sweat and you feel damn good.   You walk proudly out the hot room and the cooler air that hits your skin is like a job well done pat on the back.   Endorphins come rushing through your body--bet you didn't know you could produce that many, huh?--and all the rest of the day you are floating on Yoga Bliss.

Steam From My Ears

Somehow, the second class seemed even hotter than the first.   I think it was because this time I knew exactly how hot it is the hot room rather than remembering from a year and a half ago.  The inside of my ears got blistering hot again.  How weird is that?!

I Didn't Remember It Being This Hot!

Yup, felt exactly like this

I woke up several times the night before my return to Bikram Yoga.  I'm not sure why I was nervous because when I walked into the new studio, the teacher at the desk was very sweet and helpful and even gave me the Welcome Back Special.   It's identical to the new student trial package--unlimited classes for two weeks for $20--but it really did make me feel good about coming back.

This was the first time I had been in the new studio and it was a lot more spacious than the previous location.  The lobby was large enough for everyone to comfortably get in, get their shoes off, check in, and even mingle for a few minutes before (or after!) class.   The locker rooms were larger too--more bathroom stalls and more showers and in general just more room to move about and change.   The hot room was the most pleasant surprise; like the other areas, it was larger and the flooring was some type of wood/synthetic wood instead of the strange (and stinky!) carpeting that had been in the old studio.   It was surely easier to clean and the faint undercurrent of industrial heating and sweat wasn't nearly as strong.

The temperature of the room sure did seem hotter than I remembered!   More likely, I had just forgotten just what it feels like to be in a room that was around 105 degrees.  Quickly, I unfurled my mat and towel and scampered off to the locker rooms to peel off my outdoor clothes.   It felt much better when I got back into the hot room and sat on my mat with less clothing on.   There were a few people already in the room with me and several more filtered in over the next ten minutes.  It seemed like nearly everybody had that 'yoga body' and were wearing the skimpiest shorts and tops.   My tank top and average length shorts seemed suddenly to be a ridiculous amount of clothing.   I felt a little overdressed but I reminded myself that who knew what the future would bring.  Maybe one day I too would be confident enough to wear tiny scraps of clothing.   Or else, I'd just be so freaking hot I'd not care anymore!

Class began.   I promptly was reminded how much I dislike the very first posture which is really just a breathing exercise: Standing Deep Breathing/Pranayama Series.   The first part of it isn't so bad; it's an inhale with the fingers interlaced under the chin and as you breath in you lift the elbows to the ceiling.  It's the second part that gets me.   The second part requires you to exhale, dropping your head back and bringing your arms back down so your palms, wrists, forearms, and then elbows touch.   For some reason, it really hurts the back and front of my neck to drop my head back!   Maybe it's the weight of the huge coil of hair I have pinned on top of my head?  I don't know.   I swear both sets of Standing Deep Breathing had a million inhales and exhales and sweat was already trickling down my arms.

The Half Moon Pose with Hands to Feet went well enough and it felt especially good to stretch out my right hip.   I spared a few thoughts that Bikram Yoga would help me manage my crappy s-1 joint pain that likes to give me so many problems on a day to day basis.  Awkward Pose came next and it nearly killed me.  Holding my arms out in front of me that long was agonizing.   How on earth can one's arms be so heavy?  I managed as best as I could and only had to drop my arms twice and only for a half second.   I couldn't sit back very far because of my tight hip but I was okay with that.  It will take time.

The next few postures all seemed to follow in a burning but not painfully so manner.  I did my best and ignored the part of my mind that was reminding me how much better I was able to do everything 18 months ago.  It didn't matter.   This is now.   Standing Bow and Balancing Stick had me wobbling and going ow, ow, ow! as my heart started pounding and I felt twice as hot.   Even the insides of my ears felt hot!   Sweat trickled down and dripped off me leaving little wet spots all over my towel.   I  felt a bit trembly and lightheaded and I almost thought it would be most pleasant to go crashing to the floor because then I'd be ON the floor and it looked like a glorious place to be.

No such luck.   Standing Separate Leg Stretching Pose was next and I had forgotten how much I enjoyed that one.  I couldn't go as low as I once could but as I stretched away and down I could feel some of the tension in me dropping out and relaxing me.   It seemed I could breath a bit better too and I made it to the floor series with more positive thoughts than I had been having just a few minutes ago.

The floor series went well until the dreaded Camel.   I knew it was coming and I couldn't help but remember what a challenge it had always been.  You kneel with your knees six inches apart and your hands in the small of your back.  Then, there's the dreaded dropping your head back.   If you manage that well enough then you reach for your heels and arch your back with your hips forward.   I began to drop my head back, it hurt and I felt nauseous.  No reaching for the heels for me!  Not this time!  The second set wasn't any better.

There were a few more postures left before the final Savasana.  Doggedly I pushed through those as well, feeling tired, but proud that I made it through the entire class.   Never had it felt so good to lay still and just listen the final few words of the teacher before class ended.   I got up from the floor reluctantly--I felt like laying there for the next hour! Ha!--and staggered from the room.  The cool air from the lobby greeted me and instantly rejuvenated me.   By the time I was changed and walking out to my car I could feel a sense of exhilaration building.

I think I'm hooked.

Back To Bikram

About a year and a half ago, I convinced a friend of mine to try Bikram Yoga with me.  We both signed up for the two week beginner trial and at the end of it only I decided to continue with it.  I tried for a couple more weeks by myself and then I just stopped going.   I think I expected to see results quickly and when I didn't, I made up all sorts of reasons why it just made sense to stop.   It took up too much time, it was a pain to park, gas prices were climbing, the studio was moving to a new location---you name it and I probably used it as an excuse.

But the thing is...Bikram Yoga has haunted me since I stopped attending late in the winter of 2012.   I've thought often about returning and the monthly newsletter arrived like clockwork in my email.   I wanted to go back but I kept making excuses---no, let me amend that--I didn't make excuses; I just recycled the old ones!   Then, a couple weeks ago I decided that I was going sign up again and THIS time I wouldn't make excuses.  This time I would understand that my practice was an ever changing but slow process.

My friend Missy expressed an interest in yoga and I told her I wanted to go back to Bikram Yoga and asked her if she would be interested in coming with me.   She was but not until the following week.   Impatiently, I agreed to wait for her and in the end it was just as well that I had to wait because two days later I came down with bronchitis and spent the next several days feverish and hacking up my lungs.   It ended up being a good thing because having to wait to start class again only gave me more time to think on yoga being about the process and not the end result.

Missy and I decided we would take our first class on Thursday at 6 am.   The night before I texted her to remind her but didn't get any reply.   I was torn--should I go anyways or wait for another day?   I gave it some thought but decided that I needed to do this for me.   The first step was mine to take and if Missy decided to join me then great but if not that was okay too.   I set my alarm for 5 am and went to bed early.

Tomorrow was going to be my first day back to Bikram Yoga.