69/71 Thoughts on the 60 Day Challenge

4:30 pm with Zeb

Today felt like I was simply back into a routine.  The class was good.  I felt strong throughout, and my breathing was better than it has been since I've returned.  My hip feels better each day.  My knee is basically back to normal.  No breakthroughs today, nor any big setbacks.  It was just good to be there, and, as always, I felt much better after class.

I haven't said much about my overall thoughts on having done the 60 day challenge.  Partially, I think I held off because I was a bit too preoccupied with my hip/butt problem, and I thought that might place a negative cast on my opinions.  Also, I wanted to get some distance from it so I could put it in some perspective.

Physical changes:

I lost another 13 pounds.  I'm down to 214 now, and could still stand to lose another 10 or maybe even 15 pounds.  But since I've lost 46 pounds so far without any effort at dieting whatsoever, I'm basically ecstatic about this progress.  My guess is that several more pounds will come off with consistent practice, just as a matter of course.  After that, who knows?

Even better, I can wear my 34" jeans again.  They are GAP jeans, so probably closer to 35-36".  I don't remember exactly where I was when the challenge started, but I think I was just getting comfortable in 38" pants.  When I started Bikram, 42" pants were a bit tight.  Moreover, the suits I bought in Hong Kong about 10 years ago, when I weighed 205, now fit again.  So, I'm now fitting into clothes at 214 lbs that used to fit at 205.  My guess is that this reflects some change in body composition.

My legs are stronger than they have been in years.  This is something my mom commented on.  She said that I've got real shape and definition in my legs for the first time, probably, since I was in my 20s and biking all the time.

Lots of the really big flexibility breakthroughs that I've made came before the challenge, when I was going a mere 5 days a week.  I've seen some progress and some setbacks in this area, but overall, I think I've gotten more flexible recently.  It's odd, since this is yoga which ordinarily get associated with bendiness, but the really big benefits that I'm seeing seem to come in other areas.

One surprising physical change that I'm beginning to notice is in my walk.  My posture, of course, has gotten much better and still improves.  But recently I've started to notice that I don't walk duck-footed anymore, or at least not as much.  And when I stand to wait for something, like on line, I find that I stand comfortably on both feet, instead of shifting my weight back and forth from one leg to another.  I'm taking these changes as a sign that my overall alignment is improving, and that the changes from yoga are having an impact on my habits.  They are creeping into my way of being without my having to think about them.

Tomorrow, I might focus on some of the mental changes resulting from the challenge and from yoga and general.