yoga journal...

woke early....mind working overtime 
yesterday was a heavy day ( stress wise ) and I think my brain was still there!
(trying to get my 1st assignment in...before my hols
trying to sort out apprenticeship applications for my 16 year old..
sorting holiday arrangements out for forth coming holiday...clothes, toiletries, taxi to airport, making provisions for family members!!! ( 3 days time !)
getting a card and gift for mine and hubbies anniversary..2moro!! ( even though he WILL forget )
not forgetting all the usual day to day things that have to be done...)

And breathe.....

I noticed my body was still there too as I got out of bed....back and joints were noticably stiff....i think they were stressed too!!! holding on to all those memories from yesterday

Unbelievable how stress can affect the body as well as the mind...my body takes on a whole new shape/posture when I am stressed... shoulders and ears noticably connected 😉 spine slumped into my hips!!! and the pain in the base of the skull must be due to my head wanting to disappear in between my clavicle and scapula!!!  ( no wander I'm aching 😉 )

Need to address this with a few nice in breaths/out breaths...stretching my arms above my head and taking a nice full body stretch...getting my neck and head back to normal position! rolling my shoulders back and forth and getting them away from my ears...

Positivity starts to return as I remember I have a yoga class in a couple of hours...( not just any class, but my favorite one of the week)

As the morning went on ..its fair to say that a few negative thoughts crept..

(my cousin rang to say she wouldnt be able to make the class as she had to much to do for our hols!)

(yes I've got loads to do too?  I could do a quick session at home and crack on with my jobs!!)

so easy to let negative thought stop us doing things....that little voice in the head

But I'm glad to say...I went and as usual it was amazing/inspiring/exhilarating/

The instructor was full of her usual energy...puts me in the mind of a perfect sun salutation..

and I instantly remembered why she had inspired me to want to be an instructor and to hopefully pass on to others, what she gives to me 💓

Why did I even consider not coming?    

we started with a deep breaths in and out, calming us and getting us ready for the class.

we did some shaking nxt!! knees bent slightly and shaking our booties, and then doing small jumps on the spot and hugging ourselves/slapping our backs....sounds a bit odd..but it served to wake up our bodies and create energy and warmth, and a little bit of humour, ( when you spotted yeself in the mirror )  breaking down any awkwardness in the class....again I asked myself

'why would I want to do chores instead of this?' I love my yoga

Nicely warm now....we continue into adho mukha svanasana..with an opportunity to pedal our heels to release our calf/hamstrings,( i still struggle with getting my heels to the floor, but it is a working progress )  bending from side to side, with bended knees, feeling a good stretch in each side of the body....thoughts of yesterday melting away as I push myself into the twists, releasing the stiffness from my shoulders
next was sun salutations, again stretching getting rid of stiffness, enjoying breathing into the forward folds and backbends releasing any remaining tension....allowing me to focus and feel my mind becoming calm.
next came the twisted asanas....starting with intense pose,  twisted chair pose, massaging the internal muscles... I have been trying to improve this as I felt my flexibility was not very good, although I do think it is improving, our instructor encourages us to twist as fully as possible...onto twisted lunges..feeling very stretched!! more to come..onto twisted triangle...I always feel my alignment is not good in this pose.even with the help of the block.(which could be why its not one of my favorite poses ) the instructor came round and helped us with alignment..but I do find breathing in this pose quite tough. 
is at this stage I get a few negative thought pop into my mind, struggling a bit now..need to learn to focus more....more than half way through the class and its tough going
opportunity to rest a little and to relax into the pose...into a belly twist...i like this pose more, and we are encouraged to try the variations, one leg extended etc
we end with shoulder stand moving into plough...I love the roll motion into plough....releasing the back 
we settled into Balasana Baby pose ..phew opportunity to relax into this lovly pose..lenghtening and stretching the spine, shoulders and even the legs, instructor encouraging us to sit right back on our heels and reach gently forward....focusing on our breathing, calming down our breath /minds.
and onto relaxation.......