Rob - Day 19: Vinyasa

Oh Boston. Sometimes I loathe you and the weather which you spout, but this weekend you've been SO kind. It's been cool and sunny and I LOVE it! Fall is definitely my favorite season and this Labor Day weekend has been such a kind welcome to the autumn.

So due to the holiday Mysore this morning was a self practice. I've been really letting myself take it easy these past few days so I eschewed my morning practice for the day. I slept in a bit a cleaned up my room. I always forget just how much having a clean environment supports having a clean mind. I feel so much more calm and collected when my space is in order. I'm definitely going to make a consistent effort to maintain the cleanliness around here. It's so much more yogic anyways, right?

So after a day of cleaning I was quite tired and thinking of doing another home practice. But it was SO nice outside that I decided to head downtown and take Vinyasa with Nicoline. Given the holiday weekend and the splendid weather I assumed that it would be hard to find a spot so I left super early. For whatever reason I found a spot on the first go around, within a few blocks of the studio. This seems to be the case consistently and I really don't know why. I guess I have good "Parking Karma?" I was really thankful for the extra time. I spent about a half hour walking through the public garden, soaking up the sun and delightfully cool air.

Class too was quite lovely. Nicoline's classes are always really flowing and calming, even though they can be quite challenging at times. She often integrates QiGong like movements in the poses which is a great way to feel your PranaQi outside the body. Even though Ashtanga is still my main practice I'm finding within this commitment that doing a little "cross-training" is pretty beneficial. It gives me a chance to get into different poses that aren't part of my regular practice.

After class I went out with friends. Since the studio is closed in the morning on Monday for Labor Day I decided to stay out much later than I normally would and even (TISK TISK) had a few drinks. I don't know if it's the daily practice or what but my tolerance is GONE. I only had three drinks spread out over several hours but I was quite tipsy. Definitely something to be mindful of especially given my Fifth Precept (I'm a practicing Buddhist). But I had a great time and it's probably worthwhile for me not to get too caught up in my routine and OCCASIONALLY act my own age (26...not 66) :).