Teacher Training
Bona teaches the 8am Bikram Yoga class on Saturday morning at Bikram Yoga Everett. I always look forward to her class because she’s hilarious and her classes are always a lot of fun. Her commentary during the postures makes the 90 minutes seem to breeze by.
This morning, I walked into the studio and saw that the spot in the left hand corner in the front corner was wide open. I was stoked. It’s one of my favorite spots to set up for class at this studio. The spot is far enough from the door where I don’t feel the cool breeze every time someone comes in and out of the studio. I also love this corner because I only have to worry about someone setting up next to me on one side because the other side is a mirror. Being in front corner also means I can check myself out during postures in the Standing Series, helping me be able to correct my own alignment in the postures throughout class. They say the front row tends to be the hottest part of class, but I don’t really notice a huge difference. I just love being tucked away in the front corner, especially when it’s a packed house.
In a Bikram Yoga class, the teacher sits or stands at the front of the class on a podium while talking the students through the entire 90-minute sequence. There’s a specific dialogue every Bikram teacher follows and for the most part, the cues of getting into, out of and resting in-between postures remain the same. Teachers let their personality shine through by providing their own additional commentary between postures or by calling out students playfully during class.
One of the things I love most about taking Bona’s classes is her commentary throughout class, especially what she refers to as Confession Time. Confession Time usually takes place in-between postures while everyone is resting in Savasana and it’s always hilarious. This morning, Confession Time came during the Full Locust posture, one of my least favorite postures in Bikram. In Full Locust, you’re lying on your stomach with your palms facing the floor and both of your arms stretched out straight underneath your chest. You then lean towards your shoulders and lift first your right leg for 10 seconds, then your left leg for 10 seconds and then hold up both legs together for another 10 seconds. If you’re doing this posture correctly, your arms and hands can get a tingling sensation while your lower back gets a great stretch as your legs lift back up into the air behind you. I can barely get my legs off the floor in this posture, no matter what the positioning of my arms are underneath my body or how hard I try to will all of my weight to move forward onto my shoulders. It’s so annoying!
Once we had all gotten into Savasana after doing the first set of Full Locust, Bona muttered under her breath, “This posture’s a bitch!” Of course everyone in class heard her comment because she was wearing a microphone. Immediately, the class erupted into laughter. As the laughter started to die down, Bona announced, “Confession Time! I hate this posture. I always like to sit this posture out, but lately my wrists have started hurting so know I have to do this damn posture even MORE!”
It was such a relief to hear Bona’s confession this morning about this posture. In Bikram Yoga, the struggle is very real for me, each and every class. I’m constantly challenged in every posture, even when my body and mind feel amazing. So when I hear a Bikram teacher admitting they struggle with the same postures as I do, it’s really comforting. Bona’s confession this morning reminded me that the yoga studio is not the perfect room; it’s the practice room. And with yoga, it’s not about winning because you’re always practicing.
Class #4, Bikram Yoga at Bikram Yoga Everett (Outside Class-1)