Title: Hot Yoga with a Wobbly Body
Subtitle: The stretching is secondary; the essence lies in being mindful.
Discounts are effective only if utilized. My 50-class hot yoga pass? Thirty remaining, and two months left before they expire.
What aids me isn’t self-discipline but a simple ritual before class.
A box of Intention Cards sits at the entrance. Most attendees walk past it, but I rest my hand on the deck, shut my eyes, and draw one. I wait until I’m on my mat to turn the card over.
The first time, I didn’t pay it much mind — other than my eyes wandering toward the card during sweaty contortions. My thoughts fluctuated between chatter and the aspiring yogi within me trying to remain present. The card became an anchor, a subtle reminder.
After class, I rushed to the locker room and jotted down all my thoughts. In the next session, I brought my journal.
Some view it as a diversion — my partner does. He believes insights will remain with me until class ends. I disregard this. Each breath ignites a thought, a revelation, or a dialogue among my characters I cannot afford to overlook. So, with sweaty hands, I pause, note a line, then return to the pose we’ve already transitioned from.
At one point, I was physically present, but my mind wandered elsewhere — a spa on a space colony, conjured by the warmth, nurturing a novella in progress. When the instructor raised her voice — I suspect at me — the dream shattered.
After class, she asked if I was training to be an instructor. I initially thought she meant my poses. Either she was mistaken, or perhaps I’m quite skilled and just overly critical of myself. Then, she gestured at my journal.
The intention cards and the inspiration they evoke have become my primary motivation for coming back. I realize what’s occurring: by concentrating on my breath and repetitive movements, I enter a trance-like state that allows my creative intuition to surface amidst chaotic thoughts. I recognize that these epiphanies are also filled with busy thoughts and essentially distractions from the practice of yoga.
Maybe one day I will follow my partner’s suggestion about relying on my memory for after-class reflections. For now, the open journal stays beside the intention card, waiting.
This is the first of many reflections from Hot Yoga with a Wobbly Body.