Training Day 3 of 71: Cultivate the Opposite

Today for my three mile run I jogged down residential streets in Beverly Hills. (See photo of silver fire hydrant - is there anywhere else in the world where they feel the need to paint their fire hydrants silver?) As I was jogging along a feeling of contentment steadily rose from within, and I recalled a concept that came up in yesterday's yoga class.

Yesterday in class my teacher Kate opened with Patanjali's Yoga Sutra 2:33 which is: "When disturbed by negative thoughts, opposite [positive] ones should be thought of". Or in another translation: "Unwholesome thoughts can be neutralized by cultivating wholesome ones". This idea of cultivating opposite thoughts is called Pratipaksa Bhavanam.

The concept of Pratipaksa Bhavanam arose often during my yoga teacher training and I always found it rather annoying. It reminds me of the book The Secret. The Secret annoys me because I feel like it gives a flimsy prescription for major life dilemmas - and presents itself as a complete answer. To feel something negative, then just try to swap it out for something positive in order to avoid attracting more negative just seems wimpy (and often frustratingly impossible). Why do we need to constantly judge whether what's happening is good or bad? Why can't we work towards an overall sense of acceptance of all that happens in the human experience instead of attempting to mentally control and manipulate everything to suit our moods?

But then it struck me that this choice to train for a marathon is an act of Pratipaksa Bhavanam in and of itself. Life was feeling kind of sucky so it seemed like a good idea to do something different, something opposite, in order to feel better - feel more alive. Just instead of trying to cultivate opposite thoughts, I've chosen to physicalize this attempt at positive change and the result, so far, has been an overall improvement of mood, a more sunshiny outlook. So maybe that's what any new choice in life is about... taking different action so we don't become living examples of the definition of insanity.

Now I have two days off training. Going to Park City for the end of Sundance. Then back at it Sunday with my first "long run": 6 miles. Dude.

Training Day 2 of 71: Hills and Mountain Pose

Today for my scheduled three mile run I chose to make it a hill day. Apparently training on hills is necessary, especially if your marathon is hilly (which the Burlington City Marathon is). I decided to take on Runyon Canyon in West Hollywood (view from the top in the photo).

After two weeks of rain in Los Angeles, Runyon Canyon was lush and green - almost tropical feeling. I jogged very slowly on the steady incline, trudging past weimeraners and pit bulls with well-groomed owners. While running uphill it seems especially easy to lose one's form. As exertion sets in, in an effort to just keep going sometimes I notice myself starting to flail around a little bit and sink into my hips. Today when this began happening I focused my attention on the alignment of Tadasana, or Mountain Pose, in yoga.

In Tadasana you are standing straight upright with your arms at your sides. Tailbone draws down, while the inner thighs rotate back (these opposing actions stabilize the pelvis). Shoulder blades melt down and into the back, while the front ribs soften. Collar bones are wide, and the crown of the head elongates straight up towards the heavens. With proper alignment, all the joints work correctly and the breath has the clearest passage and most space possible. Focusing on the alignment helped to keep my mind off the exertion. Also, it was nice to have the dual experience of running up a small mountain, while trying to find the mountain pose in my body.

While jogging back down I was filled with gratitude for the beautiful morning and greenness all around and the unfolding day. After the run I went to a fairly intense vinyasa flow class at Golden Bridge Yoga with my new favorite teacher Kate and I must say, that hill training made my asana practice way more bad-ass. And all the hip and hamstring stretching/opening was exceptionally delicious after their hard work on the run. 2 down, 69 to go.

First Day of Training (and Blogging)

This past fall I was overcome with the feeling that I have done little of significance with my life. Yes, I've graduated from college, held down several jobs, and completed various artistic projects. But in general there seems to be a ceiling on my existence. A ceiling which I bump up against, then helplessly float back down from, never breaking through. I do not know what a breakthrough would look or feel like but I do sense that it will not happen if I try to think my way there. There must be some sort of action that could begin to crack this mental calcification. So I have decided to run a yogic marathon.

Over the past three years yoga has become a major part of my life. It started small, with short classes full of seniors where I rarely broke a sweat, and then grew into taking a teacher training course, and now teaching some of my own classes. Through my practice small miracles have occurred. As my hamstrings have become more flexible, so has my mind. As my core has become stronger, so has my sense of compassion. As I have had to be accountable to exactly what's happening with my body each time I'm on the mat, I have come to more naturally accept what is happening in any off-mat situation I might find myself. Basically, I have realized that what I experience physically transfers directly to the mental/emotional dimension.

For these past three years I have not engaged in any other regular exercise besides yoga, as other types of workouts usually just remind me of all the years I have worked out for the purpose of 'looking good' - which is really depressing. But last fall I couldn't help but wonder what running a marathon would do to my mind; what cracks it might create in my idea myself and reality at large. So I have decided to give it a shot.

The marathon I aiming for is on May 30th, the Burlington City Marathon in my home state of Vermont. This is in four and a half months. Today was my official first day of training (3 miles down and back a residential street in Beverly Hills) I will bookend each of my runs with yoga. 10 minutes before, 20 minutes after. And I will also cross-train for strength and endurance by taking yoga classes. As I continue my training I plan to update this blog with observations on how yoga and running interrelate and how approaching the training as a yogic "practice" shapes the experience overall. I really hope I make it.