November in Review and Thoughts on Thirty Days of Yoga

November is now in the books, and I have to say that it was a pretty solid month for me. I did a pretty good job of tackling my goals and making progress on a variety of projects at work and at home. At the beginning of the month I decided to start using my sticker calendar again to document each day that I journaled and practiced yoga. Beginning on Thanksgiving, when the RW holiday running streak began, I also added runs to the mix. My sticker calendar has proven to be highly motivating with its power as a visual reminder. It also appeals to my inner child (as does my Fluevog coloring book).

Sticker Calendar in Action

1. Write, revise, or edit at least 7 pages a week during the month of November. This was an aggressive goal, but I freaking nailed it. It should be noted that, though, that I have a course release, that until the last two days of the month I had very minimal marking to do in the two classes I'm teaching, and that the Thanksgiving break kept me bobbing along. I submitted an article to a journal this month and made some significant progress on an edited volume.

2. Maintain my food journal every single day this month.  As you can see from my sticker calendar, I came really close to achieving this goal. I didn't journal my food intake on Thanksgiving or for the couple of days after that, though. While I won't be buying snow boots this month, I feel like I've done a good job of establishing the habit of keeping my journal on a daily basis again.

3. Do yoga every day this month. I did yoga everyday this month. A number of my practices were short 20 minute sessions, but I also made it to a number of classes at my yoga studio over the course of November. The first week of committing to making time to get on my mat everyday was the hardest. After several days, I found myself looking forward to that time to stretch, unwind, and breathe.

As I mentioned a few days ago, I do think that my upper body and core gained some strength over the course of the month. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror at my studio the other day and for once was pleasantly surprised. Perhaps this was partly because I was seated so I didn't look klutzy and oafish in the way that I sometimes feel I do. Most of it, though, was because I noticed some definition in my tricep that definitely wasn't there at the beginning of the month. I've made some gains in flexibility. My shoulders feel a bit less tight in spite of many hours spent hunched over a sixteenth-century manuscript. My hamstrings, while still very tight, are a little bit looser. However, I have to admit that balancing poses are still very hit or miss for me. Occasionally my tree is straight and strong, but often it is still wobbly and tilting. Possibly because I did so many short practices, my body held up pretty well. I did have some tenderness in my left wrist on days 26 and 27, but it doesn't seem to have lingered. I also tried to approach all of my practices and classes with acceptance. I didn't push poses to a point where I couldn't breathe or feel space -- as one of my favorite new instructors says, "if you're already saying 'Oh God' you've found God. Once you've found God in the pose, why would you need to go farther?"

While my month of yoga is at an end and I get to check an item off my 32 in 32 list, I actually don't intend to end my streak just yet. I won't be setting a specific goal, but the benefits of getting on my mat each day have been so significant physically and mentally that it seems like I should just keep going.

One final thought is that my yoga studio seems to be the place for me to cement new friendships with people I've befriended at the university but who are in other departments and I don't often see on campus. Twice now I've run into a new friend at yoga and talking before and after class has led to making plans to get a beer or go on a double date.

So November was a full month. I also ran 48 miles, hosted a brunch, celebrated Thanksgiving, hung up drapes, went to the crafts' show at the museum, and experienced ice fog for the first time. How was November for you? If you practice yoga, is there a pose that becomes immediately intense for you?