Yoga - A way to re-discover yourself

To commit myself into yoga is probably one of the best choice I made in my life...

Like many, I started off with just an intention to do some exercise, to sweat a little. As I move on, I begin to take yoga as a challenge, to see how far I can go... but 1 year into yoga, I realize alot of things. I did mistake like many others. Mistake as in not those physical mistake but mental mistakes.

Mental mistakes

To sweat it OUT
Especially when hot yoga becoming a trend, everyone's thinking is I go HOT yoga because I want to SWEAT, its a form of detox. Its not entirely wrong but hot yoga isn't just about sweating, its not trying to get the mat under the hot air ventilation grille and make yourself dehydrate like sunbathing salted fish. Firstly, excessive sweating isn't a good thing, it might cause dehydration instead of detox. Many people force sweat by going for hot yoga. But the amount of sweat basically depend on many factors, like metabolism, how much water you are drinking, diet habit, etc. If you don't have a habit of drinking water and yet you are squeezing sweat out, is it a good thing? To me, instead of going to the hottest spot, why not focus on the muscle engagement, the contraction of the muscle when you doing asana, that is a part of muscle building which more muscle boost up metabolism. Doing yoga in a hot does more than just make you feel hot, it actually improve your blood circulation and flexibility but too much of a good thing can be bad.

I can do it BETTER than you
Often we will start comparing ourselves with others, it happen in yoga as well. Some of them have the "I can do it better than you" mentality. Even me, at times I tend to compare, but gradually I begin to realize that its not about doing better than anyone, Its about improving myself. Its more than just comparing but to realize your weakness. Its not about you can do it so I can as well. For me, I have a tiff back and hips. My forward bending is improving well but my back bend is horrible. By doing yoga, I know my limitation, and I will always work towards my limit and further extend it. Instead of focusing on whether you can do it, why not focus on whether I do it nicely and do it correctly. Like the pose, triangle, it seem so easy, but the challenge of this beginner pose is to align and square your hips. Its sometime upsetting that many people are focusing on the fanciful poses rather than the fundamental pose like warriors, triangle, downward facing dog, cobra. For me, I just need to consciously remind myself to build my foundation well, without a good foundation, I can't move on to a advance pose. Form over ego. Its probably time to go back to basic, to learn the basic poses, to open out the tight areas, to work on my weakness, my flexibility.

Always do some reflection after each yoga session, recognize your improvement, address your weakness. To be humble, I believe its one of the most difficult thing to do. But I'll consciously remind myself, form over ego. Its not circus stunts, its yoga wellness. Probably this is what that is keeping my fire burning...
Namaste...

Adjusting to low carbs Diet

A week plus into my low carbs diet... my "carbo" cold turkey is gone, no longer have the dizziness, fatigue, dumbness. However, whether am into ketosis, I seriously have no clue to it.. Getting my keto sticks soon and got my ketone measuring device but I got no test strip nor lancer.. Gosh.. Trying to test ketones level in this asian country is so difficult, 1st, I can't get a ketostix from the pharmacy, and the only urine test kit I found multistix (from Guardian Plus), but its damn expensive. Got myself a blood ketone testing device, Optium Exceed but no test strip!

Anyway, apart from my adjustment in diet, I did alot of reading up on low carb diet. Came across this book "Living Low Carb" by Jonny Bowden, Its not so much on how to go about with the diet but talking more on the finding and theory behind it. I'll say 1st time in my life, I seriously READ BOOKs! Thanks to the dreams to pursue fitness!

I have yet to see much result from this diet but because of my workout regime, which involve mostly fast flow yoga, pilates, weight training and swimming, with the aids of sport supplement, I do see a firmer body. Anyway, I went on taking Amino Acid, glutamine, Casein Protein and Whey protein. I didn't get any lighter either, I do feel heavier but not feeling fat kind. Experience thirst every now and then, keep reminding myself on the water intake. Tomorrow will be my 1st cheat day, which is Chinese new year eve when we will have our reunion dinner feast, gonna strike in Carbo and back to low carbs the next day.

Diet Change - LCHF

Finally after much research and advise, I decide to do a change of diet again after my 1 year with meal replacement.

I have chosen to start a Low Carb High Fat (LCHF) diet, probably there will be a mixture of comments, good and bad, saying about how not true is it that Carb is the culprit to all health issues, saying the fear of high fat intake. However, to my research I found that going really low in Carbs and high in fats will put the body into ketosis, which turn the body into a fat burning machine.

In lay-man terms, basically, our body is so used to getting carbo as our main source of energy fuel, when our carbo intake is low, our body sense about the low energy source, it will adjust to take fuel from other source, which is our stored fats. By switching to stored fat as energy resource, the body will feel less tired, more energy and reduce the body fats.

When we are on a normal (higher) carbs diet, we tend to get hungry because once the carbo energy source is low, it will send hungry message to our brain, which end up we eat more and the remaining excess carbo which are not utilize, will be convert into fats and stored in the body. The next morning when u wake up, the whole "hungry" cycle come again because the body will never turn to stored fats as energy source, they will look for their preferred choice - Carbo.
A simple analogy, imagine you are going to 20th level, you will definitely choose to take the elevator (which in terms is your carbo intake), unless the elevator break down, you may no choice but to take the stairs (which is your fat intake - 2nd choice to achieve your goal).

Of course, everything don't start easy and smooth, the transition period is the most horrifying time, which u have to experience thru' and over it.
Currently am on my 6th day of LCHF, initially I don't feel much impact, probably due to the carbs remains in my body and I do have higher intake of carbs in the beginning. Gradually, as I went really low in carbs and high in fat, I begin to feel the "low carb cold turkey". I feel extremely fatigue even with enough of 7 to 9 hours of sleep, I feel dizzy at times, not really hungry but crave for sugar, low in energy. Its terrible but in a way, I feel happy as I had made it, my body is transiting. Just pray hard that it will take only a week and my body will switch completely and start to take effect.