Detox Retox

God bless the Internet. After I posted the list of activities I wanted to try, I received a few messages from fitness friends interested in joining me. One such friend, we'll call him FS, said he would go to Bikram with me.

Last night I had plans to meet up with an old camp friend for beers. All good, until FS said we should hit up Bikram at 8. While I questioned my sanity, it did not deter me from drinking three beers beforehand. I chased them with seltzer and cranberry, so it's not like I'm a total lush. I shouldn't have been concerned because the heat in the Bikram studio had me sweating out the booze before my buzz even kicked in.

This was actually my second time practicing Bikram yoga. I tried it once last summer with my buddy R out in Locust Valley. I liked it, but I never bothered to go again. I'm obsessed after last night's class.

The class is 90 minutes long - 55 minutes of standing postures and 30 minutes for the floor series. I am so ADD that I can't handle being in Vinyasa yoga for that long, but something about the heat and discomfort makes me finally relax at Bikram. I have been in a weird funk since my race on Sunday, but the anxiety and tension I have been carrying around disappeared before the standing series ended.

The room's high temperature promotes flexibility, and your body is able to bend in ways it wouldn't be able to otherwise. For example, I can normally extend my legs and reach past my toes, but I can't place my forehead on my knees. The heat loosened up my muscles and allowed me to really stretch out.

Because I'm out of my mind (and that's why you love me), I returned to my watering hole after a quick shower at the studio. I had told the fine folks at Dylan Murphy's to expect me back after class, and I'm good at my word. Clearly I needed a little elixir of the gods (double vodka with seltzer and a splash of pineapple) to retox after class.

Despite three of these delightful concoctions, I woke up sober and feeling awesome. Better than I've felt in months actually. Can we say #winning?

Bikram NYC has locations around Manhattan. I'm hitting up the upper eastside location, because 1. I live there, and 2. I can throw a rock at my favorite bar from the studio. The newcomer special is $27 for one week unlimited. I have my own mat (thanks FS for jacking that and leaving me with the dingy rental) but you can rent a mat and towels. I am so psyched to go everyday this week.