I went to the pre-op physical yesterday, April 30, and the Orthopedist said my knee was fine, there was no more locking and that the surgery is no longer needed. So we canceled the surgery! Bikram yoga was my surgery preparation, now it is my surgery prevention! And I feel great too!

Because you can’t see yourself in the posture, it’s a good idea to get a mental image of what the posture looks like, and then try and copy the image. Remember that only about 30% or less body weight is in the head. Most of your weight is in your grip as you pull your heels, and at the same time, push against your feet.

If you feel like your body shape is not capable of doing the pose, don’t worry! Soon enough as your body starts to shift and change, the posture will come more naturally to you.

At that time I was 5’11” and 206 lbs. I could stretch forward and reach just above the middle of my shin with the tips of my fingers, and both of my knees were weak and injured.

In my first class I was quite sure that Garland (my first teacher) was friends with Satan, and that she was the attendant for the waiting room for hell. It was terribly hard. I couldn’t do fixed firm position or camel. Standing head to knee was more like bending over and not throwing up.

We have practiced (with the exception of the week of Christmas/New Years) 3 times a week, or if lucky 4 times.

By the end of January I could do fixed firm position (that is, my knees didn’t feel like they would explode), and I could touch my toes. Crazy.

By the end of February I could do all three elements of awkward position (and even got a little praise).

By the end of March I (unbelievably) lifted my heels off the ground in leg stretching.

Now, here it is the middle of April 2012, I’ve lost 18 pounds in 4 months (I’m still the same height). My knees feel great most days. I sleep like a child. I no longer think that any teacher is hell’s waiting room attendant. I drink a ton of water. I’m as healthy as I remember ever being. And overall, life is pretty good. I owe all of that, in so many ways, to practicing Bikram Yoga.

Camel Pose is one of the deepest backward bends in the series. It is also the great healer on the spine. In this time period, humans are spending way too much time forward bending. This causes many medical problems over time, including back pain. It’s extremely important that you are doing some backward bending each day to keep your spine healthy and happy.

“Nerves can, need, and are willing to stretch.” -Mary Jarvis

When you begin to stretch nerves and connective tissue, this can result in unusual sensations in the body. It’s normal to experience feeling lightheaded, or tingling sensations in the fingers and toes. It’s also normal for your hearing and eyesight to be mildly affected. Please know that this is only temporary, and will pass very quickly. Your nervous system will thank you!

The Camel stretches the abdominal organs to the maximum and cures constipation. It also stretches the throat, thyroid gland, and parathyroids. It opens the rib cage to give more space for the lungs. And because it produces maximum compression of the spine, it improves the flexibility of the neck and spine and relieves backache. It also firms and slims the abdomen and the waistline.

Physically you are strengthening your shoulders and the muscles of the abdomen. You are also creating pressure build up in these areas as well as in the knees, ankles, and digestive system, improving circulation to those body parts.

To do half tortoise try your very best to keep your arms with your ears and your hips with your heels.. Once you’re all the way down, struggle equally to get your forehead to the floor and your hips to your heels. Also keep your arms very straight with your palms together and continuously stretch your arms throughout the pose.

This posture helps you to relax and makes you feel good. It will help you to improve your half moon pose and other shoulder opening postures as well. Enjoy!

I didn’t stick with the yoga at first due to conflicts with my work schedule, and I spend another 1.5 years in and out of physical therapy and getting additional cortisone shots. When I started regularly practicing about 4 years ago, I was still having frequent bouts of pain, very limited in physical activity other than swimming, and would go through phases where I continued to limp. Since I have been doing the yoga regularly my hip has improved dramatically. The level of pain that I experience is much less in intensity and flare ups have really shortened in duration. I can also participate in most activities or sports with the exception of running as long as I am doing the yoga also. Since I now compete and often demonstrate in front of others, people often ask me if I have always been so flexible. They seem disappointed when I say “yes”. I’ve always been flexible, but what I haven’t always been able to do is simple things like walk properly and make it through the day without fighting pain. For me this benefit is so much cooler than having dramatic before and after pictures.

Bikram Yoga is the perfect way to heal your body as long as you are patient and honest with yourself about your current abilities. Especially at first I was very careful not to push in the postures that I felt hip pain. Really focusing on the form of the posture and doing it correctly is important. It is definitely helpful to have instructors show you the proper form in the posture. Don’t make modifications to the posture, just don’t go into them as deeply. Let each instructor know that you have had a recent surgery, that way they won’t push you to go past your current limitations.