Notes from the Finish Line of a 30 Day Challenge
"I was not feeling well; my body ached and I had a headache.
Day 26 was not my finest.
I was really tired. My stomach was in knots. I was irritable and short tempered. I wanted a freakin’ night off. Not my normal MO. I strongly considered bagging hot yoga: really, I was doing this 30 day challenge for myself, right? It was only a strong sense of obligation (decided on early in the afternoon) that got me to the hot yoga studio...."
Not exactly what you might expect to hear about a 30 Day Hot Yoga Challenge.
But it's not all sunshine and roses. Ellen Downey speaks the truth about her hot yoga challenge, and as you know, "the truth shall set you free...but first, it will piss you off."(Gloria Steinem, founder of the Feminist Movement)
So what exactly is Ellen talking about on Day 26 of her 30 days?
I call it Finish Line Phobia.
If you follow Ellen's 30 Day Challenge blog, you will find she is mostly upbeat and energetic starting from when the Challenge kicks off, and gaining momentum as it takes off, finding new things to appreciate in each class.
And then: The Finish Line approaches.
Many people start strong in their goals, revved up and motivated; some can maintain their "keep going" attitude. But then, just as the finish line approaches, they drop back. This happens in hot yoga and in life.
The specific reasons may vary but there is a common thread: people are afraid of success.
What? Didn't you think most people were afraid of failure?
You're right, they are; but even more terrifying is success.
It's not on a conscious level. It harkens back to limiting beliefs you may have grown up hearing and inadvertently internalized as facts. Remember these?:
- You have to work hard and pay your dues if you want to succeed...
- You have to sacrifice to get what you want....
- Successful people are not really happy
- Money can't buy you love
- You're too old to start over.
- You can't have everything you want
- Just do the best you can and that's good enough
Any of these sound familiar.... and exhausting? Say these to yourself and see how your energy feels.
Most people don't recognize these beliefs consciously, but they will show up at the Finish Line. With a vengeance.
Challenging your beliefs - especially those you got from your parents, teachers, or peers - is scary. And it is what keeps you on this side of your Big Dream life.
One purpose of a 30 day hot yoga challenge is to break through those limiting beliefs in a concrete physical way....using your body. What is true in your body becomes true in your life.
Definition of the word "embodied: to make something true in your body; to adopt as your own."
On your 30 Day Challenge, you will come up against thoughts and things that threaten to take you out along the way. Sometimes they will appear as concrete obstacles - you had to work overtime, your kids needed dinner early one night, the babysitter didn't show up - and then you have a choice:
Are you prepared to do whatever it takes?
If you treat your 30 Day Hot Yoga Challenge as a new precedent in your life - to go through the Finish Line no matter what wants to hold you back, even if that hold-back is coming from you - you will discover some amazing things on the other side.
Not the least of which is: life is what you make it.
The 30 Day Challenge is a glimpse into your inner workings and of your mind and how this relates to how your life works on the outside of the hot yoga room. It will open a whole new view yourself, an expansive new vista with far off horizon line.
The end of a 30 Day Challenge can be where Riverflow Hot Yoga Warrior Teacher Training begins.
We call it Riverflow Hot Yoga "Warrior" Teacher Training for a reason: you will learn more than how to instruct and perfect the 26 hot yoga asanas. In fact, some people who register for Riverflow Teacher Training don't intend to teach hot yoga at all.
They are in it for the personal development. And the next challenge.
Riverflow Hot Yoga Warrior Teacher Training is about creating breakthroughs to help you live the life you've always wanted, letting go of whatever has been holding you back. Using hot yoga to guide beyond every personal Finish Line...and keep going.
How did Ellen fare on her Hot Yoga Challenge after her challenging Day 26?
"I went straight home, barely took savasana.
If taking a cab home was an option, I would have done that!
I was so happy to see my kids and husband- they are so comforting and warm and we have such a beautiful elastic support web.
I went to bed, slept hard and woke up feeling much better … ready to face Day 27 and glad I had not bagged."
So are we, Ellen.
Rhonda Uretzky, E-RYT
Reader Comments (3)
Woo hoo Ellen! So proud of you. See you in class soon.
It was so great to start off my challenge alongside Ellen! Her honest words are sign posts.
I think the last days of a challenge, or the days before a big breakthrough on any level, are probably when you're 'swimming in dangerous waters'...to get irritable, find excuses, blame circumstances...all sorts of things arise.
But you can persevere like Ellen did by asking Rhonda's question: "If you treat your 30 Day Hot Yoga Challenge as a new precedent in your life?"
I'll hold onto that as I start heading towards my own yoga challenge finish line...
Melina, you broke through your Finish Line at 30 days, set a new one for 45 days, and you're advancing on 60 days....you are a winner who keeps going for the gusto.
But I completely agree with you - that most people feel the strongest urges to quit when they're just about to cross over. In life, those who give in never get to see how very close they really were to reaching their goals.
We can appreciate that the 30 Day Hot Yoga Challenge has a clearly marked finish line; crossing it with joy is great practice for making it all the way to your greatest life, no matter what. Because, really, can you think og anything more important than living the life you really want?