Hatha 2 with Azmi

Yesterday was my first class with Azmi again after more than three months. I was a bit apprehensive at first about going to his class and did not sign up for his Dynamic trial class. Although I have been attending two classes weekly with Lila, I was afraid that I would not be able to keep up with Azmi’s class as the classes I been having with Lila were a gentler type with more stretching and opening poses. But when the class was changed to Hatha 2, I decided to attend the class as I could not resist a class with my favourite teacher.

Before the class started, Azmi told us to listen to his instructions for the poses and to remain in a state of stillness when holding the pose and to use our breathe to help us go deeper into the pose.

Azmi started the class with us doing five rounds of sun salutations with some poses intersperse in between. I am quite happy that I was able to do all the sun salutations with the full chaturanga as I had thought that my arms would be too tired after three rounds.

It was an all-rounded class as there were standing, sitting, twisting and even a few arm-balancing poses and although it was a Hatha 2 class, it was more like a flow class as we were doing the vinyasa after a few asanas for each side. Towards the end of the class, I had to skip some of the vinyasas and go straight to downward dog as I could feel my energy depleting especially with the hot sun shining down on us.

During the class, I noticed that I had become more aware of my breathing as well as my movements especially when I am in downward dog (guess researching about it for my pose of the month really help me to understand the pose better).

All in, it was a great class (Namaste, Azmi!) and I felt more energized instead of being tired after the class.

Beyoga is having a free Karma Yoga class every Sunday which is open to everyone. Proceeds from any purchase or donation at the class will be forwarded to a needy foundation or centre for health research that have been pre-chosen for that particular day. Yesterday, the proceeds went to Save our Seahorses (SOS), a non-profit group committed to conserve the Pulai River Estuary, using the seahorse as a flagship species. You can also contribute to the group by signing the petition online, participate in SOS volunteer program or donating in cash or in kind.