Is this normal and what do I do about it?

Is this normal and what do I do about it?2011-03-15T15:07:36+00:00
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  • laukis
    Participant
    Post count: 2

    I started Bikram about 2 months ago and here is what I need help with… I usually practice in the evening and find that after class when I drive home my body gets very stiff that I can hardly get out of the car… then I take a hot shower and ready myself for bed. I find that I keep waking up in the middle of night having to stretch my legs and back and move into a new position. Has this got to do with the fact that I have stretched so much during class that my muscles are contracting back to normal and stiffening up on me… or is due to the fact I have not replenished enough potassium (I drink coconut water or coconut milk after each class). Do I need a potassium supplement… how I do stop this from happening… I cannot get a good night’s sleep. Any help or enlightment on this subject would be appreciated…
    Thanks 🙂
    Laurie

    Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)
    Forum Owner
    Post count: 3048

    Hi Laurie

    Welcome to the forum! Firstly it’s really important to ask you to qualify some of your comments.

    >> Have you experienced this problem from the very first classes you attended?
    Or did it start sometime later?

    >> Where are you feeling stiff? Legs and lower back? Or ALL over your body? Try to get specific.

    >> When exactly does your pain start to be obvious?

    >> Can you tell me if it’s a muscular ache? You know the kind of ache you get when you rediscover your muscles after some time of inactivity or when you get introduced to moving your body in a different way? Is it like that? I seem to intuit that it’s different to that. Partly because that kind of ache disappears after only several days, particularly if you’ve been going regularly (which you appear to have been).

    >> What exactly wakes you up in the middle of the night? Is it when you turn over? Or is it pain in general? Where?

    I could have other questions but if you could answer these ones first then we will know which way we’re heading!

    Namaste
    Gabrielle 🙂

    laukis
    Participant
    Post count: 2

    Hi Gabrielle,

    Thanks for addressing my problem… This problem has been ongoing pretty much since I started… I’m wondering if it has something to do with trace minerals or something. I’ve been concentrating on potassium replacement, but not really salts, should I be adding salt to my water while at practice? Could this be an effect of some sort of depletion? It’s hard to explain the feeling, but I awaken from sleep and feel stiff (not painful but uncomfortable) and need to really extend and stretch my legs and lower back… I usually extend my arms over my head and try to elongate my body to get a full traction stretch… I usually awaken two to three times a night to do this. The stretch is somewhat painful as I’m doing it. I was away from practice for 10 days on vacation and did not experience this phenomenon during that time and then returned this week, took one class and that evening it re-occured. It is not a muscular ache, it almost feels like I’ve over-contracted ligaments and need to stretch them out, like a tightening that needs to be released. Kind of like a tension type pain. Hope this helps in your analysis.
    Laurie

    connie36
    Participant
    Post count: 67

    What is your normal routine for rehydrating and replacing electrolytes?

    If you are not drinking anything but water, I would suspect that could be part of the problem? Coconut water is an easy solution, as it has a lot of potassium and electrolytes.

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