Summary

Jim Moore shares his detailed pre-yoga routine focused on hydration, nutrition, and mindfulness to enhance detoxification and prepare for a transformative hot yoga experience.

Abstract

Jim Moore's pre-yoga routine is a meticulous regimen designed to detoxify the body and mind, beginning with hydration at 4:10 AM by drinking 2-3 glasses of water, sometimes with lime or electrolytes. An hour after a breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast, and strong coffee at 6 AM, he sips four more glasses of water to aid kidney function. By 7:30 AM, after frequent bathroom trips, he achieves a clear urine signaling the first stage of detox. Entering the hot yoga studio, he sweats profusely, which he equates to a second stage of detox, ridding his body of stress chemicals. The third stage involves deep breathing exercises that clear emotional blockages and prepare him for meditation. Post-yoga, Moore nurtures his emotions, feeling lighter and ready for the day.

Opinions

The author believes in the importance of hydration specifically tailored for hot yoga, emphasizing the role of water in flushing out toxins.
He values the inclusion of electrolytes or lime in his hydration routine for enhanced benefits.
The author perceives his morning coffee as an essential part of his routine, despite the common advice to avoid caffeine before exercise.
He considers the hot yoga studio as a sacred space that aids in his detoxification process.
Moore acknowledges the emotional and psychological benefits of his pre-yoga routine, including overcoming past negative behaviors and thought patterns.
He views the act of sweating during yoga as a method of physically expelling emotional stress and worry.
The author holds the belief that deep breathing exercises are crucial for emotional cleansing and mental clarity.
He regards meditation after yoga as the culmination of his efforts, creating an 'elixir' for cultivating gratitude and satisfaction.

From Water to Zen: My Pre-Yoga Routine

Sip, Sweat, and Sun Salutations. Crafting a Harmony of Hydration, Breath and Mindfulness.

Two or three glasses of water first thing. (image by author)

Let me tell you how I get myself ready for a morning hot yoga class.

I wake up at the crack of dawn. My alarm is set to ring at 4:10 AM. Even in the summer, I’m awake and making coffee before the first chirping of birds fills the air.

I know it’s time to kick off my well-crafted hydration plan. I’ve been doing a variation of this pre-workout routine for many years, but the hydration component is unique to hot yoga for me.

First Stage of Detox

At 5 a.m., I’ve already been checking website stats and read some twitter. I’ve started out my day by gulping down 2 or 3 glasses of water.

I want that first water to be absorbed by the time I start next stage of this ritual — breakfast. Many days I’ll squeeze 1/2 a lime into my water or I’ll add sport hydration electrolytes as well.

At 6 a.m. I cook a few strips of bacon, 3 eggs, 1 slice of rye toast, and, of course, my super-strong shot of coffee.

Pre-Yoga Coffee Brewing! (image by author)

Then I want to wait about an hour after eating, before I have the next glass of water.

7:30 a.m. rolls around, and it’s time for a bit more slow water-sipping. Four glasses of water over the next hour!

I make trips to the bathroom like it’s a sport, and finally, my pee is almost clear. That’s the signal for the first stage of DETOX: mission accomplished.

Now let me tell you why I go through this pre-yoga hydration routine. My kidneys clear out all the nasty toxins — that’s one reason I’m drinking the extra water. I flood my system so my kidneys can kick out the toxins from my bloodstream. From here, I’ll sweat out another level of toxins!

Second Stage of Detox

I walk into the yoga studio feeling like I have entered ‘My Sacred Spot’. The hot room feels like a sauna, and I start sweating in no time.

Heated Hot Yoga Studio is my Sacred Spot. (image by author)

It’s like my body is… leaking out out all the extra junk. I imagine that my sweat is getting rid of light-weight stress chemicals. Cleaning the stress from my muscles and skin from the inside out!

You see, until the past few years, I practiced my brain into this loop of resentment and frustration. I refer to my old personality as the “negative Norman”. My body is still feeling like Norman, and it creates these old habitual emotional chemicals of frustration and worry while I sleep.

So, yoga is my fresh start. It’s like hitting the reset button each morning, and overcoming that old Norman.

Third Stage of Detox

Breathing exercises, my friend, are the cherry on top. When I inhale and exhale deeply for each breath in the class, it’s like I’m pushing out all the emotional gunk.

As I practice and become mindful of all phases of the Moore Breathing Approach, my brainwaves begin to mellow out, and I am able to begin picturing and feeling a brighter future.

By the end of a good hot yoga class, my bloodstream is clean, my mind is clear, and I’m ready to teach my body some new tricks.

Hydration is important hours before the yoga class. (image by author)

After the yoga class is finished, I find myself nurturing my new emotions like a gardener taking care of delicate flowers. I leave the yoga class feeling lighter, cleaner, and ready to create my next step forward!

And that, my friends, is the pre-yoga routine that helps me have the best yoga sessions and the most effective meditations afterwards.

Hydration, breakfast, more hydration, and breathing exercises — they’re the ingredients.

And then meditation is where the elixir is created for nurturing the gratitude and satisfaction feelings that represent the new me.

About Jim Moore and Moore Meditation. Find our Guided Meditations and watch for upcoming Book and Yoga Class Series for Stress Management.