Day 1: Here we go...

As I zip through the deserted roads at five in the morning I feel exhilarated. I am on my way to a 5.30AM Bikram yoga class. I have been practicing Bikram for over a year now, with a four month break in between due to medical reasons.
Ever since I started Bikram, I have always wanted to do a 60-day challenge. A typical Bikram routine involves doing 26 Hatha yoga postures and two breathing exercises for an hour and a half, in 104 degree heat, everyday for 60 days. It is an intense, head to toe body workout which targets each and every joint, muscle and internal organ of the body.
I have been hooked on it since day one. But try as I may, I have not been able to do it for even ten days straight. Sixty days seem so far away.
Last week, when my preschooler finished his last day at preschool, it seemed I would have to postpone practicing Bikram for another three months. Thanks to social media, I found out a friend was checking herself in at 5.30AM at the gym every morning. I hadn't thought about doing the very early morning class at Bikram because I have never been an early riser. To do the 5.30AM class, I would have to get up at least at 4.15 and leave the house by 5.00 in order to reach ten minutes before the class.
Was I really up to taking on not one but two challenges at the same time? Well, as Bikram says, "You are never too late, it's never too bad, and you're never too old or too sick to start from scratch once again".
So, here I am this Monday morning, driving through green lights and empty streets to a Bikram studio closest to me.
It helps that my friend Erin has agreed to do the challenge with me. I am supposed to give her a wake up call everyday at 4.30 because it takes her just 10 mins to reach the studio and she can afford to wake up late.
Today, I leave at 5.05 and reach a few minutes before the class is about to start. It is crowded and I get a place right in front of the instructor's platform. Jorina, who incidentally was also my instructor the  day I started Bikram, is coaching today. I hope this is a lucky omen or a good sign that I just may be able to complete the challenge. Wish me luck!