James Crookes

Certified Bikram Instructor

If only I would have found Bikram yoga earlier in life...
 
"Where's mom?"
 
"Doing yoga" my sister would reply.
 
     My mother and sister are musical, artistic types, the kind of people that would do yoga. It was mostly just us three growing up, and I had to become the white sheep of the family to be different. I didn't practice music, I played sports, I didn't talk about my feelings, I balled them up inside, and I definitely did NOT do yoga. To firmly prove the point that I was not going to be involved in any of the hippie nonsense my immediate family was involved in, I signed up for military service at the tender age of 17. I really wanted to rebel, so I joined before I was legally eligible, so my mom had to sign the paperwork. Teehee! We laugh about it now. The Honorable Discharge Certificate I received is one of my most prized possessions. It's on the wall, right next to my picture of me and Bikram at graduation, and immediately above my Bikram's Teacher certificate, also one of my most prized possessions. I have this whole wall of important certificates and the like...Bikram has prominent space.
 
     So how'd I get here? Like many "macho dudes" in this culture, I figured yoga was for ladies with bodies made of cooked spaghetti, sitting around in contortionist poses, talking about their chakras and the like. Little did I know. One of the great things about being raised by an open minded mother, is that I myself am fairly open minded. When Darcy suggested (demanded) that I try this yoga, shortly after we started dating close to 4 years ago, I figured hell, I'll try anything at least once.
 
   The records show that former studio owner David taught my first class. I don't honestly remember anything about it. But I must have liked it because I came back for more. Katie Hedges taught my second class, wooboy! I get a twitch in my right hamstring and a strong sense of embarrasment when I think of that class. My thoughts were somewhere along the line of, why is this so hard, what's happening to my shoulders, why is this lady yelling at everyone, yet both her and everyone seem to be smiling and having a good time, what have I gotten myself into, is this ever going to end, what kind of woman makes the man she just started dating come to this place? Etc, etc. But after class, I felt peaceful, awake...and hungry! So, I thought, right on, here's something I can sink my teeth into. I practiced only 2 times a week for the first year, sneaking in additional classes when I was on vacation from the cleanroom on the hill in Rio Rancho. But even with that, I stopped the heavy drinking, I was eating better. My overall physical health and mental well being had made astounding improvements. After a year, I finally went out to World Headquarters in LA and took a class from Bikram himself. That was an eye opening experience. If you ever get a chance, GO SEE BIKRAM! Well, after that I made the time in my schedule to do this more and more and more.
 
   Long story short, I got tired of my corporate career, I loved the yoga, so I decided (with 1 week notice) to attend teacher training in Spring of ’08. I’ve only looked back once, and it was scary! I love what I do, the studio, teachers and students here at Bikram Albuquerque are simply stellar. Top shelf all the way. This is the time, this is the place and I’m happy to be here.