Day Sixteen

Namaste!

Day sixteen is done! This morning went something like this:

5.30am - wake up with dead arms, try
and turn off alarm without
waking Waldo. I think he
slept through. Phew.

5.40am - clean teeth (crucial move for
all those attending 6am
class).

5.45am - arrive at yoga, lay down my
mat and pretend I am still
in bed asleep.

6.00am - realise I am not still in bed
begin the 26 Bikram yoga
postures.

7.30am - finish class. Pull a great u
turn on ponsonby road and
head home.

7.45am - shower, breakfast, load of
washing, make coffee, get
Waldo to re-make coffee
because mine tastes awful.

8.25am - bus, work. The day begins.

Support this crazy schedule and The Hunger Project New Zealand! Please donate at https://www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/thechallengeforchange

Until tomorrow!

Days Fourteen and Fifteen

Namaste!

As of 9pm tonight I am half way there! The washing machine is going for the millionth time as I type and I think I am going to be responsible for using all of the shampoo and conditioner this month... sorry honey, I will buy some more.

The sleepiness is definitely starting to kick in. My balancing postures are uhh wobbly very very wobbly but I am determined to stick this challenge out and make the $5000 target I have set myself. I am determined to live in a world where poverty does not exist.

Until tomorrow!

How cute are these children from an epicenter in Senegal!

Day Thirteen - World Hunger Day

Namaste!


Today is World Hunger Day! 

925 million people do not have enough food to eat to lead healthy and productive lives. Such chronic, persistent hunger is not due merely to lack of food. It occurs when people lack opportunity to earn enough income, be educated and gain skills, meet basic health needs and have a voice in the decisions that affect their community.  And the brunt of this lack of opportunity and access to resources is borne by women who are primary caregivers, farmers and food providers to their families.

Please donate to my crazy bikram challenge and help make a difference.

In yoga related news, I have officially entered my yoga challenge teens and I am almost half way through the challenge! Wooo hooo! 

I worked extra hard in todays class and managed to touch my head to my knee in a balancing posture. It feels good to be acomplishing new things and have all my hard work pay off.

Until tomorrow!

Day Twelve

Day Twelve.

Namaste!

6pm yoga in New Market killed me. So so so hot.

I think I am going to sleep in my yoga gear as it is only a mere 7 hours before my next class.

Until tomorrow!

Day Eleven

Namaste!

Class eleven down, another 26 postures complete and ANOTHER load of washing done.

Now time to hang with my one and only.

Until tomorrow!

Donate Here!

Day Ten

Namaste!

I am now officially 1/3rd of the way there!

Unfortunately the inevitable has happened and I have picked up a nasty cold. This could be the result of sharing a hot hot hot room with lots of other bodies but I think it is really just a symptom of the dropping temperature outside.

I am filling my body with nourishing food to nip this thing in the bud. My favourite friend at the moment. Kale. Mmm.

Until tomorrow!

Day Nine

Namaste!

Day Nine has come and gone. As of 7.45am tomorrow morning I will be 1/3 of the way there!

I had some much needed moral support this morning thanks to my equally bendy and yoga obsessed friend Charlotte. The early morning starts are getting easier, I am starting to wake up without an alarm. I think it is partially due to my paranoia about missing a class. If you miss a class during the 30 day challenge you have to do two in one day to make up for it. Aghhh. One is hard enough!

So far we have raised $880.00 online and $100 offline! So close to the first $1000.

https://www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/thechallengeforchange#donationsSection

The money raised will be supporting sustainable projects in South Asia, Latin America and Africa.

This is what your donation could do:

•     $25.00 could provide workbooks and chalk to one of our nursery schools in Africa. 

•   $50.00 could provide antimalarial bednets to five families.

•   $100.00 could support a training course for women in South Asia.

•   $500.00 could allow a community to purchase food processing equipment.

•   $1000.00 could enable a community to drill a borehole to provide safe drinking water.

Your donation could also support microfinancing projects, food storage projects, business

courses, early childcare education and other significant projects.

Thank you so much for all your support so far! 

Until tomorrow!

Day Eight

Namaste!

I had a fight with my alarm this morning, I almost didn't make it. It's so cold and dark outside at 5.30am, it takes so much will power to pull myself out of bed!

I did make it to the early morning class though and again I left feeling energised and ready for the day.

I have a little extra motivation for tomorrow, my friend Charlotte will be joining me and the millennium development goals report has just indicated that:

An estimated 1.1 billion people in urban areas and 723 million people in rural areas gained access to an improved drinking water source over the period 1990-2008.

This is really positive news. There is a lot to be done but it does indicate that a different future is possible.

Until tomorrow!

Check out how dark it is at 5.30am:

Day Seven

Namaste!

I made it to day seven! Seven days in a row. Seven days of bikram yoga! I have a long way to go but this feels like an achievement I should acknowledge.

Whilst I was lying in savasana (where we are supposed to be thinking of nothing) I was thinking about why it is important to me to help people overseas when there are problems in New Zealand.

I think the problems we face, both at home and internationally, are increasingly global. Issues such global warming, poverty and political instability are issues that affect us all.

The Hunger Project is committed to ending world hunger as an expression of global citizenship, global partnership and global responsibility.

All of us have a responsibility to create a world where all people have the chance to lead lives free from hunger.

Until tomorrow!

Day Six

Namaste!

It is going to be one of those hectic days today but I am ready for it! Yoga was energising and so was my hearty breakfast.

We are getting closer and closer to our first $1000 in donations!
http://www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/thechallengeforchange

Until tomorrow!

Day 5

Namaste!


I have made it to day 5 wooooo. Above are the postures I have been diligently practicing everyday. My favourite at the moment is posture 6 - bow pulling posture. It requires immense concentration and balance, I definitely don't look like the cartoon yet but I will remain optimistic.


So far, we have raised $660.00 including offline donations. This is an incredible start and I am so grateful to all of the support so far. (check it out! https://www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/thechallengeforchange)


One of the things that I really admire about The Hunger Project is their people-centered approach to food security and development. They utilize this approach (endorsed by our very own Helen Clark) to address health and education issues as well as food security and economic development issues. 


It is through this approach that communities determine their needs and how The Hunger Project can work with them to eradicate poverty and build a self-reliance. 


Until tomorrow!

Thank you Lululemon!

It is hard to find yoga gear that will stand up to the challenge of Bikram.

First, it must absorb the litres of sweat that inevitably pour off you in the heat. Then it must stretch with you as you extend your limbs in every which direction.

With all my funds going to The Hunger Project, Lululemon Athletica kindly gifted me a new yoga outfit to get me through the challenge!

Day Four

Namaste!

Ok, this is not going to be as easy as initially anticipated...I was jolted out of a great dream this morning. My muscles are screaming and I have 26 days to go.

Despite my aching limbs I stumbled into my early morning yoga class and I am glad I did! Bruce was teaching this morning. Classes with Bruce are always entertaining! He always has a yarn to spin and a 'fun' competition in store for us.

With the combination of great teachers, a great cause and new gear kindly donated by Lululemon Athletica, I will persevere.

Until tomorrow!

Day Three

Namaste!


As you snuggled into your duvet covers this morning, I was on my way to Bikram. One of my more productive mornings, completing 26 postures before 7.45am is no easy task!


I know as the days go by, the yoga challenge is going to get tougher and tougher. I am going to remind myself of people like Awa for inspiration.

Name: Awa Ndiaye

Epicenter: Coki Epicenter, Senegal

Awa is 37 years old, she lives with her husband (a construction

worker) and their four children aged between 3 and 13.

Awa joined The Hunger Project Microfinancing project in 2005 which has allowed her to access loans and to undertake her fresh vegetable business.

She was supplied by male merchants, who because of the road conditions, monopolized this sector. However, with her third loan of $200NZD she decided to organize five other women to get supplies directly from Potou and thus minimize costs and be more free from intermediaries.

Ms Ndiaye is now recognised as part of the main suppliers of vegetables, she supplies the majority of women vegetable vendors at Coki market.

Since partnering with the Microfinance Programme at the Coki Epicenter, Ms Ndiaye said she is able to contribute to the basic needs of the household such as paying for healthcare, she has saved approximately$425NZD and she is actively involved in her community activities, notably meetings at the epicenter which promote a more fulfilling social and personal life.

THANK YOU SO MUCH TO EVERYONE WHO HAS DONATED! So far we have raised $460.00 for The Hunger Project New Zealand. All the money we raise will be going toward projects in Africa, South Asia and Latin America where it will be helping women, men and children to end their own hunger.

Until tomorrow!

Day Two

Namaste! Day Two of the Yoga Challenge is over!

I decided to mix things up and go to an evening class tonight. So, from 7.30pm-9.00pm I stretched and breathed with the rest of the yogis.

Our teacher tonight, Jordan, told us to go home, drink lots of water and eat some good food. So, I find myself At 10pm feasting on quinoa, silverbeat, tomato and mushroom. It is a luxury. One that I hope the people The Hunger Project works with can soon experience.

Until tomorrow!

Day One

Namaste. Day one is down!

I was due to start class at 6.15, as it turns out I started working through my tree pose, my bow pulling posture and an assortment of others the moment my head hit the pillow.

Good thing I practiced all night long because the early morning yogis are no lightweights!

Nikki gracefully guided us through class, pushing us deeper into unknown territory and encouraging us to be present. I feel empowered and ready for the day.

I hope the men, women and children who benefit from the money raised, one day get to experience the same empowered feeling from making choices freely.

Until tomorrow! Namaste!

Thank You

My great friend Amy has written a blog post on my Bikram challenge. You can check it out here:
http://themovingpicturenow.com/2012/05/13/bikram-with-a-cause/ she is a very talented writer with an extremely kind heart.

Over the weekend I have managed to raise $210.00 online and $150 offline! I am so astounded with the support so far! Thank you!

Facts About Hunger and Poverty

World Population

• 6.8 billion¹

World Hunger

• 925 million people do not have enough to eat — more than the populations of USA, Canada and the European Union combined.²

• 98% of the world's undernourished people live in developing countries.²

• Two-thirds of the world's hungry live in just 7 countries: Bangladesh, China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia and Pakistan.²
• Where is hunger the worst?
  • Asia and the Pacific: 578 million³
  • Sub-Saharan Africa: 239 million³
  • Latin America and the Caribbean: 53 million³
  • Near East and North Africa: 37 million³
  • Developed countries: 19 million³

Aiming at the very heart of hunger, The Hunger Project is currently committed to work inBangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, India, Ghana, Malawi, Mexico, Mozambique,Peru, Senegal and Uganda.

Sources:

1. US Census Bureau, International Data Base
2. FAO News Release, 2010
3. FAO FAQs on Hunger, 2010

DONATE

The Generosity of Yogis

The EastWest Bikram Studio in Auckland has generously donated all the classes I will need to complete the 30 day Bikram Yoga Challenge!!!

I am going to donate the value of the classes to The Hunger Project.

Thank you EastWest Yoga! http://www.eastwest.co.nz/

The 30 day Bikram Yoga Challenge

The 30 Day Yoga Challenge!


I want to live in a world where every man, woman and child leads a healthy and fulfilling life of self-reliance and dignity. I am advocating for a greater understanding of the issues we face globally and for an end to hunger through sustainable, grass-roots, women centered strategies. 


So, I have decided to undertake the 30 day Bikram Yoga Challenge to raise money for The Hunger Project. I have been volunteering with this organisation since September 2011 and I truly admire their integrity and approach. The Hunger Project has been working in New Zealand since 1984 and is a registered charity with the Charities Commission. The Hunger Project works in Africa, South Asia and Latin America empowering men and women to end their own hunger.


It is going to be tough. Most days I will have to wake up at 5.30am to complete the 26 postures in the 90 minute class before work! With a strong support team and a determination to raise awareness for this incredible organisation, I hope I can make it and I hope all the hard work pays off! 


My goal is to raise $5000 which will go straight to The Hunger Project to support their work. The money will support their education, health and microfinancing initiatives. 


Please help me reach the target and make a change.


You can donate here: https://www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/thechallengeforchange


or email me: charlettebunn@gmail.com