Yoga, my love

I remember the first time I stepped into a yoga class.  I was very nervous.  I wasn’t sure what to expect.  True fact: I had just learned that you don’t wear shoes in class!

I took a spot at the back of the room and waited for the class to begin.  I didn’t realize at the time that I signed up for a vinyasa-style or power yoga class.  I didn’t know there were different types of yoga!  The class I ended up signing up for was called “Core Fusion.”  I had been doing a lot of bootcamp classes, so I thought it would be a good transition from the cardio-intensity of a bootcamp versus, what I assumed was going to be, a more mellow yoga class.  But, boy was I wrong.

The class began and it was so fast paced, so challenging, I couldn’t keep up.  I was falling over.  I was looking around to see what everyone else was doing.  I was twisting my body into positions that felt unnatural; I had never put my body into those positions before.  My arms were shaking when we would take a quick breath in Downward Dog.  Halfway through the class, we entered Child’s Pose for a few breaths and I remember thinking, “Oh my God!  I am not going to survive the second half.”  As the class continued, I was amazed, though at how graceful but uncoordinated I felt.  My breathing as all over the place, and sometimes non-existent.  I do remember the teacher saying over and over again, reminding us to breathe: when to breathe in and when to breathe out, and that’s when it hit me; it was so simple: each breath followed a movement and each movement followed a breath.

Finally the class ended and as I laid there in Savanasa, I knew one thing for sure and that was that I was completely in love with yoga and it was going to be a part of my life forever.

Yoga is one of those things where you just keep pushing yourself and eventually you make your way into a pose that when you first saw it seemed so completely impossible, but with practice it becomes a lot less challenging.  I stepped foot into my first yoga class over 5 years ago and I’m so glad I did.

Yoga used to be something that seemed way too hard and challenging, but if you’re curious about yoga, I would highly recommend you give it a try.  Look for a studio offering Hatha or a beginner’s class.  It may not change your life, or have the impact it had on me, but you won’t regret trying it.  Leave a comment below and let me know if you’ve tried any type of yoga before, or if you’re just curious.

• increased flexibility,
• increased strength,
• builds a stronger core,
• better circulation,
• better posture,
• quiets the mind as you learn to focus on your breath