Monday, January 13, 2014

And then I discovered yoga

I've wanted to try yoga for awhile now but I've always been intimidated by it. Everyone who did yoga seemed much thinner than me, much more fit and active and hip and trendy and I just wouldn't fit in. So then I thought I'd do the poses you can find online or through a book, which was okay, but so many online yoga workouts are for something else, like "Yoga poses to blast belly fat!" or "Yoga poses for a perky posterior!" or "Do yoga once a week to look like Jennifer Aniston!" and it just never worked.

Then one of my lovely sisters-in-law asked if I'd like to take beginner classes with her. And I said yes. And it is awesome.

Our first class was this past weekend and it was very much a beginner class. We spent the hour-plus doing the sun salutation, some balance work and stretching. That's it. But I felt so good after (SO GOOD) and we did the sun salutation enough that I remember it so I can do it at home. Win-win!

But the best part was actually being in the class, having the instructor to demonstrate the correct positioning for the poses, to adjust when we were slightly off, to count for us when it felt like we were holding the plank for the entire class. The solo workouts and books never helped me because I really did need the class setting to get me started.

It makes me wonder what took me so long to come around to the realization that yoga classes would be good for me. Perhaps it's because I needed the right yoga buddy. Or it needed to be the right time in my life, when I had the money and time to dedicate to lessons. Or I just needed to be at a place where I didn't care if I wasn't thin or fit or hip enough.

Whether it's all or some or none of those reasons, the stars have aligned and I'm on the yoga bandwagon and I like it.

No comments: