My Attempt at Yoga

Lately, it seems as though everyone and their mother practices yoga. I've been saying for months (years?) that I need to try it for myself. My resistance has come from the fact that 1) I am extremely inflexible, I can’t touch my toes, and balance and being still are NOT my strong points; and 2) It's hard to make the time among swim, bike & run to dedicate to yoga.

But, I finally bit the bullet and went with a friend to a Core Vinyasa Yoga class last night. I didn't have anything going on, and the first class was free so I had nothing to lose.

The verdict? I don’t hate it. I don’t love it either, but I’m committed to trying it again with a different instructor before making a decision. I’m hoping it will increase my flexibility. Since I currently have none, I’m thinking things can only get better.

Just because you are fit and in shape does not mean you will be good at yoga. I definitely had to check my ego at the door. Most of the postures are very challenging, I couldn't complete them properly. The nice thing is that you work at your own level. So while those around me held onto their feet while fully extending their legs in the air, I was happy to just extend my legs.

In case you haven't figured it out, I was not very good at yoga. Not even a little. I have the flexibility of a stick. My downward dog should be re-named what the fuck is that. The instructor asked if she could touch me so she could try and position me in the correct position, but my body just wasn't having it. I feel like I'm whatever level comes before beginner. I probably need a remedial class.

I also had trouble with the whole mind-body connection. I attempted to practice focus and meditation and my body and mind are like "practice something else like eating or sleeping". I tend to get bored easily and my mind wanders a lot. But, maybe I just need to work harder at it. I can't say I gave it my best effort to make the mind-body connection, as for half of the class I was trying to figure out how to get into the correct pose. And, a lot of times I realized I was holding my breath. Which is definitely a yoga no-no.

One thing that did strike a chord, however, is something the instructor said repeatedly throughout the class: "Let go of the actions and behaviors which no longer serve you”. I immediately thought she was referring to my love affair with good beer, on-line shopping, sugary candy, and reality television. But as the words sit with me now, I think it’s deeper than that. I think, for me anyway, it’s about letting go of that comfortable but harmful thought pattern of not doing enough, or being enough, or doing it right, or not doing it like everyone else does it. Basically, I need to shut the hell up. I AM enough.

So, yoga, I'll be back. And, hopefully next time I'll bring my A game.