Yoga

Since I had two questions about yoga, I thought I'd answer them in a post.

I've participated in a yoga class put on by a sister in Relief Society every Thursday for about nine months now. I'd never done yoga at all before and wasn't sure what to expect- other than I was sure I'd feel incredibly foolish and uncoordinated. That's how my one and only aerobics class made me feel, anyway. The teacher of our class happened to be the secretary in Young Women last fall. We had a yoga night for a combined YW activity and I surprised myself by totally loving it. Janet is not a real intense yoga-er and I left that class feeling totally relaxed. I hadn't even realized how stressed out I'd been until we were finished. Several of us commented to her that the class had been fabulous and we felt great. She mentioned that she had taught classes off and on before. One thing lead to another and last October she and her daughter started classes as a weekly RS Activity. They actually hold classes Tuesday evenings and Thursday mornings. Tuesday evenings don't work at all for me, but Thursday mornings were great until school got out. I've missed most classes this summer for one reason or another- usually involving me being in the car, driving someone else somewhere. School starts again on Tuesday, so next Thursday should finally be free. (Yea!)

I've learned a couple of things:
1) I'm usually more stressed out than I thought each week when I go. We start stretching and I suddenly realize how tight everything is. I would probably really benefit from a class a couple of times a week, but for now I'll settle for once a week and have it to look forward to.

2) Yoga, even in a class setting, is very individual. It only took a class or two to realize that the only person who cared how I was doing was me. I don't feel foolish at all- though that one week we almost had to hold class outside would probably have crossed that line for me! Each move I just try to do a little better than the time before, stretch a little more, pay attention to the moves that seem difficult, try to figure out why and what I can do better, and breathe right. I ALWAYS go home feeling great.

3) Most of the time I don't feel uncoordinated at all. There's no rush on anything and you only go as far as your body allows. Each pose is usually held for a little while which gives me the chance to concentrate on getting where I want to be instead of rushing from one move to another- with a body that has very little rhythm and very sporadic coordination.

4) My favorites are stretching poses and relaxation pose at the end. Yoga has, or can have, a lot of strengthening poses and I enjoy them but the stretching is what makes me feel the best. Relaxation pose at the end almost gives me a little nap and we all know I can never get enough of those!

Those are a few of my thoughts. I've never taken a class anywhere else, so I don't have anything to compare to. I've loved my yoga experience, though, and would highly recommend someone at least trying it.