I tried a yoga class for the first time about a week ago. Wow – what a workout! It was Ashtanga Yoga, which is a type of yoga that synchronizes the breath with a progressive series of postures. (That’s about the extent of my knowledge now, but check out this site for a bit more info.)
Anyway, the class was a great workout. It was an hour and a quarter, but I was already feeling the burn after ten minutes. I honestly was surprised at the difficulty of it. I do a fair bit of exercise normally, but nothing like yoga. I had decided I didn’t need to take a towel with me (you know…for sweat!), but I wish I had.
Once I got a little bit more stretched out, things got easier, but the various poses were all challenging. Because it was my first time, I struggled with having the right posture, having my toes/hands pointing in the right direction, AND breathing. My teacher assured me that it gets easier though!
For the last 5 minutes of the class, we did a position called Dead Man (or something very similar to that?) where we just laid on our mats with our limbs totally limp – it was so relaxing after our hard work.
For the next few days, I felt muscles I didn’t know I had. My buns were definitely sore and various muscles around my upper back. So, clearly my body was working in ways it wasn’t used to, which I was extremely pleased about. Yoga seems like a great addition to my workout routine. And the teacher also said that there are always ways to make yoga harder for yourself, as you progress, so you won’t ever plateau or get bored.
Have you tried yoga? I’d love to hear about your experiences.
To your health
Kimberly
