Two weeks ago, I jumped right into something new, something that I should have begun doing decades ago. I didn’t give it a lot of forethought, because if I did, I’m sure I would have talked myself out of it, as is my usual modus operandi. In short, my niece needed a pal to go to a yoga lesson with her.

Now, to be honest, I own a yoga DVD. And I have played it probably a dozen or so times, doing the poses in the safety of my own living room.  I guess I never thought yoga was ENOUGH, probably because it was too easy. So, like many things I try, I moved on to the next thing. I think, at the time, it was jogging, which didn’t last long, as I have huge tits and a low tolerance for being painfully out of breath!

So two weeks ago, the niece and I put on some comfy pants, and I donned the world’s tightest athletic bra to ensure that my participation would remain G-rated. And the class began its warm-up and then went right into a sun salutation practice.

I remembered sun salutation, and, more importantly, my body remembered it. Before I knew it, I was moving my body in ways that surprised both me and the instructor. I looked around while stretching from Hastauttanasana (raised arm) into the next, Padahastasana (hand to foot) pose, and I noticed that while others were trying to scrape their fingertips on the ground, I was scraping my elbows. Comfortably. Best of all, I felt totally relaxed.

The instructor reminded us to honor our bodies’ limits in our practice. That comment stuck with me, and when I got home, I took some time to really search out my feelings about my body. I came to a very disappointing conclusion: I haven’t honored this body in a long time. This body has failed me in a number of ways the last 2 years. I’ve actually been rather angry at it. But I came to realize that I have failed it. Of course I am experiencing health challenges! I’ve been blaming age instead of taking control and doing something positive for myself.

So during my second yoga practice, I paid attention to my limits, but this time I tried pushing them a little. I stopped assuming I couldn’t do things like inversions (like shoulder stands and handstands) and poses that require a lot of balance, like Trikonasana (the triangle), and tree poses and “big toe” stretches. I found I was able to do so much more than I ever imagined, more, even, than almost anyone in the class.

The instructor talked to me after our practice, and she said that I am a natural. She wanted to know how many years I’ve been practicing yoga, and why I had signed up for the beginner yoga series. *beams*

It feel so unlike me, the old me, but I’m proud to admit that I like my body’s response to this new stimuli. I think I’ve found my exercise! I can see myself doing yoga, improving, gaining strength, reaching milestones, finding peace with my body.

I’m not sure how I’m going to afford to continue with lessons, but I’ll find a way. This revelation feels important in one of those deeply resonating ways that should not be ignored.

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