Yoga

A human pretzel I am not so perhaps yoga sounds like a strange place to find me. But after a tight and cold run this morning, I decided to join some neighbors at their beginner's yoga class. The legs can always use some stretching, right? And heaven knows that my balance could use a refresher course. I did take yoga well over a year ago so at least I knew what I was getting into. What I'd forgotten (or never learned) would fill a book though. First, I forgot that yoga is done barefoot. And I've previously established here just how gross my feet look right now (and probably for the foreseeable future since I haven't exactly given up running). Seems everyone else gets pedicures. Just what is the problem with looking at gnarled stumps, I ask you? ::wicked grin:: Then, because I didn't want to be the dork who showed up with things all wrong, I didn't take my own mat. Never doing that again! Do I want my nose touching a mat someone else's bare feet (no matter how pretty) have been touching? Most assuredly not!!! Just the thought of my face anywhere close to feet, strange feet, skeeves me out. So we poked through class and I think I did fairly well although I noticed that every time I raised my head out of proper alignment so I could check out what the instructor (or failing her, the woman in the front row who seemed to know what she was doing) was doing, we were instantly re-directed to turn our gaze somewhere where I couldn't see squat. Then we got the whole gentle conversation about yoga not being a competition so it didn't matter what our neighbor was doing. Shoot! I really was only trying to figure out what pose I was supposed to be in, but if I'm being honest, I guess I have to say that competition did cross my mind once or twice. Okay, maybe a lot more than that. So sue me. Anyway, finished up class and have to admit I was a tad disappointed that I wasn't too shaky and sweaty afterwards. Maybe I could do more than beginner. I so rock. Moving up after only one class. Oh wait, there's that competition thing again. And I had to chuckle over two things. One, after class, T., one of my neighbors, told me I have really good core strength. I exercised good self-restraint and didn't laugh. I don't even have a core. I just have a bowl of pudding. The second thing was imagining my mom doing her yoga class this summer in jeans and sneakers. Actually, this one has the potential to work me up to howling with laughter if I think about it too much. (Sorry to throw you under the bus mom.) Jeans and sneakers. ::giggle, snort:: So anyway, I'll probably go back, if for nothing else besides the final pose, which is really just hanging out on your back with nothing to think about besides breathing. We could all use some of that down time in our lives.