First Yoga Class Got You Nervous? But You’re Already a Practitioner! Here’s How

First Yoga Class Got You Nervous? But You’re Already a Practitioner!

Here’s How…..
By Lauren Collins

Okay, so you signed up for your first yoga class. Todays the day you’re stepping out and stepping onto a mat. Great News! You've already achieved the hardest part: Choosing to show up for yourself! If you have been putting off trying yoga because let's be real, putting your feet behind your head just isn't your thing, well you are in GOOD company. Let me tell you how intimidated I was the first time I walked into a room of athletes in full splits. Woah. I showed up to a yoga class, not auditions for Cirque Du Soleil, right?  I couldn’t even do a headstand, I thought to myself as I turned around and left. There was no way I was going to tie myself into a pretzel like those acrobats. Little did I know I accidentally walked into a very advanced YTT500 session on my first day as a beginner yogi! Oops! Today, I am an experienced Yogini and guess what, I still can’t do a handstand! I am no master, but I practice everyday, love it, and now understand that those Yogis doing advanced poses weren’t acrobats. They don’t have super powers, they have a personal practice and they are committed to feeling good, and so are you!

Going into your new yoga journey, It is so important to remember that Yoga doesn’t commend the all-knowing as the all powerful. That’s right. No one cares if you can do a split or touch your toes, and not every person that can do a split can touch their toes. Everyone has limits, and when you show up on your mat your intention is to recognize, explore, and honor your limits, both physical and mental, and with time and practice push them! Stay humble and use the support blocks when you are pushing your edge. Be gentle with yourself. You’re learning to respond to what your body is asking for, and showing up is the first & hardest step!

  There are so many ways to develop a personal practice and all of them are correct. So much of yoga is about learning to still your body and mind.  You may sit in silent meditation, or you may love lying in savasana corpse pose and falling asleep, or maybe you want to stand in mountain pose and take in the sun. All of these methods quiet the mind, body, and spirit.  Yoga isn’t just what asanas you do on the mat, but it’s how your practice shows up in your daily life. For instance, many people that are “ intimidated to try yoga” are probably already doing it. Here’s how...

I bet there has been a time, maybe multiple if you work with the public, that you have had to bite your tongue, walk away, maybe hide behind a door for a moment, close your eyes & breathe. You don’t know if you are going to burst into tears or if you are going to sock someone in that moment, but you go into a quiet spot, get yourself together, take a minute to breathe and separate yourself from the situation. Guess what! You are actually doing yoga! You are creating space for your mind and body, finding your center within, utilizing pranayama (breath work) to exhale that crap! You are using your power to empty your mind, balance the id (that part that wants to probably hit that person) and the ego (that part that takes it personally). You are returning to a better, stronger you. You are already a yogic master!

Now that you are starting your yoga journey,  you can form a personal practice that brings the mental & physical benefits off the mat, enabling you to navigate those sticky situations with more ease and less energy. You are going to see the patience and compassion unfold before you. Yoga is not about putting your feet behind your head. It is about finding your center and creating a union between your mind, body, and spirit. Being in the present moment, and you already find calm in the chaos every day. So take a class. Get on your mat and just remember:

Yoga is not about touching your toes. It is what you learn on the way down.

– Jigar Gor

By Lauren Collins