In my effort to lose weight and The Hubster’s goal to bring down his cholesterol, our family joined the local “Y” this week. We’ve done cardio several times this week, but I waited all week to go to the yoga class they offered last night.
Late yesterday afternoon I realized that I had nothing appropriate to wear to the class, so I headed to the handy-dandy Wal-Mart to get some workout clothes that wouldn’t gross everyone out—at least I hope. While I was there I figured that it would be in everyone’s best interest to buy some Gas-X. They now have Gas-X thin strips, so I grabbed a box and headed off.
I’ve done lots of yoga videos but have never attended a class. I was just a little apprehensive, but figured I’d just stand in the back of the room and hide. Wrong. Everyone lined up side-by-side, facing a mirror. A mirror, folks! Not only was I not in the back of the class, but my reflection was there for the whole class to see. Nice.
I had rushed out of the house so fast that I didn’t stop to think about grabbing my mat. Did they have any mats there? Nooooo. The instructor told me I would be fine without one, but another lady took pity on me and got an extra one out of her car. Turns out her son used to attend yoga class with her, but he joined one of the military branches and had shipped out. She kept his mat in her car as a reminder of him.
Class started and I was able to keep pace with everything they were doing. All of the moves were familiar to me, so I felt at ease right away. Well, I felt at ease with what we were doing. The Gas-X strips, unfortunately, did not work at all. There is nothing like bending over, clenching and praying that nothing escapes to enhance one’s workout. It really lends itself to relaxation.
We ended the class with the relaxation pose. Everyone laid on their backs, eyes closed, and, well, relaxed. Hence the name, I suppose. The instructor even turned the lights off. The music was still playing softly, but once it ended all I could concentrate on was the airplane flying overhead and the cars passing on the highway. I don’t know how long we stayed like that, probably 7 or 8 minutes. It seemed like forever. Had I not tanked up on caffeine, I would have fallen asleep. My mind must have wandered or I drifted off just a tad because I suddenly thought, How long have we been here? Did everyone leave? I raised my head just a tad and saw that everyone else was, thankfully, still there. I don’t know why I thought everyone had left. How could they all get up, put on their shoes, roll up their mats and exit without me hearing? I’m thinking too much caffeine and not enough sleep on my part. Makes me think crazy thoughts, I guess.
All in all it was a great experience. Next time I will arrive mat in hand, hopefully flatulence-free, ready to fully enjoy myself and relax as intended.
Namaste.
