I first started yoga two years ago. Before that, I’d been to one yoga class at university and hated it, lying on the mat and fuming, wondering why I was lying here and paying to ‘breathe’! But I decided to give it another go when I moved to Harrogate and joined a gym. I was doing a lot of running and weights classes and not really stretching, so my flexibility was really poor. I found a yoga teacher that just ‘clicked’ with me (you can find her here - @georginamariee) and her beautiful style of vinyasa classes have opened up the possibilities of yoga for me. She is still my yoga guru! You definitely need to search out that teacher and style that just works for you.
Practicing consistently is what made me fall in love. I’ve written about this before in a post called ‘why yoga isn’t for me’ (link in my bio), but ultimately yoga came alive off the mat for me. It changed my mindset, it made me FEEL my body, it stilled anxieties, and it allowed me to connect with me again – just by stepping on my mat. I learnt that discomfort does not last forever, and that often I’m wrong when I tell myself I can’t do something. And like many things in life, by turning up consistently, the micro-progress adds up to big progress. People say to me a lot now ‘you’re so flexible’ and yet because that was SO not me very recently!
I have signed up to do my yoga teacher training this summer for three weeks with @froglotusytt in Spain and I could not be more excited! I am excited to give myself the room to grow into my yoga practice more, without the business of the daily grind. During that time you’ll be able to follow my journey on here. And in September, you can join me on the mat @thefitnessgarage – watch out for news and class announcements soon!