Preparation
Bette Calman from Australia is one of the worlds oldest yoga instructors. Still teaching 11 classes a week at 85 years old.
I’ve always wanted to try yoga but figured I would never be able to do it. I have the worlds tightest hamstrings. They might not officially be the worlds tightest but as an otherwise healthy person who cannot come close to touching her toes… they’re tight, trust me.
I reached a point where I decided enough is enough. My tight muscles and refusal to stretch have caused back pain that makes me feel like I’m in my 80′s, not the ‘prime of my life’.
I understand that the only way to overcome a fear or create any real change in your life is to dive right in and so I turned to Kassandra, a yoga instructor. I invested in 4 private 90 minute lessons to see if yoga is for me. After all, I was sure that there was no way I could just go to a yoga class with my tight, inflexible body. I quickly learned that although I do indeed have very tight hamstrings, there are also lots of other parts of yoga that do not involve hamstrings that I was able to do. There are also props and modifications that you can do to poses to allow you to do them and go deeper as you become more flexible.
Kassandra teaches Anusara Inspired yoga and I was surprised at how much of a sweat I broke. Anyone who says yoga isn’t a workout, has never tried this before.
After 4 private lessons, it was time to try my first class. I started small by going to a class taught by Kassandra’s partner Lucas. This class only has about 8 people which allows a significant amount of personal attention. Although I was nervous, I quickly became comfortable as I realized that not everyone who does yoga is able to bend like a rubber band. It really is true that no matter how much of a beginner you are, you’re never alone.
I enjoyed my first class so much, I went back 4 more weeks in a row and it is now time to begin my personal 30 day challenge to see if I can go from yucky to yogi.
My goal is to practice yoga as often as I can for 30 days. My purpose is to learn about different types of yoga and see what effect yoga will have on my body when I practice it on a regular basis. I want to see what impact yoga can have on my back as well as my hamstrings and on the shape of my body as well as on my mind. Will I be more toned? Will I feel significantly more calm? Will there be types of yoga I love and types I loath? I intend to find out and give you the answers right here on my blog.
I hope that by sharing my experiences, it will give other tight hamstringed yogi wannabes the confidence to try yoga so that they can at least make an informed decision about whether or not yoga is for them. After all, an informed decision is a lot better than one made on assumptions about something you haven’t actually tried.
Need More inspiration? Check out Bette Calman, one of the world’s oldest yoga instructors.
