Iyengar Yoga - I Finally Found A Yoga That I Like!

Yesterday I checked the yoga schedule to see if Iyengar yoga was on today - but there are no classes on Mondays! Wow, it feels funny to be disappointed about that because previously, when I wasn’t enjoying my local yoga classes, I would have felt relieved! Last year I paid for a ten week yoga class locally but stopped going about halfway into it. I can’t remember what kind of yoga it was, but the classes were usually very busy and in a small room, so that didn’t help.

I haven’t ever heard anyone say they didn’t enjoy yoga or that they found it boring. Up until now, though I didn’t really enjoy it AND I found it a trifle boring. I’m used to running and spinning (cycling). I’ve been doing weight training since last April and thought I’d find that boring but actually find it quite meditative. I actually think it’s given me a solid base from which to start Iyengar yoga and enjoy it fully. It’s quite physically demanding and the poses are quite strong. I’m finding it easy to do them and really enjoy the poses and the feeling of strength it gives me.

I also love the precise nature of Iyengar. No other class has been so precise in its instructions. The exact position of the shoulder blades, how the fingers should rest on the mat, how to turn the inner thigh muscles to prevent the hip from rising, raising the knee caps to keep the legs active and straight! All this time I’ve been doing the downward dog and never knew I didn’t have it quite right.

The fantastic benefit of being so precise is that you’re 100% concentrated on the moves and positions. You’re not worrying about the future, mentally writing up your shopping list or regretting some decision you made 3 years ago. You’re 100% in the moment. I can honestly say I’ve never felt quite so relaxed as I do after Iyengar.

I also really love the props used. Squidgy purple blocks, blankets, bolsters, ropes, chairs, even silk eye pads! Although it’s quite physically demanding, it seems like the ultimate kind of ‘comfort’ yoga with the eye pads and so on. I’ve been to three classes so far, and each one has been different. I love that.

I have also been to Bikram yoga - the hot yoga - and did enjoy that for a while. But the class was quite a long drive away and each class has exactly the same movements in exactly the same order. I’m not sure I could do that for a long time.

So I’m really pleased I’ve tried Iyengar yoga and that the class is only 15 minutes drive away. I was recommended that particular form of yoga a year ago by a friend’s stepfather (he became a teacher of it because he thought it was the best type of yoga) and also in 2003, I worked with a girl who wanted to try that exact same class with me as she lives nearby.

It’s funny, isn’t it? You come across things but aren’t quite ready to try them. Then one day you do, and wonder why you didn’t go for it earlier. As they say, ‘When the student is ready, the teacher will appear’.