The beauty and simplicity of yoga is that all you have to do is START and you will get what you need. This is how I began:
Bikram yoga has been the first form of exercise that I've been able to engage in on a regular basis since retiring from competitive gymnastics 9 years ago. I didn't fall in love with Bikram yoga as some people do. I didn't go back for a year after the first class. Maybe I suffered from the 'athlete's syndrome' that first class, laden with an overriding ego and high expectations for my physical ability in the room. When I did finally return the timing was right. I realised that letting go of my ego was part of my confrontation in the mirror, and that every single person in the room was dealing with their own confrontations, the source of which I now see as irrelevant. I was ready to open my mind, ready to make mistakes, ready to confront myself in the mirror even though I saw little resemblance there of the athlete I use to be.What I have ended up falling in love with is that all I have to do is walk into the room and try. No perfect practice, no perfect posture, good and bad days are synonymous, no one keeping score, just a pure, honest, patient intention to try as much as I can. The result of this trying? A shadow of my former self as a perfectionist, a more relaxed, enjoyable and mindful daily experience, and more compassion, love and patience for myself and for those around me.I made it to Teacher Training in April of 2011 where I learned (other than how to teach of course) that I'm capable of so much more than I allow myself to believe. Unlimited potential. Every class is an opportunity to give more to myself through my practice and the benefits to every dimension of my health are significantly greater than the energy expended. A priceless return on investment.As a teacher I relish the opportunity to lead a class that allows people to reinvent themselves every time they step onto their mats, treating each class as an opportunity to let go of expectations, give themselves completely to the task at hand, and simply enjoy what that brings.