I went to a yoga class on Sunday and one thing that the instructor mentioned was that one of the practices of yoga is to let go of your ego. That really struck a cord with me, as I often worry about whether or not I’m able to do a particular yoga class. I worry about whether I will look weak or dumb. I know that I should not compare myself to others in the room, but I cannot help but doing it. And that is why the idea of letting go of my ego really helped. It helped remind me that everyone in the room is in a different place, dealing with a different body. No one is judging me except myself (or if they are judging me, who cares? that is their problem not mine).

And with that, I decided to go to a Body Flow class today. Sunday’s yoga class was a 90-minute Yin yoga class, which involved a lot of stretch poses that were held for long duration. It was a great class to ease into, and helped lose up my way too tight back. Body flow as a class that I used to find too easy. I used to find that it wasn’t really a workout – is we just a chance to stretch. That was 10 or so years ago. Not so much now. The class kicked my ass. However, I did it. I survived the entire class. I did what I could, and I didn’t watch others. I practiced the letting go of my ego, but also not comparing myself to others (which is one way in which I express my ego). I watched the instructor and I did what I could – often looking at myself in the mirror (although it was often better if I didn’t see myself!).

I’ll wait and see how I’m feeling tomorrow before I decide if I’m going back to that class. What was nice was that the room wasn’t too crowded. If I had the energy in me, I would have gone swimming afterwards, as the timing allows for lap swim before the end of word day crowds. However, today, swimming wasn’t in the cards. The class was more than enough for me.