Just breathe

Yoga pants make for great travel attire. As a result, I’ve spent the past two days in yoga pants, lounging on my parents’ couch and bemoaning the fact that I can’t actually practice yoga right now, doctor’s orders. I had a mole excised from my shoulder on Tuesday, and the dermatologist asked me to avoid lifting heavy things and exercise that would put weight on my shoulder or stretch my back, at least for a week. (By the way, the pathology results came back all clear. No need to worry about me!)

As I entered my 30s, I knew I needed to find some form of exercise that worked for me. I have always been thin, but I have rarely been in shape (save for a few years of cheerleading and dance team). I’m a bookworm, not an athlete.

But I’ve had joint pain since I quit cheerleading more than a decade ago, and I knew that healthier habits would benefit me in the long run. In my mid-20s, my appetite suddenly changed from a desire for the junk food that powered me in college to largely natural, preservative-free foods. (And yes, I counted it a blessing. I used to be incredibly picky. I don’t know what happened.) I knew, though, that any sort of fitness craving was not likely to mysteriously happen on its own.

I had been to yoga a few times in the past, and I generally enjoyed it once I convinced myself to get there. I often felt awkward and didn’t know what to wear, a silly insecurity but one that would help keep me from exercise nonetheless. After I was introduced to Lululemon last summer, that was no longer an issue. As I have moved closer to the heart of the city in recent years, my proximity to classes has also increased. Money was one of the remaining obstacles.

Last December I wished for The Yoga Circle to run an unlimited month Groupon. I reasoned that this would give me time to see how I really felt about yoga, and to so so at a reasonable price. The next day, such a Groupon appeared. I began my unlimited month at the year’s start.

And I was hooked. I tend to worry and plan more than is necessary, and yoga proved a perfect fit for my over-active mind. When I’m focused on breathing and settling into a pose, I’m not thinking about my to-do list or budget. (Well, not usually.) The physical benefits have been a bonus; my joint pain has been greatly reduced, and I’m stronger than ever before.

I bought a 16-class package after that initial unlimited month ran out, and I quickly discovered it wasn’t enough to satiate my craving. It’s been a year since I started practicing on my own, and nearly a year since I became a regular at my studio. Today, my yoga pants remind me how eager I am to return to practice. And in the meantime, I might just sit in class and breathe for a while.

The eighth #bloglikecrazy prompt focused on fitness. Today’s subject line comes from Anna Nalick’s “Breathe.”