It’s been over a month now since I entered the bendy, deep breathing world of yoga. So, I thought it was time for a progress report.

Here goes:

1) I have attended six yoga classes in a row. That is huge progress, since I did not have huge expectations. I think the fact that I have a buddy has helped. And we get lattes after class. I’m all about the reward.

2) Even after six classes I have no idea what the names of the poses are. The instructor tells us every time, and I’m sure she looks at me with that, ‘yes, I’m saying it again for your benefit’ look on her face. But I still have no idea what most of the poses are called. This is probably because my mind drifts…a lot! And I can’t seem to focus long enough to commit the names to memory. In lieu, I have made up my own names for them. Also, I still look around a lot to see what everyone else is doing because again, I lose focus frequently.

Still working on the legs, but I can totally do Twisty, Pretzel Arms

3) On the first day of class, I could not do the twisty pretzel arms. You know, the move where you put your arms out in front of you and wrap one elbow over the other until your fingers are clasped together while your wrists are held in a back bend. That move. I couldn’t do it. Not only could I not do twisty, pretzel arms, I also couldn’t come close to performing the modified move which involves putting your arms in front of you, and touching your elbows together while putting your hands in a praying position. Nope, you could have stuck a beach ball between my elbows. Can you say, ‘shoulder tension’?

4) I no longer fall over when standing in ‘scarecrow’ pose. You know, the one with the foot up on your other leg. The first few times I attempted this, my arms spun around in a desperate search to grasp something, anything to keep me from falling over and taking everyone with me. I wobble a bit sometimes. But I don’t fall over. (yes, much like a Weeble)

5) I can now do sun salutations. I do remember the name for this one. Although I always have the strangest urge to break out into Good Morning Starshine (I perfer Serena Ryder’s version). I haven’t yet. But I might one day. Also, I frequently lose focus because I’m humming the tune in my head, so I have to look around to see where we are.

6) Despite the fact that I seem to periodically lose focus, I am relaxing during my one hour yoga practice. This is HUGE for me, because I tend to have a small huge relaxation problem. The fact that I can unplug (mostly) for an hour, and stop thinking about all the things on my to-do list, is major progress.

So there you have it, my yoga progress, however minor. I am without a doubt most proud of twisty, pretzel arms and will demonstrate to anyone who asks. It’s true. However, changes are a foot again. My yoga partner is experiencing a schedule change and since one of the main reasons I enjoy it so much is because of my buddy, I’m changing with her. Next week we’ll be trying a new studio on a new night. The week after, we’ll try out yet another studio before making our decision on which one to stay with.

It’s strange, but this transition, even after six weeks, makes me nervous. What if the instructor does things differently? What if I can no longer hold ‘scarecrow’ without falling over? There are a lot of questions, but one thing I know for sure, is I do want to keep going with yoga. Even somewhere new. Plus, I’ll always have twisty, pretzel arms.

I love hearing from you, so tell me…what have you mastered lately? Any twisty, pretzel arms going on? Or, alternatively, tell me about your experience with yoga.