I have never taken a yoga class before and I thought it would be rather interesting to take to say the least. So, I decided to attend this yoga class on Monday (5/2/2011) because I was curious about it and I heard so many good things from people who have taken the classes. Prior to taking the class I knew yoga had to do with stretching and being in certain poses, but I thought that it would not be that bad or too difficult because I played sports and we had to stretch so we would not pull any muscle. Was I ever wrong about this! The type of yoga that the instructor thought the class was called Ashtanga Yoga (Power Yoga). This yoga is an athletic type of Hatha Yoga that focuses on intense stretching and building muscular strength. Before we started the instructor said to clear our mind from everything and to focus on the present moment because that is all that matters and what’s important. In the beginning, the poses or the stretches started off relatively easy for the first 15 to 20 minutes. While doing the poses the instructor also told us to make sure that you take deep breaths because that was key in many positions. After that first 20 minutes, everything went down hills. The stretches and poses became more difficult as time went on. The pose that was used frequently while I was there was the downward dog position and that was very awkward for me to do. The yoga class lasted about an hour in a half and my body afterwards felt sore for the most part. After taking the class I have more respect for people who practice the different types of yoga on a daily basis.
