No, no… not THAT first time! I’m talking about the humiliation my very first yoga class.

At 50, being newly-single & open to new experiences, I decided to try the free yoga class offered in my building’s community center. I reasoned, “I keep my self in good shape. How hard can it be?”

I didn’t own a yoga mat, so I grabbed what I thought would make a perfect substitute… a brightly colored beach towel!

As I walked to the studio, I started feeling a little apprehensive. I planned to arrive early so I could hide in the back. But even with my early arrival, the class was already packed full of young, flexible yogis warming up on their proper yoga mats.

Feeling sheepish, I found a spot in the back where I hoped I could hide. No such luck. The yoga instructor walked right over to me, and pointing to my palm tree-covered beach towel asked, “What do you plan to do with THAT?” I felt the red hot patina of shame rising up in me. I thought about running from the room, but felt frozen in place.

The class was advertised as Level 1, but as I soon found out, that means nothing when you have zero experience! The first pose was something called “Downward Facing Dog.” Here’s what it looks like:

I tried to get my body into that position to no avail. Worse yet, the instructor continued to call out names of other unknown-to-me poses in rapid succession. Naturally, my fellow yogis knew how to gracefully flow from pose to pose. I spent the better part of 60-minutes flopping around, slipping & sliding on that damn beach towel!

It’s all a bit of a blur, but I do remember we got to lie down at the end in something called Savasanna, or final resting pose. That was about the only thing I did nearly right, except I was too embarrassed to feel very restful.

When the class (mercifully) ended, I sat on my pathetic beach towel feeling like a complete failure. I know I had tears in my eyes. But an amazing thing happened. A lovely young girl near me said, “Good job! It’s always rough in the beginning. Make sure you come back, and you may want to get a yoga mat.” Her kindness in that moment soothed my wounded ego more than I can say.

You might think that first experience would have turned me off to yoga forever. But I took that young girl’s advice and tried again, albeit with a kinder, more patient teacher and in a class with other older-adult beginners. My fellow Midlife Yogis & I still reap all the benefits of Downward Dog, but now it looks a little something like this:

What did I learn from my first time?

• Trying new things is scary. No way around it. It just is. Show up anyway and be brave.
• Don't stress about the poses. Yoga is all about coming home to yourself. Be who you are, beach towel and all.
• A kind teacher and a supportive community will make all the difference in the world.

Join me & the other kind, supportive folks who practice downward dog every week right from the comfort of home. You can learn more & register right here. As one Midlife Yogi puts it:

“Rosemary is so skilled at giving instructions that you find yourself doing more than you thought possible!”

Together, let's find out what's possible for you. Remember... when you move better, you feel better.

Until next time,

~ Rosemary

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