Never The Same Class Twice

I was introduced to hot yoga by friend in 2011.  I'd never heard of it, but she was always inviting people to try it out.  So, I tagged along, mostly out of curiosity.

Never having done any sort of yoga before my first Bikram class, I was shocked at how challenging it was. The poses looked deceptively so simple. I was also struck by the variety of ages and body types in the room and really appreciated that there was a different mix of people there than you would find at a gym. Although I've been practicing for about three years now, I still feel like a beginner. 

When I started doing yoga regularly, I was going through a divorce, which for me was like hitting the reset button. Every plan I had for the future was suddenly in question: where I'd live, what I'd do for work, what kind of toothpaste I'd use. So, I made it a point to be a little adventurous to see how different my new future might be. Yoga was one of the more noticeable changes I incorporated because I hadn't been exercising at all before or eating particularly well.

Strangely, the first couple of times I practiced I felt really bummed and distinctly remember staring up at the ceiling tiles at the end of the class feeling profoundly sad. The sadness wouldn't last for very long after class, but took me by surprise each time. I think, yoga helped me to process my feelings.

Now, I think of yoga as a weekly gift to myself. Admittedly I don't make it every week, but I feel better when I do. Yoga forces me to turn off all the noise from my work week and spend an hour and a half being mindful and breathing.

Because I always enjoyed Rebecca's (Jordan-Turner) classes at the Bikram studio, I tried her home studio. The sessions were really challenging, but I was able to do more because of the custom sequences in a small class. As a teacher myself, I was also drawn to Rebecca's skills as an instructor. She manages to differentiate so that everyone in the room, no matter their experience, can be challenged. That's pretty impressive. I find that to be the case with all of the instructors at Revolution Hot Yoga.

I really love that yoga isn't purely a physical activity and that I have to be mentally focused as well.  Although I've never been into sports or going to the gym, I enjoy being active. Yoga is an opportunity to feel like I'm getting physical exercise along with meditation which is a combination I really enjoy.

For me, the most challenging thing about yoga is that its never the same experience. Some days I feel like I'm really making progress while other days I feel as clumsy as when I first started. I guess that's also something I love about it, though--that it requires mindfulness.

This is Rick Dillwood's yoga story.

Go to RHY website