“I can’t do yoga, I’m not flexible at all.”

This is the lie you repeat to yourself because somewhere along the way, you saw an advanced level yogi doing some crazy pose balancing on their hands while both legs were up over their head and at that point, you wrote off yoga as something that only flexible people do. Afterward, these people all sit around, drinking organic kombucha and congratulating themselves on how flexible they all are.

This could not be further from the truth. Well, okay, maybe some people do this. Not me. Not in any class I have ever taught. And, even though I have been practicing yoga since 2002, I still can’t balance on my hands with my legs behind my head, and I have never once consumed organic kombucha.

Yoga is about starting where you are and building flexibility slowly.

You would never walk into a gym for the first time, pick up a 50 pound dumbbell and expect to be able to curl it. The same principle applies to yoga. You may not be able to touch your toes the first time you practice. I know I wasn’t. The point is to build flexibility the same way that you build strength. Slowly, with the goal of getting a little bit better every time. (And there are zero hand balances in beginner classes, so no need to stress about that.)

Overnight successes are a myth. No one walks into a yoga studio for the first time and knows exactly what is going on and how to do it. But the people who stick to yoga are the ones who come in with an open mind and are not afraid to try. Yoga meets people where they are and physically challenges them in order to promote a great deal of health benefits including increased flexibility, better sleep, less stress, toned muscles, and (if you practice in a studio) a community of like-minded folks, most of whom have never once tried kombucha.