3rd time's the charm 

I’m first to admit I’m not one of those where yoga was love at first sight with me. 

My first encounter with yoga was when I was a sophomore in Canada. My housemate picked up a pamphlet on a yoga session arranged by the Faculty of Arts ‘s student club in the lead up to the exams and wanted a companion in me. 
 
I couldn’t stop yawning and found the session boring with no connection at all. It did not help that the yoga teacher was delivering a bunch of instructions which I struggled to relate to. 
 
4 years on when I was in my first job, my colleague wanted to sign up for a yoga course at a nearby community centre in the name of working out and losing weight. I was keen to shed unnecessary pounds and decided to tag along. Armed with zealous determination to make this a worthwhile investment, I was dismayed to realize I dreaded every moment of the 12 sessions over a period of 3 months. The sessions hardly provided enough cardio for me to sweat excessively for weight loss. 
 
5 years ago, my best friend obtained a 7 day free trial pass at a local yoga club and suggested that we went check it out together. I honestly had no expectation or whatsoever. The sessions did get me fair bit of workout, it did not seem as unbearable as the 1st two encounters. We eventually signed up for a 24 month yoga membership. 
 
Yoga gradually grew on me, as I slowly learned how to appreciate the art and science of yoga. Whenever I’m up to my eyeballs at work, it was the one thing i looked forward to other than a glass of mojito / waffles with maple syrup. 
 
What seemed like boring instructions in the 1st 2 encounters was what I listened intently to during session now to understand when to inhale and exhale, how to perform my poses. Before I knew it, I went from practising twice a week to minimally 4-6 times a week. As your typical business development executive, yoga taught me to relax, calm my mind in a stressful environment, have more control over my anxiety, in short a perfect complement to my lifestyle. It’s now so much a part of my life that practice doesn’t get disrupted even when I’m on the roads. 
 
I’m thankful I had another shot at this for if not, I wouldn’t have found a life long indulgence. 
 
 
 
 Mel (200hr Yoga TTC 07/14 weekend)