I Hated My First Yoga Class

How ten classes changed the direction of my life

In 1993, someone told me that yoga might help me feel better.

My first thought was:

What’s yoga?

I honestly had no idea.

At the time, I was approaching three years since losing my mom, and I had been struggling deeply with grief and depression. I knew I needed to do something, so despite knowing almost nothing about yoga, I decided to give it a try.

I will never forget my first class.

I hated it.

I thought everyone was weird. The room smelled strange. I couldn't understand why we were putting our bodies into all these unusual positions.

And I was quite certain I would never go back.

Then someone at the yoga school gave me a piece of advice that ultimately changed my life:

“Give it ten classes before you decide.”

They told me that every class would feel a little different.

I wasn't convinced.

But I agreed to give it ten.

Something Got My Attention

There was one thing about that first class I couldn't ignore:

It kicked my butt.

And I thought I was in shape!

I'd spent years working as a fitness trainer and aerobics instructor—yes, aerobics...it was the '90s!—so I wasn't expecting yoga to challenge me physically the way it did.

That intrigued me.

But I was even more curious about something else:

How could these strange postures possibly have anything to do with how I felt emotionally?

So I kept going.

Ten classes came and went.

Did I fall madly in love with yoga?

Nope.

But something inside me whispered:

Do another ten.

So I did.

The Change Didn't Happen Overnight

That first year wasn't easy.

My daughters were young. I was working full time, and my sister and I owned and operated three swimwear stores in three major malls.

I could usually get to yoga only twice a week.

And there were mornings when getting out of bed felt incredibly difficult, much less getting myself to a yoga class.

But I kept showing up.

Little by little, I began noticing something.

I was starting to see life differently.

It felt as though the dark cloud I'd been living beneath was slowly beginning to lift.

That fascinated me.

I had originally gone to yoga because someone suggested it might help me feel better.

Now I wanted to understand why I felt different.

Discovering the Body-Mind Connection

I started reading everything I could about yoga.

Through my years in fitness and personal training, I'd already been exposed to inspirational teachers and had studied the power of the mind extensively.

But yoga introduced me to another idea:

The mind and body aren't separate experiences.

That concept opened an entirely new world for me.

Yoga wasn't simply a workout.

The physical practice, breathing, attention, stillness, and self-awareness were giving me a new way to experience myself.

I became fascinated with the psychology and philosophy behind yoga and eventually became certified to teach.

And then something wonderful began to happen.

The different pieces of my life started coming together.

My background in health and fitness.

My interest in personal growth and the power of the mind.

Life coaching.

And now yoga.

Instead of seeing them as separate practices, I began integrating them.

What Began as Ten Classes Became a Life's Work

As I incorporated personal-growth teachings into my yoga classes, students began telling me how much the combination was helping them.

That feedback helped shape the work I've continued to develop ever since.

Today, decades after walking reluctantly into that first yoga class, yoga remains an important part of how I teach and live.

It eventually became part of the foundation for my coaching, workshops, meditation practices, and the personal-growth and wellness retreats I've had the privilege of leading.

And sometimes I think about how close I came to never going back after that first class.

What if I had trusted my first impression?

What if I hadn't given it ten classes?

My life might have taken an entirely different direction.

Give Something a Chance to Change You

There's a lesson in this story that extends far beyond yoga.

Sometimes the things that ultimately change our lives don't feel magical in the beginning.

Sometimes they're uncomfortable.

Sometimes they're unfamiliar.

Sometimes we don't understand them.

And sometimes...

we absolutely hate the first class.

Growth doesn't always arrive looking like something we want.

That's why, when you're trying something that could potentially be good for you, perhaps you don't have to decide immediately whether it's “for you.”

Give yourself a little time.

Stay curious.

Pay attention.

And allow the experience to unfold.

Because sometimes the path that feels completely foreign today becomes the path that helps lead you home to yourself.

And to think...

Mine began with ten yoga classes I didn't even want to take.

With gratitude,
Lisa Goodwin