Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone At B-1 Yoga On Main Street

While I usually make a the same yearly resolution of losing a bit of weight and living a healthier lifestyle, this year I decided I would try something different.

I wanted a challenge for myself so I decided that I would try something each month this year that would force me to step out of my comfort zone.

Some of my challenges include starting a flower garden and taking a dance lesson.

I’ve been exercising regularly for a few years now and over the last few months a number of my friends have been encouraging me to try yoga.  I had mentioned that some of my muscles had been tight and a lot of people were telling me that yoga would help a lot.

Yoga?  Me?  Ha, yeah, right.  Besides… isn’t that a lady thing?  I’m not a super flexible person and thought of clumsily falling over repeatedly in front of a room full of healthy, fit women made me shudder.

I asked my listeners on the air what they thought of it and where I should go.  A lot of people called and raved about their experiences.  Then we got a call from Cally at B-1 Yoga on Main Street.

“Why don’t you come down and try a class?” she asked, “we have Men’s Monday going on, so it’s the perfect opportunity.”

Normally I would simply decline but that voice in the back of my head told me that I had to do it.

I agreed.  Thankfully, Bruce agreed to join me.  I won’t lie.  I was nervous and inside of my head all day.  What if I couldn’t do it?  I’ve seen a million memes on Facebook of people in all sorts of extreme positions and poses.  Would people be laughing at me?

Cally was fantastic.  She gave us a quick tour of B-1 Yoga and explained the differences between traditional yoga and hot yoga.

At B-1 Yoga, they do mild, warm and hot yoga.  Mild means the room is heated to about 85 degrees.  It’s comfortable, calming and relaxing.  Hot gets up to about 105 degrees, giving your body a good sweat and stretch.  The heat can relax your muscles giving you slightly deeper movements in your body.

Classes range from beginner to advance classes, so she told me not to worry about doing headstands and handstands.  (I felt immediate relief.)

Some of the benefits of doing yoga include better flexibility, balance, strength and stress reduction but can also provide some relief from lower back pains and a better quality of sleep.

At B-1 Yoga there are classes all week and a variety of heat and difficulty levels, so you should visit their WEBSITE or FACEBOOK PAGE for more information.

Right before the class started I looked around the room.  There was an almost equal balance between men and women, which put me even more at ease.  Cally gave slow and easy instructions through the entire class, so at no point did I feel confused or overwhelmed.  We did simple poses, such as downward dog and warrior.  It was wonderful.

Best of all, after class I felt amazing.  I went home, took a shower and fell into a deep, comfortable sleep.

I’m so glad I did it!

Currently, B-1 Yoga is featuring a Men’s Monday.  That doesn’t mean you have to be a guy to attend… it’s just their way of reminding everyone that yoga is for everybody!  Current members that bring a guy in will get a free class, or if you’ve attended before and you bring a guy you’re free.  Everybody who comes down to B-1 Yoga get their first week FREE!

If you’d like to call and chat with Cally to see if yoga is right for you, dial her up at 773.206.9136.

I encourage you to give it a try.  I was there again last night for my second class and I plan on attending regularly.  I'll keep you posted on how it's going.  I hope to see you there.

~CMF