Back on the yoga wagon

I've been doing hatha yoga for a number of years now, but for the past several years I've been doing it on my own and without an instructor. What was once a daily ritual has degraded to about 2-3 times a month.

That's going to change now that I've finally found a new instructor in Toronto. I'll be learning a variant of hatha yoga called Sivananda which incorporates pranayama (breathing techniques), strengthening excercises, a relaxation component and 12 base asanas (poses) from which to start off.

During my first lesson my instructor actually had me doing a headstand with a bit of help. I initially refused to do it thinking the pose was much more difficult and dangerous than it really was. With her help, however, it wasn't so bad. The real trick for me will be to get into the pose without any assistance. Another new pose for me was the crow, which looks worse than it is -- even though I fell flat on my face after holding it for a few seconds.

This practice will keep me physically active during what will surely be another long winter here in Toronto.