Tell us a bit about yourself…
I’m a 42 year old housewife and mother of 4. I enjoy drawing, painting and anything even slightly crafty. I love books, music and socialising with friends. I also love nature.
What led you to sign up to a class?
My friend Aimee had just moved to the city and was looking for something new to try, she found the hot yoga studio and asked if I’d like to try it with her. I’d always quite fancied yoga but was put off by all the other stuff that I perceived to come with it (chanting, vegetarianism and no alcohol). Turns out, you dont have to do all that other stuff, phew.
How did you find your first yoga class?
Actually I don’t know. When I first started coming to yoga, I only did the 90 min hot classes, and when I left my first hot yoga session I had no idea what I’d just done and whether I liked it or not. I decided I needed to do a few classes before I made up my mind.
What effect has practising yoga had on your life?
Without wanting to bore any of the blokes that might be reading this, I honestly think yoga has improved my symptoms of the peri-menopause. Tiredness, fatigue, dizziness, poor sleep, brain fog and hot flushes have all either gone or been greatly reduced.
I’ve always been quite a laid back person but now I amaze myself at how much I’m not bothered by, actually, anything. My overriding feeling for the past couple of years has been contentment, I don’t know if that’s down to the yoga or just getting older but I like it!
Apart from yoga, do you have other ways of keeping healthy?
I like to walk everywhere, I don’t like driving at all so if something’s only a couple of miles away, I’ll walk. Dave, our dog, takes me out on nice long walks everyday too.
I try to eat healthily as much as I can but won’t really deny myself anything ( everything in moderation ).
What keeps you coming back to LANO?
Honestly, I love the classes but the fact that LANO is so welcoming, relaxed and friendly always makes me want to return. One of the things I do love about LANO is the fact that all the teachers (at least all the ones that I’ve met) take the time to get to know the students, from the very first class they always try to remember everybody’s name and make you feel like part of a community.
Also, I love a challenge! I’ve got things I want to do, places I want to see, but I will probably have to wait until the kids are older so I’ll need my body to work properly for a long time to come. I need to be able to cope with trekking through forests and climbing mountains so I need to look after it now.
What single piece of advice would you share with a newcomer to yoga?
Don’t worry if you can’t do most of it at the beginning. Don’t give up or at least give it a good go. Don’t decide on the first class if you like it or not. Try it for a while, maybe change classes and styles. If you’re doing the hot classes you’ll get used to the heat if you come often enough and you might even start enjoying it!