Class #1

I taught my first official yoga class this week - woo hoo! It was for Yogis at University of Washington which is an awesome non-profit that provides free yoga classes to college students! I didn't even know what yoga was when I was at the UW so these students are already miles ahead of where I was at their age. I'm super excited to volunteer my time teaching classes for them because I know yoga will help with their studies, relationships, decisions, health, happiness and more!

I had no idea what to expect when I showed up for class. I thought there would maybe be 10 people there...or less because it was pouring rain. I was shocked when people kept coming and coming - pretty soon we were moving mats to make more space and add more rows. I ended up with nearly 40 students - fantastic! I was thrilled that so many people came - plus they were very welcoming and eager to learn.

They earned points with me right away when they asked if I was also a student at UW...and then were surprised when I laughed and said "yeah, but it was 10 years ago." The class itself went really well - this was my first time teaching an entire hour (our "final exam" during training was only 17 minutes). I decided not to plan out an exact sequence ahead of time...I wasn't sure if that was a good idea or just plain crazy, but it ended up working out! I felt like if I had a memorized sequence, I would be focused on "getting it right" rather than just teaching. I think I was able to feel the room better this way, and speak from my heart rather than from a script. I was worried I would either run out of time and feel rushed to finish, or I run out of things to do and leave them laying in Savasana for 20 minutes. Miraculously the timing went smoothly and I ended right on schedule!

I had quite a few people come up after class and say how much they enjoyed it so that made me very happy. They also liked my music - phew! because I seriously spent forever debating over the playlist, ha ha. I left on a complete high - it was crazy how much energy it gave me! I offered to teach twice a month for them so hopefully they will take me up on it :)

This Sunday I'm hosting a free class for friends & family at Urban Yoga Spa (where I attend classes). They generously allowed me to use their studio - love them! So far around 20 people have RSVPd so I'm excited! I also started teaching in my office once a week for two of my coworkers. A couple other people found out and started asking questions about it, so hopefully they will join us!