midlife yoga?

I know some of you are doing yoga, either in classes or at home with a video. I've taken two sessions of classes in the past, but since my latest knee surgery, I haven't done another class. I think I'm ready to begin again.

We have a place within walking distance called Charm City Yoga. Here's a link to their site. It's pretty nice.

http://www.charmcityyoga.com/

If you take or took yoga, what have you found to be the best benefits? I can't wait to stretch!

I do Tai Chi Dotsie and find the stretching softly, as the instructor calls it, a lot like yoga.

Oh Yoga..Dotsie..don´t get me started! I LOVE it!!! And I do it at home daily..and it truely keeps me more moving..joints more elastic..and calms me down before going to bed. It really does keep the juices flowing..and the FLOW on the spiritual level,too.

I am sure that your yoga teacher..yogi..will help you find the right excercise levels for you..and even adaption of positions for your knee problems.

I can only highly recommend it! If you want to stretch..and then use your body as weights..it´s just the thing.

It has helped me sooo much..both physically and spiritually. And I am only self-taught.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!!!

A good yoga teacher would never push a student too hard nor too fast. Presumably you would explain to the instructor at the start of course about your bum knee(s).

a good yoga teacher would also be quite concerned about you doing proper form in each movement and stance so that you don't injure yourself.

A sister of mine did have her own yoga centre with adult students for almost 2 years. She took up yoga after experiencing a seriously pulled shoulder/upper body muscles on rowing machine. So she took classes and practiced. This was when she was in her early 30's.

Knwoing a range of basic yoga exercises is excellent knowledge /skill..for life..because you can do them on your own and mix it up with other types of exercises. Onceyou know a few exercises that you like...you will do them again later on your own.

some of the exercises that I do are some simple yoga introductory moves..which I DIDN'T know it was yoga until I read up on some exercises. It's combined with simple pilates that I do and some tai chi warm-ups. So I just borrow here and there for a 1/2 hr. floor exercise sequence for stretching and balance.

humlan, do you use any tapes? Can you recommend one?

orchid, do you stretch before biking? Whenever I see women biking, I think of you becasue I know how much you love it.

Dotsie,

I've taken a couple of basic yoga classes at the gym that I recently joined. I love the stretching...feels so good! I won't be able to make any more of the basic classes due to schedule this fall...so I hope I can keep up with the regular class which is on Saturday mornings.

I have a book "Yoga for Wimps" that has some easy and modified poses for beginners. Lots of good pictures.

Dotsie, take a class. Please, take a class. There are ton's of cheap ones out there to show you the right way for each pose.

I also use the on demand exercise channel - if you have cable you probably have a channel like that.

What do I love? The stretching, the flexibility and the strength training. The commaradre of women working together without any judgement and accepting each other where they are at and where they are going. Balance training.

It's the only exercise that I have done that really works it all.

Hey Dotsie,

I love yoga, as a matter of fact it was the first thing I taught in fitness (lo those many years ago!) and I still teach classes on occasion.

My approach is hatha based an very, very gentle - lots of stretch, breathe, recover, extend, push the edge a little on strength and elongationa....and then I always finish with 10 or so minutes of guided relaxation, our favorite part!

I would like you to know that as I've gained more expertise in rehabilitative effects of exercise, my yoga has become influence by same. Here are a couple of tips, whatever type of yoga you decide to proceed with:

1) keep a soft knee (in other words, slightly bent) in standing positions

2) keep the feet in parallel, as if you are on skiis - this along with a soft knee helps rebuild and protect the knee joint.

3) keep a slight tuck of the tail while standing, and pay attention that your knees do not pronate, or roll in, to the midline of the body. As a matter of fact, after you bend and have a slight tuck, press the knees gently out toward the little toe - this is known as "KLT" in T-Tapp and is DIRECTLY from knee rehab. You can totally rebuild your knee joint with this little move, and it has allowed me to take up moderate running again - after having to quit before the rehab!

Hope this helps, and let us know what you come up with!

Lani

Dotsie, I hope I'm not too late with this (just joined yesterday) but I have a DVD called "Essential Yoga for Inflexible People" that I bought on Amazon that might be what you are looking for. It is for absolute beginner students that allow you to progress at your own pace.

I just recently bought it and haven't actually used it yet, but it might be just what you are looking for.

Dots,
I don't know about Charm City yoga, but Greater Baltimore Yoga Center in Timonium is super. The founder is a physical therapist to boot. One of the instructors has had injuries of every sort -- there are women there with neck, back and knee injuries, and the instructor is very aware of the sorts of accommodations they need since she has had them too, and knows all kinds of ways to the the exercises that make them feel better. This fall I had neck and back pain following a very grueling trip to Chicago, and she had me feeling better pretty quickly.

You really need to go to a yoga center, not a gym, to get the most from yoga. I've done both -- I started with "Lilias, Yoga and You" on TV in 1976 -- anyone remember her? But you need a teacher to make sure you're getting all the benefits -- and not hurting yourself -- by doing it correctly. And the yoga teachers at the gym seem more intested in doing something quickly, rather than correctly.

DJ, I ran into my old yoga teacher and shared that I'd had another knee surgery and couldn't really kneel these days. When I took it before, I could always lean on my good knee. Now that's my bad knee. Anyway, she told be to sign up again and she could work with me. There's a young gal in her class who has had hip replacement and she modifies things for her. SOunds promising. I've got to stretch this body!

KAte, now I just have to get my TV fixed in the basement so I can use a tape. Always an excuse!

Dotsie -- go for it. Don't let anything stop you. It is the beginning of taking control of what you want to do. Look at it as a new challenge in your life and see where it takes you.

Thanks for the encouraging words. The class begins in January.