Probably one of the sweetest memories I have is when my 87 year old grandfather called me and asked, "Katy, I wanna talked to you about this thing called yoga, I'm thinkin about taking me up some yoga to help with my balance." Now my grandfather is from West Virginia and every now and then his Virginian accent comes out strong. He is truly one of the most amazing men in my life.

After my grandmother passed away after 72 years of marriage, my grandfather was looking for a way to stay busy in addition to working on his balance. I shared with my grandfather all of the benefits yoga has to offer, like improving flexibility, strength, balance in addition to relieving stress. In addition to all of the physical benefits, one of the more precious elements to yoga is the development of a sense of community. The instructors know who my grandfather is and understand his goals, guiding him every week to achieve his goals.

I asked my grandfather how he was liking yoga a few months later and he told me he really enjoyed all that he had learned but that his balance really hadn't improved.

I asked him "Grandpa, how long have you been practicing?"

He states, "Well about 6 months".

I stated "Grandpa, it took you 87 years to get to where you are today. It's going to take quite a bit longer than 6 months to get you back to where you want to be." He laughed and stated that he hadn't really thought about that.

So many people come to yoga for many different reasons. Whatever the reason is, commit to your practice, commit time for you. It's never too late to start! If you are nervous or think you are too inflexible, remember, every student was there at some time in their practice, the new student. The beauty about yoga is we notice only what is going on in our own bodies, focusing on breath, alignment and overall how our body feels in each pose. There is no judgement, no one looking at what you are doing on your mat. Yoga should be all about you. 

Photo below provided by Exit 57 Studio owner, Karen Hudson