Hi Yoga peeps,
just a reminder that you need to arrive at your yoga class at least 5 minutes before the scheduled start time, to make sure you have time to get outdoor clothes off, nip to the loo, find out what yoga props you need for the session and get settled on your mat.
I understand that things happen (late trains/babysitters/work etc) and sometimes we will be late despite our best intentions to the contrary, but it does disturb the other students if you arrive late. At the beginning of the session I want my students to be able to lie down on the floor and relax while I set the intention for that days class and introduce philosophical themes that underpin the physical practice. If people are arriving late then this essential part of the class is disrupted or cannot be heard clearly and I do not want students walking across the room in dim lighting when there are people lying on the floor: being accidentally trodden on is not conducive to relaxation!
If you arrive late and the class is already in progress please come in quietly and wait by the door. I will bring you into the class and find you a space once the class is established.
I am at all all of my premises at least ten minutes before the class starts to get the room set up and you are very welcome to come along early and spend a few extra minutes resting up on your mat.
My guilty admission? When I used to go to classes, most weeks I would find myself welded to the sofa, running out of motivation to get up and leave the house (especially in the winter when it was dark and cold outside. And the sofa! Oh, the sofa so warm and inviting, not to mention the bottle of wine calling it’s siren song from the kitchen cupboard, and the promise of a new series to watch on Netflix…)
Part of me was hoping that it would just get too late and I would give up and not go, the other part of me was trying to prise myself off the sofa as I knew I would feel better for going. The result of this internal struggle was that I would often leave the house MINUTES before the class was due to start, and arrive at class literally as it started or a few minutes afterwards. After this had happened on more than one occasion my teacher took me aside…I was not late again! Luckily for me she understood my battle and that it was linked to a very old pattern of resisting doing things that were good for me, and setting myself up to fail, to reinstate feelings of failure and shame that were keeping me stuck. I am pretty sure that I am not the only yoga student in the world who has such struggles…..
So, please make every effort to get to your class in good time, and remember, the start time is when the practice begins. As most of my classes have a second class straight after, if the first class starts and finishes late it has a knock on effect on the second class, and I very much want to be in my bed on time, blessed as I am with a natural alarm clock that wakes me up at 6am!
XX
Michelle