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I’ve been hearing for years that I should be doing yoga. I even have a long-term illness for which yoga is recommended as an aid to recovery, meaning it’s practically illegal for me not to spring into a Sun Salutation the moment I wake up.

But the trouble is, as relaxing and calming as yoga can be for a lot of people, and as much as I have experimented with classes, books and DVDs, the truth is… it bores me.

Like eating spinach or reading Dickens, practicing yoga falls into the category of things I think I should be doing. Like spinach or reading Dickens, I am completely unappetised by the idea.

I’ve Tried Yoga, Honestly

I’ve always had a propensity for anxiety coupled with a tendency to bend myself into metaphorical knots trying to please other people, so when a doctor recommended I try yoga for exam stress during my last year of high school, I signed myself up. Feeling worthy but un-enthralled, I postured my way through my first class. But instead of relaxing, I found the moves so complicated my brain was soon buzzing as I tried to figure out where to bend next. I spent the cool-down session in tears as my exam-related worrying reared its head once again.

But that didn’t stop me from going to yoga: I went to the same class every week for two months, then later found one which was a lot easier and a little closer to home which I attended for eight months. I bought books on the subject and half-heartedly worked alongside a yoga video a few times. I told anyone who would listen that yoga was relaxing for body and mind, and I tried to make myself believe that spiritual enlightenment was just an asana away.

Yoga Just Ain’t For Me

But it wasn’t. It took me a long time, but one day I realized I was doing what I thought I should do to feel well and happy (and feeling miserable about it), rather than what I actually wanted to do. Yoga has many benefits, and if you feel compelled to try it, then you’ll probably get a lot out of it. But there’s no point going along as I did, trying to be spiritual but feeling more connected to Wagamama than to your pranayama.

One day it hit me that, as my illness only affords me a limited amount of energy, and as I often have to do things I don’t enjoy doing, like visiting my GP or staying in instead of going to rock concerts, maybe I should spend the rest of my time doing things I actually enjoy. I have a passion for dancing, love to sing (despite being terrible at it) and want to learn to drive.

Maybe all of those things would exhaust me more than yoga, but I have a feeling that they would be a lot more fun. And what could be more spiritual than that?

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