At my yoga shala, there is a sequence of classes to take in order to learn the sequence in Ashtanga yoga. It starts with Beginners Class I, which introduced Ashtanga yoga, pranayama, bandhas, sun salutation A and B along with some standing, seated and finishing poses. Beginners Class II introduced the opening chant along with more standing, sitting and finishing poses. Next were Guided classes, probably better known as led classes, which added a few more seated poses.

Beginners Class I and II runs for 8 weeks each. Guided classes run continuously, and was designed to help students memorize the primary sequence to move onto what the shala calls Ashtanga classes, which is in fact, Mysore-style classes where students practice at their own pace and to their own breath count.

I was attending Guided classes twice a week for one month and finally felt confident enough to move onto Ashtanga classes. When I told C that, her response was “about time!”. She was kidding, I’m sure she was glad that I’ve decided to further my practice. She warned me that it was only going to get harder, not easier, especially since she’ll be giving me new poses soon.

My first Ashtanga class was a very big change, much more than I thought I would be, but it was a very good change! I loved going at my own pace, I discovered that I moved faster in some areas and slower in others and going at my own pace and breath resulted in better practice for me. I felt more relaxed and more accomplished at the end of practice than I ever felt before.

I never thought of myself as having much self-control, but Ashtanga classes showed me otherwise. I would have thought I’d rush through the asanas I don’t like so much, like the balancing poses and warrior sequence, but I noticed that I would deliberately work harder on these poses rather than rushing through them.

Now that I’m in Ashtanga classes, I don’t know why I didn’t make the switch sooner.