Last week I mentioned I’d started moving my body again—simple things like dancing in the kitchen. That felt like a big step, but this week I did something even more surprising: I signed up for and attended a live exercise class.
This felt monumental to me. The last time I attended a structured class was about twenty years ago. Back then my friend Andrea and I would get up at the crack of dawn to drive through winter to a step aerobics class at the community center. We followed the bright, perky instructor’s cues until I injured my knee and we were steered toward weight training instead. At the time, lifting weights felt especially unappealing when a warm bed was the obvious alternative.
That early setback lingered. For years I avoided classes entirely. Over time I also learned that with my health condition—fibromyalgia—high-impact activities like jogging are not a good fit. My doctor confirmed that jogging was off the table and recommended low-impact activities instead: walking, pilates, and yoga. Hearing that felt like a relief.
I did find a pilates video that I can follow at home—though truthfully I tend to do it infrequently. Motivation has never been my strongest suit when it comes to exercise.
Lately I’ve been making other changes too—a healthier eating plan—and I wanted to match that with more consistent movement. When a friend invited me to a new pilates and yoga class last week, I surprised myself by saying yes right away.
Getting dressed for class presented my first small challenge. I went through every drawer and closet looking for exercise clothing and discovered I didn’t own a single pair of proper workout pants anymore. I dug up a pair of old Calvin Klein shorts and showed up feeling a bit out of place among a sea of yoga pants. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice—or at least no one commented—so I relaxed.
My friend and I took our places at the back of the studio. The instructors were patient, encouraging, and clear in their explanations, which helped a lot. Still, after about twenty minutes I was tempted to roll up my little pink mat and call it quits. The class was an hour long, which felt like a long time for someone rediscovering exercise.
I had some familiarity with pilates, but yoga was almost entirely new to me. All those poses—the Warrior, various standing balances—looked so effortless when others did them. I tried to appear confident and act like I knew what I was doing.
Then came the Eagle pose. If you’re unfamiliar, it’s the pose where you pretend there’s an invisible chair and sit back into it, then wrap one leg over the other so your limbs feel a bit like a pretzel. On top of that you cross and wrap your arms in front of you. I lifted my leg and twisted, and suddenly my glutes were burning like I’d never felt before. When the instructor demonstrated the arm wrap, I realized I still couldn’t get that part right. I’ve been practicing since and I think my arms might simply be stubborn.
To illustrate what the Eagle looks like, here’s a photo I found that shows the pose clearly:
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After the standing work came floor exercises. We settled on our stomachs to work into a plank. I wanted to lower my head and take a little nap, but that wasn’t an option. The instructors showed proper plank alignment, then quickly demonstrated a variation where you cross your legs underneath your body. When they moved at that breakneck speed, I did my best to follow—and then glanced over at my friend and whispered, “What in the world?”
That whisper turned into laughter. Not a quiet chuckle, but the kind of laughter that leaves you needing to breathe into your belly for a minute. We tried to be discreet, but the giggles leaked out. I never quite mastered the crisscross-plank that day.
Despite the awkward moments and the sore muscles, I left the class feeling unexpectedly buoyant. It reminded me that starting something new—especially when you’re older or managing a long-term condition—can be humbling and fun at the same time. I decided to go back. Tonight is class night again, and this time I came prepared: I bought a pair of comfortable, baggy exercise pants so I wouldn’t feel like the odd one out.
If you’re thinking about joining a pilates or yoga class as a beginner or while managing a health condition, a few practical tips from my experience might help: arrive early, ask instructors for modifications, bring a water bottle, wear comfortable clothing, and accept that some poses will take time to learn. Low-impact exercise like pilates and gentle yoga can be excellent options for building strength and flexibility without overtaxing your body.
I’ll keep practicing the Eagle and the plank. For now, I’m celebrating the small victory of showing up and enjoying the process—sore muscles, laughter, and all.
