Every Thursday, from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM, I attend yoga in the TRLC. Yoga is also held in the Lodge at Lakeside every Tuesday at the same time; however, I am unable to also attend that session because I have a class during that time. Still, I find just one hour every Thursday evening to be sufficient. During the first week, there were nearly fifty people who squeezed their mats onto the floor of the TRLC. Luckily, for those of us who continue to attend the sessions, the numbers have been dwindling since and each week it becomes easier to claim a spot on the floor (permitting I continue to show up early enough).

Last week’s yoga session consisted of “yin yoga.” Considering many of us in the room had never heard of this form of yoga previously, the instructor explained exactly what yin yoga was before beginning. She told us it was a form of yoga that focuses on stretching the connective tissue in our body as opposed to the muscle tissue that is stretched during your average yoga session. We did this by bending our bodies into a series of positions and holding each of them for approximately four minutes. At the end of each position we would carefully and slowly come back to a neutral position before moving into the next one, all while constantly focusing on our breathing.

I find yoga a great way to push away any stressful thoughts about school assignments and upcoming exams. For an hour, I can completely clear my mind and focus on relaxing my body. I recommend attending these yoga sessions to anyone who has an hour to spare each week and is interested in a healthy outlet for his or her stress. Taking part in the yoga offered on campus has been a great experience and I plan to keep these sessions a part of my weekly calendar.