Starting yoga in your 70s: Bill’s journey to 100 classes

Hale and healthy: Bill tries a yoga pose. Photo / Tineke Duyvestyn

Think you’re not flexible enough to take up yoga? Think again. Until recently Bill Hale, 74, had never done yoga in his life - now he has now attended more than 100 classes and is falling in love with it.

Hale, who is retired, was first introduced to yoga at the age of 73 and attended his first class on June 14 this year.

He went to his 74th class on his 74th birthday in September and has now gone to 102 classes at the House of Yoga in Mount Maunganui.

No stranger to some physical activity, he had been attending a gym but with hearing aids, due to partial hearing, he found the environment to be overwhelming with music playing at full volume.

“One of the yoga teachers was at the gym and she introduced me to the idea of yoga.

“So I came over to the House of Yoga and I fell in love with it immediately, it was perfect.

Bill Hale, 74, picked up yoga in June this year and since then has attended 102 classes at the House of Yoga in Mount Maunganui. Photo / Tineke Duyvestyn

“The music is a lot more gentle, everything is a bit slower, it suits a man of my age perfectly,” Hale said.

He tries his best to go to class every day and recently went to four classes in one day.

Hale told the Bay of Plenty Times what he enjoyed most about picking up yoga was trying to control his body position.

“Some of the classes are called Yin, and you hold the pose for about three or four minutes.

“You could be bent over, you could have your arms wrapped around your legs, maybe one leg off the ground and you can see, if you look around, everyone’s shaking.

“But it’s brilliant and it’s the fact that you’re with other people,” said Hale.

Hale shared the main benefits he’s noticed from regular attendance over the past four months.

Having never done yoga in his life up until now, Bill strongly recommends it to anyone his age and is trying to master holding poses for up to four minutes. Photo / Tineke Duyvestyn

“You can feel the strength in your muscles, you can see your muscle definition and you lose weight.

“I’ve lost about 12kg over the last two years and a good part of that was after I started going to the gym and then going to yoga,” Hale said.

Hale strongly recommends yoga to anybody his age if they’re up to it.

“Don’t be embarrassed. I was very self-conscious at the beginning because of my age and because I’m often the only man there.

“But don’t be put off by being self-conscious, we all go through that, and once you get used to it, get familiar and you know the other people, it becomes a lot easier,” he said.

Tineke Duyvestyn, senior teacher at House of Yoga, has been involved in Bill’s yoga journey and said the best part about teaching Bill was his commitment and joy of learning something new.

“He is great to have in class, always keen to try and participate and explore yoga with an open curiosity.

Picking up yoga this year, Bill Hale has shown his commitment and joy in learning something new and is always keen to explore yoga with an open curiosity. Photo / Tineke Duyvestyn

“The most inspiring part of Bill’s yoga journey is his ability to show up for himself and showcasing that it’s never too late to create a wellness routine that benefits both mind and body,” Duyvestyn said.

She said flexibility began in the mind, which meant opening up to learning something new, and then flexibility in the body would follow naturally.

“I think Bill has integrated this lesson completely and he now has a lot more movement than when he first joined up.

“It’s always a good time to learn and it’s only scary from the outside.

“You don’t need to be flexible, or strong, or spiritual, or anything other than exactly who you are in this moment. Yoga is incredibly inclusive and we are here to support and help along the way.”

Now after 100 classes, Bill is fully immersed in yoga and is taking each class in his stride with zero plans to stop anytime soon.

Kaitlyn Morrell is a multimedia journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She has lived in the region for several years and studied journalism at Massey University.