That I’m going to yoga classes while on vacation is testament to how much I enjoy them. With kids back in school, there was flood of moms at last night’s class. And one other guy. We did the should stand.

Apparently being upside down is good for you because it allows the blood to flow in the other direction. And, I confess, I did experience some mild euphoria from the exercise.

And I can assure you, this is exercise. By the time we were finished I was sweaty and panting. If you don’t feel as good as you would like to, try a yoga class.

Last night’s yoga class focused on the forward bend. We spent almost 90 minutes stretching, loosening muscles and joints, learning a little about body mechanics.

Kevin, the instructor, pointed out that touching our toes (or the floor) wasn’t really the point of our exercises, but merely a small measure of our progress.

It’s been a while since I touched my toes without bending my knees. At the beginning of the lesson, I was a good 6 inches from the floor and my lower back went to Defcon One. But by the end of the lesson, I was able to touch the floor (while making sounds that would shake a Gitmo guard).

At one point I was looking back between my legs at a middle-aged woman, bent double with her elbows on the floor. Oh my.

Last night’s lesson erased any notion that yoga is not exercise. When it was over, I hobbled down the stairs to my car and had a good long cry.

Feeling a little stiff these days. Muscles don’t have the elasticity they once did. So I decided to take a yoga class. A couple of the volunteer instructors are regulars at the Coffee Zone. So I decided to check it out.

There were only five of us in tonight’s class and the other four were too polite to laugh out loud when I made little mewling sounds. But I must say I enjoyed the hour and plan to go back. My Christmas card will be me touching my toes.

From NPR: "As more doctors go online to communicate with patients, two of the country’s biggest health insurers have started reimbursing patients for the Internet visits. But critics say the online advising could lead to errors, and patient privacy could be compromised."

From a story at The Guardian: "The cholesterol-lowering drugs statins may also slow the onset of Alzheimer’s disease, according to US researchers who examined the brains of 110 elderly people after they died. They found the brains of patients who had not taken the drugs were more likely to show signs of the disease."

My pop died of Alzheimer’s, as did Barb’s. Not pretty. This study is comforting to those of us who have been taking statins for years.