Page 20 of Body Check

“Everywhere?” Gavin huffed.

Dakota smiled at him, plainly amused, though he didn’t say anything, merely instructed him to take a seat with his legs stretched out long on the mat.

In that pose, they worked on their hamstrings, which was frustrating but doable.

But when it came time for Gavin to cross his legs and place the back of his foot against his opposite knee, it came nowhere close. His leg slid to the side, knee thudding against the mat.

“What the hell do I do now?” Gavin grumbled.

Dakota stood, reaching for a blanket and folding it. “Yoga is not about pushing ourselves to the point of pain, Gavin. It is about finding the edge before we reach that point and easing off a little, breathing into the discomfort. We won’t find transformation through brute force, but through surrender.”

Gavin huffed, trying the pose again because surrender was weakness, it was … Dakota tucked a blanket under his knee, taking some of the strain off his hip and Gavin almost cried at the relief.

“There you go. Keep breathing.” The gentle warmth of Dakota’s touch was soothing and Gavin breathed deeply, again and again, until the dizzy, pulling sensation faded and he could move on to the next pose.

Allof the hip openers were awful, but he got through them and was surprised when Dakota instructed him to massage his own feet. They were aching and he found sore spots under his arch and at the base of his big toe that made his eyes water.

He was surprised by how damp his T-shirt was by the time Dakota finally guided him to rest on his back, draped over thebolster pillow, legs stretched long in front of him in the final corpse pose.

“Close your eyes,” Dakota instructed.

A moment later, something soft draped over him—a blanket—and Dakota’s words were gentle and soothing as he talked Gavin through more breathing and letting go of tension.

Eventually, he fell silent and Gavin drifted for a while.

When Dakota did speak again, his voice was barely a whisper, and Gavin was still in a dreamy daze as he followed the instructions to shift into a seated position and blink his eyes open.

For a moment, he stared at Dakota who sat cross-legged in front of him. There was a lamp behind him, illuminating his messy hair in a halo around his face, which was dim in comparison.

He looked … otherworldly.

“Thank you for taking the time to do this yoga practice with me today,” Dakota said, holding out his hands.

Uncertain, Gavin held out his own and Dakota clasped them.

“Uhh, you’re welcome.” Gavin’s head still swam and he felt a little cold now that his heart rate had slowed and the sweat had chilled. But also like he was floating.

High, but not in a fuzzy-headed way. A mellow calm he couldn’t remember the last time he’d experienced. “That was a lot more intense than I expected.”

“Our bodies get into grooves, into routines,” Dakota said. “It can be very intense to pull them into something new. I’d like you tohydrate really well when you leave, have a small snack, and try to treat yourself gently for the rest of the day.”

“Uhh,” Gavin said because he could manage the first two but the third …

“I said try,” Dakota replied, lips curling up at the corners as he squeezed Gavin’s fingers, then let go. “I know you have important work to do, there’s a game tonight, and then we fly out tomorrow morning.”

“Yeah,” Gavin agreed. He reached for the blanket he’d discarded earlier and pulled it around his shoulders. The warmth and weight of it was nice. “So what now? Am I supposed to do thiseveryday or something?”

“No.” Dakota looked almost amused now. “No, I understand that’s not feasible for you. But if I put together several brief, targeted postures, can you commit to ten minutes in the morning, ten in the evening, and a midday break of five minutes?”

“Daily?”

“Yes. Or as many days a week as you’re able. If you aim for every day and only get in four, that’s still four more times than you were doing it before.”

“True. Yeah, I can try,” Gavin said.

“What about aiming for six days a week, plus one twenty-five-to-thirty-minute session of one-on-one work with me?”

Gavin considered it.Didhe have the time? Not really. But shit, this did feel good. His head didn’t hurt. In fact, it still felt kind of … floaty at the moment. He really doubted he could manage on his own.

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