James Sones was teaching six to seven yoga classes a week before COVID-19 ended them, so now with restrictions being lifted he’s hoping he can resume teaching.

Sones said his last class was March 19 and that it didn’t feel right to continue hosting large groups of people with an ongoing pandemic.

“For a little while I did some classes outdoors on my patio, but there was so much going I decided to not do that even. It was a fairly abrupt ending,” Sones said.

Like many forms of business during the pandemic, Sones had to stop holding sessions to keep himself and his students safe.

However, the retiree doesn’t rely on yoga as a sole source of income, so the stoppage of work only lessened the extra earnings Sones accrued.

“I noticed a little less pocket money, but I downplay the business aspects of what I do and I don’t depend on that income to live,” Sones said.

However, that doesn’t mean Sones isn’t ready to get back together with his students.

There was an attempt at holding online yoga sessions, but it just wasn’t the same.

Now that restrictions are being lifted there’s a possibility of offering classes outdoors as early as next week.

Sones said the majority of his classes don’t include a large number of people, but either way hosting them outdoors would allow for social distancing and other prevention measures.

“I’m starting to talk with people to see if they are wanting to come back. I still want to be cautious. It’s not like this thing has stopped. I would still try to do the classes I have at home, but would do those outdoors if I can,” Sones said.

His cautious approach comes from personal experience.

Sones said at one point he was exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19, and while he never showed symptoms he wants to make sure the environment his students come back is safe so no one feels under threat from the person next to them.

“I don’t want to put anybody in that situation because at that time I couldn’t get a test because I had no symptoms. I don’t want to place people in that because it’s not worth it,” Sones said.

During the stress of the pandemic and struggling economy, Sones said yoga can serve as a way to relax and rejuvenate, at any level of yoga.

“It’s important in day-to-day life, let alone with something like this. I’m going to be more attentive to meditating a little bit more and trying to use yoga to help people calm their minds,” Sones said.