My journey to yoga began with the physical act of practicing yoga (asana) many years ago. I loved the challenge of holding chair pose for several breaths and the reward of the forward fold as my torso melted into my thighs. What I truly loved by the end of class was how I felt. I felt accomplished and strong but also a levelness that I didn’t have at the start of my practice.
After 40, I began to change. My therapist kindly referred to it as a transformation (aka: Mid-Life crisis). I felt a call to explore what I wanted out of my own life that wasn’t tied to my family, my friends or my children. I stumbled into meditation and pranayama (breathing techniques to more energy in your body). Ultimately, I became a certified as yoga teacher.
During my training, I began to understand why I had fallen in love with yoga more than a decade earlier. Today, I am excited to share with you why anyone can practice yoga and some valuable lessons I learned from teacher training. My hope is to get you practicing so you will FEEL the effects of yoga.
Lesson #1: Yoga is not about being flexible.
People walk into my class and tell me they will do their best in class, but they just aren’t that flexible! Can it help with flexibility and strength? Yes but yoga is so much more!
Why was yoga created?
Asana, yoga postures, were created to purify and restructure the body and to prepare the body to sit in meditation. In the ancient text of the Yoga Sutras, sutra 2.4 states:
Our asana practice is asking us to explore balance in the postures through stability, strength, flexibility and ease. So asana isn’t just about being flexible in a pose. It is about being present in the moment on the mat and consciously connecting to your own body.
Lesson #2: Asana is only 1 of the 8 Limbs of Yoga!
There are 8 limbs of yoga:
- Yama-restraints
- Niyama-observances
- Asana-posture
- Pranayama-breath control
- Pratyahara-sense withdrawal
- Dharana-concentration
- Dhyana-meditation
- Samadhi-contemplation, union with divine consciousness
The 8 limbs of yoga are a map or guide on how to live a meaningful and purposeful life. By following the 8 limbs, we can peel back the layers like an onion to reveal our highest self, who we truly are at our core.
Lesson #3: The “goal” of yoga is not the pose.
“The yoga pose is not the goal. Becoming flexible is not the goal. Standing on your hands is not the goal. The goal is serenity. Balance. Truly finding peace in your own skin.”
― Rachel Brathen
At the beginning of each yoga class I teach, we begin by tuning in. It’s a slowing down of our mind. We begin to focus on our breathing and let whatever happened before class stay outside the door. This is your time as a student to get out of your own head and drop deeper into the connection with your body.
As we move through our postures, we can explore sensations in our own bodies and become curious about ourselves. After holding chair pose for several breaths, what thoughts start to come up for you? What internal dialogue happens? Are you judgemental or encouraging to yourself? If you squeeze your inner thighs together more, what does that do? If you feel your breath start to quicken, can you focus and begin to smooth it out?
We become curious and self aware. We can ask ourselves, “What is my body asking from me today?” Some days you will need a more powerful, fast paced vinyasa sequence and some days you may crave a slow yin or restorative sequence. Yoga is about listening to inner guidance system and letting go of what you think you need.
Lesson #4: Yoga can help with surfing.
Ok so not really, but I got your attention. Change is inevitable in life and so many of us resist it (including me). What if there was something magical to help with changes that happen to you? Your yoga practice can help you ride the waves of your life. It’s the magic surfboard that sometimes will help you go smoothly over the waves and sometimes you will need to cling to it and go under and through the wave to come out the other side.
Yoga allows us to slow down and find the pause. As we strip the layers back to become more connected to ourselves, we begin to understand the old patterns that are ingrained in us. When we recognize our patterns, we become clear on what really is. And just like we become curious on the mat with our poses, we take that lesson into our daily lives off the mat.
We learn to respond to a situation or thought instead of reacting. We find the pause, take a breath and see things from a larger perspective. We become open to question our feelings and the reason behind those feelings. Have you ever gotten upset at someone for something small and blow up at them but later when you think the situation over, your feelings were for something completely different?
Lesson #5: Yoga is the balance of discipline and surrender through the study of the self.
Sutra 2.1 Tapah Svadhyaya Ishvara Pranidhana Kriya Yoga.
I never said the practice of yoga would be easy, but it will be worth it. We all have stories we tell ourselves that create limiting beliefs in our lives. We can create time in our schedules to reconnect with our mind, body and spirit to begin to let go of these old stories. Through our practice, we can create a new story.
This is a life practice. A practice of self-study, curiosity, reflection, and truly seeing what is in ourselves and in the world we live in. We will continue to grow as we practice and the story will change again. Don’t worry though! Hold on to your surfboard through the rough waves and sit on top of it and enjoy the view through the calm waters.
Much love and health,
Carrie
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