Mind, Body & Yoga

I started practicing yoga because I thought it would be an easy credit in college. Fast-forward to ten years later and I’m a certified yoga instructor. I wake up before dawn every day to practice yoga for several hours before I go to work, teach yoga on nights and weekends, participate in ongoing training, and have taken two trips to India in the past three years. This is clearly not a passing phase.

So what is it about yoga that makes it the “It” form of exercise not just for me, but also for America today?

Most people who start doing yoga do it solely to define their abs, tighten their butt, and gain a bit of flexibility. I have to be honest—I was no different. I started yoga for fairly superficial reasons, which evolved into something more meaningful. I realized that the things I was learning in yoga class were starting to become a part of every day life—and I’m not just talking about tree pose. Talk to people who’ve done yoga for a few years. They’ll tell you the same story.

When doing a difficult pose, I’m taught patience. When I back off from a pose that is just too much on a particular day because I didn’t get enough sleep or ate too much ice cream before bedtime, I’m taught to listen to my body’s messages. I reply by being kind to myself. When sitting in meditation, I’m taught to quiet my mind and experience the present moment as opposed to always thinking ahead and comparing it to the past.

I never had a moment where I thought: I’m going to incorporate all of the things I’m learning in yoga into my every day life. It just sort of happened. I realize I face challenges in life in a calmer way, no longer attached to the results. I forgive myself more quickly when I don’t reach my expectations. I understand that my emotions are fluid and changing. 

If someone told me when I was 20 that yoga was going to make me a better person, I probably would have scoffed at them. Now, when my students come up to me telling me not only do they feel calmer after a yoga class, but also in daily living, I just smile. My advice to someone who hasn’t tried yoga, but is interested, is to give it a chance—the benefits just may sneak up on you.