A TOTAL WORKOUT FOR THE BODY, MIND AND SPIRIT
YOGA ISN’T … ONLY FOR THE FLEXIBLE AND FIT
Some people avoid yoga because they think it’s only for people who can bend like Gumby. They think it’s for the young, strong, and athletic – and if you look at pictures in magazines or sample some vigorous yoga classes you could easily get that impression.
Interestingly enough, if you feel that you couldn’t possibly do yoga, then yoga might be especially helpful for you. It’s well-known among yoga therapists that people with no experience in yoga often make quicker progress with health problems than students with years of experience. Indeed, it is those who find yoga the most challenging, think they are terrible at it, and can’t seem to quiet their minds who have the most to gain.
ABOUT DEE
Yoga has always been in my life; although when I was bringing up the family, and working in a male dominated financial business environment, yoga played a much smaller role.
When I was able I wanted to change my life, which would give me more energy, more creativity, more fun and some real peace. That’s when I decided to enrol on a years’ yoga teaching course in 2015 with YogaLondon to become an Ashtanga teacher. I loved it and when I found my other teacher, Helen McCabe at the Studland Studio I loved it even more.
My own development hasn’t stopped there; I’ve been very lucky to attend many teacher-training workshops run by or, practiced with Helen under the guidance of John Scott, Joey Miles, Sandra Howling, Rachael Perry. Very recently, I’ve been to Kathmandu on an intensive Ashtanga week with John Scott plus his team of teacher helpers; a wonderful experience that I shall treasure for the rest of my life. My journey is never ending and I’ve many plans for the future.
I’ve met so many lovely people both practicing with and teaching – I’ve learnt there are many different levels to the practice itself. We can begin with a purely physical experience, approaching yoga more as a form of physical exercise that strengthens our body while we gain increased bodily awareness. Then, going into a more meditative state in the practice, often holding each posture for a longer period of time, a new layer of effects is discovered. It’s a journey where the inner voice and guidance goes beyond rational thinking.
WHAT IS YOGA?
Yoga is a systematic technology to improve the body, understand the mind, and free the spirit. Yogis tend to be more flexible, stronger, more energetic, thinner, and more youthful than people who don’t do yoga. And what’s happening on the outside is a reflection of what’s happening to every system of the body. With the practice, you are strengthening and calming the nervous system. You are increasing the blood flow to internal organs and bringing more oxygen to your cells. You are clearing the mental clutter that can wreck your life, allowing you to see things more clearly. You are cultivating the spiritual muscles in a way that can make you happier, less anxious, more at peace.
Yoga has a number of tools that can help overcome one of the chief factors undermining the health and well-being of many in the modern world: an out-of-balance stress-response system. Since stress is a factor in a host of medical conditions – from heart attacks to infertility – yoga’s role in stress reduction helps explain why it is useful in so many situations. But stress reduction is good for everybody, not just the sick. One yoga class or even a single breathing exercise can leave you feeling calmer and more centered.
I’ve met so many lovely people both practicing with and teaching – I’ve learnt there are many different levels to the practice itself. We can begin with a purely physical experience, approaching yoga more as a form of physical exercise that strengthens our body while we gain increased bodily awareness. Then, going into a more meditative state in the practice, often holding each posture for a longer period of time, a new layer of effects is discovered. It’s a journey where the inner voice and guidance goes beyond rational thinking.