Finding balance within
In this article, we're discussing some of the benefits yoga may bring into your life. It's important to remember that practicing yoga is an unique experience for each individual and I'm only sharing some of the aspects I've experiences and what I share in my classes. Yoga is a holistic experience just like we as human beings are. This is why we should not prioritise certain aspects over others, although I've noticed that often people come to a yoga class with an intention in mind, i.e. what they wish to gain from the practice. This is perfectly fine and by the time you've been practicing for a while you may notice that you've gained more than you ever expected. Sometimes you notice the benefits after stepping beyond your mat. So whatever your reasons to practice yoga are, you can feel gratitude for everything that yoga has to offer.
Body
Strength
One of the most fundamental things that yoga teaches you is the awareness of your own strength. As you advance in your practice you may notice that some poses become easier with time. This is because your learn which muscles you are supposed to be using and which muscles can relax. Of course, you build some strength as well. You really utilise all of your muscles in yoga. Standing poses require different muscles of your legs to withstand a little bit of discomfort whereas some inversions or even chaturangas are a great way to gain strength in your arms (I mean, can you relate to the overall arm pain after some serious Surya Namaskar sunshine salutation routine?). Yoga is extremely good for your core as posture as well. I honestly cannot think of many other ways of strengthening your core in such diverse ways than yoga. Maybe pilates? It is not just the acrobatic and hard-looking poses that are the hardest. Sukhasana or padmasana, the easy seat or more commonly known as the lotus pose, may feel extremely difficult at first. This is because the modern lifestyle does not allow for opportunities to sit straight without any support for your back. It is, however, very healthy for your back and through a variation of different yoga asanas, this too becomes easier over time. Can you imagine that some monks are able to sit crossed-legged for hours and hours and meditate? Well, I'm sure it has taken some practice to be able to sit comfortably in this position for so long. Don't be discouraged.
Flexibility
This aspect is probably one of the biggest reasons of why people come to yoga in the first place or why they are saying yoga is not for them. Let me emphasise really clearly: you do not have to be flexible to practice yoga. In fact, you do not need any physical traits to do yoga. Nevertheless you will most likely see some real results if you commit to the practice. Whether that's your thighs (that's the one I hear most often) as people want to be able to reach their toes or some loosened muscles in your neck and shoulders, the results you will feel are often enough to get you hooked in the first place. This is what happened to myself. Although I come with a sporty background and I was pretty flexible to start with, I began incorporating yoga as "a nice stretching routine" to my weekly fitness practice back in 2013 until it became a daily habit. Yoga is more than stretching. In my opinion because the breath is such a foundational piece in yoga it may give you better results than just pure stretching would. Often in yoga the poses are held for a quite long period of time and target multiple muscle groups at once. As you're breathing through the poses, you will notice that each breath will deepen your movement and ease the slight discomfort as you enter a pose.
Balance
You may have come across all the acrobatic looking poses as this is often how the practice of yoga is displayed and marketed in the media. I very much like creating yoga for balance -routines as I think they're extremely fun and it brings a playful side out of students when they're standing on one foot with their eyes closed. Practicing balance is healthy for your everyday life too. If you live in a country like me where the streets get frozen from time to time, you're able to thank yoga for each time you didn't fall and hurt yourself. Balance can also have a more abstract meaning. Maybe the practice of yoga brings your life that much needed balance and a moment of stillness. Within the classes I teach, I aim to design the classes that have both active and passive moments. This is also important in life. We don't function with 110% energy at all times and trying to do that will eventually lead to burnout. This is why we need to carve out time to just be passive. If this sparked your interest, you may want to try Yin & Yang style yoga or balance the sunshine salutations with more less known moon salutation (shakti) flows.
Mind
Focus
Like with any activity that you're able to do without multitasking or looking at your phone, is good for your ability to focus. In yoga you really can't do anything but yoga. Of course your mind wanders a lot during your practice and the interesting part is that once we're done with our physical asana routine and we sit or lie down still in meditation, that's when our minds get active. It is not the goal of yoga to quiet our inner voices though. It is merely to be able hold space and observe the the sensations of your mind and body. I believe some call this awareness mindfulness. In today's fast-paced world, it's extremely important to make time to just sit and observe. The more you do this on your mat, the more you'll notice its effects beyond the mat.
Ability to sit with uncomfortable feelings
This is closely linked to the previous point. What got me by surprise when I began my yogic journey were the intense emotions and difficult it actually was to sit with them. So much so that I actually skipped the meditation part of the practice during the first years of doing yoga. You probably have heard about the scientific discovery that people rather endure electric shocks than sit alone with their thoughts. I can imagine this is the case for many people. Yoga forces you to be with your thoughts in silence which can feel extremely uncomfortable or even boring in the beginning. We have a natural tendency as human beings to avoid or distract our thoughts or talk them out. Yoga teaches you to embrace solitude gracefully and it may even lead to some epiphanies. I sometimes get my best ideas and realisations too when I'm running. There's something powerful in it. Don't be discouraged by your initial feelings and gradually build your habit of sitting in silence.
Empathy
Through yoga you're able to cultivate empathy towards yourself and others. This is what the goal of yoga ultimately is. We take care of ourselves and our needs and extend this to other human beings and the surrounding environment, even the whole universe. Empathy can be improved and we actually learn empathy from others. Yoga has many practices that are designed to enhance empathy skills, such as the loving kindness meditation or metta meditation. Often times people mention to me how hard it is to feel empathy for yourself. It may be easier to wish beautiful things for other people but when it comes to ourselves, we are often judgmental and our inner critic gets in the way. This can be linked to our core beliefs of our own worthiness. I very much enjoy teaching self-love and loving kindness themed classes. It makes people often happy.
Courage
As with any new activity, you need to have a bunch of courage to be able to begin with. Yoga is a great tool to boost your inner courage and confidence. Some poses may seem extreme at first but when you try them with an open mind and a curious mindset, you'll often find that you're capable of much more than you initially thought. I absolutely love seeing this in people! Overcoming your own mental barriers and having the courage to try something new is what gives me great joy and I enjoy encouraging the other people to do the same. With increased courage you're able to strive also beyond the mat and get into thinking "why wouldn't this work?" or "I've done hard things before so I'll be able to do this one too". It opens up your life for possibilities and greater freedom to explore more things that spark your interest.
Gratitude
I have a habit of ending my yoga classes with feeling gratitude. It's a powerful way to instantly lift your mood. We often live with a scarcity mindset and often chase for the next thing. Sometimes it's good to recognise and count your blessings. You don't even need to do yoga to be able to feel gratitude. Writing is a great and concrete way to start cultivating gratitude. The more you start practicing gratitude, the more grateful you'll feel. You can start by very obvious and simple things like health or a roof on top your head after which you're able to go deeper into more detailed things. The sky is the limit for this exercise. I heard from somewhere that the more grateful you feel, the more you will actually have. So even if you feel like you couldn't focus on your yoga practice well for whatever reason, you can still feel grateful that you showed up on your mat. That's all that counts.
I wish light in your day,
Sara
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