Yoga for Every Body and Everybody
I love yoga…well, I love some yoga, anyway. I first began my yoga practice with the Iyengar style, which is a physical form that emphasizes alignment and breath work. I then moved on to Vinyasa yoga, in which poses flow from one to the next, generating heat throughout the body. Now I’m obsessed with Bikram yoga, where the room is heated to 105 degrees and the class follows a prescribed, specific series of postures. My home yoga practice is a blend of whatever my mood dictates, usually something that leaves me sweaty and with sore muscles.
I Want to Work It
The few times I’ve convinced myself to go to gentle yoga classes, I’ve started plotting my escape five minutes after arriving. The first time I was in a class where “om” was chanted, I almost snorted laughter through my nose. (I’ve since amended my ways and adopted the “om” mantra, though–it’s really beautiful when you think about it.)
While rehabilitating from an injury last year, I took a restorative class and was nearly frustrated to tears. What can I say? Relaxing is hard for me. From a professional standpoint, I know that I need to work on whatever is hardest for me. But from my own perspective, I want to do what feels good and natural to my body. I don’t want to push meditation and relaxation and stillness. And honestly, I can find that stillness much easier if I’m working through a difficult pose.
After a 90-minute Bikram class, I can lay in corpse pose for 10 minutes without complaint from my busy mind and restless body. In a gentle class where the instructor spouts beautiful verses about tranquility and quieting the mind, I’m fidgeting after two seconds.
The Flip Side
But I also have private yoga clients who dictate their own practices. My favorite client by far is my mom, who will put up with a bit of the flowing postures but really loves the restorative and healing aspects of yoga that I shy away from. She can sit in pigeon pose for three minutes, especially if I’m guiding her through the muscular relaxation cues. She loves child’s pose and reaps the benefits of her postures by holding them, breathing through them, and easing into her flexibility. Her practice is so completely different from mine that it would be hard to say they’re anything alike–and yet they are both yoga.
And yoga is really about uniting the physical body with the spiritual body and about finding strength in releasing. It’s about honoring what our bodies need at this moment and taking care of ourselves–about pushing ourselves to the limit and growing stronger, one breath at a time.
[Photo by ||!prliignore3||]
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February 5th, 2009 at 6:39 am
Love how you describe the personal experiences of you and your mother, and the explanation of honoring and caring for ourselves in the moment. When I started yoga classes several years ago, I experienced the inpatience you describe in the restorative class. At a different stage of life now, I have a different experience in the same class, and find that hour a welcome change from more active exercise. I look forward to reading more of your articles.
February 5th, 2009 at 8:13 am
As a newcomer to Yoga and someone who has a hard time motivating myself to do more, what a great inspiration!
February 5th, 2009 at 9:05 am
I never liked yoga — and I tried a few kinds because people kept saying how fantastic it was. Where was the fantastic? I couldn't find it.
But then I ended up trying Bikram by accident — and now I feel the fantastic.
(afterward, of course. During isn't so fantastic…)
February 5th, 2009 at 10:53 am
Thank you for great article. I discovered Vinyasa by accident and it 'clicked' for me in a way prior yoga classes (or any other exercise for that matter) ever had before. I couldnt understand why my friend who started classes with me began attending less and less . Vinyasa changed my life, surely it was the answer for everyone! When she expressed her dislike of some of the Vinyasa class elements I was surprised and maybe even a little hurt. It was a good lesson for me that not every body/spirit responds to the same thing. I reminds me to be more open in my own yoga practice. Nice to hear that others have had similar experiences.
February 5th, 2009 at 6:16 pm
I appreciate this as perhaps the beginning of a discussion of different yoga for different bodies. As a large woman, yoga can be very frustrating. There are a wide variety of positions that need to be modified simply because there is too much flesh for me to bend or curve in a particular way. Sort of like twisting over an overstuffed pillow. I'd love to see more posts exploring both physical and spiritual/emotional variations in yoga.
February 5th, 2009 at 10:45 pm
thanks!
February 6th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
Wonderful idea! What I love so much about yoga is that fact that everyone can do it-the challenge is often finding the “how” that works for you. I would love to explore this topic more. Thanks so much for the great feedback
February 9th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
I loved reading your article, Aynsley!! Your writing is a beautiful expression of your passions. Your final statement is so appropriate with so many populations. I would love to have you go to the website for PushingBoundaries.org. This is the facility where I volunteer at weekly. “Pushing Boundaries” is the phrase used daily by the population of Spinal Cord injuried clients I see. Would you mind if I shared your words with them?
Love
Robin
February 11th, 2009 at 8:34 am
I've been avoiding yoga for years as I've never been limber. Touching my toes has always been challenging for me. I'm tempted to try it again but I don't want to be embarrassed. What do you recommend? You're actually inspiring me, Aynsley! This was wonderful.
April 14th, 2009 at 1:09 am
Yoga acts in a wholesome manner on the various body parts. This stimulation and massage of the organs in turn benefits us by keeping away disease and providing a forewarning at the first possible instance of a likely onset of disease or disorder.
One of the far-reaching benefits of yoga is the uncanny sense of awareness that it develops in the practitioner of an impending health disorder or infection.
June 11th, 2009 at 1:08 am
Yoga is indeed for every body and everybody, I have been attending yoga classes from last one year and must say I have really lost 10 kg in one year, I would never get fed up!
Donna