I used to have a hang-up(s) about yoga. I never thought I would be one of those people. In my head, people who did yoga filled out to a caricature of expensive cloths, expensive classes; naturally skinny people that go to yoga and then brunch. I never begrudged them the brunch--I will never begrudge anyone brunch, brunch is great. It’s probably easy to tell the hang-up were mostly my own insecurities in that yoga seemed like a black box. I wasn’t flexible. There were so many kinds, and I’m not a huge fan of group classes to start. It’s also fair the craze that swept the nature originally likes to call back to roots of a practice that is part of a Hindu religion. What I’ve found on the score shows mostly what we practice here in the U.S. is only loosely based on what is practiced in the religions--but, still a name is a name is a name.
All that to say, I didn’t get it. I didn’t want to get it. Then I hurt my knee and was worried about the high-impact running causes on the joints. The physical therapist had cleared me but I still was slowing working my way back up to doing any exercise besides walking. Then I went and watched the Chicago Marathon. Definitely, an endorphin rush, and I wasn’t even the one running. So I decided I’d get back into this running thing. Then the pandemic happened. Chicago, rightfully so, closed down the lakefront trails, the parks, people were encouraged to stay indoors. Then it rained. I needed to do something and I figured yoga would be a low impact way to trick myself into doing something and I could work my way up to other stuff. Whew, boy.
I started on youtube and found a playlist with thirty days of yoga (yogawithadrienne to give credit where credit is due). It took me two months of listening to my body and working my way through moves that were unfamiliar to me and yet also shapes I had done in other ways. Then I continued it. Another thirty days of daily yoga practice. Now yoga in some fashion, energetic, or stretching, 15 minutes and up is something I like to do every day, and with a few exceptions, I’ve met it. I think I’ve been able to stick with this practice, even with everything in my life and in the world, in that it continues in the soft vein and I’m also seeing results. Not just in ways I thought, liked increased flexibility, but also in less wrist and back pain. The amount of actual muscle tone is also a surprise. When this is all over, I’m still not sure I’m quite over my block about in-person class, but I think it’s skills and an activity that I want to continue.
Hope wherever you are that you have been able to find new ideas, practices, activities to help your well-being!
All that to say, I didn’t get it. I didn’t want to get it. Then I hurt my knee and was worried about the high-impact running causes on the joints. The physical therapist had cleared me but I still was slowing working my way back up to doing any exercise besides walking. Then I went and watched the Chicago Marathon. Definitely, an endorphin rush, and I wasn’t even the one running. So I decided I’d get back into this running thing. Then the pandemic happened. Chicago, rightfully so, closed down the lakefront trails, the parks, people were encouraged to stay indoors. Then it rained. I needed to do something and I figured yoga would be a low impact way to trick myself into doing something and I could work my way up to other stuff. Whew, boy.
I started on youtube and found a playlist with thirty days of yoga (yogawithadrienne to give credit where credit is due). It took me two months of listening to my body and working my way through moves that were unfamiliar to me and yet also shapes I had done in other ways. Then I continued it. Another thirty days of daily yoga practice. Now yoga in some fashion, energetic, or stretching, 15 minutes and up is something I like to do every day, and with a few exceptions, I’ve met it. I think I’ve been able to stick with this practice, even with everything in my life and in the world, in that it continues in the soft vein and I’m also seeing results. Not just in ways I thought, liked increased flexibility, but also in less wrist and back pain. The amount of actual muscle tone is also a surprise. When this is all over, I’m still not sure I’m quite over my block about in-person class, but I think it’s skills and an activity that I want to continue.
Hope wherever you are that you have been able to find new ideas, practices, activities to help your well-being!
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