Asana

National Yoga Month

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As National Yoga Month in the U.S. comes to an end, I can’t help but think of all the visual representations I see which are generally, stereotypically associated with yoga. Yes, I’m talking about yoga asana or postures.

Think about it. How often do you see someone living their yoga on Instagram or Facebook? How often do you see someone meditating or being mindful on Instagram or Facebook? Now, how often do you see someone in a headstand or handstand…or another “advanced” yoga posture?

As much work as we do to disassociate yoga solely with yoga asana, it seems the Western world is prevailing. I still more often than not see white bodies in what are considered “advanced” yoga postures all over social media, doing what they consider “advanced” yoga asana sequences on YouTube or other social media channels.

So what are some ways we can represent yoga without centering asana?

I’m glad you asked!

Here are some ways I have represented the yoga I practice and live without centering asana:

  1. Journaling
  2. Mantra Meditation
  3. Mindful Meals
  4. Drinking Water
  5. Reading Yoga Philosophy

Now clearly this isn’t an exhaustive list in the least. However, it might give you some ideas on how to practice and live yoga in the fullest expression of yoga…not just focus on asana! (And yes, I do like doing headstands and asana sometimes too! There is nothing wrong with asana.)

Back to the Beginning…

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2021 was not my year for yoga. I thought it would be, I thought it would be the year I soared in the yoga world, maybe even made it better.

But I crashed. Hard. I flew too close to the sun and my wings melted and I felt back to Mother Earth.

Some would term this an existential crisis in yoga and they would be right. I gave in. I stopped teaching regularly and I stopped practicing regularly. I lost my practice. I tried to come back to it, time after time, yet something just wasn’t right. So I gave in to figure out what was going on with me and my yoga practice.

So I started doing other things. I grew a garden, I baked, I baked with ingredients from my garden. I traveled to see family and friends. I did a lot of things that nourished me and made me start to feel whole again. As I started to feel whole, I started to feel called to yoga once again. I started to miss the meditations and the asana practices. I started to miss the person I was when I practiced regularly.

So, here we are in 2022 and I’ve rededicated myself to my yoga practice. I have begun to wake up early and take classes. I’m back to being a student again, back to finding my love of yoga. I’m glad you’re still here for the ride!