Last night, I was joined by hundreds of other kindred spirits. We all sat together and meditated together for almost an hour. At least, that is my idealistic version of the story …
For those who were not amongst the masses of which I write … there was quite a backup of traffic on 91, 291 and 391 all at 5PM last night. As I made my way towards Now & Zen Yoga to teach a 5:45PM class … I too was stuck in the slow motion commute. For a short while I had the pleasure of meditating to the sound of church bells from a downtown Springfield church. A bit further on, my car came to rest behind a large dump truck. On the back of the dump truck, in large letters, read the words ”DO NOT PUSH”. I thought about what those words meant to me as a yoga practitioner.
Do not push beyond my physical and mental edge. Do not push myself in poses that will aggravate the arthritis in my knees. Do not push my body to do what my ego thinks I should be able to do. Do not push back too far in downward dog, or my feet will roll onto the inner arch. Do not push my knees toward the floor in Baddha Konasana, let them be drawn down by gravity. Do not push, relax and surrender into the pose. Do not push …
As a yoga teacher, people often tell me “Oh, I’d love to try yoga, but I can’t do that” and they follow this up with one of several excuses, such as: I’m too old; I’m not flexible; I’m too big; I’m too busy; and so on and so forth. As Henry Ford once said “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re probably right”. Henry Ford (1863-1947)
It is time to reshape your thinking about what you are able to do. So, lets start by debunking those popular excuses:
I’m too old: No one is too old to start doing yoga. There are several ways to do yoga, from strong athletic yoga, to gentle yoga in a chair. No matter what year you were born in, there is a variety of yoga out there that is appropriate for you.
I’m not flexible: PERFECT! You do not need to be flexible to start doing yoga. In fact, yoga will help you to become more flexible. As we gain flexibility we begin to feel better in our own bodies. So, you have everything to gain and nothing to lose.
I’m too big: Yoga can be modified to suit all shapes and sizes. That is what makes it such a wonderful form of exercise. Any of the yoga postures can be done with the right instruction on how to alter the pose to accommodate your body shape.
I’m too busy: Those who lead a busy, stressful life will benefit greatly from a regular yoga practice. Yoga can help to melt away the stress and allow you a small block of time in your busy week where you can do something that is just for you.
