How Yoga is helping me discover something new Every Day
A skeptic beginner´s journey through Yoga
The picture above, by the marvelous Sonnie Hiles above, is NOT what I am doing in my day to day yoga practice, but, Hey! I am getting there.
I lived the stereotype of the Yogi Indian kid who had been taught Yoga since her teenage years. I have to admit, as a teenager, I did not really grasp the essence of Yoga and the how or why of its importance.
Until a few months ago, when me and a good friend, in a spur of the moment thing went to the beautiful grounds of Goethe University in Frankfurt and practiced about half an hour of a beginner´s Yoga- guided course, by my beloved Adriene Louise, the trending yoga guru from Youtube.
So here´s what I have learned.
Start Slow
There is no need and no pressure to rush into the flow and Vinayasa right away, it is not a competition, in fact, the opposite of it. Yoga is about grounding yourself and finding your center.
Your calm.
I highly recommend Adriene´s videos or your local yoga instructor, as you prefer, and enrolling into beginner courses. This way, you won´t chew more than you can bite and can take the practice step by step.
Try and maintain a consistency
Like most things in life, routine is KEY.
I started out, completely failing at that.
Some weeks I practiced once, some weeks not at all. Until recently, when I am managing to find some time for practice, every day.
That´s a small victory!
Now that I (almost) have a routine, the routine, makes me want to continue it. It is a very positive feedback circle of sorts. The more you start to understand the steps, the better you will feel, but, more on that below.
Accuracy of your poses is a growing process
In the beginning (and this makes me sounds like I am an expert now, but that is NOT the case), I think I half-ass-ed the poses and was like “Oh! this is easy”.
The more I am learning now and the more open minded and focused you are, the better will be your grasp of the Aasanas.
So, during your practice, be all there and you will find increasing amounts of happiness when you actually “get” a particular pose in the complete sense.
Slowly moving to a flow
Once you have eased into the schema of how things work and mastered the basic steps, you might be ready to ask for more, and trust me there is a lot to explore. Vinayasa Yoga for instance. There are tons of internet Yogis who are brilliant and Inspiring (for instance, for the flow try: Mady Morrison)
Prop it Up
I think, this is one of the most important things to do. Have a dedicated space. Style it in a way, when you look at that space, you feel tempted. That is the goal. Think natural light, minimal aesthetic, plants, whatever works for you.
Feel free to get props, yoga blocks, bands, mattress that fits your style and other accessories. Make it nice, make it you :)
Happy Yoga! :)
