Yoga is good for you but….

It’s interesting that whenever I have an conversation about yoga that many people say something along the line of “I’ve heard it’s good for you, but haven’t got around to trying it” – and I often wondered why that would be..

But…

The first response is usually “I’m not flexible enough”. There is a misconception that in order to do yoga well one has to be flexible. But yoga is a connection between your mind and your body – however that body presents itself. It is not about ‘perfection’ in posture and movement – more about an awareness. If the aim of yoga was to achieve extreme positions then all gymnasts would be great yogis – and this is simply not the case.

This idea that you need to be flexible, lithe and in great shape pre-yoga is probably reinforced by the images on social media of attractive people in postures most of us would find impossible – set in fabulous locations. This is not yoga.

But what….

When I asked the question of people in a little more depth I had answers like –

Motivation

Pre-existing injuries which had not been managed in previous classes

Previous bad experiences including overcrowded classes, no help from the instructor,

Pain in wrists, knees, shoulders

The language – use of ‘real yoga words’

Feeling self-conscious

Feeling others in the class might judge you if you don’t ‘do it right’

Too many types of yoga – what do they even mean?

Yoga is good for you

So how do we, as yoga teachers (not instructors – yoga is more about leading the way to self-discovery as it is about the teacher leading a class of postures) get over some of these barriers?

Through getting ‘out there’ – through doing and being, through demonstrating by living our truth that yoga is real –  a tangible process of living that includes lifestyle, peace of mind – and some movement to keep the body free.  Yoga is good for you.