(disclaimer- Yoga Six has in no way sponsored this post. this is not a paid review. this is my own experience and personal thoughts)
Two Fridays ago, I had an interview to work for a new yoga studio in Milwaukee- Yoga Six. I am very excited to say, I got the job! Last Thursday, Yoga Six hosted a yoga event downtown. The event was an hour yoga practice followed by hors d'oeuvres and drinks to get to know the other Yogis who had participated in the class, the ladies I'd be working with, and to talk with the instructors about the practice. I am not normally one to head to an event where I don't know anyone, but I am so glad I went!
I invited a friend of mine to join me for the practice. He just completed his RYT 200 and is pursuing the RYT 500 this winter. It made perfect sense to invite such a devoted Yogi to this yoga event. Plus, then I would know someone! It was nice to catch up with him for about 15 minutes prior to the start of the practice. We talked about how certain actions in our lives were ego driven and now things are shifting for both of us and its more of an energetic/spiritual force driving us towards our goals.
The practice was lead by an instructor who had come up from Chicago. She had the help of an instructor from St. Louis (helping students with pose adjustments). Both ladies are teachers with Yoga Six. The help with adjustments was amazing, and the practice made me wish I lived in Chicago so I could take more classes with this instructor.
At the beginning of the practice, Jenny, out instructor, asked us to reflect on one word that embodied what yoga has brought into our lives, or a way it has affected us. There were two words that popped into my head. Calm and Acceptance.
Midway through our practice, as we stood on our mats and brought our hands to our heart center, she asked us to think of the word we had chosen earlier. Acceptance came to my mind this time. Yoga has brought acceptance to my life in many ways.
Most of my readers know that a part of me has always struggled with self acceptance. Be it with my running, my body, or my life in general. I have always wanted more, wanted thinner, wanted better. Yoga brought me acceptance. It has helped to calm those thoughts. When asked to reflect on the word I'd thought of earlier in the practice, I had so many thoughts run through my head. Acceptance. So many parts of my life have focused on acceptance.
In my practice, I accept that my practice is my own. It is between me and my mat. I do not focus on how someone else is doing. How strong or weak they hold a pose is between them and their mat. We are all there for the same reason- to practice. We are all on our own journeys. I used to have to compare myself to everyone. When I am practicing I don't do that, I accept that my practice is mine and others around me should not impact what I can do or get out of my practice.
I've had to accept my body. That is a constant work in progress, but the last 4 years I have come very far. From being 89lbs to 120 is a huge accomplishment. I had to work on acceptance. I had to accept that I was like everyone else- my body needs food to function, nourishment is vital to my survival. I had to accept that weight gain is not a bad thing. That my body needs to be healthy and not a skeleton. This is not always easy for me. I do not always want to accept this. I have my bad days, but the good are more prevalent now.
I had to accept that I am an alcoholic. I cannot drink like a normal drinker. I cannot drink. I'm okay with that today. Honestly, removing alcohol from my life is one of the best decisions I have ever made.
Reflecting on that word, I realized I have leaned to accept who i am on my mat and have begun to carry that into my daily life. My practice is my own, just like my life is my own. My practice is what I make it- Just as my life is what i make it. I can let things destroy me and bring me down, or I can accept that life happens and move forward.
At the end of the practice, the word acceptance kept ringing in my head. I feel that acceptance is something I will always work on. Self-acceptance and acceptance of others. I am always a work in progress, and that is something I have had to accept :)
what one word would you use to describe how yoga has affected you?
Midway through our practice, as we stood on our mats and brought our hands to our heart center, she asked us to think of the word we had chosen earlier. Acceptance came to my mind this time. Yoga has brought acceptance to my life in many ways.
Most of my readers know that a part of me has always struggled with self acceptance. Be it with my running, my body, or my life in general. I have always wanted more, wanted thinner, wanted better. Yoga brought me acceptance. It has helped to calm those thoughts. When asked to reflect on the word I'd thought of earlier in the practice, I had so many thoughts run through my head. Acceptance. So many parts of my life have focused on acceptance.
In my practice, I accept that my practice is my own. It is between me and my mat. I do not focus on how someone else is doing. How strong or weak they hold a pose is between them and their mat. We are all there for the same reason- to practice. We are all on our own journeys. I used to have to compare myself to everyone. When I am practicing I don't do that, I accept that my practice is mine and others around me should not impact what I can do or get out of my practice.
I've had to accept my body. That is a constant work in progress, but the last 4 years I have come very far. From being 89lbs to 120 is a huge accomplishment. I had to work on acceptance. I had to accept that I was like everyone else- my body needs food to function, nourishment is vital to my survival. I had to accept that weight gain is not a bad thing. That my body needs to be healthy and not a skeleton. This is not always easy for me. I do not always want to accept this. I have my bad days, but the good are more prevalent now.
I had to accept that I am an alcoholic. I cannot drink like a normal drinker. I cannot drink. I'm okay with that today. Honestly, removing alcohol from my life is one of the best decisions I have ever made.
Reflecting on that word, I realized I have leaned to accept who i am on my mat and have begun to carry that into my daily life. My practice is my own, just like my life is my own. My practice is what I make it- Just as my life is what i make it. I can let things destroy me and bring me down, or I can accept that life happens and move forward.
At the end of the practice, the word acceptance kept ringing in my head. I feel that acceptance is something I will always work on. Self-acceptance and acceptance of others. I am always a work in progress, and that is something I have had to accept :)
what one word would you use to describe how yoga has affected you?
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