Namaste

I was talking to a friend about this health class.  We had gone into this summer promising to improve our health.  A year of rigorous schooling and work had kept us inactive.  So when I mentioned that I was looking for an activity that dealt with stress, she invited me to the yoga class at the local fitness center.  Now, I admit.  I thought yoga was “only for chicks”.  An hour of stretching hardly seemed like a workout.

I was wrong.

Yoga is more than a series of stretches or a flexibility test.  It pushes the body to physical limits then asks you to calmly hold the position.  Within minutes, my body was begging for mercy.  Much of this activity is about maintaining control: control of movement, control of breath, and control of mind.  We were constantly reminded to relax and clear the mind.  “Get out of your head,” the instructor would say.  There were various moves such as upward and downward dog, various warrior moves and some extreme balance postures that I can’t remember the name of.  As we moved from each position to the next, I could feel all the small muscles that normally lay dormant finally waking up and asking “What is happening?”  By far, yoga was one of the most extreme workouts I had endured.

How was it as a stress reliever?

Well, I can’t say much has changed spiritually.  I did not necessarily feel a oneness with the universe or reach any true enlightenment.  But I was left with a feeling of calmness and peace; an exhausted and sweaty calmness and peace.  Physically, my body was in conflict.  It had fought through so many moves and falls, but the muscles were loose and even felt a bit stronger than when it started.  Ending the session with slow restful positions such as the “corpse” pose almost sent me into a deep sleep.  I noticed the biggest change emotionally and mentally however.  During the first half of the session, it seemed like yoga gave me more stress than it relieved.  All these people were around me were clearly more skilled and graceful.  Despite all my effort, my flexibility was limited.  It was frustrating.  But with each reminder to relax, to find inner calmness, I slowly began to shift my thinking to the simplicity of breathing.  All along, I had been taking breath for granted.  But it became the lifeline that got me through the intensity of yoga.

If you are given the chance, leave your ego at home and try out yoga.  It’s a great stress reliever in all aspects.  It stretches out the stress in the body, invites you to release the stress in your soul through breathing and it might be the only time you’re asked to think of nothing.

Namaste.