Alright, the title is totally misleading, I'll admit. First, because there's no step by step guide to being a yogi, and secondly because you don't even need a guide, deciding to do yoga and deepening your practice and then actually getting on the mat makes you a yogi in your own right! So in this post I will be talking mostly about my journey thus far, and sharing some tips to help you in your journey!I get a lot of questions from friends and family alike about practicing yoga. It's just that though... a practice! No NFL player, no olympian or musician or actor, whatever the profession may be gets to the level they are without practice! In Yoga, we call it a "practice" because it is a constant state... your practice doesn't end, hence... a journey.
There's no pinnacle (in my opinion) of a Yogi's practice. You never reach perfection, never reach a wall where there is no more yoga for you to do, or where you've mastered it all. It's constantly flowing and changing based on your body, your mind, your state, your breath and ability. You need merely to start and there you are. A Yogi. Congratulations. Pat yourself on the back.
For those who may not have started practicing or are maybe curious and would like to learn more, here are some basics!
The Curious Case of a Yogi
Okay so I'm assuming most people have a general idea of what they think yoga is or who they think the people or type of people that do yoga are. Let me be straight forward- unless you actually practice or have ever practiced yoga in a public setting, you are most likely dead wrong. It's not all granola munching, dreadlocked white women who have healing crystals who try and get you to come live on their commune, I promise. It's also not an activity that requires a contortionist's flexibility. Yoga and yogi's come in all shapes, sizes, forms, and ability levels. Which leads me to my first basic tip of yoga:
Be Open-Minded
Having wild expectations or convincing yourself that your experience will be or should be a certain way might lead to frustration, embarassment or quite honestly a nice slice of humble pie! You never know who will be on the mat next to you, where they are from or their ability. In the same way you don't want someone making sweeping generalizations about you or the activities and passions you have, don't do that to others! I've walked into a class where I was the only person under 50 years old and I saw a grown man deepen poses past what I would expect any grown man to be able to do. Not only can you learn from others, but let others serve as an inspiration to you and your practice! Always begin your practice with an open mind and heart, you never know who or what you will come across.
Get Comfortable With the Atmosphere
There is a certain atmosphere or "type" that most people picture when they think about yoga. It can seem awkward or silly to speak in certain ways or use certain terms that you don't use in your day to day life. It's perfectly normally to feel a little bit out of place the first few times you practice or hear these terms or experience someone who is actually relaxed and not completely wound tight. My advice is to jump in with two feet! The more you focus on the awkwardness or that it might not be natural for you, the further away your mind becomes from what is truly important during your practice. Just go with the flow! No one in the room is going to judge you if you don't do ohm on a regular basis or say namaste or know the Indian pronunciations for the poses or know all about your chakras. Everyone starts somewhere. It's fun to learn and try new things.
Don't Expect to be an Expert on Your First Try
As I said earlier, Yoga is a practice, a constant moving cycle, climb, rise and fall. Everyone has varying levels of flexibility when they begin, and different bodies in general. For instance, my right leg is over a centimeter shorter than the other, so while I am naturally quite flexible and able to deepen many poses past what some might be able to, I do have a hard time with certain balance poses as well as poses that require close to perfect symmetry because, I'm not. I promise that you won't be able to do those crazy poses you see online during your first class, it's just not realistic. But the more you practice and focus on your body and becoming stronger in the basics, those poses may come. Don't discourage yourself by comparing your practice to the person on the mat next to you (this includes if you are "better" than them; don't get arrogant).
Try New Things
I know a lot of ladies out there are a bit uncomfortable with the size/shape/look/feel of their own bodies and, as women, we can compare ourselves to others a LOT. It's totally okay to not be the most flexible person in the room. You might think "oh I'm way too fat to do that pose/stretch" and look at little miss yoga next to you and get in your head that you can't do things. My biggest advice: JUST TRY IT! You will surprise yourself with how far you can push your body, and over time, the pose that seemed impossible will become second nature, you just have to push past your comfort zone. For the fellas, just because you are a man does in NO way mean you are not flexible! You will never know how far you can go unless you try. Yoga is not meant to be feminine, so there should be no insecurity in your mind. I've been next to a 60 year old man who could deepen poses and modify them to points I personally couldn't dream of, so don't judge yourself by your cover and don't just assume you are better or worse than the person next to you!
Remember Your Breath
Yoga as relaxation, stress relief, or a work out in my opinion is somewhat pointless if your breathing is all out of whack. Your breath should be deep and flowing and HELP you during your practice. It serves as a flow mechanism, a stablizer and a center of focus and control. Not everyone has the same lung capacity so you may hear others breathing very loudly or more rapidly than you, but focus on inhaling deeply and exhaling toxins and negativity.
Don't Give Up!
It may take more than a few classes to help you see improvement but I am willing to put money down (that I don't even have) that you WILL see improvement in your body at the very least. From personal experience, yoga has helped to relax me, allow me to take my mind off of stress in my life, build endurance and strength, and feel more clear-headed and in control of my own body. For example, my entire life I have NEVER been able to do a pull-up (or chin-up, as some call it). I've done a bit of rock climbing, and although that has helped me to build up some muscle, consistently practicing yoga, yin yoga in particular allowed me to randomly do a pull up while walking through a doorway. Talk about a happy moment for me. Even if you never can do a crazy headstand from yoga, you WILL benefit from it, so don't give up!
Pain is NOT Gain
Yoga as a process and practice is meant to relax, center, and stretch us. Yes, it is a "workout" in the basic sense of the word, but contrary to the gym mentality "No Pain, No Gain", we do not want to cause our bodies pain while doing yoga. This does not mean that we shouldn't push ourselves. It's normally to feel the pull and "burn" and even get out of breath or exhausted from yoga... because you are participating in a deep stretch, active process. But you should not be pushing yourself to a point of pain. If you've noticed that every time you do "______" pose/stretch during yoga, I'd advise you to speak to the instructor before or after class to get some tips. If you have a chronic pain/illness, I'd also say your best bet is to speak to the instructor so that you can receive modifications that can suit your needs. As far as deepening a pose, when you get to the point of actual pain, you need to step back. It's okay if everyone else in the room is in the deepest state of the pose and you aren't. And if you constantly find yourself in pain during yoga, you're doing it wrong. I'd advise you to assess your motives and really figure out why you are practicing in the first place. When done correctly, yoga WILL improve your figure, flexibility, endurance and strength. As I mentioned before, I was never able to do a pull up my entire life until I consistently practiced yoga... not once did I feel pain or have to lift a weight. Sure, I had moments of sweating and hard breaths and wishing poses would end so I could get in that comfy corpse pose, but that is all part of pushing yourself.
Okay so I'm assuming most people have a general idea of what they think yoga is or who they think the people or type of people that do yoga are. Let me be straight forward- unless you actually practice or have ever practiced yoga in a public setting, you are most likely dead wrong. It's not all granola munching, dreadlocked white women who have healing crystals who try and get you to come live on their commune, I promise. It's also not an activity that requires a contortionist's flexibility. Yoga and yogi's come in all shapes, sizes, forms, and ability levels. Which leads me to my first basic tip of yoga:
Be Open-Minded
Having wild expectations or convincing yourself that your experience will be or should be a certain way might lead to frustration, embarassment or quite honestly a nice slice of humble pie! You never know who will be on the mat next to you, where they are from or their ability. In the same way you don't want someone making sweeping generalizations about you or the activities and passions you have, don't do that to others! I've walked into a class where I was the only person under 50 years old and I saw a grown man deepen poses past what I would expect any grown man to be able to do. Not only can you learn from others, but let others serve as an inspiration to you and your practice! Always begin your practice with an open mind and heart, you never know who or what you will come across.
Get Comfortable With the Atmosphere
There is a certain atmosphere or "type" that most people picture when they think about yoga. It can seem awkward or silly to speak in certain ways or use certain terms that you don't use in your day to day life. It's perfectly normally to feel a little bit out of place the first few times you practice or hear these terms or experience someone who is actually relaxed and not completely wound tight. My advice is to jump in with two feet! The more you focus on the awkwardness or that it might not be natural for you, the further away your mind becomes from what is truly important during your practice. Just go with the flow! No one in the room is going to judge you if you don't do ohm on a regular basis or say namaste or know the Indian pronunciations for the poses or know all about your chakras. Everyone starts somewhere. It's fun to learn and try new things.
Don't Expect to be an Expert on Your First Try
As I said earlier, Yoga is a practice, a constant moving cycle, climb, rise and fall. Everyone has varying levels of flexibility when they begin, and different bodies in general. For instance, my right leg is over a centimeter shorter than the other, so while I am naturally quite flexible and able to deepen many poses past what some might be able to, I do have a hard time with certain balance poses as well as poses that require close to perfect symmetry because, I'm not. I promise that you won't be able to do those crazy poses you see online during your first class, it's just not realistic. But the more you practice and focus on your body and becoming stronger in the basics, those poses may come. Don't discourage yourself by comparing your practice to the person on the mat next to you (this includes if you are "better" than them; don't get arrogant).
Try New Things
I know a lot of ladies out there are a bit uncomfortable with the size/shape/look/feel of their own bodies and, as women, we can compare ourselves to others a LOT. It's totally okay to not be the most flexible person in the room. You might think "oh I'm way too fat to do that pose/stretch" and look at little miss yoga next to you and get in your head that you can't do things. My biggest advice: JUST TRY IT! You will surprise yourself with how far you can push your body, and over time, the pose that seemed impossible will become second nature, you just have to push past your comfort zone. For the fellas, just because you are a man does in NO way mean you are not flexible! You will never know how far you can go unless you try. Yoga is not meant to be feminine, so there should be no insecurity in your mind. I've been next to a 60 year old man who could deepen poses and modify them to points I personally couldn't dream of, so don't judge yourself by your cover and don't just assume you are better or worse than the person next to you!
Remember Your Breath
Yoga as relaxation, stress relief, or a work out in my opinion is somewhat pointless if your breathing is all out of whack. Your breath should be deep and flowing and HELP you during your practice. It serves as a flow mechanism, a stablizer and a center of focus and control. Not everyone has the same lung capacity so you may hear others breathing very loudly or more rapidly than you, but focus on inhaling deeply and exhaling toxins and negativity.
Don't Give Up!
It may take more than a few classes to help you see improvement but I am willing to put money down (that I don't even have) that you WILL see improvement in your body at the very least. From personal experience, yoga has helped to relax me, allow me to take my mind off of stress in my life, build endurance and strength, and feel more clear-headed and in control of my own body. For example, my entire life I have NEVER been able to do a pull-up (or chin-up, as some call it). I've done a bit of rock climbing, and although that has helped me to build up some muscle, consistently practicing yoga, yin yoga in particular allowed me to randomly do a pull up while walking through a doorway. Talk about a happy moment for me. Even if you never can do a crazy headstand from yoga, you WILL benefit from it, so don't give up!
Pain is NOT Gain
Yoga as a process and practice is meant to relax, center, and stretch us. Yes, it is a "workout" in the basic sense of the word, but contrary to the gym mentality "No Pain, No Gain", we do not want to cause our bodies pain while doing yoga. This does not mean that we shouldn't push ourselves. It's normally to feel the pull and "burn" and even get out of breath or exhausted from yoga... because you are participating in a deep stretch, active process. But you should not be pushing yourself to a point of pain. If you've noticed that every time you do "______" pose/stretch during yoga, I'd advise you to speak to the instructor before or after class to get some tips. If you have a chronic pain/illness, I'd also say your best bet is to speak to the instructor so that you can receive modifications that can suit your needs. As far as deepening a pose, when you get to the point of actual pain, you need to step back. It's okay if everyone else in the room is in the deepest state of the pose and you aren't. And if you constantly find yourself in pain during yoga, you're doing it wrong. I'd advise you to assess your motives and really figure out why you are practicing in the first place. When done correctly, yoga WILL improve your figure, flexibility, endurance and strength. As I mentioned before, I was never able to do a pull up my entire life until I consistently practiced yoga... not once did I feel pain or have to lift a weight. Sure, I had moments of sweating and hard breaths and wishing poses would end so I could get in that comfy corpse pose, but that is all part of pushing yourself. I speak from the heart and personal experience when I say that yoga has really changed my life. I look forward to deepening my practice with every session, every stretch, every breath and every time I spread that mat on the floor. I love yoga and everything associated with it. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to ask. I'm also VERY welcome to tips and pointers as I know some awesome yogis in my own life! I hope you enjoyed and I hope you'll give yoga a shot-if you do please tell me about your experience! Namaste
-Molly Grove
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