Why is it that when I advise "you should try yoga", the immediate response is, "I'm not flexible"! I did mention "consider yoga" to one of my patients drafted by the Chicago Bears and he comment, "I want to be able to do some of the things you do" ........................"when I get older" (eeyowch!...this turning 50 business sucks) Truthfully, yoga as a form of movement/exercise is one of the oldest forms of healing. The true beginning of all martial arts stems from humans trying to stretch and move "energy channels" on the body that would maximize their health. (This was before medicine and surgery....before Einstein, Newton and Aristotle) Tai Chi involves stretching things called meridia's. There's 12 that go up and down the front and back of the body that correspond to the positions you see in classic pictures of Tai Chi or Qi Gong. Although time periods apart and a continent away, yoga as well uses Indian based energy channels and moves chakras with poses you see in classic pictures ....the same ones that are now the rage with most wellness centers, healing clinics, sports teams even churches and businesses. I see practitioners trying it once and immediately professing great feelings of health and release from stress. After my first Meditative Yoga class at Northwest Community Hospital Wellness, I had been over to get my ID picture taken and a lady approached me and said she attended the class and she felt the most positive response in pain relief from her fibromyalgia in years.
So the reason I bring this up is unfortunately if you attend any yoga class, the majority of participants will be women. Some haters would say women choose yoga because they are naturally flexible so opting for an "easy" sport they can excel in is natural. Or it's a nice way to get an hour work out if you don't want to sweat. Or it's a good way for someone that isnt athletic to start learning about flexibility before they begin a real sport. ( I have actually heard these excuses from men) I politely say "you'd be surprise at what it entails. Yoga is a combination of balance, flexibility and strength. My ex-olympians from Cirque Du Soleil-La Nouba knew the value of having all three; imagine a male body builder pushing an object over head equal to his own body weight. Seems easy right? Now how about if he uses one hand; and is upside down! Regarding the sweat, well there are some students who sweat during practice, then there are some that don't push too hard-both can be in the same class, not to mention Bikram Yoga this multimillion dollar world wide chain of studios all designed to keep you focused on the instruction in a room heated to 105 (anyone remember wrestling practice?) Finally, professional athletes usually go to yoga after maximizing on their individual sport in hopes of getting an edge ahead of the competition.
From the mountain tops I say...... at 50 I have competed in body building, run marathons, climbed mountains, finished triathalons but the most rewarding (just like that lady who approached me) has been yoga. I learned the concepts and essentials of yoga from Total Body Yoga in Illinois and was taught the deeper concepts and health benefits from Deepak Chopra/The Chopra Center in Cali. Yoga grounded me to understand that practicing medicine wasnt about getting rich, it was about service to others. It helped me with all my years of practice and study get through the helplessness of not being able to do anything while my mom slowly died from a terrible cancer. As my mentor/classmate Davidji points out to me, when you feel you dont have time for yoga, it is probably the one thing you should be doing before healing the world. So as a species I say, those that are the most inflexible, the most "relaxation response-lacking", the most muscle bound, top heavy (chicken legged), the most testosterone based/adrenaline addicted individuals that think grounding has to do with electricity are the ones who need the practice of yoga the most. All a neophyte has to do is find a local studio, contact the teacher, explain your curiosity and try it. 9 times out of 10, you will feel the same benefit that a fibromyalgia sufferer had after countless years of no help and taking one class; the same benefit I experienced after seeking multiple adrenaline sports to satisfy my "man-liness" (from competitive shooting to rock climbing to racecar driving.....all pale in comparison to the lasting effects I get when I finish the last pose of the class-svasana!) The effects of yoga are truly like a drug, and when you get addicted to it, you lose addictions to food, alcohol, caffeine, TV......without taking one prescription or attending one counseling session!
I used to warm up my powerlifting routine with a few yoga poses, now I use a few powerlifting movements to warm up for a fulfilling class of yoga. I can still sharp shoot, drift a car, dyno a rock ledge and break boards............but then again, yoga tells me I dont have to. It ain't just for girls.
.....how to start? Usually once a month, studios offer "community class"- to give back to the locals and entice others to come and socialize. Most places offer your first class for free as well. Call and ask about which class/instructor would be good for beginners. Ask about shower facilities if you decide to check out a lunchtime class. Be prepared to pay for renting a mat/towel (or just buy your own at walmart or target). IMHO the hottest of hot yoga is not for beginners (I began with Bikram and loved it but the intense heat scares off some of my patients that are on the fence) , especially if you take medicine for blood pressure. There are so many "classic" practices and modern hybrids that it would take forever to list. I teach a meditative yoga practice at Northwest Community Hospital Wellness Center and I often teach meditation classes/topics at Bodhi Prem Yoga. My goal with guiding people to make lifestyle changes is always embrace sustainability. Weekly yoga practice in a studio (open class or private) is wise until you are comfortable to practice on your own. Once you get hooked, you can usually purchase memberships or a block of studio visits to cut back on price. Average "drop in fee" is 14-19$, cut that down by 3$ if you buy in bulk. Enjoy-Namaste!
.....how to start? Usually once a month, studios offer "community class"- to give back to the locals and entice others to come and socialize. Most places offer your first class for free as well. Call and ask about which class/instructor would be good for beginners. Ask about shower facilities if you decide to check out a lunchtime class. Be prepared to pay for renting a mat/towel (or just buy your own at walmart or target). IMHO the hottest of hot yoga is not for beginners (I began with Bikram and loved it but the intense heat scares off some of my patients that are on the fence) , especially if you take medicine for blood pressure. There are so many "classic" practices and modern hybrids that it would take forever to list. I teach a meditative yoga practice at Northwest Community Hospital Wellness Center and I often teach meditation classes/topics at Bodhi Prem Yoga. My goal with guiding people to make lifestyle changes is always embrace sustainability. Weekly yoga practice in a studio (open class or private) is wise until you are comfortable to practice on your own. Once you get hooked, you can usually purchase memberships or a block of studio visits to cut back on price. Average "drop in fee" is 14-19$, cut that down by 3$ if you buy in bulk. Enjoy-Namaste!
