Functional Yoga
When you hear the word “yoga”, it likely conjures up images from magazine covers and beautifully composed Instagram photos of incredibly fit people twisted into pretzel-like shapes. Very intriguing, no doubt, but not even remotely accessible to most of us mere mortals, right? Well, I’m here to tell you that yoga is for us! If you inhabit a body, you can do yoga!
I’ve always believed that yoga is for everyone—or at least that there are yoga practices that would benefit every individual. For some, the appeal is in asana (postures), for others, it’s in meditation, and for still others, the breathing practices (pranayama) hold the key to a life well-lived. Many people say “I’m not flexible enough to do yoga.” As a teacher, my response is –“That’s exactly why you should practice!” Whatever limiting beliefs you hold, I promise, yoga is for you.
For me, the practice of yoga is all about feeling the sensation of being in the poses. You can bet I don’t look like a yoga model, but I FEEL GOOD. I feel muscles stretching, rib cage and lungs expanding, feet connected firmly to the earth and hands reaching toward the sky. It might not be pretty, but it feels amazing to move and breathe in this body! This is functional yoga.
You can choose to focus on the external appearance of your body in the poses (aesthetic yoga), or you can feel your way into the perfect balance between effort and ease. Every body is different, so no two poses look exactly alike. The beauty is in the exploration of your own internal landscape and in learning to honor your body by listening and responding to the messages it provides.
“The body is the vehicle of the soul. It is the mechanism through which the soul experiences form. It is our earthly home. It is a marvelous, magnificent, miraculous feat of biological engineering. It is an extraordinary creation, capable of performing billions of seemingly supernatural tasks without ever being asked.
Take a few moments right now to reflect — with intention and awareness — on the miraculous nature of the human body. It is an awesome creation to which we seldom pay the honor it deserves. If we long to feel a sense of the miraculous in our daily life, we need only notice the amazing body we live in. It is an exquisitely complex creation. Reflect on the incomprehensible consciousness that created it. Contemplate the all-pervasive cosmic energy that sustains it.”
Excerpt from One Soul, One Love, One Heart by John E. Welshons
If you feel inspired to begin a yoga practice and have questions, please reach out to me. I’m happy to help.
Namaste.