Simply Stretch: yoga

By Lisa Jones

I can be dramatic; I once emphatically claimed a donut to be the best thing that had ever happened to me. I like a little flair in my words. This next part is flair-free, if anything it is an understatement of vast proportions.

Yoga has changed my life.

I’ve always tried to make exercise a routine, although admittedly it’s not my favorite way to spend time. I’ve never been that spandex encased beam of sunshine that leaps out of bed at 5 a.m., desperate for my adrenaline hit. I’ve tried running and kickboxing, I’ve been a spinner and a gym rat but nothing sticks for more than six months.

However, two years ago I stepped into a yoga studio and everything changed. Things changed which were rather unexpected; like my increased ability to manage anxiety, reduce stress and put life into perspective. All that changed and I was just trying to loose some flab and touch my toes again.

The physical transformations happened, too, but almost incidentally. While it’s easy to reduce yoga to the goal of looking good in yoga pants, it’s about 4,000 years deeper than that.

I believe in the longstanding philosophy of yoga; it means “yoke” as in uniting or connecting. By yoking the mind and the body together, we are reminded that both are important to our emotional well-being. Incredible peace can come from quieting the mind so you can really feel your body in this present moment.

Yoga helps me cut through the drama, allowing me to center and focus. I feel more deeply connected, to myself and to others. My practice has changed my perspective on everything: my relationships, my health, my outlook. It has allowed me to simplify and focus on what is important, cutting out excess chaos and being a fully alive human being.

I also believe in stretching. I feel a vast difference in my mental, physical and emotional states when I start out my day with a few backbends. I love Sun Salutations—a demonstration of a great one for beginners can be found on the Yoga Journal website.  Like many of us, I am hunched over a keyboard most of my day, so going the other direction literally feels like a breath of fresh air. Backbends also open up the heart muscles and the heart chakra and can be very cathartic.

My discipline of choice is Bikram yoga, because the heat provides extra flexibility and detoxifying sweat. Even though I am Canadian and not built for heat, I quickly adjusted to it. I don’t, however, believe that Bikram is for everyone. There are so many varieties of yoga available, whether you like fast Power Yoga or gentle stretching with accompanying sounds of babbling brooks, you can find something that feels right. 

Many people feel intimidated by yoga and assume they need to be in a certain state of enlightened bendy-ness to just walk into a class. Not true.

Yogis, by definition, are a pretty non-judgmental crowd and there is nothing they love more than someone else who is interested in yoga. A great teacher can assure that you are practicing correctly and you’ll get encouragement from other students, all of which creates a supportive yoga community. Yoga in Charlottesville is dominated by women just like you, who wanted do something amazing for body and soul, so they stepped into a yoga studio and changed their lives.

“Know yoga, know peace.“

Check out one of these great local studios:

Bikram Yoga Charlottesville
Ashtanga Yoga
Bend (great for kids!)
Studio 206
Allied
Pop Up Yoga

Lisa Jones is a freelance writer and a yoga fanatic with a serious travel addiction. You can find more from Lisa at her blog Just here. Just now.