Courtesy Google Images
We've all seen these. 30 Day yoga challenge! Take a month to master all these poses and you could win a blah blah blah!
Here's the thing: your yoga postures don't make your yoga practice.
There. I finally said it.
Too many in the Yoga community make the postures the pinnacle part of their teachings and practice. They spend all this time focusing on a peak posture and how many ways can I use x, y and z props to get into this posture to make it "look" a certain way.
After having lived in England for a few months out of two suitcases and then moving back state side in those two same suitcases, all while practicing yoga and meditation, I can tell you one thing I learned.
The heart of your practice is not what posture you take. It is the arrival on the mat, the breath you bring to it, and the mindset you cultivate out of it.
Courtesy Google Images
We put so much pressure on our students to be a certain way in a posture, giving cues that somehow are meant to fit a one size fits all approach. Yes, I fell prey to this as a new yoga teacher as well. There is safety in what is being taught. Yet, if we do not question what is being taught even as a teacher or student, we have lost a potent part of the yoga practice: self study.
So, the next time you go to a yoga class and feel the pressure of doing a certain posture, stop. If you feel the pressure as a teacher to make the perfect sequence, stop. If you feel reluctant to show up to a yoga class because you feel x, y, or z about doing the postures, stop.
At the end of the day, you showing up is what MATTERS. not the postures, not the savasana, not the song playing in the background.
What matters is YOU. You showing up, unrolling the mat, sitting for a few seconds to focus on YOU. You taking the time to commit to your experience.
That's all .
Much Love
Lee