By Avery
I just finished reading a recent blog posted by a fellow teacher trainee and wow did it ring home!
I too grew up in a home where yoga was ever present. I recall my mother lying on her back in a brown bodysuit and feeling oh so embarassed. She did this most mornings, and also coupled this with a very healthful environment at home.
We were often greeted after school with what I used to refer to as "brown-a-million-ingredients" cookies, which was my mother's special healthy cookie recipe. There was no "white" anything in my home as everything was whole wheat, whole whole wheat, or green. I would often enviously stare down my friends' lunches at school, which largely consisted of white bread sandwiches and pop drinks, as I choked down my hovus cucumber alfalfa sprout sandwiche at the age of 8.
My mother would often tell me that she too grew up in a home with yoga and healthy lifestyle. My grandfather was the true speciman of healthy lifestlyle, incorporating nutrition in his diet at all times, walking wherever he went, and "stretching" on the floor most days. At the age of 90 I recall him looking 70 and having more energy then most 50 year olds. My mother in turn appears 20 years younger then her actual age. But I can't attribute it all to my mother, as my father who is well into his 70's is a regular exerciser and healthy eater.
As my fellow trainee mentioned, could this be just genetics? Well, I tend to think not. Although as a young child I often resented the yoganic environment I grew up in, I now look back and am so thankful.
As I grew up I was always active, and adopted healthy eating patterns, it wasn't until I was in my late 30's that I turned to yoga.
A good friend and I started off on adventures to different studios to "find" something. Having 3 young children at home made these adventures difficult as I needed to be home, but as my kids got older more time was freed up and I dove into yoga. I haven't looked back since. I had always carried a bit of extra weight, even though I exercised daily and ate reasonably. But when I began doing yoga regularly, that weight just seemed to melt away. I felt more connected to my body and knew what it did and didn't need. Prior to yoga, I would often feel I needed to fix a problem with food. A cramp or pain in my stomach meant I should eat. The reality was these pains could often be attributed to many other causes and a yoga pose would eliminate any discomfort. I was hooked.
As I began to take classes, the environment started to appeal to me more and more and I found myself craving the restful and peaceful yoga studio. As a self professed type A person, I felt more at ease and relaxed after a yoga class. I was able to slow things down for myself and realize it would all be ok. I actually would feel a physical and emotional sense of calm and could just breathe through a moment where I would get uptight. It amazed me because I had never been able to let things go before, and something just clicked.
When I started the teacher training program I really didn't know what to expect. What it has brought to me is a new direction in life. Prior to having kids I was a lawyer, and I wondered if I would ever go back to law when my kids were older. I was often asked by others "will you go back?". I can now definitively answer that question with a "no, my path is with yoga".
Namaste
Avery
Avery, is a member of the Yoga Centre Winnipeg 200hr Teacher Training program
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