The Yoga Path Fitness Families.com

I thought it would be helpful to outline some of the ways that yoga has changed the way I live my life. From time to time, I will be adding to the story of my path for anyone who is curious, or who is also choosing yoga for their main form of exercise. When I say “exercise,” I am including the mental and spiritual work that has become stronger as I start understanding how the mind and body work together a little more each day. My hope is that as a yoga instructor, I will inspire others to live a more conscientious, healthy and full life. With that said, here are a few of the things I have begun to explore and learn about:

1. Be in the moment. This has helped me greatly with raising my son and stepdaughter. I tend to think about the other things that I think I should be doing while I am with my children. Although I am far from perfect, I have developed a little more patience and enjoyment in paying attention to the time we spend together. I attribute this growing patience to listening to my breathing and feeling how my muscles work together to achieve a pose. The less I think about the outside world during my practice, the more I can physically do. Slowly, I have realized that the same philosophy can work when I am dealing with my family. Being with them and understanding how the family works together to make a strong group has been a wonderful side effect of my time spent on the mat.

2. Be more moderate. Everything I learn seems to stem from listening to the body more in my practice. Since I have begun practicing yoga on a regular basis, I have slowly learned how to avoid putting my body in situations which will cause it discomfort. The awareness of the body that develops seems to curb one’s ability to overeat, over-drink, under-sleep or overwork. I am not going to claim that I never indulge here and there. I will say that I have gone from feeling deprived in situations where I don’t indulge, to feeling like I have done myself a favor by not putting my body through something which will only make it less complete.

3. Listen to God more. You have heard me say that your average yoga class does not mean you have joined a religion, but I fully believe that as a side effect, the physical and mental work I have done has helped me open my ears and heart to God. If you have a faith system in your life already, then you will understand, after a few sessions, how yoga can be a tool to open your life to God a little more. If you do not consider yourself a spiritual or religious person, then you still may find that yoga opens your heart to the possibility that something more is going on and that our physical existence is nothing less than a gift. For those of you who feel that this is getting to “New Age-y,” for your taste, I will share just one more thing with you along the religious lines. Although I have consistently questioned the true nature of the universe (I like to think a lot), I’m actually a Roman Catholic turned Lutheran. I’m raising my son as a Christian and attending church because I believe that this is the best path for him, and perhaps, myself.

Yoga has affected my life in many other ways. I plan to share more of these with you in the future. Hopefully, this sharing will open up dialogue about the benefits, of not just yoga, but of all forms of exercise that contribute to us becoming better people in all ways. How has your physical work contributed to your mental or spiritual state?