Listen to your body: igniting the yogi in me

I rediscovered my yoga practice.

After a stressful week and 48 hours of feeling like garbage, I felt reluctant to perform high-intensity jumping and weight circuit exercises at the gym. I mean, who wouldn't hesitate after a 24hr tummy flu or food poisoning stint (not sure which I suffered). I also wasn't in the mood to hit the pavement for a run or turn on my favourite Jillian Michaels workout DVD. In that moment of humming and hawing, I made eye contact with my purple yoga mat (which has solely been a post-workout stretching mat for the past four months ever since I moved to Melbourne) and something inside me just clicked.

Several months ago I came across a yoga studio in South Melbourne called Union Yoga, but never stepped inside. Until now. Only a 15-minute walk from my place, Union Yoga offers a variety of power flow classes in a heated space. I wasn't sure what to expect and was a little hesitant going into a 60-minute power flow class. My hamstrings were tight, backward bends felt weak, and inner yogi seemed so far away. Did I still enjoy Yoga? I couldn't be sure...

When I lived in London, two odd years ago, I remember loving my weekly Moksha yoga. Sometimes I'd attend three to four classes in one week, often setting my alarm for the 6:30am class. I loved the freedom it offered and awareness is brought to my breath. It reminded me to slow down and just breathe.

After completing my undergrad, I moved back home to Toronto and lost touch with my practice. I attended a class every now and then, but was preoccupied at the gym and became incredibly passionate about lifting weights and performing HIT (high-intensity-training) circuits with my trainer. I think I like the gym so much because I often see immediate results, zone out to music, and get to socialize with friends in between sets. The gym is my happy place.

Now, two years later, I'm still jumping and lifting at the gym (with new music of course), but my quest for balance has enlightened me to listen to my body and alter my workouts, depending how I feel each day. During my stressful week it dawned on me that I should and need to write, reflect, and meditate more often. And so my yoga mat called to me, as if it had been waiting all along, longing for some downward dog action and child pose love. It called. I listened.

The next day I packed my bag and said hello to Yoga as I walked through Union Yoga's doors. The space was better than I imagined it to be - incredibly open, high ceilings, with a Caribbean vacation type atmosphere. I felt at ease as I unrolled my yoga mat and waited for the class to begin. The instructor, and owner of the studio, had a wonderful sense of humor, which translated to the class and made everyone feel at ease. In the middle of a rather challenging standing pose he said "This is a little silly, isn't it? We all look pretty stupid". Everyone laughed. He told us to smile, laugh, and ignite ourselves to the sky. I liked that. After the class, I peeled myself out of shavasana and felt pretty darn good. And so did my yoga mat, it was nice and sweaty. 

I promised myself I'd practice my yoga and attend a class at least once or twice a week, as an alterative form of exercise to my existing workout regime. I promised myself and deemed April "yoga month".

If you too are humming and hawing, whether it's running for the first time or checking out your neighbourhood gym, just do it, listen to your body, reward yourself, and listen to your body some more. You won't regret it.
 You can find Union Yoga on 4 Union Street, in South Melbourne.

You can find me, on my mat, at Union yoga (my new happy place) 1-2 times per week. When I'm not in downward dog, I'm at the gym (my happy/comfortable place).. except for my Sundays, my rest day ;)

Love and light,