Why I Yoga
The first real twinge in my back came when I was about 16. I was rolling out of bed one morning and it hit me like a bolt up my spine. Normally, for people that age, something tragic has to happen to let us know that these bodies are not toys. They are temples and not playgrounds as my mother would say. I sat up in my bed that day and looked at my skateboard, then at my bike hanging in the corner, then chose the keys to my 1997 Honda Civic as that day's mode of transportation. I was not really happy about that. Loading up my books and heading out the door I thought about how much gas I was going to use and how I would have to ask my dad for gas money.
The seat in my car hurt my back. The seat in class hurt my back. When I stood, my back hurt. When I sat, my back would hurt and little twinges would go up and down my legs. Over time because I was not moving as much as I used to, I gained weight. I lost my cardio range because I would go from bed to car to school and always be passing my bike on the way; watching my skateboard collect dust.
Kim must have seen me wince from across the room or heard me groan as I stood in class one day. She said she had noticed a change in me in recent months and was wondering what was going on. Things were fine at home. I would still laugh as I had always laughed. The she asked "Do you yoga?" I thought it was odd the way she asked. Not "Do you do yoga" or "Do you practice yoga?" Kim had a habit of bringing her yoga mat to school with her and doing a session in the gym during lunch so she could be alone. She invited me to join her.
Within weeks, I became that girl who would bring her yoga mat to school; who would disappear into the gym at lunch, not to be alone but to be with friends. Our group was growing every day (now there is a formal class and club at my former high school). I began to notice a change in my posture, lost weight, rode my bike and my skateboard, saved on gas, became a vegetarian then began eating meat again.
That was nearly eight years ago. The most profound change was that Kim had given me what she had. Yoga gave me the ability to see the change in myself and in others. The calmness was apparent within days and my back no longer aches. I am slower to anger and even once angered, easier to calm.
I don't know the grammar behind it, but that phrasing always made the difference. Some days it sounds pretentious to say "I yoga" but I like it. To me "yoga" is a verb that means motion and strength and though many have different reasons for contorting their bodies, monitoring their breathing, meditating, watching what they eat, and engaging in the discipline to practice daily, I yoga because I yoga. Why do you yoga?
The seat in my car hurt my back. The seat in class hurt my back. When I stood, my back hurt. When I sat, my back would hurt and little twinges would go up and down my legs. Over time because I was not moving as much as I used to, I gained weight. I lost my cardio range because I would go from bed to car to school and always be passing my bike on the way; watching my skateboard collect dust.Kim must have seen me wince from across the room or heard me groan as I stood in class one day. She said she had noticed a change in me in recent months and was wondering what was going on. Things were fine at home. I would still laugh as I had always laughed. The she asked "Do you yoga?" I thought it was odd the way she asked. Not "Do you do yoga" or "Do you practice yoga?" Kim had a habit of bringing her yoga mat to school with her and doing a session in the gym during lunch so she could be alone. She invited me to join her.
Within weeks, I became that girl who would bring her yoga mat to school; who would disappear into the gym at lunch, not to be alone but to be with friends. Our group was growing every day (now there is a formal class and club at my former high school). I began to notice a change in my posture, lost weight, rode my bike and my skateboard, saved on gas, became a vegetarian then began eating meat again.
I don't know the grammar behind it, but that phrasing always made the difference. Some days it sounds pretentious to say "I yoga" but I like it. To me "yoga" is a verb that means motion and strength and though many have different reasons for contorting their bodies, monitoring their breathing, meditating, watching what they eat, and engaging in the discipline to practice daily, I yoga because I yoga. Why do you yoga?
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