My new found love- YOGA! I guess I shouldn't say "new found" but "renewed" love. Does that work? I started doing yoga in college actually. I would say about five years ago I took my first actual Yoga class. After taking the class in person with a bunch of other people around, I got curious and started doing it alone in my dorm room. While I liked it, I never stayed consistent.
I took a break and recently started getting back into it this year. It is now September and I have consistently done yoga at least once a week since January 1st. (Aside from a week where I had COVID). My goal was to find an exercise I enjoyed, that I wouldn't give up on.
I love that yoga incorporates breathing techniques, flexibility and strength training. I also really enjoy that you can tailor your yoga practice to how your body is feeling that day. Some days you need a relaxing, slow, flexibility flow and some days you want to break a sweat.
Staying consistent was easy for me because I noticed that after the first few weeks of doing it, I started really looking forward to it. I loved the way my body felt during warm up when I was stretching, and how it felt after words- warm, loose, and strong. Now lets cut to the chase...
5 Ways Yoga Increased my Wellbeing
Strengthened my core, legs, shoulders, arms and... well everything.
Increased my self confidence
Heightened my self awareness
Put me more in touch with my emotions
Gave me a sense of community
I am sure I could realistically come up with more ways, but I felt most of it was summed up with these five.
I would say I practice a sculpted or power yoga a couple times a week and a restorative flow about once a week. By doing this, I have gained SO much strength in my entire body. Not only have I built strength, I have also gained a ton of flexibility. This flexibility helps a ton when I am gardening and weeding in the summer, and helps reduce back pain after sitting all day.
My self confidence is through the roof. I have NEVER succeeded at staying consistent with an exercise. So this itself has built the confidence that I CAN. Plus I enjoy knowing I set challenges for myself and have been successfully reaching them. My favorite challenges are advanced yoga poses. I am now able to do multiple advanced yoga poses, including headstand- my favorite! My current obsession is King Pigeon. I am shooting to be able to do that by end of October. My yoga teaching certification is also in the near future. ;)
A true yoga practice incorporates breathing and being in touch with your body throughout the practice. After a couple sessions it begins to feel less "weird" and more intuitive. You will notice sensations in your body you haven't before and a new sense of understanding your body. I have learned how to recognize when my body needs rest, and when it needs work.
Lastly, I LOVE my yoga group. I recently began attending yoga classes through a studio in town. The group of ladies I engage with are great. They are encouraging, positive, and help keep me motivated. I think we all know it is hard to make friends in the community as an adult. Joining a studio is a great way to do so!
If you have not tried yoga, but think you might enjoy it- I recommend starting with a restorative flow. Start slow and familiarize yourself with the poses and cadence. I follow free YouTube videos online by some great yogi's. Challenge yourself and see where it takes you.