OK, all of that being said, let's go back to the beginning for a minute, shall we? (Well, not all the way back: After all, yoga originated in 15th century India, for God's sake.)
The word yoga is Sanskrit and literally means "yoke." It comes from the root word yuj, meaning "to join," "to unite," or "to attach." In Sanskrit, the term hatha yoga (which is the style of yoga that I teach) literally means "the physical postures of yoga," with ha meaning "sun" and tha meaning "moon." Yoga comes in many forms and is so much more than just hatha, but "going there" would require me writing a book versus a blog. In today's world, yoga is usually seen as a form of physical exercise. But I want my students to stretch not only their bodies, but their inner souls as well--and to come to yoga for reasons that have to do with mental health as well as physical health. Yoga has been miraculous in that way--for me and many others. Therefore, I term my style of teaching a sort of "hatha hybrid." (I'll go into that in a later post, in terms of the various yoga traditions in which I was trained.)
In starting this blog, one of the first things I did was to Google "evidence for yoga as stress relief." Wow. What a goldmine THAT simple search was. I had to bookmark my search criteria so that I could revisit it all and savor each juicy morsel of proof.
The evidence is out there, and it documents (for you doubters) the many benefits of yoga as not only a form of "stretching" and "exercise" but also its many delicious virtues for patients with chronic conditions and diseases. In future blog posts, I'll gather that evidence and post it here. Considering that, in my "other life" (i.e., my work as an editor at ASHA), I am the production editor of a scholarly journal that is very much evidence-based, my practical mind can appreciate the value of having such evidence at one's fingertips. You know: To dispel those doubters of all things yoga and relaxation!
Anyway, now I'm just plain rambling.
Seeing evidence for yoga's benefits reinforces, for me, why I do what I do--which is, quite simply, to pass along my love and passion for a practice that has helped to heal me and change me, quite literally from the inside out. I came to yoga for stress relief and inner peace. One year later, after having practiced it weekly, I found that I had grown in height by half an inch. (Man, when we yoga teachers say "Lengthen the spine," we really mean it, huh?!)
And, in closing, here's an interesting tidbit:
The 2005 "Yoga in America" survey, conducted by Yoga Journal, revealed the number of practitioners in the United States to be16.5 million with the 18- to 24-year age group. This was a 46% increase in one year! Holy cow!
I'll leave you with this: Are you among us16.5 million yoga practitioners?
And if not, isn't it about time you tried it? Good for the soul, achievement of strong bodies and physical/mental balance, brings inner peace, and the list goes on: So, what's not to love?
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Welcome, Yoga Doers and Doubters...
First, let me say this: I am a firm believer in the power and healing of a regular fitness program.
But I am also a firm believer in balance.
I am Kathleen Kelly Halverson, the mom of an energetic two-year-old. The wife of a hurricane researcher. An editor in the scholarly publishing field who loves her job and her company and her colleagues. Favorite aunt (or so I've been told) to three awesome nieces (the nephew doesn't talk yet, but I'll get him there). A closet poet/creative writer.
And yes, perhaps my biggest joy of all--a yoga teacher.
"FITNESS"
Yes, I've intentionally put the word in all caps. I see "fitness" everywhere. I see people practicing it, worshipping it, revering it. But what is "it"? What is "fitness," really? Is it just a fit body? Aren't the mind and the soul part of that mix, too? If they are not, then they should be!
I see people's definitions of "fitness" being in direct proportion to the level of sweat that exits their bodies during physical exercise. But what about the heightened level of mindfulness that we can introduce through regular practices (such as yoga and meditation) that incorporate a focus on breathing, stretching, releasing, and letting go? What about the ways that doing yoga "on the mat" translates to living our lives "off the mat"?
Are we really "fit"? Are we really "balanced"? Sometimes, the same end of the teeter-totter (I was taught to use this term over the more conventional "see-saw") seems to always be pushed down. Maybe we should try moving to the other end, even if just for a few minutes or moments per week.
What I'm not seeing enough of is an emphasis on the "more than that": An emphasis on not just those high-impact aerobics classes and those cardiovascular-intense workouts and those 5-mile runs (that are all SO IMPORTANT, don't get me wrong), but also the amazing value and "naturally prescriptive potential" of a mindful, peaceful yoga practice that helps us to quiet the mind and calm the body. Ideally, this would be paired with a regular meditation practice as well.
There is a direct connection between the physical body and that "other thing"--whatever you want to call it: your spiritual soul, your inner self, your clarity of mind, your being, your light. Inner peace can exist only through balance.
And through yoga, we find that balance. Thus, we find peace.
Or, at least, that's what I believe. And through this blog, I'm hoping to bundle, among other things, all the evidence I can find to prove it.
But I am also a firm believer in balance.
I am Kathleen Kelly Halverson, the mom of an energetic two-year-old. The wife of a hurricane researcher. An editor in the scholarly publishing field who loves her job and her company and her colleagues. Favorite aunt (or so I've been told) to three awesome nieces (the nephew doesn't talk yet, but I'll get him there). A closet poet/creative writer.
And yes, perhaps my biggest joy of all--a yoga teacher.
"FITNESS"
Yes, I've intentionally put the word in all caps. I see "fitness" everywhere. I see people practicing it, worshipping it, revering it. But what is "it"? What is "fitness," really? Is it just a fit body? Aren't the mind and the soul part of that mix, too? If they are not, then they should be!
I see people's definitions of "fitness" being in direct proportion to the level of sweat that exits their bodies during physical exercise. But what about the heightened level of mindfulness that we can introduce through regular practices (such as yoga and meditation) that incorporate a focus on breathing, stretching, releasing, and letting go? What about the ways that doing yoga "on the mat" translates to living our lives "off the mat"?
Are we really "fit"? Are we really "balanced"? Sometimes, the same end of the teeter-totter (I was taught to use this term over the more conventional "see-saw") seems to always be pushed down. Maybe we should try moving to the other end, even if just for a few minutes or moments per week.
What I'm not seeing enough of is an emphasis on the "more than that": An emphasis on not just those high-impact aerobics classes and those cardiovascular-intense workouts and those 5-mile runs (that are all SO IMPORTANT, don't get me wrong), but also the amazing value and "naturally prescriptive potential" of a mindful, peaceful yoga practice that helps us to quiet the mind and calm the body. Ideally, this would be paired with a regular meditation practice as well.
There is a direct connection between the physical body and that "other thing"--whatever you want to call it: your spiritual soul, your inner self, your clarity of mind, your being, your light. Inner peace can exist only through balance.
And through yoga, we find that balance. Thus, we find peace.
Or, at least, that's what I believe. And through this blog, I'm hoping to bundle, among other things, all the evidence I can find to prove it.
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