Monday
06Jul2009
19 Ways Practicing Yoga Consistently Has Transformed My Life Experience
Monday, July 6, 2009 at 04:33PM Since the beginning of 2009 I have been practicing Ashtanga (Power or Vinyasa) Yoga for 90-mintues per day, 5-6 days per week with Calvin and Theresa Curameng at College Park Yoga. Having practiced and competed in Olympic Taekwondo from the age of ten, Yoga has been a natural transition and progression for me mentally, physically, and spiritually. Additionally, Yoga has given me a totally new outlook about physical training that boldly challenges the knowledge imparted upon me during my course of study in Exercise & Sport Sciences at the University of Florida.
1. My thoughts used to crash into my mind like a bolt of lightening. Now, they roll in gently like a calm wave, allowing me the opportunity to consider each one consciously before I choose what to do with it. Some thoughts I hold on to and consider mindfully. Others I dismiss as useless or unproductive and allow them to roll back out just as gently just as they came in.
2. Yoga has taught me to remain in the present moment with increasing consistency. This has caused my perception of time to slow down substantially which translates into minimum stress and anxiety about events that may or may not happen in the future.
3. My body is lean, strong and free from aches and pains that I had previously. I attribute the aches and pains to being an advocate and practitioner of traditional Western modes of exercise like strength training, jogging, and high impact sporting activities. From my formal education in the exercise sciences, I know that the aforementioned forms of exercise encourage the breaking down of soft tissue so that theoretically it grows back stronger. I no longer subscribe to these theories and consider the beneficial affects acute, and the detrimental effects manifesting much later in life. Yoga heals the body while at the same time being vigorous enough (the ashtanga or power style which I practice at least) to cause positive impact on strength, flexibility and aerobic/cardiovascular conditioning.
4. My interactions with other people have been enriched, deepened. I attribute this to my yoga practice enhancing my ability to focus on one thing at a time. Most people seem to be terrible listeners. While they are engaged in conversation with others their minds are elsewhere or they are constantly waiting until it's their turn to talk, their head is filled with judgments, or they are thinking about what they're going to say next.
5. Our minds love to pass judgments and create labels of persons, places, things, or ideas immediately. Many times we don't even notice this is happening. We don't realize the depth and magnitude of all the filters, prejudices, stereotypes, and mental constructs that we have been accumulating since we gained consciousness of our environment as infants. My immediate inclination to judge and label situations and people has lessened.
6. Now I notice natural beauty more frequently and appreciate it with greater intensity. That beautiful tree, that interesting bird, that sunset or interesting moon phase. It has all been enhanced and catches and holds my attention more than ever before.
7. Now I notice instances of human kindness and decency more frequently. That man holding the door for a disabled person, that driver being patient and stopping and waiting to allow another driver to back out of their driveway, a cashier at the supermarket smiling and being outwardly friendly towards each of her customers using her checkout line.
8. I have a deeper sense that nothing in the world of form is permanent, fleeting at best, and that in all reality we are on this earth for a mere moment. This makes me want to live each moment to it's fullest and to choose not to take life so seriously because we come into the physical world with nothing and we will leave with nothing. Anything that is accumulated or accomplished throughout our life's journey is a speck, insignificant, inconsequential but necessary (for a reason I don't think we can really know) in the grand scheme of the Universe.
9. I am now more conscious of what I put into my body. I consider what food packaged in boxes, bags, cans, and bottles has been through to get there. I recognize subtle changes in how my body feels after eating a certain foods that I wasn't attuned to before. This causes me to choose more healthful, unadulterated foods without needing to use self-discipline. Now, my body almost to the point where it is figuratively "rejecting" certain foods that used to taste good I can only assume because there was some kind of psycho-physiological link between the taste and pleasure.
10. There is more space around my emotions. I can experience and express my emotions in a necessary and meaningful way on the outside, but at the same time be separate from them and remain unchanged or unperturbed by them on the inside. I can consciously acknowledge that I have certain attachments to people or things, but I don't have to be emotionally enslaved by them.
11. I enjoy heat and sweating more than I ever thought I could. Our practice space in Ashtanga yoga is typically quite warm because we don't use A/C and we are in Florida. We also work with our breath to build an internal heat, so I suppose my mind has learned to associate feelings of well-being with being warm as a result of the practice. Even when I'm wearing a suit during a summer day in Florida and sweating a bit I don't mind, and can even control how much I perspire by regulating my breathing.
12. The strength of my desire to drink alcohol or otherwise poison my body with other substances (sweets, sugar, soda, processed stuff) that are technically toxic to the human body has decreased significantly. it is not a function of self-discipline or even a conscious decision on my part at all, it is a just a natural inclination not to want to partake in this stuff.
13. I now take joy in small tasks of daily living that we all have to do from time-to-time that I used to call chores like cooking, cleaning, errands, etc...it's all just living and if you love living life then it shouldn't really matter what you're doing I guess. You just become more conscious about finding ways to enjoy what you're doing in the moment.
14. My identification with stuff, status, titles and money has lessened substantially. In the past, like many other men, my identity had become my work, my title, my financial means, my ability to provide. This identification can cause major, major harmful stress and anxiety in our and other cultures and not being perceived as successful in these areas can even drive men to suicide. Now that I have stopped defining myself by what I do or how much money I have or don't have, choosing the path that feels right to me is easier than before. I have more confidence in my pursuits, purpose on this earth and move forward with renewed faith and energy.
15. I don't fear suffering (e.g. the natural ups and downs that all of us experience from time-to-time throughout our lives). I accept suffering as part of the journey and by doing so I no longer take it so seriously. If I'm going through a downtime I know that it will pass eventually and this is where I find stability.
16. I've learned that my body requires much less food to function than i thought it did. The foods and drinks most of us have grown up with and still eat on a regular basis are engineered to trigger pleasure receptors in our brain that ultimately cause to eat more of foods that are not so great for us in the long run. Fortunately for some of us our human bodies are extremely resilient and adaptable and have somehow adapted to handle these foods without causing extreme instances of chronic disease. However, it is plainly evident in my opinion, that many of the diseases we are subject to today are a byproduct of the processed junk we put in our bodies.
17. I gained an inch in height. Prior to practicing yoga consistently I was 6'2'' with slightly rounded shoulders and mediocre posture. The physical training I receive in yoga has added an inch and people definitely notice.
18. Better sex. Increased blood flow, more strength and stamina. 'Nuf said.
19. It is rare that I'm not excited about going to yoga practice. When I used to train my body using traditional strength training methods the workouts used to get stale despite the fact that I knew all the variations. Yoga brings together a combination of physical, mental, and spiritual practice that seems to elude other forms of exercise, except possibly martial arts.
In conclusion, I hope that this piece has at least persuaded you to consider giving yoga a try because it has truly transformed my life. It can do the same for you, but it's not for everyone. If you are highly competitive, a "type A" personality, or simply disconnected from your spiritual self, yoga may turn you off at first. However, I encourage you to give it at least 3 months because otherwise you may miss out on the opportunity to discover a totally new way of life that will help you make the most of your experience on this Earth.
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