calming, gentle, steady, contemplative, consistent, quiet – none of these are words that anyone would use to describe me or my personality.

but these are all essential elements to the practice of yoga.

surprisingly enough, this whim seems to be sticking around – i’ve been working on this consistently 4-5 times a week for a month now. no, i don’t do the chanting. no, i don’t do the relaxation poses. no i don’t understand what they mean about “feeling the life force channel through you, grounding your energy.” no, i don’t care for all the bongo and flute music.

but something keeps drawing me back to it, day after day, to these funky poses, with their funny sanskrit and english names. (and it’s not just because i can do it in my pyjamas!) there’s something about the building process that appeals to me – being able to feel my balance and strength improve, flowing more smoothly between one pose and the next. i’m actively learning, and it taps into something that my running regimen lacks.

there’s not much learning to running – it’s all about just doing more of the same. sure, you can do fancy stuff like high intensity interval training, or hill work, or split times, or improve your vo2 max. but really, once you can put one foot in front of the other, you’ve mastered the basics. which is probably why i like it so much – my natural stubbornness is actually a plus, and no grace or co-ordination is needed.

i guess i always thought that grace and co-ordination were things you were either born with, or you weren’t. i’ve always wanted to be someone graceful and co-ordinated, but never thought it was possible. and instead, yoga is teaching me that these are things which can be acquired by anyone, with enough practice – and practice is something i’m very good at.

and while yoga may not make me sweat as hard as a good run does, it’s far from easy. for something as touchy-feely as it might outwardly seem, it’s surprisingly strenuous. all those yogis don’t have ropy, sinewy bodies for nothing! but i find that getting it right feels *so good*. balancing a tree pose with chest open, knee back, hips squared, spine straight, shoulders relaxed, feels good. stretching out fully into a wheel feels good. getting into a headstand for the first time since i was twelve feels good. i feel taller. i find myself walking around with better posture. and in the short space of just a few weeks, i am much more limber. i’m less creaky.

i started out desparing at how old i felt, and now i’m finding myself somewhat amazed with what i can actually do, given enough practice.

i’ll be tying myself in knots in no time

dashboard confessional – bend and not break

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Like this post

Unlike