Cowgirl Yogi

I can’t stop thinking about this elephant journal article I read this morning.   It was this woman saying she’s “broken up with yoga”.   I’m sure she thought she was being real funny, but the article made me angry.   Now some of that is my own ego crap; what do you mean you don’t like this thing that I like?   what’s wrong with you stupid?   At first I just chalked my reaction up to that.   But the more I thought about it the more I realized that this woman- who says she had a 10 year yoga practice, but has broken up with yoga for a mindfulness meditation practice- has never actually practiced yoga. And here she is telling anyone who will listen how yoga isn’t right for her.   First of all, yoga and mindfulness mediation= same thing!   You can’t practice yoga without meditating.   You can put your body into yoga asanas, get yourself a hot yoga butt and maybe even grab a little peace and calm without meditating, but you cannot practice yoga. ...

Yoga is a personalized, individual practice.   The physical practice anyway, but there is a reason we get together in groups to practice.   It’s easier to know that we are all connected when there’s a bunch of other people around you having the same experience. It helps it stick more.   Helps you remember more.   A home practice is a beautiful thing, and finding a deep state of meditation can be a bit easier on your own.    But every one of the profound yoga connection experiences I’ve had took place in a group class.   Sometimes workshops or conferences, sometimes a regular daily class in a studio, sometimes even a random yoga class in a random office.   All different kinds of music, all different kinds of instructors, different styles of yoga, hot, cold, carpet, cork, florescent, candle light.   The only common factor to all of these moments was the group practice.   Now, I like to be fun,   and silly even sometimes,   and I ...