Hello everyone!
In my last article I was talking about how holidays can really ruin my zen mood and get me out of balance. Or maybe even bring up more stuff…Today I’d like to share with you a bit about how my practice looked like after getting back to Gothenburg and why I think yoga brings peace of mind. And since we are talking about that, you might want to check out this other article about perfection I wrote a while ago.
It’s not easy to get back to a regular practice after a break. So many things change in our life every single day. Our body changes, our mind, opinions, experiences, everything changes but we are so busy to observe ourselves. We get through so many different emotions and so many thoughts. But some thoughts can be poisonous. That’s why we constantly need to do the work, meditate, reflect and identify the negative thoughts that work against us. It’s not an easy thing to do. It’s hard work, it’s messy, but I assure you it’s totally worth it.
Since I got back to Gothenburg and to my yoga mat, I can appreciate even more the positive benefits this practice has on me. I noticed how much I changed in just 3 weeks without regular practice.
What I noticed?
First of all I had to make peace and accept the things that changed and stop wanting to be the way they were 3 weeks ago. Second I noticed that my monkey mind took control and was bothering me a lot. Third I felt I lost the gracefulness and stability while practicing asanas. Fourth I felt I became weaker both physically and mentally. Fifth an hour of self-practice proved to be quite challenging for my mind. Sixth Oh boy, early morning practice? Can I please sleep more? Or maybe just have breakfast?
There are numerous benefits to a yoga routine. It makes us so much stronger and happier. Somehow it’s good to get to experience how we feel without it, so that we can appreciate it even more.
The most important thing (and not a positive one) that changed during my messy non-yoga holidays is that my “monkey mind” took control. Most of the times, I find it so difficult to think clearly without my emotions getting in the way. Especially for women, this is such a challenging thing with our hormones bothering us all the time. I used to think certain people are more emotional than others and that’s the way they are and it simply cannot be changed. Well, guess what? It can be changed. Emotions make us human, but when something becomes too much, it’s toxic for our whole being and it gets us out of balance. We need balance to be happy. Balance is not boring! It’s just the opposite.
I love that I’m living in the country of “Lagom” = not too much, not too little, just how it has to be.
This morning I disciplined my lazy brain and managed to be on my mat by 7:15 AM. After my hot water lemon drink, I put on some warm yoga clothes and unfolded my mat. A sweaty Ashtanga practice proved to be the best thing to do for my body and mind as well.
I started the practice with some deep breaths and bandha work. And while doing my deep breathing I felt I need to cry. So I let a few tears touch my cheeks. I’ve been holding so many emotions about all sorts of past memories during these weeks.
The practice was lovely! I just cannot decide what I love more. Is it static yoga or dynamic one? Somehow Ashtanga always brings the clarity and peace that I need. When I got to Navasana I heard Kino’s voice into my mind: “Don’t quit!” and I didn’t. Oh boy, Navasana is so painful when you do the whole series and 5x in a row with lifting up! But you know what? I don’t think the body was complaining as much as the mind. The body was fine, the mind is the quitter. So we need to get that quitter learn how to be proactive and make a difference between pain and laziness.
I guess that’s one of the biggest lessons of Ashtanga for me. It teaches me to be strong and realize that what I identify as pain, most of the times is just laziness.
Another thing is that I feel it’s balancing my emotions and opens up my hearth. Makes me a better human. How can you hide when your chest is open?
So today’s practice brought me the smile, positive energy and calm mind that I so much needed. The whole day I was productive at my work and happy.
Do you see any difference in your life when you stop your practice? I’d be happy to read your stories. Please leave me a comment below and tell me more about your practice.
Namaste,
Lavinia
© Unfold Your Mat