Yoga on the Deck

Beginning Tuesday August 2, join me for Yoga on the Deck at Blue Rose Cafe. Greet the day taking in fresh air and beautiful river views.

Classes are ongoing through fall, every Tuesday 8:00-9:00AM. All are welcome, classes targeted for beginner to intermediate levels. $10/drop in, or 6 classes for $50.

Enter through south side of the building, meet on lower deck. Space is limited, so be on time to get a spot! Contact me with any questions.

Hope to see you there!


*Photo by Lewis Pond

Flexibility Not Required

"Oh, I could never do yoga, I'm not flexible enough." This is the most common response I get when I tell people I teach yoga. "You don't understand, I'm REALLY inflexible. I can't even touch my toes. Plus, I'd be too embarrassed."

It's a frustrating dispute; what we need most for our bodies are often the things we avoid because we don't want to leave our comfort zone, feel pain, or risk looking stupid. And that may be all fine and dandy for now, but if you stick with that mentality your range of motion will continue to deteriorate, leaving you unable to bend, reach, or extend your body because you neglected to do anything about it when you had the chance. We're not getting any younger here (unless you do yoga, then maybe you are).

If you find your body to be stiff as these guys cocktails, there's hope for you yet. One of the biggest misconceptions about yoga is that you have to be flexible to participate. Au contraire, mon frère, flexibility not required. We practice yoga to gain flexibility, just like people lift weights to gain strength. You don't have to bench 250 to lift weights, and you don't have to touch your toes to do yoga. Whatever your level of flexibility is (or isn't), you go from there. You benefit from the practice by working with your own body resistance as you gradually improve your range of motion.

Besides, being flexible doesn't necessarily make you 'good' at yoga. Yoga is a practice that involves strength, balance, breathing, meditation, alignment, mindfulness....the list goes on. Each person has their strengths, as well as areas that could use improvement. If you're lacking in the flexibility department, chances are you're able to compensate somewhere else. We all show up to our mats with different bodies, levels of experience, and flexibility. Keep in mind that although you might not look like the person next to you, you're working just as hard.

But what about the other people in class, the ones who can do this? Won't they be staring, judging, wondering why you had the audacity to join their class? Frankly my dear, they don't give a damn. What they do give a damn about is keeping their focus on their own mat, and you should do the same. One of the worst things you can do in a yoga class is look around and judge yourself based on what others are doing. This will absolutely 100% NOT help your practice. Compare leads to despair. Yoga is not a competition; that's why it's called a practice. There's no score, no winners, no trophies. Just practice.

I've been practicing for 5+years, and I'm no Gumby myself. I'm rarely the most flexible person in the room (not that I would know cause I don't look, ahem). To be a yogi, you don't have to be flexible in the body, but you do have to be flexible in the mind.