All is Yoga

Why do you push yourself? & in what direction is that push leading you?

Practicing at home vs in a studio can facilitate very different experiences. At the studio it's easier to stay motivated because of the energy that's working to our benefit all around us. The thing that many people will say is that they see others in a beautiful posture and they want to get there, so they don't give up.

Eventually, hopefully, we turn so far inward that it doesn't matter if we're in a studio or at home; it's the same yoga.

Studio practice can be a wonderful tool that allows us to connect to each other while home and self practice allows for a unique intuition to guide the soul. In a studio, when someone around me is breathing really well, it encourages me to stay linked to my breath, no excuses. If they can do it, there's no reason I should be cutting myself off from life and oxygen. If I feel myself running on empty and giving up, I know I'm only encouraging others to give up. We have to keep going! It's only a moment, and it could change someone else's. When we push ourselves, we inspire others. Life's about inspiring others.

Personal side-note: for a long time my practice was about achieving and striving for perfection. I wanted something to show for my blood sweat and tears. Type-A and all that jazz. It sounds shallow because it is. The yoga helped me realize that this was how I was leading my life, not just my practice. Yoga allowed me to break free of the habits I was making myself a victim of. Lately I've been playing around with taking extended breaks from my practice, and I found this:

If we're growing because we seek perfection, it's not growth for the right reasons. Perfection doesn't exist, and if we're chasing it, what is the destination other than a lonely island of one?

Connect, breathe, ommm <3