Let me start out by saying this: I am not a yogi. I mean, I guess in a very literal sense, I practice yoga therefore I am a yogi. But I am not a yogi in one of the stereotypical ways, meaning I’m not a) someone with a kind of mystical presence that smells like patchouli, nor am I b) a woman with a wardrobe of matching yoga sets who can launch into a headstand while performing splits. I say this because, as much as I love these kinds of yogis now, I was once someone standing on the outside of the yoga world looking in, skeptical that I could fit in, and to be honest, a little scared to try. So, if you’re like me, I totally get it.
| Written by: Ana Jones, yoga teacher and instant healing, emotional integration, and ancestral trauma extraction coach |
Despite my fears, I did step into a yoga studio one day. About five years ago, I took a class for the first time. Despite my friends inviting me to yoga, touting the physical and mental benefits, I’d resisted, opting instead for daily runs on my way to half and full marathons. But as my body got older and my feet, legs, and back started rebelling, a physical therapist insisted I try yoga. My hamstrings were tight, my hips were weak, and my back hurt. I had a half marathon on the schedule, so I decided to give it a shot to save my race. I’m glad I did, but not because I miraculously gained flexibility and continued on my running journey. No, yoga changed my life and attitude in other ways that made me healthier, happier, and more physically and mentally balanced.
We all have seen studies and headlines that preach the numerous benefits of yoga. It helps us deal with stress, improves the quality of our sleep, and improves our cognitive skills, per Harvard Health. For me, it went beyond that. Those five years ago when I wandered into a small yoga studio in Dallas, one of my very first yoga instructors was Ana Jones, The Quantum Heartshift Practitioner, meaning she helps people find spiritual healing. She’s practiced yoga for nearly two decades and has been teaching for almost 10 years. She was also one of my first yoga instructors and someone who had a profound impact on my yoga practice. We’ve kept in touch even though I now live in Utah and she’s in Lisbon, Portugal.
“I think yoga is just so beneficial, not just physically, but mentally,” she says. “It can be very somatic. I love the fact that there are layers, and you can keep going deeper into it.” Like me, Jones started yoga as a physical activity but discovered how the asanas, or poses, were doing more than just helping her get physically stronger. As we talked, it was clear that every person will have their own individual yoga journey. But if you’re open to being vulnerable and trying new things in your practice, you might learn your lessons that can lead to self-discovery and bring more inner peace. These are the lessons I learned and how yoga changed my life.
