In the practice of yoga we actively engage with tension…in fact, creating it and being comfortable in it, gives us stability, confidence, and a means to finesse our postures. Our movement is a metaphor for our resiliency. Whether we’re in downward dog, tree, an arm balance, or an inversion we need certain points of traction in order to successfully hold these poses with grace.  Of course we didn’t start this way. This was a skill we developed in the infancy of our practice from the guidance of our teachers and through our own trial and error. Too much tension throws our balance off, or i ..read more

Even when I was a kid there was one phrase that I hated hearing, “I’m too old for ______.” In going back to the gym and the yoga studio, I’ve noticed that I’m not training at the same rigorous level that I used to. At first I thought it was because I was out of shape but two years in, and it hasn’t returned. And that one adage that I fiercely hate crept in, Am I now too old to workout like I used to?? Irritated, as if defining where on the spectrum my maturity was heading, I figured I needed variety. I tried new instructors, different apps, and even did a blundering twirl with dance cardio. F ..read more

After 19-months, I finally returned to the yoga studio! While I was deliriously excited to get back to a spacious room and reveled in flowing in the energy of a group setting, I also found I was twisted-up with feelings of embarrassment, timidity, and sadness…because I’m a different yogi now; one who cannot do the fancy tricks and inversions she did before.  Even though I am at peace with all the pandemic factors that led me away from practicing, this inner turmoil has been bothering me. I keep telling myself, Let it go. It’s ok…you’re just starting over. But the mournful feelings still ..read more