As the weeks progress, my classmates and I have been witnessing more
breakthroughs in our own practice and each other’s practice. I am very
grateful for the wonderful people that I have been able to meet on this
journey. The atmosphere at Yoga Mandala is very positive, uplifting and
encouraging. Whenever one of us manages to accomplish a pose that was
previously a challenge, everyone stops to clap and cheer that person on. The
best part is, its really genuine! I suppose after all of these weeks of non stop
sweating while repeating drills and attempting yoga poses, we can’t help but
notice when one of us succeeds in achieving a goal.
One of my personal breakthroughs this week was Parsva Bakasana. I never
thought that I would be able to balance on Chaturanga arms and lift the rest of
my body off the mat. To be honest, I thought I was too heavy or that my body
was not made for this pose. I was also ok with accepting this. After all yoga, is
not a race and I was happy to slowly but surely work towards certain poses
like Parsva Bakasana.
Our teacher Jessica casually insisted that I can do it and gave me some
technique tips to focus on. Although I trusted her as she has a lot of
experience and has worked with many different body types, I didn’t think that I
could lift off the mat in Parsva Bakasana during the period of this YTT training.
Well, I was wrong and of course Jessica was right. With her guidance and
encouragement, I actually managed to lift off and hold the pose for a few
seconds. Jessica even managed to capture a photo of that moment! The
feeling was surreal and it instantly boosted my confidence in my own abilities.
Yes, the breakthrough was a physical pose. However, the breakthrough also
happened within my mindset. I am now convinced that with the correct
teaching and perseverance, any body can achieve anything.
I used to be a competitive swimmer and trained twice per day, 5 times per
week. I stopped swimming competitively at about 17 years old for several
reasons, and went on to coach swimming instead. As we continue our daily
drills and sequences, I notice that same feeling of fitness and strength coming
back again. A feeling I haven’t felt in years!
I have observed that I not only feel physically stronger and more balanced but
I also feel mentally energized. As an added bonus I noticed that my skin is
clear and glowing! If this is not enough motivation to continue practicing yoga,
I don’t know what will be.
I am feeling motivated to continue on this journey. As a matter of fact, I am
excited to keep working on my goals to keep improving my yoga practice.
Yoga Teacher Training is only the beginning!
Tiara
200HR YTT May’21 Weekday
