Yoga Delivers on Its Promise

Twenty-eight years of following a daily vinyasa yoga practice gives you exactly what is promised. A strong, limber and agile body, and a focused, calm and alert mind, on the best of days. On the worst of days you still have more energy and focus than most of the people around you. Over the years I have narrowed my world of exercise to daily walks and my yoga practice. This has brought me great joy and satisfaction and yet I recently feel I needed some play in my life, but what and where to find it?

As all things are impermanent and subject to change it is our ability to embrace this need for change that allows for growth to occur. Out of fear or lack of self-awareness we stay in the same patterns, whether with exercise, relationships, food, or religion and it is only when we break out of these restrictive patterns that we can see how we have limited ourselves.

My neighbor has a tennis court, which has long sunk into decay. It is surrounded by bushes and trees and weeds sprout from cracks running like highways across its surface. I have walked or driven past it for years, and some part of me has wanted to bring it back to life. One recent morning I appeared early at my neighbor's door and inspired by my enthusiasm she agreed to teach me the game of tennis. At first I had to make peace with having a racket in my hand, then learn to swing it properly, which helps if you want to connect with the ball. Then there is the rhythm of using the whole body to run from one side of the court to the other, my heart rate moving up and down as I sprint or rest. Integral training at its best.

My yoga practice has given me a body that can take the demands of the game, and helps me to recover from the playing. My mind must stay focused and alert to keep up with the speed of the ball allowing for a different way of testing the years of "moving into stillness" which the flow of yoga has taught me. Most importantly, I have stepped out of my limited realm of possibility and discovered a whole new side to myself, one that had been waiting patiently to be discovered.

Godfrey Devereux, author of "Hatha Yoga, Breath by Breath", says that, "We must first find our limitations before we can change them." Yoga is one way to shine a light on the self and glimpse our limitations and imperfections. Then recognizing them we can take one step at a time towards change. Although it can seem daunting at the outset, the journey is truly the most important part of reaching a goal. A lesson can be learned and relearned a thousand or a hundred times, but we have our lifetime to get it right; and that is what it may take to become self-aware.

Ms. Quigley is a certified nutritionist, macrobiotic chef, health expert and certified master yoga teacher. She is also the director of StillPoint Schoolhouse Productions, a video/film production and publishing company dedicated to providing educational media presentations in the fields of health, nutrition, hatha yoga, vegetarian cooking, organic gardening and environmental topics. She has a combined 30 years of experience in the fields of yoga, health and nutrition and is the author of seven books including SuperFoods, The Bodyrejuvenation Cleanse and The Complete Idiots Guide to Detoxifying your Body.