Yoga at Home with Laura, Self-taught Yogi!

Yoga at Home for Beginners: NPR Feature on Yoga and Its Hindu Roots

I will never forget my complete SHOCK when just two years ago a work colleague told me about how a medical technician responded to her question about her improved EKG and other medical tests results.  She asked him if he didn't think that perhaps her yoga and meditation practices were responsible for the improvement. A second later he dryly replied that he wouldn't know because he was -  "a Christian."  As they used to say back in the 70s or was it the 80s, "SAY WHAT????"    

I could not believe he wasn't joking.  My stunned colleague could not even reply.  Here she was in a medical facility in the cosmopolitan metro area of Washington, DC, our nation's capital where yoga studios abound! Yet,this person feared that yoga was not something he could delve into probably (I am only speculating) because its Hindu roots would clash with his Christian faith.

And speaking of yoga's Hindu roots, NPR's morning edition today had a special feature on yoga and recent complaints by some Hindus that yoga's Hindu roots were being ignored or glossed over to make the practice more "acceptable" to a wider American/Western audience. They decry the emphasis on the physical side of yoga in this country and some say that yoga is much more than a few asanas (yoga poses) done a mat.  I certainly agree!

I found NPR's feature to be thought-provoking and informative. It includes some fascinating historical facts. Yoga is not only about opening and expanding your body - it's about opening your mind and spirit. Listen to the NPR feature - it takes less than 5 minutes.  Check out it below!

Yours for honoring and appreciating yoga's authentic roots and incorporating a vital ancient practice into a modern lifestyle,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez, the Beginners' Yoga at Home Coach

 

 

Yoga at Home: A Church Offers Yoga Lessons

 

Yesterday, I ranted about the silly myths that persist about doing yoga - that in some way it could be "un-Christian" to do yoga. Well, I just read an announcement that Paradise United Church of Christ which is in Louisville, KY (I believe - the article wasn't really clear on this) is offering a six-week hatha yoga session beginning December 14. So, I feel somewhat appeased. And, you know, I was just thinking...It is very easy for me to picture Jesus Christ sitting in a lotus or half-lotus pose and giving his lessons and talking to a group of people about "judging not that you be not judged." It does not seem a contradiction in the least...

Yours for letting the truth set you free,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez

Awaken the Wisdom Within Communications, LLC

 

Yoga at Home: The Myths Still Persist!

 
I thought it was 2010 - actually, it's almost 2011 and misconceptions about yoga persist?!!

Today I was speaking with a work colleague about health checkups and the many benefits of yoga. She has been taking yoga classes for several years and has reaped several important benefits including reduced anxiety, and, several physical improvements. A few years ago she had to be monitored because of some heart and lung irregularities that came up. Since then, however, she believes her yoga and meditation practice has made her feel more grounded and has helped improve her physical well-being.

During a recent checkup, however, she casually asked the medical technician who examined her if he didn't agree that her improved pulmonary and echocardiogram results could be attributed to her practice of yoga and meditation. He replied with a hint of arrogance (aah - so annoying!) that he was a "Christian" and that he knew nothing about yoga. Needless to say, my bewildered friend dropped the subject.

Isn't this 2010? And, wasn't her medical exam in the middle of the Washington, DC metro area where yoga studios and yoga classes abound? Yet, this medical technician thinks doing yoga could compromise his "Christian" beliefs? Baah humbug - gees! I guess that's why I have to keep the chapter on the myths and realities of yoga in my book. I had thought by now it would be unnecessary, but I guess the truth still needs to be told...

Yours for dispelling the silly myths about yoga,

 

Laura Venecia Rodriguez

Awaken the Wisdom Within Communications, LLC

Yoga for Beginners: Silly Myths Persist!

You would think that given yoga's growing popularity that people would not still have the same fears and misperceptions that arose when yoga started to increase in popularity in the United States in the mid-to-late 1960s, especially after the Beatles stayed in India for a while. But, ignorance and misconceptions still persist. 

Just last week I read a story about a Southern Baptist leader, Albet Mohler, who warned Christians against doing yoga.  He stated that  he objects to "the idea that the body is a vehicle for reaching consciousness with the divine."  Well, when I was a child and teen I went to a Society of Friends meeting (i.e., church).  The Society of Friends is also known as the group called "Quakers" which refers to the  "quaking" of their bodies when they experienced reaching a consciousness of the divine.  Many denominations I think experience or achieve consciousness with the divine through their bodies...

Surprisingly, it turns out misconceptions about and bias against yoga is not limited to conservative Christians.  Even certain Muslim groups have banned yoga. However, as people who practice yoga know - you don't have to change your religious beliefs or lack thereof - yoga is for people of all faiths or no faith.  I do agree with one person who responded to Mohler's diatribe against yoga.  She said about her yoga practice, "What I found is that it opened my spirit, it renewed my spirituality." "That happened first and then I went back to church." Personally, yoga has strengthened me in my body, mind, and spirit and I feel a greater oneness with all people and gratitude for all of life.  That's what spirituality and a consciousness of the divine mean to me...So silly myths...be gone!

Yours for celebrating yoga,

 

Laura Venecia Rodriguez

Yoga for Beginners: Is Yoga for Athletes or Non-Athletes?

I attended a party a few weeks ago and in meeting some new people I mentioned that I was close (yes, getting closer and closer, I am not kidding!) to finishing a book on yoga for the beginner non-athlete.  One woman there commented in not so unassertive terms that she yoga was for the non-athlete.  I had to hold back my shock!  What are you kidding?  Haven't you heard of all those yoga athletes like Rodney Yee and Kathryn Budig and others who demonstrate physical feats of yoga prowess?  This woman had been training for months for an ironman triathalon - those grueling events in which the participants run marathons, bike for miles and miles, and then swim a mile or two at the end.  I guess for her, yoga seemed exercise for us mere mortal wimps. My purpose, however, in writing a beginners yoga book for the non-athlete is to assure klutzes like me they can master and benefit from some core classic and powerful yoga poses even if they appear difficult at first.   

A few days later I looked up the term "athlete" in the various online dictionaries just to see what they said. In essence, an athlete is a person who demonstrates strength, agility, endurance, and stamina in physical exercise.  I never considered myself agile or strong and being double-jointed added an extra monkey wrench to my aspirations of ever even trying to be an athlete.  And, if I had first been introduced to yoga through some of the DVDs and programs out there on the market, I would have quickly given up because they seem so "athletic."  Luckily, I came across some books that taught the essence of yoga and made it attainable for most people.

It's just so interesting - the myths and misconceptions of yoga continue. Yoga either gets dissed as being too easy and beneath the super athlete's consideration or it gets dismissed by people who only see the pretzel poses in the yoga magazines at the supermarket newsstand as being too difficult!  It's neither black nor white. Yoga is a practice that can enhance your life if you're a klutz like me or if you're an extreme athlete like Tony Horton who has developed an intense physical fitness programs to whip military officers into shape.

Tony Horton, who often appears on those infamous infomercials, was featured today in the Washington Post Express paper section on fitness. He has created a 12 DVD intense physical workout program which includes yoga.  As Tony says,  "Can you imagine all of the men in the military doing yoga?  When people get the program, it's 12 discs.  Some see that yoga disc and blow it off.  But the ones who give it a try, realize it's the glue..."  Kudos to Tony Horton for teaching and including yoga to round out his super intense physical fitness regime.  And, realize, athletes and non-athletes alike can benefit from yoga.

Yours despite being a non-athlete,

Laura Venecia Rodriguez

Simple Savvy Steps to Yoga Success: Who does Yoga?

When I first began yoga in my teens, hatha yoga was just starting to spread in the United States.  I, however, knew NO ONE personally who did yoga.  I started it because I came across a Philadelphia Magazine feature about yoga and was intrigued by the promises of becoming more flexible, serene, and toned. 

I look back over the years and until the past 10 or so, I just don't recall knowing anyone personally who did yoga regularly.  Not one of my friends, no one in my family. When I taught a 3-week introductory yoga class during the mini-winter term of my sophomore year at college, only a handful of women signed up.

For years, yoga maintained an esoteric allure it seemed that was limited to the more artsy crowd, and not embraced by your business professional, lawyer, doctor, electrician, architect or other mainstream types.

However, nowadays people from all walks of life and all ages (from five to ninety-five) do yoga.  And of course, the celebrities from Madonna to Sting have gotten into yoga alongside basketball players like Kareem Abdul Jabar as well as tennis players, golfers, and even surfers.  And, of course, bureaucrats in my federal agency have been taking afternoon classes for several years.

It seems clear to me that growing interest in yoga can be attributed to its history dating back between 4,000 to 5,000 years that gives it a solid track record and its wonderful results for the mind, body, and spirit, when practiced consistently and with focus.  So, if you haven't started your hatha yoga regime, when do you intend to?  You can no longer use the excuse that you will be considered weird for doing yoga.  Soon, it's likely that you will raise eyebrows if you don't do yoga (okay, maybe I'm dreaming there, but that is a future possibility!)

Wisdom of the day:  "Yoga is a ancient, scientific health system that is relevant for the modern soul."~Laura Venecia Rodriguez 

Simple Savvy Steps to Yoga Success: Rant on Yoga Models...

You can buy many books and DVDs to teach yourself yoga in the privacy of your home.  And, that's wonderful.  The only drawback, in my view, is that quite a few of the ones currently on the market feature exceptionally buff, super attractive models or actors.  These individuals no doubt looked beautiful/striking/handsome and in shape before they ever sat or put a foot down on a yoga mat!  And, granted, yoga has likely further toned and strengthened their already almost perfect physiques.  Today, I spent a couple of minutes watching some hunky Ford male model demonstrate some very advanced yoga poses on youtube.  If that was my first exposure to yoga, I'd get really discouraged! 

Sometimes I flip through pages of yoga books featuring people like model Christy Turlington and quietly sigh to myself. Gees, I'd love to look like  Turlington or Gwywenth Paltrow - yes, I can have such a shallow desire. Admittedly, not a very yoga-like attitude on my part!

But, even if I did yoga 10 hours a day, it ain't going to happen. I am not going to transform into a model.  Of course, no book or DVD is even suggesting that.  But, I think it can be disheartening for the non-athlete and regular person like me who has a budding interest in yoga to encounter so many books and DVDs featuring models or celebrities doing yoga.

It is undeniable that consistent hatha yoga practice in your home can really enhance not only your inner well-being and outlook, but also your physique and appearance.  It can help you look YOUR personal best and thereby enhance your self-esteem.  Definitely. It has done this for me.  And, this is wonderful!

I would just like to see more books and DVDs featuring ordinary people instead of celebrities or models.  And, that's why, I will be coming out with my own yoga book soon. To encourage more people to practice hatha yoga by showing an average person achieve her personal best rather display a standard beyond most peoples' reach.

Wisdom of the Day:  "Hatha yoga gently and steadily awakens the genie within you."~Laura Venecia Rodriguez

Simple Savvy Steps to Yoga Success: Misconceptions about Yoga Continue

Recently, we've been exposed to all sorts of misinformation, distortions, and factual errors during the presidential campaign.  Misinformation always bothers me and thus I was no less disturbed the other day when I came across an article about a school in New York that has banned yoga and meditation classes.

The reason?  Some parents and religious leaders expressed concern about yoga's Indian roots, ties to Hinduism, the apparent way that yoga was being presented in the classes. and fear that the separation between church and the state was being crossed by offering such classes.  Similar objections were raised a few years ago by parents in Aspen, Colorado in 2002.

The teachers presenting the program asserted that no religious activity was behind the classes and that the principal motive was to relax and ready the children to enhance their learning.

Although this recent development may seem like a step backward, yoga's benefits to alleviate stress are recognized increasingly  - - reportedly a hundred schools in 26 states use yoga in the classroom to relieve stress.  Some schools offer after-school yoga for at-risk youths who have special difficulty focusing, suffer from poor self-esteem, and live in homes plagued by violence.  The students are learning to focus more readily and benefit from being immersed in a peaceful environment.

Although from my personal experience, consistent practice of yoga poses can ultimately allow your spiritual side to blossom, absolutely no change in one's belief system, religious or any other is required.

Wisdom of the Day:  "Yoga is like 'chicken soup' for the mind, body, AND soul."~Laura Venecia Rodriguez

Simple Savvy Steps to Yoga Success: Spiritual Essence of Yoga

You need not change your religious beliefs or practices or lack thereof to practice and benefit fully from hatha  yoga.  Before yoga was more commonly known in this country, misconceptions about it were fairly widespread.  One pervasive myth was that you might have to change your religious beliefs to engage in yoga exercises. Exposure to chanting om and meditation for the first time probably gave yoga an esoteric air at best or just a sense of being too "woo-woo" at worst. 

Some people who might otherwise be open to yoga may still be intimidated by some current yoga literature that uses many sanskrit terms and shows photos of yogis dressed in Indian attire engaged in extremely difficult pretzel-like poses.  The good news is that one can gain the myriad benefits that yoga offers to mind, body, and spirit, just by practicing simple, yet powerful poses regularly whether in a class and or at home.

I was not raised in a very religious home - I was exposed to quasi-agnostic, quasi-Quaker philosophies.  Interestingly, I had spiritual yearnings for many years.  Practicing yoga gave an outlet to these yearnings without dictating that I adopt any specific belief system except perhaps the one of "to thy own self be true."  Over the years, as I have been able to release stress and tension and maintain physical flexibility through yoga and become highly attuned to my body, I have noticed a corresponding improvement and heightened awareness of my spiritual essence.

You need have no spiritual beliefs or interest, however, at all to start noticing greater depth to your life as you make yoga part of your daily life.  When you focus fully on what you feel as you stretch and hold hatha yoga poses in a quiet, relaxing environment, you become attuned to more than an increasingly healthy physique. Yoga helps you unleash the genie within and you can better tap your intuition - your internal guidance - and your consciousness.  You start to live life "on full throttle" as writer, Marianne Williamson, would say.  And, that, in my view, is the spiritual essence of life.

Yoga Wisdom of the Day:  Definition of "spirit."  Life, or living substance, vital essence, force, or energy, the intelligent, immaterial and immortal part of man. ~www.brainyquote.com.

Hatha Yoga for Beginners: Demystifying Yoga

You can easily find information about yoga everywhere these days.  I don't think I see a week pass by without encountering an article about yoga, an advertisement showing someone in a yoga pose, (like the one in this blog), a commercial doing a spoof on yoga, or hearing about new yoga classes.

Yoga has become a recognized, ubiquitous part of our society - like golf or tennis (almost).  Except, of course, yoga is not a "sport."  Instead, yoga is a comprehensive system of poses that enhances rapport between the mind and body and help to release the vibrant health that is your birthright.

Even though 16 million people (or roughly 5 percent of the population) in the United States reportedly now engage in some form of yoga, 95 percent of the population does not do yoga or really have any connection with or knowledge of yoga.  They have no clue. And misinformation is too common. 

Despite its growing popularity, probably because of its Indian origins, yoga still seems esoteric or frankly rather "woo-woo" for many people or at best, intimidating.  Misconceptions are common - some people may still believe that taking up yoga will require amazing feats of physical prowess and flexibility that can be achieved only by a select few. It doesn't help that the media highlights athletes engaged in pretzel-like, advanced yoga poses. 

Some people fear that attempting yoga may injure them;  other wonder if yoga will require them to change their personal spiritual or religious beliefs.  None of this is true.  Virtually anyone can begin practicing yoga (particularly the basic Hatha Yoga poses) and no changes in lifestyle are required.  (Except the setting aside of a daily chunk of time to give yourself the gift of yoga.) 

In short, Yoga is an ancient discipline strategically designed to maximize one's health and vitality.  And, in particularly (in my view), hatha yoga is one of the gentlest and most effective systems to support you in living life on full throttle.

Yoga Quote of the Day:  Yoga, an ancient but perfect science, deals with the evolution of humanity.  This evolution includes all aspects of one's being, from bodily health to self-realization.  Yoga means union - the union of body with consciousness and consciousness with the soul.  Yoga cultivates the ways of maintaining a balanced attitude in day-to-day life and endows skill in the performance of one's actions.  ~B.K.S. Iyengar, Astadala Yogamala