My journey towards the Wheel pose

  

So my journey isn’t the cliché “I wanted to get fit” but rather something I was forced into. I was never a very athletic kid but have always been active. When I was in middle school, I injured my lower back and was on bed rest for 2 months! That too in my summer vacations, so much for enjoying the holidays, eh? Soon I felt better, but my spine had been affected and later I had problems in my lower back as well. I was given the option of either having surgery or doing some stretching exercises. And well this is how I guess I ended up starting Yoga.

My love for Yoga is partially due to how it was taught to me the first time and how I feel after Yoga. How I look doesn’t even make it to the list but that’s an added benefit. It was hard for me to balance and stretch initially and I still struggle even today, but you get better with practice and some resilience. My mentor used to tell me all about why we do some stretches, the benefits they have, how Yoga affects our mind and body, that it made me feel like I am learning a different way of life altogether. It helped me be more calm and patient and my back pain decreased immensely.

I love variety and I often mix Yoga with different kinds of exercises, be it dancing or doing some push-ups while doing Chaturanga! One of the best moments in my Yoga journey was when I finally managed to do a perfect Wheel pose, I was elated. At that moment I learnt something about myself and about life- how happy these small little achievements can make us, but we often neglect them.

I am not an advocate of doing Yoga daily because I realise we all have busy schedules but just doing some stretches either after waking up (never happens with me since I am not a morning person and I can barely stand straight then, forget about doing a tree pose) or before sleeping, counts as Yoga too. Yoga is not about doing Suryanamaskar and meditating, Yoga is personal. There is no right or wrong way of doing it, provided you’re stretching right and not hurting the wrong muscles. So initially, try to do it with someone who knows the basics of Yoga and can guide you. I can write about how to do certain Yoga poses too but it is always better to see it for yourself- maybe that is why I started an Instagram blog on this.

I am not the person who does Yoga daily anymore but maybe once or twice a week, however, I do try to stretch at every opportunity I get. So as you finish reading this, stretch your hands, loosen your body, relax your mind, take a deep breath and go on having about the lovely day you were having!