Evolving Practice

Over the years my practice has evolved. My first introduction to yoga was in a classroom at UCLA. There I was introduced to basic practices that were not strenuous but challenged us in new ways both physically and mentally.

Specifically, practicing without music and in neutral position. My mind and body healed from those practices because I realized how dependent I was on music to help me check out and how damaged my hips were from a constant state of turn out. After I realized my work, I was hooked on yoga and continued to practice outside the classroom.

Then, I was introduced to power yoga. I practiced at Lululemon every Sunday and Power Yoga in Santa Monica. As a college student, these classes were accessible both physically and financially. I was able to try new teachers and new styles of yoga through their approach to the practice. I fell in love with vinyasa yoga because it closely mirrored dance and worked up a sweat!

Then, when I became pregnant, my body needed to slow down. Restorative practices and prenatal yoga became my jam because my body needed to rest and feel revitalized. While I wasn't sweating as much, I knew that's what I needed to do to take care of my body and growing baby.

Now, as a mom, I am very much into meditation, specifically Yoga Nidra and relaxation meditations. Being a parent can be very strenuous and while you're breastfeeding, your energy is constantly depleted. Thus, the hot, vinyasa classes I once practiced do not serve me in the way they used to. There is a time to push past your boundaries and there is a time to honor them. This is one of those moments in my life when I must honor my limits because I can only show up as my best self when I am in my highest vibration.

Thus, if you're feeling the zoom fatigue or moving through a transition, honor where you are. Your practice will evolve according to your life path and what you need at that moment. Yoga was not meant to be a stagnant practice that required you to do the same thing every day (although there is a benefit to that). Instead, it teaches us to be in the moment and adjust according to what we need on each given day.

Perhaps the biggest lesson through all of this is not to compare myself to a past or future version of myself, but to embrace where I am and be there fully.

And so it is.