I was practicing a handstand on my friend’s wall the other day when she asked me,“You’ve always been fit, haven’t you?”

And the answer, quite frankly, is yes. For my whole life, I’ve been active in some different sport, whether it’s running or dancing or yoga, but yoga is the practice that has transformed my life completely for the better. I feel so grateful for that as well, to be healthy and active in the first place to be able to explore different sports.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been doing little circuit exercises morning and night, accompanied by some stretching – a quick overall body toner as I thought of it. As a runner when I was younger, I had to stretch or my body would eventually just stiffen up. I remember waking up with my mom at 5 am to practice yoga with her randomly as a kid, but my first serious daily dedication to yoga began in early 2018 in Costa Rica. A yoga class was taught three times a week at my university, Universidad Veritas at NIGHT. Now, that may not seem anything to us, but living in San José in a bit of a sketchy area, if I was going to run (because again – San José was rough) the mile and a half there and a mile and a half back in the DARK past all the creepy guys – it better be for a good reason. 

Well, my good reasons were my Latin American dance class… and this yoga class, which turned out to be so incredibly worth it.

The yoga class was taught mainly in Spanish by this calming little woman. With my limited language knowledge then, I had the unique perspective to be a part of a class and learn by watching, but also fall deep into myself and focus more, since I only understood about half of the words. My instructor knew I didn’t understand everything, but I could tell she was proud of me when I mastered some of the harder moves of the class that not everyone could get. She’d tweak my arms, nod happily, and move on.

From then, I took my practice to the very hard and surprising cold floor of my tiny room in my host family’s house. There was one time where I was practicing a move that needed more space, so I moved all of my furniture as far away as possible. Yet, of course I still ended up knocking something over (I think it was just myself), and my host mother came running in, worried and twittering over me in Spanish. A little dizzy, I looked up at her and smiled “todo bien, no te preocupes” (I’m good, don’t worry) and she just smiled at me, I think whispering “chica loca” (crazy girl) as she walked out, leaving me on the floor.

EMBRACING MY ACTIVE LIFESTYLE

Coming back to the States for my next year of college, I really internalized my active lifestyle. I became a dance fitness instructor at my university recreation center – duo-teaching with my roommate. I ran and biked for an hour before every class, taught 3 times a week, and usually went to others after it. I ended every class with some yoga moves I remembered from Costa Rica – and I began to understand that those moments were when I felt most at home.

YOGA WHILE TRAVELING

As I traveled more and more, my practice advanced – and people began to join me. Yoga is fantastic for a backpacking lifestyle because it can be done anywhere you have a floor. I guided my newfound friends through the basics of yoga on beaches and hostel floors, speaking through my experience to tweak their practice to help them. I’ve met those who knew nothing that I could share the basics with, and met others who taught me more, learning acro-yoga with the most fantastic people. I am always so excited to find others who enjoy the same and I love yoga for the ability to do it everywhere – I’m not confined to a gym or anything, just need a floor (preferably a softer one).

NOW – FULLY BECOMING A YOGI

So, after about two+ years of daily yoga morning and night, some classes, some learning with friends, endless youtube videos, I am now introducing meditation and the background yoga philosophy into my practice. Because as you see, and as I learned, yoga is not just a one-time practice. It’s a way of life – and it can change you for the better, like it has to me.

I’m not sure where I’d be right now without yoga. I certainly wouldn’t be this fit, and my mental state would absolutely be way off kilter, and my spirituality would be as it was previously – nonexistent. It’s helped me know myself in ways I never would have reached without it.

I’m currently deepening my practice in all sorts of ways.

There’s so much I can tell you of yoga, and so much that I can’t wait to share with you.

This is how I started. Again, I have decided to write what I know – because that is what is real.

I know yoga – and it helps me know myself. 

Connect with me on insta to see bits of my daily practice on my stories. 🙂

Comment and tell me your past with yoga – has it helped you?

And stay tuned – for my tips on becoming a yogi.