So, I had the conversation again, you may be familiar with it, in fact you may have had the same thoughts yourself. I have people tell me all the time they are not flexible enough for yoga. This comment makes me so sad. And, to be honest, it is rubbish. The comment makes no sense at all, but it may stem from the fact that people don’t understand yoga or they want to be further along in the practice than is reasonable. I have a question to answer when presented with that statement, but I seldom remember it, my question is: “Would you go to the gym only if you were strong?” Most people don’t start resistance training when they are strong, they start it to GET strong or improve their strength. Why is it people don’t approach yoga the same way? One does not walk into their first yoga class knowing all the moves and being able to do them all. Yoga is a practice. I posted once about how I was taught yoga was actually originally created for yogis . . . people that wanted to spend their entire lives learning yoga . . . not only the poses, but all the other things involved. So with that alone, it proves that people cannot just do the poses from the very first time they try. Some take years of “doing” to be able to “do” them.
So I think the statement is rubbish because YOGA MEETS YOU WHERE YOU ARE! That is the thing about yoga. Since it is a practice you do it as you can. If you can lie in shavasana for ONLY 1 minute at first – LIE THERE FOR ONE MINUTE! Then next time it might be 3 minutes, but then the next time it might be 30 seconds . . . that is ok. If you can’t touch your toes in a forward bend, do what you can. BE where you are. If you want to be “flexible enough to do yoga” (not my words, I don’t agree with that statement) – DO YOGA.
One does not get strong by NOT lifting weights. One does not get flexible by not doing yoga. If you want to do yoga, do it. It is not meant to look a certain way, but to allow one to get into their body. In addition, it could be that your body will never get into a pose like you see on Instagram or in Yoga Journal, I have another post that talks about body design – that is a whole other story. Yoga is a practice and the only way to do it is to “do” it.
I hope this allows you to realize that you don’t need to be anything when you practice yoga, yoga can help you discover what you ARE, yoga accepts you, and gives you space to adjust and just be.
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