Ask ten people, yoga instructors, students. or non-participants, “What is yoga?” and you’ll hear ten different answers. Here are a few responses I got: “Yoga is release and relief, physical, mental, and peaceful”; “Yoga is love, for embracing all of who I am within the present moment”; “Yoga is being mindful of one’s body, and everyone and everything.”
Each statement is correct; not one is complete. Capturing the essence of yoga in words is difficult. My response would be, “Yoga is the art and science of mindfulness which allows you to live every present moment of your life so you don’t miss any of it.” Easy to say, but again not complete, and difficult to live. There are times of stress and grief in every life which make retreating from moments of our lives an appealing notion. In the long run, yoga would say it’s better for a person to face life head on, and deal with the emotions in the present. Otherwise, unresolved issues tend to bury deeply within, and keep the person from growth.
Whatever your thoughts are about this ancient practice, or if you have ever thought about practicing yoga as an adjunct to your sport, it can’t be denied yoga has emerged in gyms and studios throughout the world as a popular form of exercise. With the nature of poses, yoga is physical exercise, but not the only reason to practice or the most important.
There are specific poses to enhance and strengthen each part of the body, inside and out. And there are individual poses to help areas of the body and mind heal when they are out of balance. The application of these poses is useful to participation in any sport, as well as in healing injuries. My saying for many years has been, “There’s a pose for that.” Even hospitals and rehabilitation centers use yoga poses (asanas) to help their patients heal. This therapeutic application of yoga for maintaining health, increasing sports ability, and healing sports injuries and health problems due to debilitating illnesses, is a subject I’ll explore in later columns.
What drew me to yoga seventeen years ago was one of my beloved daughters who had heard yoga would help with her anxiety. As an RN, I was intrigued by this statement, more so as a mother supportive of her child, and decided to join her in testing the hypothesis. We enrolled at a park district class. It turned out she was right and I became passionate about this practice, expanding my own to several advanced teacher trainings, therapeutic trauma certifications, and a beginning certification in Ayurveda, the sister science of yoga. Both my daughters practice yoga.
Beware the sport of yoga
To most practitioners, yoga is not considered a sport, at least in its classical form. The philosophy of yoga discourages you from competition, a common aspect of sports, but rather encourages you to explore, acknowledge, and listen to your body and mind for the answers to your questions, the answers contained within you from birth. It is a body-driven practice.
That said, the International Federation of Sports Yoga established yoga as a competition in India in 1989, and USA Yoga has been holding competitions in this country since 2009, claiming competitions existed in India for hundreds of years.
USA Yoga even registered yoga as a sport for the 2016 summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, but I have found no evidence that this competition ever happened. I have viewed grainy black-and-white footage from India of boys and young men in yoga demonstrations that may or may not have been competitions from earlier in the 20th century. Girls and women were denied until Sri Krishnamacharya opened the practice to all, teaching his first female student, Indra Devi, in the 1930s-1940s.
Complement to life and sport
I maintain my position, based on the tenets of yoga, that classical yoga is not a sport. Rather, it’s a complement to any sport or activity, and it’s a complement to life. If yoga can’t be described in one particular thought or sentence, and it isn’t its own sport, then what is it and what can it do for us?
Let’s start with the word “yoga,” which is Sanskrit, an ancient language used today only by scholars and yogis. “Yoga” means “to yoke.” Yoke what to what? As with so many aspects of yoga, this is open to interpretation. Yoke the body to the mind and the spirit (some say soul). Yoke breath to movement. Yoke the self to the Self for discovery of your personal truth. Yoke the individual to the Divine, whatever your definition of that may be—God, Mother Nature, the highest and best part of ourselves.
To understand it, yoga must be experienced and physically practiced. You can read all the Vedic (ancient) texts, study the philosophy, know the Sanskrit names of the poses, and still not have a clue.
The physical application matters. Any physical manifestation of the eight limbs of yoga is called hatha or ashtanga (8 limbs) yoga. Variations of hatha include vinyasa flow, anusara, hot, yin, restorative, and power, as examples. The eight limbs are the key. As with most lists, including the ones for this philosophy (yoga is not a religion), the important tenets are listed first. They are the yamas and niyamas, which are guidelines for living compassionately with yourself and with the world. Third is asana, the poses, and the part with which most of us are familiar. Notice its third place in the order.
The fourth limb, and my personal favorite, is pranayama (breathwork). You carry your breath with you, have no life without it, and it is one of the functions of the body you can change in order to positively impact other body functions: slow heart rate, lower blood pressure and cortisol levels, steady your balance, and calm and focus a racing mind. Fifth is pratyahara, withdrawal of the senses, an outward-to-inward movement toward the next limb, dharana, focused concentration. Yoga is an inside job! Think of how well you function when you are focused.
Next is the important dhyana, meditation, the practice of the original yogis, the reason they may have prepared the body with poses, allowing them to sit in meditation to focus the mind. When your mind is focused, you can think clearly, respond accurately to others, and you have discernment and right knowledge. You may get up off the sofa at whatever age or ability and pursue your physical passions, whether silent sports, walking the dog, taking a yoga class, or gardening. You may even win a race with a clear mind. I guarantee you’ll feel better.
The last limb, and highest goal of yoga, is samadhi, enlightenment. Good luck with that one! We’ve all been allowed glimpses of it, the feeling of perfect contentment, and freedom contingent on nothing other than our existence. Our lives are the same, we are still in the same physical form, we have not won a lottery, and our children still don’t listen to us. Yet, there it is, a feeling of completeness that comes from no outside source. That’s the goal. That’s the payoff, the gold medal rolled into one fantastic feeling.
Don’t just read it. Do it.
If practicing yoga has ever appealed to you, perhaps played in the corners of your mind as an unknown form of exercise or supplement to you silent sports, I encourage you to take a class at your local yoga studio or gym, trying several classes at various places to find a knowledgeable and safe instructor. You’ll know it’s the right class when the instructor recognizes and respects you for your age and ability.
As one of my first teachers said, “Yoga meets you right where you are and takes you somewhere far better.” Maybe that far better place will be the finish line of a race, the end of a one-mile walk around the neighborhood, or the time you take to stand back and view your beautiful garden. Yoga—for your silent sports, but also well beyond.
See you on the mat!
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I have been fortunate enough to practice yoga under Nancy Wedemeyer’s expert instruction for several years now. Not only has it enriched my life in all the ways she details in her article, it has given me a grounding philosophy that now seems as effortless as breathing itself. And the choice of instructor plays a huge role in this process. I had tried a couple of studios and online videos before I found Nancy’s class at our local park district. I knew right away it was the right fit. Nancy was then, and remains to this day, a gentle guide, respectful of her students’ needs, strengths and limitations. I encourage everyone to find a yoga practice that suits them, and hope they are as fortunate as those of us who call Nancy friend as well as teacher.
Great read! I love the statement that “ Yoga encourages you to explore, acknowledge, and listen to your body and mind for the answers to your questions.” I’m looking forward to more of these articles in the future.
I have been fortunate enough to practice yoga under Nancy Wedemeyer’s expert instruction for several years now. Not only has it enriched my life in all the ways she details in her article, it has given me a grounding philosophy that now seems as effortless as breathing itself. And the choice of instructor plays a huge role in this process. I had tried a couple of studios and online videos before I found Nancy’s class at our local park district. I knew right away it was the right fit. Nancy was then, and remains to this day, a gentle guide, respectful of her students’ needs, strengths and limitations. I encourage everyone to find a yoga practice that suits them, and hope they are as fortunate as those of us who call Nancy friend as well as teacher.
Great article! It seems like the breathwork from yoga can translate so easily to all sports—and all parts of life. Thanks for the insight!
Great read! I love the statement that “ Yoga encourages you to explore, acknowledge, and listen to your body and mind for the answers to your questions.” I’m looking forward to more of these articles in the future.