YOGA + MOVEMENT
TRANSCENDING BALANCE BY CORTNEY FRANKLIN (SHE/HER)
M
any of us, when we think about practicing yoga, immediately feel a sense of intimidation. Thoughts of arm balances, complex postures, and smooth transitions create an unrealistic picture in our mind of the practice. I know this from my own experience. I avoided yoga for many years based on an irrational belief that it was not for me. It was out of my league; I couldn’t practice yoga. I hadn’t even really tried! I held a preconceived, wildly incorrect image of the practice in my rigid mind. I thought yoga was for someone perfectly toned, flexible, relaxed, and Zen. For heaven’s sake, I could hardly put one foot in front of the other and walk most days, let alone attempt to gracefully contort my body into a standing bow pose. Nope. Not for me. So, I avoided it. I began practicing yoga while going through my divorce. A dear friend of mine dragged me to a couple Vinyasa classes and I enjoyed it, mostly because we spent time together and always stopped for Panera Bread on the way home. But it hadn’t quite spoken to my soul yet. It hadn’t clicked. The moment it did, the class turned my perception upside down and will be forever etched in my memory. I ventured to a class on my own. I was tired, sad, and looking to spend a few hours doing something that would take my mind off missing my kids. It was a Yoga Sculpt class and, if you’re familiar with the format, you know it’s intense. I wasn’t sure what to expect. The class was packed. I would guess 50-60 people
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