It's All About Balance - My Yoga Journey
I went to my first yoga class nearly 20 years ago. My mum signed us up for a beginner’s course as something that we could to do together. I remember how grounded I felt and the sense of balance I had afterwards. Which was exactly what I needed as a 19-year-old trying to navigate life. Even though I enjoyed the course I didn't try any more classes for a while.A few years later my interest in exercise and movement grew. This wasn’t something I’d ever enjoyed before so I wanted to start in a comfortable environment. I began with yoga videos at home in my lounge room. I loved setting up my space, lighting as many candles as possible and practising. In 2008 I had the courage to go to an actual class again. Unfortunately, the class I went to was super intimidating and brought back my fear of judgement. I didn’t go back for another few years.
I’ve been drawn to the practice of yoga over and over again throughout the years, but have struggled to find an environment that I felt comfortable in. Eventually, I did and that’s when I really fell in love with yoga. I’m not a confident person and I have a lot of self-doubts. Even now, I still get nervous trying something new if it's in an unfamiliar setting. But when I step onto my yoga mat and start moving, all those feelings disappear. It’s the one place that I feel like I'm myself. My mat doesn’t judge me, it doesn’t care if I don’t know what I’m doing, or if I’m having a bad day. It’s just me being who I am in that moment and I love it. It’s the only time in my life that I ever feel like that.
Yoga Teacher Training
Once I had a solid personal practice and found a studio that I absolutely loved, I started to get interested in doing a yoga teacher training (YTT). My first thought when I heard about it was “that’s something I really want to do”. But I wasn’t surrounded by people who understood and I didn’t have the confidence to really go after what I wanted, particularly alone. So for years, it was something that I was going to do “one day”, “when I was ready”.
About a year ago I met a new yoga teacher, mentor and now dear friend (you know who you are xx) who really helped me to grow and gain confidence. So in 2019 I finally decided that it was time to jump in. After weeks of research, I found a course that resonated with me. I chose a two-week intensive course in Portugal, run by the amazing Charlie Stewart-Brown, the founder of Indiv Yoga Switzerland. If you're looking for a supportive, thorough and well-rounded course, then I can highly recommend this one!
Even as I left for Portugal I had a lot of self-doubt and didn’t really feel like I was ready. But I knew that it was something I wanted to do, even if only for myself, and that there was no reason not to go for it. I knew that I was going to learn more about yoga, strengthen my own personal practice and probably meet some nice people along the way. But I never dreamt that the whole experience would be so life-changing and one of the most unforgettable things I have ever done. I made some really amazing friendships and learnt so much more than I could ever have imagined. Plus the villa was such a beautiful place to learn!
What Did I Gain From This Experience?
Other than a deeper knowledge of yoga history and philosophy, increased asana understanding and confidence, I also made incredible new friends.
My perspective on life has changed and I feel like my eyes are now open to a whole new way of living. Yes, I learnt many things about the history and physical practice of yoga, which I am extremely grateful for. But I also learnt so much about myself. I learnt more about my strengths and weaknesses and to appreciate them, accept them and not judge them. The intense environment that we were in meant that there was no space to hide your feelings. There were so many tears! I also learnt a great deal about how I see and treat other people. Letting myself be so vulnerable in front of strangers and feeling their support was amazing. I’m happy that I was able to provide the same support back to the others when they were having tough times of their own.
I’m so glad I chose an intensive environment to learn. It meant that I could really eat, sleep and breathe yoga for two weeks. It showed me how wonderful it is to live a full yogic lifestyle. I left Portugal with more confidence in myself than I’ve ever had and a strong desire to introduce more people to yoga.
I find it really hard to express in words, just how much I gained from meeting Charlie, learning from her, stepping out of my comfort zone and meeting the other amazing women on the course. I’m truly grateful for the gift that I have been given and I’m so glad that when I finally went for it, this was the course I found myself on.
What’s Next?
Now that I've completed my 200-hour training and am registered with Yoga Alliance, I'm ready to start teaching. I’m looking forward to guiding others through some of the ways I learnt to live yoga both on and off the mat. I want to introduce people to yoga in a non-intimidating way. I want everyone to know that yoga is for everybody, of every size, shape, ability, confidence level etc. Nobody should feel intimidated going to a yoga class and I hope to provide a supportive environment for people to learn not just about yoga, but more about themselves and others as well. People should walk away from my classes feeling empowered and ready to go out and do good in the world.
It's All About Balance
Since being home and back in the real world I’ve noticed how much my perspective on life has changed. Yes, I still get stressed, and moody and fearful. But I also feel more balanced and like I’m living my life with more purpose. I look at the world with a little less fear now and feel more at ease. I feel like these mental shifts have also had an impact on my physical practice. I’m less scared to try.
If you'd like to join me for a yoga class in Stockholm you can find all my details here.
Cheers, Jess