Five things I didn’t know I would learn when stepping on my mat by Bec Altman (Yoga NRG Teacher Trainee)
1. Yoga teaches you to BREATHE! And I don’t mean just sub-consciously breathe in and out… I
mean BR…E…A…TH…E man!! Breathe with meaning, know you are breathing in and know
you are breathing out! Breath through stressful situations at work, breath through an
intense vinyasa flow or gym class, breathe when you partner is being a (insert your choice of
word here).
2. It teaches you to be a better person to others and take control of your responses. Someone
cuts in front of you in the que at Woolies, “mehh, they’re probably in hurry”. Someone
makes a snide remark at you, “ah, they must be going through something”. A colleague eats
your lunch out the fridge, “they must have been really hungry”.
3. It teaches you to be a better person to yourself. You become content with what you have.
You no longer feel the need to waste energy and financial hardship on a big expensive
house, or feel the need to get your nails done every second week. You become kind to
yourself, “wow, Jenny looks so good, look me, I’m just a big fat blob”… “No, no, no – look at
me, look at what my body can do! I am enough, and will always be enough, I am grateful for
who and what I am”!
4. It teaches you to take a break and not feel guilty for it. “I’m going to go to yoga, I’m going to
work my arse of in some crazy poses, and at the end, I am going to lay down like I’m dead and have a nap. Not think about my chores, work, friends, family, nothing – I’m literally
going to think about nothing”.
5. Best of all – it teaches you to not be bat shit crazy! I have come from a place where I didn’t
know controlling your thought was actually a thing. Now, most the time when I flow on my
mat, sit quietly, or pretend I’m dead (shavasana), I can clear my mind and feel nothing but
complete silence. This does not mean that I don’t have thoughts that come in, I’m just like
anyone else, I have just learnt to be able to acknowledge the thought in that moment and
let it go until it will better serve me. If I have a nasty thought about myself or another, I am
quick to catch myself out and not let that negativity overrule me.
My energy is mostly used
on thoughts, conversations, people and things that I know will be an investment to me. I
have been on my yoga journey for around two years, I will always be on my yoga journey,
leading towards brighter and happier places. This will come with continuous practice,
sometimes falling off my magic carpet (mat), but feeling the fall, and always knowing it’s
going to get better once I get back on.
Bec Altman
Congratulations Bec on completing your 200 hour Certification for Yoga Teacher Training with Yoga NRG & Mindfulness Training
Bec is passionate about using what she has learnt through her Nutrition Studies and Yoga to pass it on and support people to be healthy. Well done Bec! You did it – managing to complete your training through a move, work, covid…..goes to show patience, perseverance and persistency pays off and anything is possible when you keep going:)
The Yoga NRG Team is cheering you on and sending you a big big congrats from QLD down to you in NSW.
Namaste
