I never thought that I could enjoy yoga this much!

As an insurance agent, I often need to visit my clients in their homes. Under the fierce rays of the sun my 90kg body sweats easily and profusely. “I want to loose weight! I want to loose weight!” I could hear myself screaming from the bottom of my heart. So, I joined A Fitness Club in the hopes of becoming thinner. I enrolled in a variety of classes, Spinning, Body Pump, Swimming…everyday I pushed myself to exhaustion. Despite all of my efforts, I did not reach my goal of losing weight, instead I endured many sport injuries. Gradually I lost my faith and the enthusiasm to exercise.

Than one day, I went to the fitness center and through the glass windows I saw a bunch of people twisting, stretching and turning their bodies upside down. I stopped and watched with curiosity. I wondered what this class was? I checked the class schedule and discovered it was Yoga. There were many yoga classes on the timetable. I didn’t know which one to try first? I was feeling adventurous so I decided to try out each class. By chance, I started with Power Yoga, and as a result my muscles were sore for six days.

Due to exhaustion I often had to start Savasana early, before the class ended. Disapprovingly the teacher told me I should not be a bad role model for the other students. However, I was an unabashed insurance salesman and I was certainly not afraid of failure. Half a year went by in this way with the teachers dislike for me growing. My muscles gradually developed strength. One day the teacher announced a new course: Ashtanga Yoga. Ashtanga Yoga is a string of powerful but fluid movements done in combination with Ujayyi breathing. It develops both strength and flexibility. From that time on, I devoted myself to the practice of Ashtanga. The weekly practice of Ashtanga yoga became my favorite time and my confidence in myself grew.

Less than half a year into the practice, the Ashtanga Yoga class was cancelled. I was not yet familiar with the all the postures and the news came as a great shock to me. I tried to find another class to replace it. I even went to other yoga centers, but somehow nothing could replace the class. Finally one day I came to SPACE and found – Mysore, unlike the others it satisfied all my needs. Mysore differs from other yoga classes, it is self led. Students practice under the guidance of the teacher, going at their own pace, The teacher often reminds us ‘Let the breath guide the movements, and eventually you will progress naturally.’ In the beginning, I couldn’t fully grasp this concept, however as my practice grew, I gradually realized that in the past, I pushed myself to hard using my ego. Now I understand the most important thing is to keep a smooth, continuous flow of breaths and a sense of calm in the heart. With this understanding, I am able to perform asanas without too much effort. This would have been impossible in the past.

Now I am no longer known as the chubby guy, my efforts in practicing yoga really surprised my friends. Furthermore my clients see me differently and often ask me how to practice yoga to improve their health. ‘Life will find its way’, this is a quote by the math professor from movie ‘Jurasic Park’. It is my favorite quote, There is so much hidden potential and power in each of us. Yoga has helped me to connect to my inner power. It is reflected in every aspect of my life and now I have the confidence and belief that I can achieve anything that I set my mind on! To love one self and ones family is truly a gift. I will continue to explore my passion for yoga. I am thankful to all the teachers who have taught me and all SPACE teachers.