Goals

Funny thing about a public Yoga class.   People of all shapes and sizes and abilities get together to practices.   Of course you have your young city classes where everyone has 2% body fat and can touch the ground with their ears but for most of us,  that is not where we will end up. We probably will be in a mixed class in a suburb of some city with a mixture of people and ages.  Each person is really doing what they can do,  but there is  no doubt that we look around us and see how others are doing.  

It is easy to get frustrated when you see the young (and not so young) showing strength and flexibility beyond what you have.   One has to remember that Yoga is within you and that there is no competition.  We need to make sure that we work on what we are good at  (which is easy) but more importantly we need to work on what we are not so good at  (there is no bad in Yoga).  Most importantly,  one needs goals in Yoga.  Not just general goals,  but specific ones as well that show progress.    The also need to be SMART goals without the T.   Specific,  Measurable,  Attainable and Realistic.   The T (time based) should not be used. Who knows when your body will actually let you do so.

When I first started practicing,   I had terrible hamstring and lower back flexibility.   At least one time a year I would pull some muscle (which I know know is the Psoas) in my lower back that would hunch me over and from time to time require bed rest.  Once  I had terrible back spasms which  required medication and I was off from work for a week.   I think that if I bent over,  my fingers (pointing down) barely reached my ankles  (to be honest I cannot remember how far I could reach down).   Obviously a goal for me was just to touch my toes with the tops of my fingers during a forward bend.   Touching my toes meant two things,  my hamstrings and my lower back were both stretching.    By putting this goal in place,  it gave me something to work for that could show real progress.  It was specific,  measurable,  attainable and realistic.     Those 2 or 3 inches in back and hamstring flexibility was a real goal that I knew was a great thing for me.   There were also many different poses that helped both of those parts be flexible.   It made going to class and practicing at home worthwhile.

18 months later,  my new goal (along with a few others) is to lay my hands flat on the floor in a forward bend.   I do not know if I ever will get there but I can feel  the progress.

So set Goals in your practice..   You need to practice for a reason.   It is not easy.