The era of big advances in my Yoga practice is gone. What I have settled down to is a consistent practice where my body limitations, my age, and my activity are balancing each other out. Even though I try, I know that I will most likely never do a split or a peacock or firefly pose. My body is just not built that way.
I have read that after a few years of practice, your skeleton defines your limitations. Individual bodies are not built to do all the possible movements that humans on the whole can do. This means that not every body can do every pose in yoga. I know that there are many poses that I cannot do because of my age or physical limitations, but I understand these limitations and work around it. I do not dwell on my limits.
Yoga (and my diet guidelines) has brought to me an enormous amount of benefits both physical and psychological. Physically I am stronger, more flexible, have better balance and more endurance. I no longer fear sneezing or bending down to pick something up. Any superfluous body fat is pretty much gone. I feel as though my whole body is in line with itself as I have the core strength and flexibility that I did not have before I started my practice. The hours spent on the mat concentrating on breathing or holding long poses has given me a level of tranquility and patience that I did not have before I began my practice. I can now sit quietly for 20 minutes where before I could barely sit still for one. My practice has changed me immensely.
Yoga is integrated in my life. I cannot conceive of going for more than one day without practicing. Some days it may only be for 30 minutes but I still practice. There are times where I go for weeks practicing every day. I have practiced in hotel rooms, parks, basements, my mother's living room, anywhere I can find a spot to put my mat. I have done thousands of Sun Salutations and will continue to do them until I cannot do them anymore. When that day comes, I will find another pose to replace it.
I started this blog so that maybe one person who reads it will decide to follow a similar path. It is not an easy one. It takes effort and patience. It takes determination. There really is no quick way to good health. No pill or new invention can replace diet and exercise. The rewards for this effort is great, however, and thus worth every second you exercise and every piece of bad food you decide not to eat.
Namaste.
