If you read the blog about me, you already know that I have a chronic illness and that I try not to let that stop me from doing what I love. One of those things is yoga. Yoga, which means union, helps to bring balance to my life by joining my mind, body and spirit. Yoga can be a very physical activity, depending on the type of yoga that you practice. Prior to my cervical fusion in 2009 I practiced power yoga. I would leave class not only feeling invigorated but also tired from a very physical class. I became a fitness instructor in 1994 and that’s what I thought, that you had to leave every workout either extremely fatigued or exhausted. Now don’t get me wrong, I know exercise is a physical activity and you should feel like you have exerted yourself when you are finished, but after my surgery I also knew that my body wasn’t ready to push that hard recovering from such a major trauma. In fact, the doctors told me that I probably wouldn’t be able to practice yoga ever again. I had a lot to time to contemplate this during recovery and I made up my mind that even though I may not could return to my prior practice, that didn’t mean I couldn’t have a practice! I felt like there may be other people out there recovering from cancer treatments, going through cancer treatments and even people living with chronic illnesses that doctors have told the same thing to: You can’t return to your previous level of physical activity. And that’s how Renew Yoga was born! First, I wanted to prove to myself that I could have a yoga practice and that I could get stronger each day. Second, I wanted to prove to the doctors that it could be done. I started my first Renew Yoga class in the Fall of 2012. My yoga class is specifically designed for the needs of each individual. I teach a lot of modifications and provide accommodations for those that need it. Now my classes have grown to 10-12 weekly members who have also proven to themselves that they can have a “physical” practice of yoga and they can at least start to find some resemblance of what their life was prior to a cancer or chronic illness diagnosis. You can find more pictures and posts about the classes on Instagram
~ Namaste~
