About Tonight: A blog

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Why I do Yoga

I feel like this topic has been done and re-done by so many people, but I still feel like I should write this. That I need to write it. A part of it is because I’m just starting this blog and a good portion will probably be about yoga, so I want people to know why. But I also think that some of this I just need to get out. So hear goes.

To be honest, one of the main reasons I do yoga is because I’m “good” at it. I’m fairly strong, and for a guy my size, I’m pretty flexible. A lot of yoga is about increasing strength and flexibility, so overall it’s fairly easy for me. But there’s more too it than that. If I already have the strength and flexibility, then why practice yoga? It’s to challenge myself, to see where I can go. You see, there’s always a next step in yoga. The first time a teacher encouraged me to go to a more advanced posture (lift one leg up while in a backbend) my response was, “Do what?!” The thought of being able to do it seemed so absurd that I fell to the floor laughing. It seemed that impossible. But it stuck in my head and few weeks later I tried it. And I did it. I was so excited and I got a little more hooked on yoga. Now when a teacher asks me to do something that is new and seems impossible, my first response is still, “Do what?!” but now that only lasts for a couple seconds. Then I think, “Can I do this?” A big part of yoga is self assessment. So sometimes I decide it’s a little beyond me, but other times I try it. I’ll tell ya, when you’re able to do something that you previously thought was impossible, it’s an amazing feeling.

Another reason I do yoga is that it’s good for my mind. I simply feel better mentally when I do it. There are times when there is so much going on in my head that my mind feels like a hamster running around inside a ball. In a pinball machine. It gets a little crazy in there. But yoga helps. To me yoga is like meditation in motion. It’s simply being present and staying as focused as possible for the duration of the class. One of the best thing a yoga teacher ever told me was, “For the next 90 minutes turn off your mind. As you go through the poses, listen to my cues and do what I say. My mind, your body.” That statement gave me the freedom to let go of what I was thinking about, to relax and simply be present for the duration of the class. And I kept that calmness with me as I left the yoga studio.

A third aspect is about spirituality. When I first started doing yoga it was strictly about getting in a good workout, and that was enough. Then, after hanging out in a yoga studio, learning more about yoga and making friends with other yogi’s, I realized I was getting another benefit, which was I felt better in my spirit. What I found is that being surrounded by like minded people (those who are trying to improve themselves and the world around them), really helps keep me inspired to do the same. It helps me take eyes off of myself and look more at the world around me. To me, that is what’s good for my soul and therefore, spiritual. Now, I also consider myself to be a Christian. While that’s not necessarily popular, that’s what I believe. And as I learned more about yoga, I found that many of the same principles are taught in both yoga and Christianity. In general, I simply try to stick with loving myself, loving others and hopefully making the world a better place to live in, for everyone. Then I try and leave the rest at the door.

In the end, yoga gives me peace of mind, and that peace of mind helps me deal with what’s going on in my life. Sometimes it’s from the rush of doing something new that I previously thought impossible. Other times it’s about doing something old but making that one small tweak and doing it better. Then there are times when it’s simply about doing something. To give myself a reason to get out the door, do something healthy for myself and be around positive people. For someone who tends to be introverted and deals with depression on a near daily basis, I often NEED a reason to get out the door.

There really are a ton of other benefits to yoga, but these are the main ones for me. They are the reasons that help get me out the door and back to the yoga studio time after time. And if I have to do yoga in a room full of fit, attractive women, I guess I’ll just have to suffer through…

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Why Revel Living

I’ve been thinking about blogging for a long time now, but it looks like I’m finally getting the guts to do it. There is so much that I could write about, but what do I really know? The first thing that pops into my mind is my depression. Over my lifetime I’ve seen a bunch of therapist, tried different drugs and herbal remedies, but they only seemed to work for the short term, if at all. The key for me was acceptance. To accept that sometimes I’ll be sad. It’s OK.

But the other side of that is knowing that I don’t have to stay there. There are things that I can do that will help me get out of, lessen, minimize, whatever you want to call it, my depression. Some things that have helped me are yoga, meditation, and eating healthy. Well, at least healthier. No more Blizzard a day keeps the doc away attitude (yes, there was a time I went for months eating a Blizzard daily). But also doing things that give me joy, and doing them regularly. Figuring out what I love about life, like yoga, bike riding, hiking…and my puppy.

So, do I want to focus on depression? No. What I really  want to talk about is living with it, and living fully. To understand what makes me tick and turns me on, and hopefully to help others try to figure that out as well. I’ve been blessed to have people in my life that have inspired me, and I want to try to pass that on, in my own way.

Now, why Revel Living? To be honest, I really liked Rebel Living. That speaks to me be cause I tend to be a bit of a rebel in life. If someone says “go left” I go right. If they say “up,” I say “down.” I often don’t mean to, it’s just one of the ways I seem to have been made, and something to note so I can catch it when it pops up in life. But, the first time I mentioned it to someone they mis-heard me and heard revel instead of rebel. And I liked the sound of it even better. So I looked the words up to make sure the message I wanted to convey was in the name. This is what I found.

Revel – enjoy oneself in a lively and noisy way, especially with drinking and dancing.

Living – a particular manner, state, or status of life or the pursuit of a lifestyle of the specified type.

Sooo, to me revel living means “the pursuit of a lifestyle of enjoying oneself in a lively and noisy way…especially with drinking and dancing.” Further translation – find out what you love to do, and DO it. Especially with drinking and dancing. Ha!

So get out there. Climb a mountain. Go for a drive. Pet a puppy, or kitten or bunny or chinchilla. Read a book, write a book. Sit down and talk to a friend over a glass of wine, beer, coffee or kombucha. And if all that sounds like too much, then just step outside, and simply breathe. That small step is a great start.