Getting up from the floor

While the studies on yoga continue to spout evidence that yoga cures what ails you, I like to hear from my students what yoga has done for them.

It’s one thing to read in “Light on Yoga” that the effect of doing downward facing dog helps “remove fatigue and bring back the lost energy. The pose is especially good for runners who get tired after a hard race. The pose relieves pain and stiffness in the heels. It strengthens the ankles and makes the legs shapely. The practice of this pose helps to eradicate stiffness in the region of the shoulder blades, and arthritis of the shoulder joints is relieved. This is an exhilarating pose”.  It’s something entirely different to ask someone who, before yoga, couldn’t sit on the floor to play with her grandchildren.

One of my students, Marilyn (who has given me permission to tell her story), is a sixty something year old woman with two young grandchildren. Since their birth she’s been their main babysitter. In fact, besides grandma and grandpa, they’ve never had another babysitter. In addition to being a bit over weight she also suffers from multiple scoliosis. With the encouragement of a friend of hers, she took her first yoga class about a year and a half ago.

She started in “special needs” yoga, where she worked in a sequence that was made specifically for her, targeting her areas of need, working in a very mindful way under the watchful eye of a talented teacher and assistants. After a number of months of yoga, she found she could get on the floor, and, more importantly, back up again. One day, when she got on the floor to play with her grandchildren, they noticed right away, saying, “Grandma, you’re on the floor with us!” Now Marilyn takes yoga with me, continuing to strengthen her body and work on her balance.

Although I love hearing my students tell me after class that they made some progress in a pose (we usually call this a “yoga miracle”) such as pushing up into a backbend or balancing in headstand, it warms my heart that much more when I hear how yoga has made a big impact on their life off the mat. For Marilyn, yoga has led to something as simple as being able to sit on the floor with her grandchildren and contributes to building a closer relationship with them. And, maybe more importantly, because of her yoga practice, she knows she can get up off the floor when they’re done playing.

Why not see what yoga can do for you this summer? The Yoga Space has a six week summer session beginning July 7. Check us out at www.yogaspaceannarbor.com.

Each week one of the teachers at the Yoga Space shares her thoughts and experiences in this blog. Pam Lindberg is a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher at The Yoga Space, a studio just east of Dexter serving Dexter, Saline, Chelsea, Manchester and Ann Arbor.  We have been helping people with their flexibility, strength, focus and stress management for over 14 years. Summer session begins July 7. We offer a free class the last Friday of each month from 6-7 pm. 180 Little Lake Dr #1 Ann Arbor, MI, 48103. www.yogaspaceannarbor.com 734-622-9600