YOGA + Life® Magazines
  • Partner With Us
  • Subscribe
  • Education, Trainings + Retreats
  • Events
  • “The Practice”
  • HOME
  • FEATURED
    • Community + Culture
    • Wellness + Nutrition
    • Products
    • Profiles
    • Yoga + Fitness
    • Events
  • ALL CONTENT
    • Community + Culture
      • Art
      • Books
      • Community
      • Culture
      • Family
      • Fashion
      • Food + Drink
      • Nourish Me
      • Motivation
      • Music
      • Outdoors
      • Travel
    • Wellness + Nutrition
      • Self-Care
      • Nutrition
      • Psychology
      • Recipes
      • Therapy
      • Weight Loss
    • Products
      • Product Spotlights
      • Roundups
      • Try It On – Reviews
      • Try It Out – Reviews
    • Profiles
      • Business
      • Partner Profiles
      • People
      • Spotlight Cities
      • Students
      • Studios
      • Teachers
      • Seva Story
      • Sustainability Story
      • Storytelling
    • Yoga + Fitness
      • Asana
      • In the Practice
      • Meditation
      • Philosophy
      • Physiology
      • Sports
      • Workouts
    • Events
      • Festivals
      • Retreats
      • Training Spotlights
    • Inspiration From Y+L Partners
  • Y + L COMMUNITIES
    • COLORADO
    • MINNESOTA
    • NEW YORK
  • CONNECT
    • Order A Magazine
    • Advertise With Us
    • Contribute
    • Contact Us
  • LIVE CLASSES
Featured Posts
  • What We Love : Summer + Fall 2022
    • 25 views
  • photo of leaves
    Celebrating the Seasons with Ayurveda | By Marissa Angeletti
    • 45 views
  • Introducing Lightworker UV : Fitness & Yoga Mat Sanitizer
    • 66 views
  • Partner With Us
  • Subscribe
  • Education, Trainings + Retreats
  • Events
  • “The Practice”
0 Followers
0 Likes
Partners
YOGA + Life® Magazines
Subscribe
  • HOME
  • FEATURED
    • Community + Culture
    • Wellness + Nutrition
    • Products
    • Profiles
    • Yoga + Fitness
    • Events
  • ALL CONTENT
    • Community + Culture
      • Art
      • Books
      • Community
      • Culture
      • Family
      • Fashion
      • Food + Drink
      • Nourish Me
      • Motivation
      • Music
      • Outdoors
      • Travel
    • Wellness + Nutrition
      • Self-Care
      • Nutrition
      • Psychology
      • Recipes
      • Therapy
      • Weight Loss
    • Products
      • Product Spotlights
      • Roundups
      • Try It On – Reviews
      • Try It Out – Reviews
    • Profiles
      • Business
      • Partner Profiles
      • People
      • Spotlight Cities
      • Students
      • Studios
      • Teachers
      • Seva Story
      • Sustainability Story
      • Storytelling
    • Yoga + Fitness
      • Asana
      • In the Practice
      • Meditation
      • Philosophy
      • Physiology
      • Sports
      • Workouts
    • Events
      • Festivals
      • Retreats
      • Training Spotlights
    • Inspiration From Y+L Partners
  • Y + L COMMUNITIES
    • COLORADO
    • MINNESOTA
    • NEW YORK
  • CONNECT
    • Order A Magazine
    • Advertise With Us
    • Contribute
    • Contact Us
  • LIVE CLASSES
  • CO YOGA + Life
  • Inspiration
  • Wellness
  • Yoga + Fitness

Physicality to Spirituality | By Lexi Reich

  • Lexi Reich | Managing Editor
  • 213 views
  • 4 minute read
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0

The physicality of yoga is what initially captures most practitioner’s eyes. Photos of extreme flexibility in yoga poses populate social media and create an image of who can and should practice yoga. But, only attending to the body creates an imbalance, similar to what I was experiencing as a runner.

As someone with limiting physical abilities because of past running injuries, I find it is essential to see that the practice offers much more than physical benefits. Yoga means to unify the mind, body and soul.

Yoga means to unify the mind, body and soul.

Born and raised in Chicago, I began my running career at 14 years old. The city energy combined with my high school cross country and track teams’ support ignited an intensity within me that urged me to go, go, go. I was the runner who, if her watch read 6.93 miles and her tongue was swollen from dehydration, wouldn’t stop until the mileage read 7.01. My limbs ached with lactic acid thick as frosting yet I was addicted to the high. For me, running started off as a positive sport that slimmed my figure and my free hours alike, teaching me time management and dedication. But if I went a day without running, I’d sit with pattering feet and a mind fogged with disappointment. I bought new gym shoes almost every other month because of the mileage I put on.

I ignored my body’s signs of wear and tear, the shooting pain up my shins as I took the stairs to chemistry class.

But when my cross country team placed third at the state meet my sophomore year, I believed not even child birth could compare to the happiness I experienced in that moment.

My running career met its demise after four years, two stress fractures and one debilitating case of tendonitis later.

I meditated on gratification and belonging without realizing the lines I was crossing. I honored not my inner self, but external validation. Like my endurance, my running community faded and took my sense of self with it. It is human nature to yearn for a sense of belonging, to feel valued in one’s community — it’s survival.

It is human nature to yearn for a sense of belonging, to feel valued in one’s community — it’s survival.

I graduated high school with my final track season of bench-warming and self-pity behind me.

After moving across the country to attend the University of Colorado Boulder, I went to one of my first yoga classes at a local studio. It had been four months since my last attempt to race. I came to my mat with the sole intent of moving my body in a new way that wouldn’t strain my injuries. I had no idea of the true healing power I would find, but it took time. It really had very little to do with the physical postures themselves and much more with igniting the mind, body and soul as one.

Boulder is a hub for the yoga scene growing rapidly throughout the country. The studio I stumbled upon heated its yoga room like a sauna. I spent more minutes on push-ups than the 30-second Savasana, or resting pose, at the conclusion of class.

Exercise-based yoga classes make for an incredible workout and reach a wide audience of practitioners. It was exciting to feel that fire within myself again, but I soon discovered my healing would be more than mere rest from impact on my joints, but a reintegration of my mind and body.

I soon discovered my healing would be more than mere rest from impact on my joints, but a reintegration of my mind and body.

Tracing forward to my second semester of college, a friend from school invited me to a yoga space in a normal-temperature room with props and murals of yoga Gods on the wall.

Nestled in the Rocky Mountains, I was far from the city energy that propelled my need to constantly be on the move. The yoga teacher leading the class I was taking cued her students to close their eyes during Warrior II, the classic pose that pops up on most yoga Google searches.

There were no mirrors available to analyze the way my body fit into the pose. Instead, we were instructed to tune inside to see how the pose interacted with our body. It took a few breaths of resistance to close my eyes, but the vulnerability I channeled with surrender released tension from creases in my body I didn’t know existed.

The vulnerability I channeled with surrender released tension from creases in my body I didn’t know existed.

Yoga deities represent divine power already existing within ourselves. Being in their presence in that room guided me to see my sense of belonging and community always existed within myself — all I had to do was look inside.

Yoga as a business (think cash and body-centric) definitely exists as the fitness world engages with the ancient practice. According to “The Science of  Yoga” by William J. Broad, many physical aspects of the practice we think of as traditional yoga today (i.e, Sun Salutations) are simply modern inventions. Like running, it is possible to overdo the competitive edge in the yoga scene, too.

But, with the many forms of yoga on the market today, practicing whichever style that helps you safely delve inside best is valid. It is completely possible to flow at any pace as long as one is mindful and aware of their body. Yoga’s roots are about sustainability and balance within the self.

It would’ve taken a moment of surrender to truly listen to myself and see that 6.87 miles was enough to stop and sip some water.

Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Lexi Reich | Managing Editor
Lexi Reich | Managing Editor

After experiencing a yoga ashram nestled in the mountains of Colorado, Lexi became enthralled in the practice of yoga and meditation, and earned her yoga teacher training at the sacred space. Originally from Chicago, Lexi loves the holistic lifestyle she found in Colorado, and combining this passion with her writing is what makes her truly happy. Outside of her role as Managing Editor at Jaunt Media Collective, the publishing company behind YOGA + Life® and Spoke+Blossom, Lexi spends most of her time freelance writing and leading yoga classes. Besides this, you can find her hiking or daydreaming about traveling. Learn more at lexireich.com

Previous Article
  • CO Events
  • CO YOGA + Life
  • Outdoors

Copper Mountain Hosts “Ladies’ Snow Day” as Part of International Women’s Day March 8

  • Lexi Reich | Managing Editor
View Post
Next Article
  • Asana
  • CO Events
  • CO YOGA + Life
  • Music

Music Moves : Yoga + Live Music on March 13 | By Marilyn Brock

  • Lexi Reich | Managing Editor
View Post
More from Y+L
  • The Vail Wine Classic Returns This August

    • Lexi Reich | Managing Editor
    View Post
  • An Evening with Elizabeth Gilbert : A Revolutionary Woman Is A Relaxed Woman | By Rachel Glowacki

    • YOGA + Life® Magazines
    View Post
  • Telluride Yoga Festival

    Telluride Yoga Festival Makes A Move To Mountain Village | By Kristen Grace

    • CO YOGA + Life®
    View Post
  • Elizabeth Gilbert is Coming to Denver on May 4 | By Kim Fuller

    • CO YOGA + Life®
    View Post
  • Oars

    On The River + In The Flow : Balancing Yoga, Meditation and a Thirst for Whitewater at a Women’s Wellbeing Retreat | By Lisa Blake

    • CO YOGA + Life®
    View Post
  • Break Free Fitness Festival : Colorado’s Largest Fitness Festival With A PARTY Twist

    • YOGA + Life® Magazines
    View Post
  • Vail Symposium Celebrates 50 Years in the Vail Valley | By Katie Coakley

    • CO YOGA + Life®
    View Post
  • Shakti Flow in Mexico : “With Nature, Yoga and Inquiry, We Transformed” | By Peggy Markel

    • YOGA + Life® Magazines
    View Post
  • Tips on Success : Falling Upwards with Nina Williams | By Olivia Lyda

    • CO YOGA + Life®
    View Post
  • Play + Connect at Everland : Sedalia, Colorado | By Lexi Reich

    • Lexi Reich | Managing Editor
    View Post
Archived Posts!
  • Sensory Deprivation & Self Care | By Taylor Rose Worden
    • 201
  • Destination Wellness Retreat : Kinkára, Costa Rica | By Lexi Reich
    • 234
  • Yoga Battle Hymns : Timeless Tunes | By Marc Josef
    • 173
  • Partner Profile : Ayurvedic Protein Co.
    • 72
  • Sound therapy
    Sound Therapy : Harmonize + Heal the Mind-Body Connection | By Kristen Grace
    • 203
Instagram
Join us here on Wednesday, June 22 at 12:15 pm MST for an Instagram LIVE with our Crown Partner @allisonrissel of @yogateacherconf 🧘‍♀️
As yogis, our work starts with spreading our internal light out into the world. LightWorker UV (@lightworkeruv) — the creators behind the industry’s first UV-C mat sanitizing machine — understands this best. As a brand rooted in bringing safety, peace of mind and light back into the yoga and fitness community, its company mantra “We Spread Light” has never been truer.
@maineyogafest ✨CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT✨
Tabay Atkins became one of America’s youngest certified yoga teachers at the age of 10 and has been discovering and sharing tools for wellness since.
Many CBD companies out there make full-spectrum products, but @miraflora.co, a CBD company based in Boulder, CO, takes it to a whole new level, starting with the way they grow the hemp itself. Call it full-spectrum farming, if you will.
RENEWAL 🌱
Can you create a to-do list prioritizing tasks where contentment and meaning mesh together?
@holisticyogaschoolcolorado was born over a decade ago with the intention to create a Yoga Shala, a community place for learning and growth. Krista Davis founded the school, drawing inspiration from many years of traveling, living and teaching in conscious communities and yoga centers around the world. To this day, the school continues to thrive as a family-owned and operated small business.
Facebook
Facebook
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
Join us here on Wednesday, June 22 at 12:15 pm MST for an Instagram LIVE with our Crown Partner @allisonrissel of @yogateacherconf 🧘‍♀️
As yogis, our work starts with spreading our internal light out into the world. LightWorker UV (@lightworkeruv) — the creators behind the industry’s first UV-C mat sanitizing machine — understands this best. As a brand rooted in bringing safety, peace of mind and light back into the yoga and fitness community, its company mantra “We Spread Light” has never been truer.
@maineyogafest ✨CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT✨
Tabay Atkins became one of America’s youngest certified yoga teachers at the age of 10 and has been discovering and sharing tools for wellness since.
Many CBD companies out there make full-spectrum products, but @miraflora.co, a CBD company based in Boulder, CO, takes it to a whole new level, starting with the way they grow the hemp itself. Call it full-spectrum farming, if you will.
RENEWAL 🌱

Join the YOGA + Life® Newsletter!

Events, Product Reviews, Promotions and More!

about
YOGA + Life® - an online community and magazine.
Recent Articles
  • What We Love : Summer + Fall 2022
    • CO YOGA + Life®
  • photo of leaves
    Celebrating the Seasons with Ayurveda | By Marissa Angeletti
    • CO YOGA + Life®
  • Introducing Lightworker UV : Fitness & Yoga Mat Sanitizer
    • YOGA + Life® Magazines
  • Is It Time To Illuminate What Is Possible For You? Meet Dana Knerl, Holistic Healing Guide
    • CO YOGA + Life®
  • About Us + Policies, Terms
  • Online Columnists
  • Contribute
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
YOGA + Life® - All Rights Reserved

Input your search keywords and press Enter.