Beyond Asana: Part 2

The evolution of my personal practice through twenty years of yoga

Hey It’s Jenny, your favorite Alaskan yoga teacher.

Welcome to my weekly newsletter where I share stories about my life, insights from my personal yoga practice and the best online resources, handpicked just for you.

Welcome to week four of our summer series: Personalizing Your Practice.

Last week, in Beyond Asana: Part 1, I shared ways to expand your yoga practice beyond just the physical poses, or asanas. Today’s issue features the story of how my personal practice has evolved over the years.

You can access the Root&Rise archive here: Monthly Theme Archive. It includes the entire library of previously published issues.

I started practicing yoga, in 2001 because I wanted to lose weight. I was 19, had just finished my freshman year of college and, as my brother so lovingly put it, “gained the freshman 15 for myself and five of my friends”.

Although that was an exaggeration, the many, many cases of Coors Light and late night pizza deliveries had taken a hefty toll on my physique.

So, when I came across a “Fundamentals of Yoga” DVD set at a garage sale, I decided to give it a try. The lady on the cover was extremely thin, which seemed like a promising endorsement. The classes turned out to be surprisingly difficult and I was sold. Anything that physically punishing was sure to get me back to my former, skinny self…right?

Not really.

Yoga didn’t end up being the weight loss panacea I hoped for, but it did spark a lifelong curiosity within me. When I tired of the DVD set, I spent a few years dabbling with yoga books from my local library.

Then, at age 25, I found out I was pregnant with my son. I immediately ordered a prenatal yoga DVD called “Crunch: Yoga Mamma”, hoping it would help me stay reasonably fit throughout my pregnancy.

The “Yoga Mamma” DVD quickly became an essential part of my pre-work routine. It gave me the support I needed to get through long shifts, waiting tables at a busy sports bar - a full time job I kept until three weeks before I gave birth.

That was a turning point for me. I still considered yoga to be a purely physical practice, but I also recognized that the benefits went beyond fitness. Yoga made me feel healthier and more comfortable in my own skin.

I continued using the prenatal yoga DVD on and off for years. I liked it and there weren’t a lot of other options for home yoga at the time.

In 2012, when I was 30 years old, Yoga with Adriene launched on Youtube. Adriene’s gentle guidance and down to earth approach felt like a breath of fresh air. I loved the variety of new classes every week and started to settle into a more consistent practice.

I practiced every class she published for years.

Adriene’s earliest videos were mostly pose tutorials, Core, Total Body Workouts and Yoga For Weight Loss. Then, about a year after she launched her channel, I noticed a subtle shift. She started sprinkling in gentler offerings like Morning Yoga For Beginners, Yoga for Healing and Meditation and Bedtime Yoga.

I remember practicing these classes and thinking that they felt “soulful”. They emphasized breath and internal awareness, offering an experience of yoga that went beyond toned muscles, pose progression and perfect alignment. I loved it.

I gravitated towards this style of practice and developed a strong preference for slow, soothing classes. But I felt really insecure about it. I thought my desire to slow down stemmed from laziness.

At the time, I didn’t think my yoga practice wasn’t legitimate if I wasn’t pushing myself. Hard. I only allowed myself to practice the slower, gentler classes when I was extremely tired, sick, or hungover, and I always feeling guilty afterward. I felt like I cheated myself out of a “real” yoga practice because I was too lazy to put in the effort.

Even as my relationship with yoga deepened to include meditation and philosophy, I still believed that my asana practice needed to be intense. I thought it was virtuous to choose the hardest classes and that pushing myself past my limits was the path to enlightenment.

Everything changed when I hit my 40s. After years of planks, every warrior variation under the sun(salutation) and always striving for the deepest variations of every pose, I was forced to slow down when I developed debilitating knee and shoulder pain.

Suddenly, my asana practice was limited to the simplest seated and supine poses. I could not lift my arms over my head or risk agitating my knees at all. In what felt like an instant, the practice I secretly craved became all that was available to me.

I was terrified.

I had worked so hard, for so long. What would happen to my body if I couldn’t do the challenging yoga sequences I was used to? I had no choice but to find out.

When the knee and shoulder pain first started, it kept me awake at night. Out of sheer desperation, I turned to Yoga Nidra. I practiced it in the morning to get some extra rest before starting my day.

It didn’t take long for Yoga Nidra to become a part of my daily practice. I felt livelier and cheerful on the days I did it. I had less anxiety and experienced more compassion, patience and grace in my relationships. I slept better and my whole outlook on life changed. I felt healthier on every level - body, mind and spirit.

Yoga Nidra dismantled everything I thought I knew about yoga and offered me a way through the loss of my practice as I knew it. Looking back, i’m so thankful for those sleepless nights because they were the catalyst for a life-changing transformation.

My personal practice is irrevocably changed. I’ve tasted the sweetness of meeting myself where I am. Even first thing in the morning, when I’m sleepy, stiff and a little grumpy.

I’ll be 43 this year.

My body has begun to heal and I’ve been able to reintroduce almost every pose. I’m happy to have my downward dog back, but I don’t think I’ll ever do a standard pigeon pose again. I opt for the reclined version now. It doesn't hurt my knees and it’s more aligned with the style of yoga I practice now - a style I lovingly refer to as “Lazy Girl Yoga”.

If I need more exercise, I go out walking. I stroll down wooded trails or on the rocky Alaskan beaches hunting for agates and sea glass. I trust that my body is getting exactly what it needs. This is part of my practice too.

I feel like I’m in the prime of my life.

Occasionally, when I’m feeling skippy, i’ll practice a higher intensity class in the afternoon, often skipping a vinyasa or two when I get tired and resting in Childs pose instead. Because I have nothing to prove.

I know my practice is enough.

Restore Yoga with Jessamyn Stanley | LIVI Moves

17 Minutes | All Levels | Beginner Friendly

Behold: A masterclass in slowing down and personalizing your practice!! If you choose just one of the offered practices this week, make it this one.

This quick class feels more like a tutorial than an actual practice, with careful attention given to each phase of class and step-by-step instruction on making the poses work for you in the most effective way.

Jessamyn shows us how to bring ease into each phase of our practice - from the introduction and arrival, into asana, Savasanna and even her closing statements - every bit of this class is infused with deep, compassionate wisdom.

Not a word is wasted. Watch attentively from beginning to end, soak up Jessamyn’s expertise and use it to elevate your personal practice.

Morning Yoga Video: Restorative Practice to Reconnect

14 Minutes | All Levels

This morning class is an excellent way to transition from sleep to waking life. Ally gives us a simple sequence that reaches into all the nooks and crannies that need a little extra TLC after a long night in bed.

I like this class because it’s gentle but I still feel like I get a full body stretch when I’m done. Plus, it’s short! Perfect for mornings when I need some yoga in my life but am limited on time.

Restorative Yoga for Inner Peace | Living Yoga | Tiina Kivinen

29 Minutes | All Levels | Beginner Friendly

My favorite part of this class was Savasana. It’s so hard to find an online class that includes a satisfying Savasana and I am always delighted when I come across one. Especially when it’s so well done.

Tiina takes her time and, in doing so, gives us permission to do the same. She begins by offering space to land on our mat by guiding us into the experience of peaceful, self compassion. The movement that follows is gentle and the guided Savasana is so sweet.

If you gravitate towards high intensity yoga classes, I invite you to try this practice and sit with whatever comes up. Notice If you are feeling restless or worrying that you’re not “getting anything out of it” because you’re not breaking a sweat. How do you relate to rest within your personal practice?

As I sit here, putting the final touches on this issue, the most beautiful summer day is passing me by. So, I will keep my final thoughts brief.

As you move through this next week, I hope you take the message of my personal story to heart and listen to your body when it tells you what it needs. You can trust it!

Alright, I’m off to spend the afternoon lakeside with my family. I hope you guys have a wonderful week. See you next Sunday!!