Turning to Yoga: Tackling Type A the Right Way
Writing from Life, Assignment #8, 06 November 2007
I am frustrated.
I'm standing outside a large, open room and feeling mentally ill-equipped for the moment. I enter to find fit-looking women territorially positioned and casually dressed in either loose garb or body-clinging tights and tops. Though there’s plenty of space, the ladies congregate in the middle of the room. Each woman has a mat, some sort of rubberized blocks, and a strap. I'm wearing running shorts and T-shirt and feel pretty much clueless about what’s coming next. Why am I here? I need to do something for my health and sanity. Running has taken its toll on my lower back and right hip, and I get agitated if I can’t do meaningful exercise. Though sympathetic, my sports doctor only offered a suggestion. “You could try yoga,” he stated offhandedly but with enough enthusiasm to pique my interest. So here I am, meekly staking out my own eight by four foot hardwood real estate in the first available opening. Then, I unfurl my mat amid the group and mimic my classmates by sitting quietly. I may look peaceful, but inside, I'm churning, wondering whether this is a good idea.
The instructor introduces herself and queries us on our experience with yoga and our physical condition, specifically pregnancies and existing injuries. Then she asks us to close our eyes. As the class begins and I go through the gentle warm-up exercises and listen to the instructor, a change comes over me.
"It's all in the breath," she explains.
We begin to move and stretch deliberately to our own deep breathing.
I think, "This is great stuff. Too bad I didn’t take this up 20 years ago. It might have helped my running."
For a few moments my mind started racing and tried to capture how I breathe when running. Though I experimented with various techniques during my running days, for the most part, breathing “just happened.” The faster I ran, the more rapid the breath. But after a few yoga breathing cycles I realized that my breath was actually quite shallow and uncontrolled. In yoga breathing is almost always through the nose. Deep breathing requires use of diaphragm and expansion into the chest and shoulders. Advanced deep breathing adds abdominal muscle control following complete exhalation. It sounds easier than it actually is – at least for me.
There’s a simple explanation why breathing is a fundamental tenet of yoga. We all draw energy from our breath. And in class after class with different instructors, the theme is consistent and a simple truth emerges: We can live without food, water, and rest for extended periods, but without breath, we expire - and pretty quickly! Breath is first and foremost. This is a central doctrine of Hatha Yoga.
I've learned much in this journey to practice yoga. At first, my motives were purely physical – to restore my back, alleviate past bodily abuses, and balance my muscles. I let the pressures of work limit my exercise options and placed aerobic routines above all others. As a result, I initially favored instructors who taught “power yoga.” I just wanted to muscle my way through the routines and elevate my heart rate. But as I learned the poses and developed greater flexibility, the philosophy of the practice penetrated my thoughts. Gradually, I began to appreciate the innate insight one gains of one's self through yoga. Now, we are all different so I don’t suppose this will apply universally, but yoga has improved my self-patience, and as a result, my patience with others. I attribute this change to the concentration needed to control the body and mind during yoga routines. That effort differs greatly from swinging a bat or tennis racket. In the latter cases, one looks outward to align the body to respond to an external stimulus. With yoga, the look turns inward to align body and mind to task. To help their students, yoga instructors will often remind their classes to clear their minds of distracting thoughts to better accomplish a pose. The better the pose, the greater the benefits. What benefits? I’ll summarize all that has been written in a single phrase: Quality of Life. And I believe the ability to achieve both inward and outward control of one’s actions improves one’s quality of life. Yoga has given me added confidence to draw from within and add my mark to situations, rather than react only to what life presents me. I’m more alive!
Now in Western societies yoga still lags in popularity among the various physical fitness regimens, particularly among men. My past reveals why. I grew up in the typical public school environment where personal popularity depended on how well one played competitive team sports. The workplace is no different. You must be competitive and conventional. And yoga is neither of these, nor flashy, nor public. Yoga requires introspection, but who today promotes the inward look? Are we not manipulated and encouraged not to pursue self enlightenment to better fulfill our roles as consumers? Our distractions and addictions - drugs, sports, alcohol, television, computers, overwork, and pursuit of material and fame - help eliminate the need for self intimacy.
Yoga, however, helps extract the individual from social pressures, generates a communal spirit with fellow yogis, and eliminates any need for competitiveness or adversarial interaction. Skeptics may argue that running, tennis, golf or popular team sports stimulate mental discipline and the self-criticism required to motivate self-improvement. Further, working as team members and developing strategies of play enhance our social skills, ultimately improving our societies. While these premises have merit, they overlook several critical aspects of self-intimacy and self-awareness that yoga naturally incorporates.
In yoga there is no need to critique or analyze performance. You are in control of your body and mind, not outside influences. You are who you are, and you perform a pose or routine to whatever level you're at. Try your best and benefit by focusing the mind on your body and how it is responding to what you are doing with and to it. Inhale to reach relaxation. Exhale to release tension. Also, regarding teamwork, yogis share an intimate bond through self-acceptance and inner peace that ease contact with others.
Can walking or hiking, combined with a solid stretch and flex routine, substitute for yoga? Perhaps. But I have found a deeper appreciation of these activities from my practice of yoga.
Yoga can be very challenging for some and still is to me. When I first started and got into the basic seated posture, my stiffness and lack of flexibility showed. I succumbed to pain and fatigue in only a few minutes. Not now. And my breathing is no longer shallow. I have even used yoga breathing to calm myself prior to key meetings – and I was CEO-equivalent of a 5,000 person organization. Whether standing before a large crowd of hundreds of employees, hosting VIPs, or conducting a staff meeting, the slow, methodical breathing helped to clear my mind, relax me, and subsequently focus on meeting objectives. I could be sitting at my desk prior to a meeting or standing near a podium waiting to speak, and all I had to do was clear my mind and take a few deep yoga breaths. The result: Little or no stress and improved confidence. I also no longer feel I have to live up to some idealized wannabe manufactured by society. All these benefits, and more, emerged by embracing yoga without being obsessive about it. I just stuck with it and kept an open mind.
When do you make a personal breakthrough with yoga? It‘s not when you can touch your heels to the ground when performing “downward facing dog” or when you can sit in the traditional lotus position. I may never reach such an advanced level, but I have matured my practice past the “part-timer” phase. This breakthrough consists of two interdependent practice elements. I first had to get my body and mind to work together to best execute a stance or pose at my level of expertise. “Best effort” matters, not the picture-perfect posture. But typically, the novice struggles because the mind won’t focus and listen to what the body is telling it. I was no different. Maybe the mind wants to plough ahead and move directly into the pose when the body is not ready. Or perhaps the psyche wanders aimlessly in thought about dinner, work, school, or anything but the task at hand, diverting attention from the body as it tries to maneuver itself gracefully into a pose. The second element simply involved doing yoga regularly on my own, whether it was a few minutes of breathing or a full blown routine similar to those in formal group sessions. These two elements feed off one another. The more you practice, the better your ability to concentrate and form the necessary partnership between mind and body. The better you are able to concentrate, the easier it is to practice independently. For someone like me, a former driven-to-excess, type A workaholic, the process can, and in my case did, take several years. But once I broke through, I not only felt better physically, I also thought more clearly and freely, improving my interpersonal interactions. Now, through yoga, I look forward to lifelong self-learning and well-being, helping me get the most from life. And if your spouse or partner participates, that’s an added bonus.
I encourage everyone to consider yoga as part of an exercise routine. And if you’re male, I doubly encourage you to break out of that traditional mold and experience a refreshing yet still physically challenging experience, with health benefits for mind and body. Sure, you may have to endure some classes being the only of your gender, but how bad can that be? Also, find a branch of yoga that best suits your objectives. Since yoga means a union between self and either a supreme being or an ultimate principle, it fits within any major religious doctrine, agnosticism, or atheism. Yoga, then, is both universal and highly personal. Enjoy the journey, and may you find your own internal synergy along the way.
As for me, I am no longer frustrated.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Assignment #6
Turning to Yoga: A Mid-Life Male’s Musing
I am frustrated.
I'm standing outside a large, open room and feeling mentally ill-equipped for the moment. I enter to find fit-looking women territorially positioned and casually dressed in either loose garb or body-clinging tights and tops. Though there’s plenty of space, the ladies congregate in the middle of the room. Each woman has a mat, some sort of rubberized blocks, and a strap. I'm wearing running shorts and T-shirt and feel pretty much clueless about what’s coming next. Why am I here? I need to do something for my health and sanity. Running took its toll on my lower back and right hip, and I get agitated if I can’t do meaningful exercise. It’s my first yoga class, and I'm wary. I meekly stake out my own eight by four foot hardwood real estate in the first available opening. Then, I lay down my mat in the midst of the group, and mimic my classmates. I sit quietly wondering whether this was a good idea.
The instructor introduces herself and queries us regarding our experience with yoga and our physical condition, specifically pregnancies and existing injuries. As the class begins and I go through the gentle warm-up exercises and listen to the instructor, a change comes over me.
"It's all in the breath," she explains.
After a few more minutes, I think, "This is great stuff. Too bad I didn’t take this up 20 years ago. It might have helped my running." My mind started racing and tried to capture how I breathe when running. Though I experimented with various techniques, for the most part, breathing “just happened.” The faster I ran, the more rapid the breath. But after a few yoga breathing cycles I realized that my breath was actually quite shallow and uncontrolled. In yoga breathing is almost always through the nose. Deep breathing requires use of diaphragm and expansion into the chest and shoulders. Advanced deep breathing adds abdominal muscle control following complete exhalation. It sounds easier than it actually is – at least for me.
There’s a simple explanation why breathing is a fundamental tenet of yoga. We all draw energy from our breath. And in class after class with different instructors, the theme is consistent and a simple truth emerges: We can live without food, water, and rest for extended periods, but without breath, we expire - and pretty quickly! Breath is first and foremost. This is a central doctrine of Hatha Yoga.
I've learned much in this journey to practice yoga. My motives were purely physical initially - restore the back, alleviate past abuses, and balance the body. But as I acquired competence with the poses and developed greater flexibility, the philosophy of the practice penetrated my thoughts. At first, none of this interested me. I favored instructors who taught “power yoga.” I just wanted to muscle my way through the routines. Gradually, I began to appreciate the innate insight one gains of one's self through yoga. Now, we are all different so I don’t suppose this will apply universally, but yoga has improved my self-patience, and as a result, my patience with others. I attribute this change to the concentration one applies while controlling the body and mind during yoga routines. The effort required far differs from swinging a bat or tennis racket. In the latter cases, one looks outward to align the body to respond to an external stimulus. With yoga, the look turns inward to align body and mind to task. To help their students, yoga instructors will often remind their classes to clear their minds of distracting thoughts to improve the benefits in performing a pose. I believe the ability to achieve both inward and outward control of one’s actions improves one’s quality of life. Prior to yoga my emphasis seemed exclusively outward (response) directed.
In Western societies yoga still lags in popularity, particularly among men. My past reveals why. I grew up in the typical public school environment where personal popularity depended on how well one played competitive team sports. The workplace is no different. You must be competitive and conventional. And yoga is neither of these, nor flashy, nor public. Yoga requires introspection, but who today promotes the inward look? Are we not manipulated and encouraged not to pursue self enlightenment to better fulfill our roles as consumers? Our distractions and addictions - drugs, sports, alcohol, television, computers, overwork, and pursuit of material and fame - help eliminate the need for self intimacy.
Yoga, however, helps extract the individual from social pressures, generates a communal spirit with fellow yogis, and eliminates any need for competitiveness or adversarial interaction. Skeptics may argue that running, tennis, golf or popular team sports stimulate mental discipline and the self-criticism required to motivate self-improvement. Further, working as team members and developing strategies of play enhance our social skills, ultimately improving our societies. While these premises have merit, they overlook several critical aspects of self-intimacy and self-awareness that yoga naturally incorporates.
In yoga there is no need to critique or analyze performance. You are in control of your body and mind, not outside influences. You are who you are, and you perform a pose or routine to whatever level you're at. Try your best and benefit by focusing the mind on your body and how it is responding to what you are doing with and to it. Inhale relaxation. Exhale tension. Regarding teamwork, yogis share an intimate bond through self-acceptance and inner peace that ease contact with others.
Can walking or hiking, combined with a solid stretch and flex routine, substitute for yoga? Perhaps. But I have found a deeper appreciation of these activities from my practice of yoga.
Yoga can be very challenging for some and still is to me. When I first started and got into the basic seated posture, my stiffness and lack of flexibility showed. It was painful after a few minutes. Not now. And my breathing is no longer shallow. I have even used yoga breathing to calm myself prior to key meetings – and I was CEO-equivalent of a 5,000 person organization. Whether standing before a large crowd of hundreds of employees, hosting VIPs, or conducting a staff meeting, the slow, methodical breathing helped to clear my mind, relax me, and subsequently focus on meeting objectives. I could be sitting at my desk prior to a meeting or standing near a podium waiting to speak, and all I had to do was clear my mind and take a few deep yoga breaths. The result: Little or no stress and improved confidence. I also no longer feel I have to live up to some idealized wannabe manufactured by society. All these benefits, and more, emerged by embracing yoga without being obsessive about it. I just stuck with it and kept an open mind.
I encourage everyone to consider yoga as part of an exercise routine. And if you’re male, I doubly encourage you to break out of that traditional mold and experience a refreshing yet still physically challenging experience, with health benefits for mind and body. Sure, you may have to endure some classes being the only of your gender, but how bad can that be? Also, find a branch of yoga that best suits your objectives. Since yoga means a union between self and either a supreme being or an ultimate principle, it fits within any major religious doctrine, agnosticism, or atheism. Yoga, then, is both universal and highly personal. Enjoy the journey, and may you find your own internal synergy along the way.
As for me, I am no longer frustrated.
I am frustrated.
I'm standing outside a large, open room and feeling mentally ill-equipped for the moment. I enter to find fit-looking women territorially positioned and casually dressed in either loose garb or body-clinging tights and tops. Though there’s plenty of space, the ladies congregate in the middle of the room. Each woman has a mat, some sort of rubberized blocks, and a strap. I'm wearing running shorts and T-shirt and feel pretty much clueless about what’s coming next. Why am I here? I need to do something for my health and sanity. Running took its toll on my lower back and right hip, and I get agitated if I can’t do meaningful exercise. It’s my first yoga class, and I'm wary. I meekly stake out my own eight by four foot hardwood real estate in the first available opening. Then, I lay down my mat in the midst of the group, and mimic my classmates. I sit quietly wondering whether this was a good idea.
The instructor introduces herself and queries us regarding our experience with yoga and our physical condition, specifically pregnancies and existing injuries. As the class begins and I go through the gentle warm-up exercises and listen to the instructor, a change comes over me.
"It's all in the breath," she explains.
After a few more minutes, I think, "This is great stuff. Too bad I didn’t take this up 20 years ago. It might have helped my running." My mind started racing and tried to capture how I breathe when running. Though I experimented with various techniques, for the most part, breathing “just happened.” The faster I ran, the more rapid the breath. But after a few yoga breathing cycles I realized that my breath was actually quite shallow and uncontrolled. In yoga breathing is almost always through the nose. Deep breathing requires use of diaphragm and expansion into the chest and shoulders. Advanced deep breathing adds abdominal muscle control following complete exhalation. It sounds easier than it actually is – at least for me.
There’s a simple explanation why breathing is a fundamental tenet of yoga. We all draw energy from our breath. And in class after class with different instructors, the theme is consistent and a simple truth emerges: We can live without food, water, and rest for extended periods, but without breath, we expire - and pretty quickly! Breath is first and foremost. This is a central doctrine of Hatha Yoga.
I've learned much in this journey to practice yoga. My motives were purely physical initially - restore the back, alleviate past abuses, and balance the body. But as I acquired competence with the poses and developed greater flexibility, the philosophy of the practice penetrated my thoughts. At first, none of this interested me. I favored instructors who taught “power yoga.” I just wanted to muscle my way through the routines. Gradually, I began to appreciate the innate insight one gains of one's self through yoga. Now, we are all different so I don’t suppose this will apply universally, but yoga has improved my self-patience, and as a result, my patience with others. I attribute this change to the concentration one applies while controlling the body and mind during yoga routines. The effort required far differs from swinging a bat or tennis racket. In the latter cases, one looks outward to align the body to respond to an external stimulus. With yoga, the look turns inward to align body and mind to task. To help their students, yoga instructors will often remind their classes to clear their minds of distracting thoughts to improve the benefits in performing a pose. I believe the ability to achieve both inward and outward control of one’s actions improves one’s quality of life. Prior to yoga my emphasis seemed exclusively outward (response) directed.
In Western societies yoga still lags in popularity, particularly among men. My past reveals why. I grew up in the typical public school environment where personal popularity depended on how well one played competitive team sports. The workplace is no different. You must be competitive and conventional. And yoga is neither of these, nor flashy, nor public. Yoga requires introspection, but who today promotes the inward look? Are we not manipulated and encouraged not to pursue self enlightenment to better fulfill our roles as consumers? Our distractions and addictions - drugs, sports, alcohol, television, computers, overwork, and pursuit of material and fame - help eliminate the need for self intimacy.
Yoga, however, helps extract the individual from social pressures, generates a communal spirit with fellow yogis, and eliminates any need for competitiveness or adversarial interaction. Skeptics may argue that running, tennis, golf or popular team sports stimulate mental discipline and the self-criticism required to motivate self-improvement. Further, working as team members and developing strategies of play enhance our social skills, ultimately improving our societies. While these premises have merit, they overlook several critical aspects of self-intimacy and self-awareness that yoga naturally incorporates.
In yoga there is no need to critique or analyze performance. You are in control of your body and mind, not outside influences. You are who you are, and you perform a pose or routine to whatever level you're at. Try your best and benefit by focusing the mind on your body and how it is responding to what you are doing with and to it. Inhale relaxation. Exhale tension. Regarding teamwork, yogis share an intimate bond through self-acceptance and inner peace that ease contact with others.
Can walking or hiking, combined with a solid stretch and flex routine, substitute for yoga? Perhaps. But I have found a deeper appreciation of these activities from my practice of yoga.
Yoga can be very challenging for some and still is to me. When I first started and got into the basic seated posture, my stiffness and lack of flexibility showed. It was painful after a few minutes. Not now. And my breathing is no longer shallow. I have even used yoga breathing to calm myself prior to key meetings – and I was CEO-equivalent of a 5,000 person organization. Whether standing before a large crowd of hundreds of employees, hosting VIPs, or conducting a staff meeting, the slow, methodical breathing helped to clear my mind, relax me, and subsequently focus on meeting objectives. I could be sitting at my desk prior to a meeting or standing near a podium waiting to speak, and all I had to do was clear my mind and take a few deep yoga breaths. The result: Little or no stress and improved confidence. I also no longer feel I have to live up to some idealized wannabe manufactured by society. All these benefits, and more, emerged by embracing yoga without being obsessive about it. I just stuck with it and kept an open mind.
I encourage everyone to consider yoga as part of an exercise routine. And if you’re male, I doubly encourage you to break out of that traditional mold and experience a refreshing yet still physically challenging experience, with health benefits for mind and body. Sure, you may have to endure some classes being the only of your gender, but how bad can that be? Also, find a branch of yoga that best suits your objectives. Since yoga means a union between self and either a supreme being or an ultimate principle, it fits within any major religious doctrine, agnosticism, or atheism. Yoga, then, is both universal and highly personal. Enjoy the journey, and may you find your own internal synergy along the way.
As for me, I am no longer frustrated.
Monday, October 22, 2007
Assignment #5
Turning to Yoga: Benefits of Converting the Male Mid-Life Exercise Routine
I am frustrated.
I'm standing outside a small room and feel mentally ill-equipped for the moment. I enter to find fit-looking women territorially positioned and casually dressed in either loose garb or body-clinging tights and tops. I'm wearing running shorts and T-shirt. Why am I here? I need to do something for my health and sanity. Running took its toll on my lower back and right hip. It is my first yoga class, and I'm wary. I meekly stake out my own eight by four foot hardwood real estate and lay down the mat provided.
As the class begins and I go through the gentle warm-up exercises and listen to the instructor, a change comes over me.
"It's all in the breath," she explains.
After a few more minutes, I think, "This is pretty basic stuff and makes such eloquent sense."
We all draw energy from our breath. And in class after class with different instructors, the theme is consistent and a simple truth emerges: We can live without food, water, and rest for extended periods, but without breath, we expire - and pretty quickly! Breath is first and foremost. This is a central doctrine of Hatha Yoga.
I've learned much in this journey to practice yoga. My motives were purely physical initially - restore the back, alleviate past abuses, and balance the body. But as I acquired competence with the poses and developed greater flexibility, the philosophy of the practice penetrated my thoughts. At first, none of this interested me. I favored instructors who taught “power yoga.” I just wanted to muscle my way through the routines. Gradually, I began to appreciate the innate insight one gains of one's self through yoga.
In Western societies yoga still lags in popularity, particularly among men. My past tells why. I grew up in the typical public school environment where personal popularity depended on how well one played competitive team sports. The workplace is no different. You must be competitive and conventional. And yoga is neither of these, nor flashy, nor public. Yoga requires introspection, but who today promotes the inward look? Are we not manipulated and encouraged not to pursue self enlightenment to better fulfill our roles as consumers? Our distractions and addictions - drugs, sports, alcohol, television, computers, overwork, and pursuit of material and fame - help eliminate the need for self intimacy.
Yoga, however, helps extract the individual from social pressures, generates a communal spirit with fellow yogis, and eliminates any need for competitiveness or adversarial interaction. Skeptics may argue that running, tennis, golf or popular team sports stimulate mental discipline and the self-criticism required to motivate self-improvement. Further, working as team members and developing strategies of play enhance our social skills, ultimately improving our societies. While these premises have merit, they overlook several critical aspects of self-intimacy and self-awareness that yoga naturally incorporates.
In yoga there is no need to critique or analyze performance. You are in control of your body and mind, not outside influences. You are who you are, and you perform a pose or routine to whatever level you're at. Try your best and benefit by focusing the mind on your body and how it is responding to what you are doing with and to it. Inhale relaxation. Exhale tension. Regarding teamwork, yogis share an intimate bond through self-acceptance and inner peace that facilitate interaction with others.
Can walking or hiking, combined with a solid stretch and flex routine, substitute for yoga? Perhaps. But I have found a deeper appreciation of these activities from my practice of yoga.
Yoga can be very challenging for some and still is to me. When I first started and got into the basic seated posture, my stiffness and lack of flexibility showed. It was painful after a few minutes. Not now. And my breathing is no longer shallow. I have even used yoga breathing to calm myself prior to key meetings – and I was CEO-equivalent of a 5,000 person organization. I am better able to relax in commonly stressful situations. I also no longer reflect on becoming some idealized wannabe manufactured for me by society. All these benefits, and more, emerged by embracing yoga without being obsessive about it. I just stuck with it and kept an open mind - even when the only male in my classes!
I encourage everyone to consider yoga as part of an exercise routine. Research and choose a branch of yoga that best suits your objectives. With yoga meaning a union between self and either a supreme being or an ultimate principle, it fits within any major religious doctrine, agnosticism, or atheism. Yoga, then, is both universal and highly personal, promoting a synergistic joining of mind and body.
I am no longer frustrated.
I am frustrated.
I'm standing outside a small room and feel mentally ill-equipped for the moment. I enter to find fit-looking women territorially positioned and casually dressed in either loose garb or body-clinging tights and tops. I'm wearing running shorts and T-shirt. Why am I here? I need to do something for my health and sanity. Running took its toll on my lower back and right hip. It is my first yoga class, and I'm wary. I meekly stake out my own eight by four foot hardwood real estate and lay down the mat provided.
As the class begins and I go through the gentle warm-up exercises and listen to the instructor, a change comes over me.
"It's all in the breath," she explains.
After a few more minutes, I think, "This is pretty basic stuff and makes such eloquent sense."
We all draw energy from our breath. And in class after class with different instructors, the theme is consistent and a simple truth emerges: We can live without food, water, and rest for extended periods, but without breath, we expire - and pretty quickly! Breath is first and foremost. This is a central doctrine of Hatha Yoga.
I've learned much in this journey to practice yoga. My motives were purely physical initially - restore the back, alleviate past abuses, and balance the body. But as I acquired competence with the poses and developed greater flexibility, the philosophy of the practice penetrated my thoughts. At first, none of this interested me. I favored instructors who taught “power yoga.” I just wanted to muscle my way through the routines. Gradually, I began to appreciate the innate insight one gains of one's self through yoga.
In Western societies yoga still lags in popularity, particularly among men. My past tells why. I grew up in the typical public school environment where personal popularity depended on how well one played competitive team sports. The workplace is no different. You must be competitive and conventional. And yoga is neither of these, nor flashy, nor public. Yoga requires introspection, but who today promotes the inward look? Are we not manipulated and encouraged not to pursue self enlightenment to better fulfill our roles as consumers? Our distractions and addictions - drugs, sports, alcohol, television, computers, overwork, and pursuit of material and fame - help eliminate the need for self intimacy.
Yoga, however, helps extract the individual from social pressures, generates a communal spirit with fellow yogis, and eliminates any need for competitiveness or adversarial interaction. Skeptics may argue that running, tennis, golf or popular team sports stimulate mental discipline and the self-criticism required to motivate self-improvement. Further, working as team members and developing strategies of play enhance our social skills, ultimately improving our societies. While these premises have merit, they overlook several critical aspects of self-intimacy and self-awareness that yoga naturally incorporates.
In yoga there is no need to critique or analyze performance. You are in control of your body and mind, not outside influences. You are who you are, and you perform a pose or routine to whatever level you're at. Try your best and benefit by focusing the mind on your body and how it is responding to what you are doing with and to it. Inhale relaxation. Exhale tension. Regarding teamwork, yogis share an intimate bond through self-acceptance and inner peace that facilitate interaction with others.
Can walking or hiking, combined with a solid stretch and flex routine, substitute for yoga? Perhaps. But I have found a deeper appreciation of these activities from my practice of yoga.
Yoga can be very challenging for some and still is to me. When I first started and got into the basic seated posture, my stiffness and lack of flexibility showed. It was painful after a few minutes. Not now. And my breathing is no longer shallow. I have even used yoga breathing to calm myself prior to key meetings – and I was CEO-equivalent of a 5,000 person organization. I am better able to relax in commonly stressful situations. I also no longer reflect on becoming some idealized wannabe manufactured for me by society. All these benefits, and more, emerged by embracing yoga without being obsessive about it. I just stuck with it and kept an open mind - even when the only male in my classes!
I encourage everyone to consider yoga as part of an exercise routine. Research and choose a branch of yoga that best suits your objectives. With yoga meaning a union between self and either a supreme being or an ultimate principle, it fits within any major religious doctrine, agnosticism, or atheism. Yoga, then, is both universal and highly personal, promoting a synergistic joining of mind and body.
I am no longer frustrated.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Assitnment #4 - 2nd 7 minute posting
List Item: The vegetarian Thanksgiving Dinner with chestnut soup, and ....
I am both bystander and beneficiary to an astounding event. It is Thanksgiving in Arlington, Virginia, in a cozy, little townhouse. Dinner is being prepared with no turkey in sight. This is Mary's day, and as usual, she moves about fluidly from task to task, recipe to recipe, amazing creation to amazing creation. I watch in awe. Mary is not a vegetarian, but I am. And neither are our guests. And by day's end, the love placed into preparation will excite the senses, nourish the body and mind, and stimulate the pleasure centers of the brain. And my soul will be warmed by love in motion. The memory of this most special day reaffirms something I've always known in my heart. Love when spoken, is never as meaningful, as love when done.
(Note: This is 7 minutes worth of writing and I didn't even mention one menu item. I wasn't trying to build suspense.)
I am both bystander and beneficiary to an astounding event. It is Thanksgiving in Arlington, Virginia, in a cozy, little townhouse. Dinner is being prepared with no turkey in sight. This is Mary's day, and as usual, she moves about fluidly from task to task, recipe to recipe, amazing creation to amazing creation. I watch in awe. Mary is not a vegetarian, but I am. And neither are our guests. And by day's end, the love placed into preparation will excite the senses, nourish the body and mind, and stimulate the pleasure centers of the brain. And my soul will be warmed by love in motion. The memory of this most special day reaffirms something I've always known in my heart. Love when spoken, is never as meaningful, as love when done.
(Note: This is 7 minutes worth of writing and I didn't even mention one menu item. I wasn't trying to build suspense.)
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Assignment #3
2nd 7 minute drill (writing submission - draft)
List item: Starting the practice of yoga.
I am frustrated. I’m in a small room in an athletic center with a bunch of women and mentally ill-equipped for the moment. Why am I here? Well, I need to do something. Running has become intolerable to my back and right hip. So, I enter and look around to find generally fit women. It is my first yoga class. As the class begins and I go through the gentle warm-up exercises and listen to the words of the instructor, a change comes over me. “It’s all in the breath,” she says. I’m thinking this is pretty basic stuff, but makes such eloquent sense. And a few years later, the simple truth emerges from another instructor. You see, you can live without food, without water, and without rest for extended periods, but without the breath, we expire – and pretty quickly!
List item: Starting the practice of yoga.
I am frustrated. I’m in a small room in an athletic center with a bunch of women and mentally ill-equipped for the moment. Why am I here? Well, I need to do something. Running has become intolerable to my back and right hip. So, I enter and look around to find generally fit women. It is my first yoga class. As the class begins and I go through the gentle warm-up exercises and listen to the words of the instructor, a change comes over me. “It’s all in the breath,” she says. I’m thinking this is pretty basic stuff, but makes such eloquent sense. And a few years later, the simple truth emerges from another instructor. You see, you can live without food, without water, and without rest for extended periods, but without the breath, we expire – and pretty quickly!
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Assignment #2
Lists
1. Top Ten List of the topics, moments, and subjects you've always wanted to write about, but thought was impossible or too scary to actually write about.
(1) An alternate ending to World War II
(2) Future society (non-fiction, projection)
(3) Future world (science fiction)
(4) ‘Measuring Life’ – key metrics for healthy living
(5) Social commentary
(6) Patterns in human history
(7) Fixing injustices
(8) The simple, real story on the relativistic twin paradox for the layperson
(9) Genetics gone wild (fiction)
(10) Satirical essays of past and current events
2. Top Ten List of meals you've made with love for someone or were made with love, for you.
(1) Lobster and shrimp red sauce with fusili pasta
(2) “Super Taco” salad (meatless)
(3) Fried steak, mushrooms, onions, and garlic in olive oil
(4) “Super fruit” salad
(5) Mushroom venison stew
(6) Baked scallops, bread crumbs, wine, and butter
(7) Post surgery scrambled eggs with pork chops
(8) “Walford” salad
(9) Jarlsberg fondue
(10) Chestnut soup, polenta torte with roasted squash, peppered Brussels sprouts with grapes, soybean croquettes with cranberry orange and red wine sauce, salad of fresh herbs and greens, apple pie and pumpkin cheese cake with caramelized walnut and ginger sauce (vegetarian Thanksgiving meal)
3. Top Ten List of Significant Moments (big or small, life-changing, epiphany, or slight shifts in the way you see the world) in your Life
(1) Signing up for military service
(2) Getting married
(3) Deciding to go to Tufts vice MIT
(4) Changing majors and colleges at Tufts (Engineering to Liberal Arts)
(5) Reading H. G. Wells’ Outline of History
(6) Taking command of a military unit
(7) Starting the practice of yoga
(8) Completing a marathon
(9) Teaching public junior high school
(10) Attending my parents’ funerals
4. Top Ten Most Significant Conversations in Your Life
(1) “Should we get married?”
(2) “Do I leave military service now?”
(3) “Pros and cons of buying one house over another?”
(4) “Should we have children?”
(5) Foreign travel choices
(6) Talks with my mentor, George Yount
(7) Childhood sociopolitical discussions with my brother-in-law Pat
(8) Spend or save discussions (and how much)
(9) “Who is God?” conversations with my Reverend uncle
(10) Talking to my father about his prejudices
5. Top Ten Things You Love The Most in This World and One Reason Why
(1) Moderate to difficult physical activity, preferably outdoors, because it clears my mind and releases stress
(2) Having extreme thirst quenched by cool, clear water because it satisfies the most fundamental survival urge a human can experience
(3) Self-planned foreign travel involving staying in people’s homes as much as possible because it provides an opportunity to better understand the culture
(4) Apple pie, because it reminds me of my mother
(5) Al Stewart’s music and lyrics because his lyrics are thought-provoking and often include interesting historical figures and/or events and the music powerfully fits the lyrics
(6) Practicing yoga because it keeps me in touch with how my body is responding to what I’m doing to it
(7) Solving any type of problem (involving people or puzzles, for example) because it gives me a sense of accomplishment
(8) A competitive chess game against an equally-skilled player because it challenges my mind
(9) Seeing justice carried out because life is not always fair so it’s good to see humans not contributing to unreasonable outcomes
(10) Beethoven’s symphonies and similar pieces of art, music, science, or other constructive creativity because it reminds me just how good humanity can be
1. Top Ten List of the topics, moments, and subjects you've always wanted to write about, but thought was impossible or too scary to actually write about.
(1) An alternate ending to World War II
(2) Future society (non-fiction, projection)
(3) Future world (science fiction)
(4) ‘Measuring Life’ – key metrics for healthy living
(5) Social commentary
(6) Patterns in human history
(7) Fixing injustices
(8) The simple, real story on the relativistic twin paradox for the layperson
(9) Genetics gone wild (fiction)
(10) Satirical essays of past and current events
2. Top Ten List of meals you've made with love for someone or were made with love, for you.
(1) Lobster and shrimp red sauce with fusili pasta
(2) “Super Taco” salad (meatless)
(3) Fried steak, mushrooms, onions, and garlic in olive oil
(4) “Super fruit” salad
(5) Mushroom venison stew
(6) Baked scallops, bread crumbs, wine, and butter
(7) Post surgery scrambled eggs with pork chops
(8) “Walford” salad
(9) Jarlsberg fondue
(10) Chestnut soup, polenta torte with roasted squash, peppered Brussels sprouts with grapes, soybean croquettes with cranberry orange and red wine sauce, salad of fresh herbs and greens, apple pie and pumpkin cheese cake with caramelized walnut and ginger sauce (vegetarian Thanksgiving meal)
3. Top Ten List of Significant Moments (big or small, life-changing, epiphany, or slight shifts in the way you see the world) in your Life
(1) Signing up for military service
(2) Getting married
(3) Deciding to go to Tufts vice MIT
(4) Changing majors and colleges at Tufts (Engineering to Liberal Arts)
(5) Reading H. G. Wells’ Outline of History
(6) Taking command of a military unit
(7) Starting the practice of yoga
(8) Completing a marathon
(9) Teaching public junior high school
(10) Attending my parents’ funerals
4. Top Ten Most Significant Conversations in Your Life
(1) “Should we get married?”
(2) “Do I leave military service now?”
(3) “Pros and cons of buying one house over another?”
(4) “Should we have children?”
(5) Foreign travel choices
(6) Talks with my mentor, George Yount
(7) Childhood sociopolitical discussions with my brother-in-law Pat
(8) Spend or save discussions (and how much)
(9) “Who is God?” conversations with my Reverend uncle
(10) Talking to my father about his prejudices
5. Top Ten Things You Love The Most in This World and One Reason Why
(1) Moderate to difficult physical activity, preferably outdoors, because it clears my mind and releases stress
(2) Having extreme thirst quenched by cool, clear water because it satisfies the most fundamental survival urge a human can experience
(3) Self-planned foreign travel involving staying in people’s homes as much as possible because it provides an opportunity to better understand the culture
(4) Apple pie, because it reminds me of my mother
(5) Al Stewart’s music and lyrics because his lyrics are thought-provoking and often include interesting historical figures and/or events and the music powerfully fits the lyrics
(6) Practicing yoga because it keeps me in touch with how my body is responding to what I’m doing to it
(7) Solving any type of problem (involving people or puzzles, for example) because it gives me a sense of accomplishment
(8) A competitive chess game against an equally-skilled player because it challenges my mind
(9) Seeing justice carried out because life is not always fair so it’s good to see humans not contributing to unreasonable outcomes
(10) Beethoven’s symphonies and similar pieces of art, music, science, or other constructive creativity because it reminds me just how good humanity can be
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Assignment #1
Hands
There’s a story in these hands, with their nearly identical dislocated small fingers and strongly curved left index finger tip. They have survived work, play, exposure, and medical indifference. Unlike the fingers, the thumbs cannot curl in upon themselves and stop at an inward right-angle bend. The long, lean fingers end in short, shiny nails. Though the nails were never gnawed, jagged cuticles visibly fill the nail-skin interface. Dirt residue occupies the hard-to-reach crevices in and around the nails. The backs of the hands carry a flesh-toned tan lightly accentuated by abundant short, brown hairs and a few elevated veins. As fists form, prominent wrinkles on the knuckles transform into smooth, rounded knobs on each finger. Then, as the forearm twists and the fists open to expose the palms, only an oar-induced callus by the thin gold band on the left ring finger mar an otherwise ordinary skin surface. Soft lines separate the thenar, palmar, and phalanx regions of each palm and fingers. These lines are neither magical nor encoded, for the story in these hands is held by their holder.
There’s a story in these hands, with their nearly identical dislocated small fingers and strongly curved left index finger tip. They have survived work, play, exposure, and medical indifference. Unlike the fingers, the thumbs cannot curl in upon themselves and stop at an inward right-angle bend. The long, lean fingers end in short, shiny nails. Though the nails were never gnawed, jagged cuticles visibly fill the nail-skin interface. Dirt residue occupies the hard-to-reach crevices in and around the nails. The backs of the hands carry a flesh-toned tan lightly accentuated by abundant short, brown hairs and a few elevated veins. As fists form, prominent wrinkles on the knuckles transform into smooth, rounded knobs on each finger. Then, as the forearm twists and the fists open to expose the palms, only an oar-induced callus by the thin gold band on the left ring finger mar an otherwise ordinary skin surface. Soft lines separate the thenar, palmar, and phalanx regions of each palm and fingers. These lines are neither magical nor encoded, for the story in these hands is held by their holder.
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