yoga class pet perks { the opposite of peeves! }

 photo credit: helpinghelp.org 

We all have yoga pet peeves and I do enjoy reading those of others, laughing, and agreeing. But today I'm taking a walk on the positive side and feel like noting my yoga pet perks!

What I love in yoga class:

1. The teacher enters the room and immediately the vibe shifts perceptibly. She emanates peace, love for her students, and cultivates an environment of comfort and ease. { My mentor, Kia Miller, does this effortlesssssly. }

2. When we can all laugh together! Whether it's someone taking a tumble, bodies making the funny sounds that they often do, or the teacher saying something innocently suggestive, laughter unites and heals.

3. Having the space to open up like a phoenix in Surya Namaskar / Sun Salutations. Oh, what a feeling!

4. Music that inspires and doesn't compete or no music at all. Our breath has its own lovely melody.

5. Losing myself (which really means finding myself) in the beauty of my own practice. This means not competing with myself or others, feeling free, being rooted deeply in my true self.

6. Solid sequencing. You can feel it when you've been primed and lubed for the peak pose. All your body-mind stars are in alignment.

7. Picking up a gem or two. I know you've had these moments, too. Something clicks. It seemed improbable or impossible before, but with a new angle of experimentation or a handful of words of wisdom uttered by the teacher, bam! And now, you've got it. Your mind and body will remember.

8. The post-yoga high. When it's right and good, it's sooooo right and goooood. Someone cuts you off on the way home? No flip-off for him. He gets a dreamy smile. Gum on your fave red flats? You calmly scrape it off. No matter, you're walking on air. That's how the high works. Inner peace.

How about you, my lovelies? Tell me your yoga class pet perks!

Comments

[Emmanuelle]

Honestly, I wouldn't know what else to add, I can definitely relate to all of those!
I love it when you feel the vibe and atmosphere of deep concentration around you, and sharing your practice while being lost (or found ;-) in it and not competing with others.
The laughing together, not laughing at one another.
The assists that make you feel the pose, not just do (or try to do) it.
Most of all I love how I can leave everything behind when I enter a studio, and pick up where I left off peacefully :-)

[Carrisa]

aaaahhhhh, Emmanuelle speaks the truth :) Both of you have said it perfectly! I luv just being able to 'let go'. I am a creature of competition... and it has taken a lot to 'let go', but it feels wonderful now that I've learned to... cute article <3

[Heather]

Lovely list! I couldn't agree more with all of them!

[Michelle]

i love the last one! the post-yoga high is incredible. and SO much easier to achieve in a class than at home.
my biggest perk, i think, is the sheer openness of a yoga studio. especially the one i've been to recently - a simple open room with lots and lots of windows for sunlight to shine through. after the clutter in my tiny apartment it's such a relief to be in such an open space!

[callah]

great post :) it's nice to focus on the positives!
I've got a contest running currently, feel free to enter!
http://callahyoga.blogspot.com/2010/07/ultima-giveaway.html
Namaste,

[Miss Fig]

Perfect cueing & sequencing! When the class isn't too full & we have plenty of room to stretch out. That dreamy twilight feeling in Suvasana when it's almost like I'm going to fall asleep and I see shapes or faces flash behind my closed eyelids. What is that, by the way? I'm a beginner, so if I feel nappy, that feels right to me. : )

[Lo { Y is for Yogini }]

Miss Figgy! I tried to email you, but it bounced back. Email me so we can connect. :)

[Serena]

I am taking a yoga class for P.E. credit at my university and the first day of class we went through the basics, a lot of it I had already done and while it was good I felt confident enough in myself and when we got to corpse pose I immediately fell out of the classroom and into another realm of the world and it felt amazing, I was on a natural high all day long.

[miami bikram]

great list haha