Jamie Ebert is in the pre-training portion of the Wanderlust Teacher Training in Squaw Valley. As she peels away the first few layers of this transformative process, she’s learned a few cool things:
- Anybody can practice yoga but no ONE type of yoga is for everyone. While many yoga traditions dictate that their style is universal, every student needs something different from a yoga practice. For some, it might be breathwork while for others it is asana (physical practice of yoga postures) or meditation and this might change each day, week, or year. Every person can breathe, therefore every person can practice yoga. This is a lesson that is crucial for teachers and students to remember.
- Always ask yourself WHY you want something and then enjoy each step. “Yoga is creation” according to T.K.V. Desikachar. Ask yourself why you want something and if the reason seems like something worth pursuing, enjoy each step you need to take to get there. If the answer is not something you think is worthwhile, choose something else and create a different goal for your practice.
- Your own yoga sequence can help you break habits. When you practice asana on your own, you plan and move through a sequence of poses. The practice begins to clear out some of the cobwebs in your mind. With a clearer mind, it becomes easier to let go of some of your habits, even in your choices of yoga poses. This clarity makes it easier to recognize what you might actually need or what might be good for you.
- Counterposes: every pose needs them. If you have ever experienced moments in yoga where parts of your body feel tense, don’t worry: you’re completely normal. Hopefully, your teachers offer you options for counterposes to relieve that tension. In every pose there can be both positive and negative impacts on the body, so it is crucial to follow up each pose with an appropriate release.
- Balance is not only about standing on one leg. In our culture, many students focus heavily on asana, the physical side of yoga. Since yoga is about the body, breath, and mind, this is just one of the “legs” of yoga which students can work on strengthening. Learning more about meditation, philosophy, and breathwork is equally important to pursuing a healthy yoga path. Luckily, practicing one part naturally increases openness to the others.
—
Jamie Ebert hails from the northern end of Lake Tahoe in Truckee, California. She spent her formidable, early adult years developing on the Eastern shores of Lake Champlain, otherwise known as Burlington, Vermont. She teaches yoga, manages the Wanderlust Yoga Studio in Squaw Valley, California, is incredibly geeky and passionate about all things photography, fantasy, pet-related, and of course yoga. Ever since she was a tiny person, she’s loved being a student and nothing has kept her more riveted than discovering the wide world of yoga. Now, she chooses to spend her time sharing, learning and refining her practice, while deeply aspiring to leave seeds of inspiration everywhere she goes.