Mindfulness, Gratitude, Empathy on and off the mat

Bringing a positive mindset into the yoga/ pilates class room might be tricky for some participants. Denying feelings like anger, frustration, disappointment or any other feelings we consider “bad” .

Recently I caught myself how many times I asked myself if I make someone uncomfortable or if I feel apologetic about my state of happiness, this occurred in a guided relaxation session I’ve joined a few weeks ago.  But that made me think about my students!  How do the  emotions my clients are carrying around all day make them arrive on the mat. Can they work through the emotional baggage they’re carrying and it will affect their body and mind connection? So, not that I ever thought of this in the past. But it was a great reminder to ponder and also to add something new to my toolset that I’ve just recently learned and hopefully it will be come to fruition in the classroom.

Also, about above it really depends the class participants attending and what they like to achieve. 

After many years of teaching movement I still keep an open mind and stay curious. It’s not about knowing everything straight away, and even reading the posture, the persons movement and practice, the students learning progress and also the personality, the attitude and whatever they bring to the sessions could make us Teacher become a champion in communication and body reading if we are looking behind the curtains, and see what is there to explore. 

"The attitude of gratitude is the highest yoga" - Yogi Bhajan

I have been doing a lot of Body Reading over the 15 Years. I trained my eyes in the clinical pilates environment where a postural assessment was the first meeting with clients. Those postural assessments swing the doors open to curiosity and perhaps that when I’ve got really hooked to the Anatomy Trains body map and the courses both Anatomy Trains and Art of Motion Academy offered. I was able to explain very well the difference between  hydrated fascia and dehydrated fascia, and this is very interesting and should be considered by any movement practitioner or body worker. Functional Patterns and Postural Patterns can be read by a skilled practitioner, and the takeaway here is: clients/ students will gain freedom for movement, higher energy, and more emotional balance, ant that is why I keep saying the fascial system can’t be underestimated. Over the years, I was reading books, listening to podcast about movement and emotions, about the emotional landscape being part of every session, and occasionally the ego joins the party. 

Two important things: Listen to your body and Respect your capacity

The little pain coming from the knee, the niggling back pain or the unforgiving tight hamstrings most of the time I find that those physical sensations that occur in any class make anyone to get hold of there ego, “why can’t I do this anymore”? Than I hear: “This pose is really annoying me today” “ I used to be fit, I was very flexible  when I was young” any those statements I hear often and of course when we worry that we lose something or being less capable the ego has their way of showing up. Today, I often remind my lovely students, that the most flexible person has a moment, and sometimes that flexible person might love the pigeon pose but perhaps something else becomes a problem with the limberness or not so limber body, so here is what usually happens the props arrive: blankets, cushion, chi ball, soft massage balls, overalls the optimal tool kit to help to feel supportive, and I would give tips and hints, explaining the body’s responds and if someone is interested I go more into details of the psychosomatic aspects. We can’t seperate our emotional landscape from our movement practice.  A safe space, a conversation and an open heart can help many students to become comfortable to let go of the grip, share those sensations and emotions, and specially with fame (fascia movement) we enter the world of body and emotional sensations due to the largest sensory organ, our fascia!

I carried ego, specially in my early days as a teacher, the photo for the social media or newsletter has to be perfect. The forced upright sitting position in any mediation room was stirred by my ego. But, it is not about impressing anyone, and I honestly believe that an appropriate amount of ego is good, keeps us motivated, but we need to be aware that the ego keeps showing up. So, ego comes along, emotionally we will be challenged and that is all part of the body, mind connections we make on and off the mat.

But it’s nice to be aware, and let’s try to be more empathetic, humble, mindful and grateful to our body, mind, heart and soul.