Like many people, I came to yoga for the physical benefits. I was recovering from knee surgery, and yoga aided in the healing process and helped get me back to training for triathlons. What I didn't expect were the mental, emotional and spiritual benefits that came along with the yoga practice. In each of the first five private yoga classes I took, I laughed and I cried, and I moved through physical and emotional pain that were part of my reality at the time. As I dug deeper into the eight limbs of yoga through training, retreats and practice, I began to experience transformation that no other form of "exercise" had given me. I started to allow the dark parts of me and my past rise to the surface so that I could face them head on. Many of these shadows were things that I had pushed down and/or ignored for years. Yoga gave me the tools to transform the hurt, shame and judgement, and uncover the lessons to find that each cloud has a silver lining. My practice gave me the strength to fully embrace the light and love as well. Yoga has been an important resource to learn more about myself, and how to relate better with others
and the world. The physical benefits of practicing asana have been abundant, but even more profound have been the ways that yoga has shifted my perspective, settled my over-active mind, reduced my stress-level, and helped me grow and transform. Discover the power of a regular yoga practice for yourself. Join us for the last two weeks of Firefly's yoga challenge, attend a group class, or sign up for private classes.