Today Patricia, who I work with, and I went to the regional Indiana Birkham yoga competition to see another friend from work compete. It was held at a monastery in Floyd Knobs. The top two men and women get to go to L.A. for the national competition...and our friend Steve, who is in his 40's won second place! Really there weren't very many men competing, just 3, but we were proud of him.
I was so impressed with these people. Not everyone was great, and there were all body types. Which is really what impresses me the most. That some of these people have the gumption to get up in front of all of these people and do the best poses that their body can do, knowing that they are not really competing to win.
The woman who won is actually my friend Steve's teacher. She can back bend until her head is between her feet and hold all of her body weight, parallel to the ground on her fingers. I am thinking back to my one college yoga class that Tara and I took together...fun but it didn't last long enough to make any kind of progress. Maybe I will try to get into it at home on my own since classes are so expensive. It would be good for my back- it still gives me trouble; it aches most days, and I never even did anything to it that I know of. I have just been touched by the bad back fairy.
3 comments:
About the achy back......do you recall our conversation about how I USE to have a sore, achy back frequently?
Well, I've told you (more than once) that I do a few minutes of back stretches every day; since I don't have a REAL exercise routine; I need to at least stretch my back a little morning and night. It does work!
Do you do this? Duh....no, you say...hmm...that means you don't listen to your mamma!
ok, i totally want to enter a yoga competition now...ha! no, not really....i think it is very strange that they actually have such things...i mean beyond physical yoga, it's supposed to be a very independent freeing experience and they're always incouraging people to do what your body allows or commands you to do, not to 'compete' with others around you in class. it's a very individual experience. so, it seemed a little strange to me to 'compete' in a pose that is supposed to help people reach beyond this material, capitalistic, self-serving state most people live in.
Dear Leah,
It is the LC that makes your back ache. My neck ached for years there and now it is better. I would say it's a miracle, but somehow I can see that there was a correlation between having to look down at lens machines all day and my achy, breaky neck.
Are you going to be in Clarksville on August 23rd? If so, I am going to stop there with Daniel to say hello and goodbye.
Love,
Merry
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