By Nam-hyun Choi
I had little physical fitness when I was in school.
I fumbled with balls and turned left in changing postures when I was supposed to turn right. What did all that mean for me when it came to physical exercises, ranging from physical education to taekwondo, ping pong, and finally yoga?
My memory about physical education centers on when an outdoor class was replaced by an indoor one for one reason or another on one day: being relieved of the fear of humiliation. On other days, I would trade anything for permission to skip a physical exercise.
As far as physical exercises (or lack thereof) were concerned, I fared much better in the army than in school. As luck would have it, the battalion commander exempted me from taekwondo practices for good when I started active duty after college.
When he saw my clumsy bodily postures and movements during an inspection of his battalionâs taekwondo practice, he apparently believed I was beyond redemption. He singled me out from among more than 600 soldiers (editor: gasps) engaged in the exercise and told me that I did not have to attend the battalion-wide morning ritual any longer. I felt more relieved than humiliated this time.
Since then, it had been taken for granted that I would frequently make wrong moves in bayonet training and other exercises. Still better, I was also exempted from those exercises from time to time.
I am 100% certain that I inherited my lack of athleticism from my dad. I created my workshop with my dad and my past self in mind.
â "Build a Strong Foundation.â â
4/28 SUNDAY START
It's designed for students who, like us, might have felt out of place in traditional drop-in yoga classes. We just needed a little different approach plus a supportive environment! (no more singling out please)
SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM FOR DETAILS! â OR CLICK BELOW TO SIGN UP
A turning point came when I retired.
My wife suggested we learn to play ping pong together, as we would now spend much more time together. I agreed despite my reservations. Still, I had to muster up the courage when the moment came to sign up for a class.
One lesson was enough for our coach to scratch her head about my and my wifeâs commitment to taking lessons. I assume she came close to telling us to give up. Instead, she kept discouraging us from buying rackets, balls, and other gear during the initial phase of coaching. She just let us use her spare sets.
Several months later, she showed us her journal and confessed that our progress had been so slow that she had believed it was a matter of time until we stopped showing up in her class.
But continued lessons and practices eventually paid off. We started to have fun playing the sport in a couple of years.
We had been taking lessons and playing games for seven years when the coronavirus pandemic hit. When freedom of movement and in-person contact were severely restricted, Sue proposed tutoring me on yoga via Zoom. After a period of hesitation, I decided to accept her offer. If long perseverance paid off in ping pong, I thought it might pay off in yoga as well.
I do not know much about yoga.
Oxford Reference says yoga is a Sanskrit word meaning âbind together.â In a technical sense, it denotes an Indian system of religious philosophy aiming at the union of the soul with the divine spirit by means of concentration to the exclusion of all sense-perception.
The definition is beyond comprehension for a yoga novice like me. Even more elusive is Sadhguruâs definition of yoga as a science that determines the nature of who you are and what you want to be. Is it really a science?
In practical terms, yoga is defined as a practice that combines physical postures, breathing techniques, and meditation to promote mental and physical well-being. This definition sounds much better.
It may be too early to say what yoga means to me.
I want yoga practices to relieve muscle tension and enhance my bodily flexibility. Reducing the chances of feeling stiffness in body parts and falling with the loss of balance is of more significant concern than an answer to the question of who I am.Â
So far, I have made some significant progress.
A year of online yoga has helped me do poses that initially looked beyond my capability. They are no longer painful. In addition, I have fewer muscle kinks during sleep. That is an excellent achievement, though I have a long way to go until I feel comfortable with yoga.
I can now maintain balance while maintaining some difficult postures. I also find greater ease when transitioning from one posture to another. I feel bodily relaxed and refreshed after a yoga exercise.Â
However, I have not had mental relaxation from a five-minute meditation session at the end as part of a practice. A 20-minute stand-alone session is no different. I feel the same with breathing, on which Sue does not seem to put much emphasis (editor: âyetâ). But I try to keep myself from jumping to a conclusion.
Overall, the impact of yoga on my health remains unclear.
(editor: this is against his own statement above, but I am not here for a rebuttal đ¤ˇđťââď¸).
All I can say is that I am suffering from no illness other than diabetes, with which I was diagnosed decades ago, and that I feel mostly comfortable. Thereâs no telling about the cause and effect, though, with no scientific data.
While I wouldn't say I'm passionate about yoga, it has replaced ping pong as a suitable exercise. I like it because it does not require too much exertion. Nor does it require a partner, which is good because my wife does not practice yoga.
I have no idea what Sue is actually aiming at for me. However, she has alluded that she will teach me all the basics needed so that I can enroll myself in a yoga class near my home. I hope she doesnât have to lower the bar.
The goal doesnât look like a mission impossible, no matter how ham-fisted I am in yoga.
â Build a Strong Foundation â
4-week IN-PERSON yoga workshop at Yoga Los Altos â 4/28 Sunday start!
If you know anyone who might benefit from this workshop, please forward this email!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
I am not flexible!!! Can I still practice yoga?
A : YES! And that might be more reason to practice yoga. We learn how to work with our body â and in the process we will gain strength, balance, and some flexibility. By the way, I am not that flexible either!
I canât join all 4 classes. Should I skip this workshop?
A : Absolutely not! You're welcome to join any classes that fit your schedule. Each session will include a brief review of the previous material to ensure everyone's caught up. We'll then build on that knowledge, allowing you to progress at your own pace. Feel free to ask questions after class if anything needs clarification.
Life can get busy, and I understand that attending all sessions might not always be possible. Don't worry, just participate in as much as you can!
.
And since I made a flyerâŚ