November yogi of the month : Alexandra

Live and Breathe Yoga Townsville Yogi of the month Alex

Our November Yogi of the month is Alex and she is an incredible woman to say the least.  There’s not many who work harder on and off the mat than this gorgeous soul or who has a brightest smile! The other day Alex said to me after a very tough practice where I was asking her to really work hard and repeat many challenging postures a number of times,  “Thanks for making practice fun!” I thought wow, what an attitude!  Thanks for all your hard work Alex, you inspire me and many others to give everything their best! Keep up the hard work!

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When and where did you first start practising yoga?

I started practising a vinyasa style yoga in 2009 with Tracy Gray in Brisbane at an old school classroom, just up the road from where I was living.

 

Why were you interested in the first place?

I’ve always explored different activities, and yoga was one that I’d been wanting to try. I guess I thought it might be fun and different!

 

What is it that got you hooked?

While I really enjoyed yoga, it wasn’t until I was living in Phoenix, Arizona – where I had time on my hands – that I really got hooked and knew I didn’t want to be without yoga again. I was at a studio that had a tonne of different yoga styles, and I was encouraged to try them all. This is where I discovered Ashtanga yoga. It was a small group of people with a bit of a hippy vibe with a teacher who was an ex-marathon runner turned Ashtangi.

What do you love about Live and Breathe Yoga?

I love the community vibe, the different energy created from a led practice and mysore practice,  Allison’s jokes and her amazing insights into the world of yoga, having a chat or simply saying ‘hi’ to other Live and Breathers, feeling like I’ve done something good and the aroma of chai in Savasana.

What benefits/changes have you felt since practising yoga?

Yoga reminds me to take care of myself – get enough sleep, eat well, have downtime. When I don’t do these things I can see it in my practice and I can feel it in my body. Yoga is like a test to see how well I’m doing as a whole person. Yoga provides me with motivation to be well and live life in a values orientated way.

How often do you practice in a week?

I try to practice four times per week – twice at the studio and twice at home. Sometimes it’s more, sometimes it’s less, but if less then I make an effort to do something rather than nothing.

 

What’s your favourite thing about Ashtanga Yoga?

I like that in Ashtanga yoga I can’t get away with not paying attention to what my breath is doing, without feeling like I might pass out. That causes me to be pretty focused and experience enforced ‘me time’. I also like being curious about each posture, just noticing the subtle differences (or huge ones) from one practice to the next. I find it fascinating in a bit of a nerdy way!

What would you say to someone who is thinking of trying yoga?

I would say that your brain will find a million reasons not to do something if that’s what you’re looking for. There really isn’t a ‘worst case scenario’ in terms of giving yoga a go, so maybe just try it and see what happens?

 

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