I began running at a pivotal time in my life. I was 40. My youngest child was going to be starting Kindergarten in the fall and it would be a full day K. So, it was time for me to return to work. I had begun running in March-ish (those of you who remember specific dates/times that things happen, kudos to you ~ I do not!) I ran with a wonderful friend of mine and as we progressed in training for the Rock ‘n Roll 1/2 Marathon Labor Day weekend, we would talk nonstop during our long runs; then continue talking in the driveway. It seemed we never ran out of material. I miss that and miss her.
So, how does yoga come into play and how does it relate to my theme for this blog: to travel, explore, create, and discover what holds me back from it all. Fast forward 14 years. I decided that I wanted to take Yoga Teacher Training (YTT.) I found a studio in Norfolk with a schedule that would work with mine, had a chat with the teacher and registered. Such a great experience! It did lead to a couple of teaching opportunities which I will share at the end. But first, how did I get there.
After running for a couple of years, running 2 half-marathons a year and one full marathon, I suffered an injury outside of running. It’s really difficult to go from running 3-5 days/week to not being able to run. So, while I was recovering, I began practicing yoga, specifically Yoga with Adriene (YWA) on YouTube. While she has a paid channel, Find What Feels Good (FWFG), she shares so much free content. Every January, she provided a 30-day challenge, which I practiced often and loved how it started my year off strong. She and her channel were instrumental to both my mental and physical health during COVID.
Again, how does this relate?? Traveling and exploring, for me and many, requires a certain level of physical fitness. Running provided that, as well as a stress relief. Running helped me clear my mind, but also process things going on in my life. When injuries occurred or “life happened” and interfered, yoga often complimented or took over. Yoga provides not only physical benefits of strength and flexibility, but also tremendous mental benefits. Breathwork and meditation reduce my anxiety and calm my nerves. Yoga is something I can always do at home, daily, as YWA offers practices as short as 10 min up to a full Vinyasa Flow class. Practicing yoga helps me prepare for and recover after a long hike, a trip that is causing anxiety for me, such as visiting NYC at Thanksgiving 2025, my 1st backpacking adventure October 2024 and my next backpacking adventure coming up in February ’26. I have practiced next to my tent while camping, in a hotel room in NYC and in houses while visiting family.
Yoga prepares me, both physically and mentally, to do hard things, to face difficult or challenging times. As a RYT-200, I led an after school club at my middle school, as well as classes at OneLife Fitness, and The Soulful Place yoga studio (now closed.) This provided opportunities for me to create as I prepared various sequences and musical playlists for my classes. I have not taught in over a year, but this is something I am considering again. Not only does it offer me the creative outlet, but teaching holds me accountable to practice regularly. That being said, teaching is a commitment and becomes an obligation, too. So, it’s important to find balance there.
Finally, the world is heavy right now. Yoga is also offers an opportunity for me to tend to myself, to take care of myself mentally and physically. I hope you enjoyed this post. I am learning and working on promoting this, how to do that, and how much I want to do that.
Namaste, ~ vbkaren
