BY YEO KAI WEN, BEVERLEY
“Pfft, yoga? Isn’t that the one where old people just randomly prance around in spandex on rubber mats?” I think my initial thoughts when faced with the word “Yoga” went something along those lines. Well, I wasn’t very excited about yoga at first, and being a serial exercise-hater, I was more than reluctant to put my name down for the class. But thinking about the one time my friend told me that it would help me with my perpetual tailbone problems, I took a small plunge and signed up for yoga. Turns out, this was one of the (relatively few) decisions I’ve not regretted making.
The short workshop was organised for us by the Holistic Development portfolio, who invited Instructor War War from Ohmsantih Yoga to come down and teach us a few simple poses, stretches and exercises. As I walked into the hall, we were treated to a delicious buffet with lots of cream puffs and given a free yoga mat to take home. Excited chatter filled the function hall as people started getting hyped about finally being rid of all the stress built up over the semester. As I stood preparing the camera to take unglam shots of my friends (I was also one of the photographers covering the event) I wondered to myself, “is yoga really that magical?” but I told myself to keep an open mind as I watched the instructors walk in.
The class started out with a short “health benefits of yoga” lecture, complete with Powerpoint slides. It was really interesting to learn how yoga can improve our mental state (anxiety and inability to concentrate in lectures, begone!) and it intrigued me that yoga is also used as therapy for pre-natal women and elderly patients.
Next, we shifted into doing simple stretches led by Ms War War and her fellow instructor. We were taught how to take deep breaths (which, personally, I found extremely useful, as it helps me calm down during stressful exams) and how to move our bodies according to the rhythms of the breathing. Inhale and stretch your arms up. Exhale and relax.
Then it started getting intense. “You guys are only 18-25 years old, you should be able to at least reach your ankles!” Ms War War’s voice boomed out around me as I struggled to even reach my knees during the stretch, let alone my ankles. That was just the warm up, apparently, as I was then told to stand on all fours and lift my leg high up into the sky (whilst keeping it straight). The grimace on my face was clearly visible and my yell of pain clearly audible as I lifted my leg up and up. I was legitimately dying but I persevered and in the end I did manage to pull off the Three-Legged Dog pose somewhat legitimately. No, this was definitely not something only for old people who like prancing around in spandex!
As the class went on, time flew by, and before we knew it, we were all lying down on the floor with our eyes closed for the end-of-class relaxation exercise. The lights went off and my thoughts drifted away from the pile of homework waiting for me on my table. It was the most relaxed I’d felt since starting university and I was reluctant to wake myself from the trance. It was obvious that I was not the only one feeling this way, as some of my friends were still out cold on the floor when the lights came back on!
That night, I slept the best I’d ever slept in my life (a full 12 hours, to boot!). Thank you to Holistic Development for introducing us to the wonderful world of yoga!