YOGA is a union of the mind, body, and soul. It is about self-awareness, self-healing, self-discipline, and peace of mind.
Since its emergence, yoga has been popular to those who seek to train their body, mind and soul. And two of the most common yoga styles, Hatha and Vinyasa, are said to be friendly for first timers.
However, another style of yoga that is beginning to gather the attention of lifestyle and workout loving people is the Ashtanga Yoga.
Ashtanga yoga, in Sanskrit means “eight-limbed,” is a yoga style popularized by Sri Pattabhi Jois during the 20h century. Unlike the aforementioned two yoga types, the Ashtanga yoga is passed on to generations, just like a tradition.
According to Jennifer Villagonzalo, an Ashtanga yoga teacher who practices it for nine years, Ashtanga yoga is like a spiritual journey wherein the practitioner or students will learn to be more patient, more non-violent and be true or honest to themselves and to others.
“Ashtanga practitioners like me and the rest, we're not perfect people, but everyday we're trying to practice. At least our goal is in time we'll become a better version of ourselves. The same is true with the students that you are teaching,” Villagonzalo said.
“That's why that makes it different from the other yogas. I'm not saying other yogas are bad because all yogas are good; they come from the same tree. It’s just that Ashtanga has been there for a very long time. It’s really a tradition. So all the other yogas got the poses from Ashtanga,” she added.
Like any other fitness-oriented practices, there are several benefits one can get from practicing Ashtanga yoga.
According to one of Villagonzalo's students, Jason Mercado Rollon, who is work-focused and hardworking, was able to achieve relaxation and peace of mind through Ashtanga yoga, especially since his workplace is “toxic” for him.
“Before naa koy back pain but now na settled na sya. I took a lot of medicine before para lang sya mawala but then again, nag yoga lang ko, nawala na siya,” Rollon said.
“There are a lot of benefits in yoga. All you just need to do is practice and practice, surrender yourself and you will see the benefit from it,” he added.
Alex Saimon III, Villagonzalo's other student, and has been practicing Ashtanga yoga for months said that through doing Ashtanga yoga, he was able to have a better control of his emotions and be aware of his anxiety attacks.
“When I started practicing. Mao to sya. Na bantayan lang na ko nga murag dili na kaayo ko ginaatake sa anxieties although from time to time (That was it. I noticed that I rarely have anxiety attacks),” Saimon said.
Jennifer also added other benefits of Ashtanga, including: good digestion, good sleep, and helps the nervous system doing better, healing of chronic diseases, back pains and depression.
“When you are in the pose, you have to enjoy the journey because it has a benefit. Pero you cannot get the benefits if you only practice once and you're not gonna breathe correctly,” Villagonzalo said.
And in order to be successful in your practice of Ashtanga, Jennifer's words of advice:
“Just surrender. When you get into the studio, leave your ego outside, surrender. There's a teacher, you have to surrender to him or her and to the practice,” Villagonzalo said.
“So surrender, and learn to enjoy the journey. Just be patient. If you can't get the pose now, there's still tomorrow,” she added.
One is never too old or too young to do yoga. And the good thing is, not only are you able to lose weight, you can also be healthy physically, emotionally and mentally.