Physical Changes in Yoga Teacher Training

When I began my teacher training more than two months ago, my instructors warned the class that we were embarking on a journey that would change us mentally, spiritually, and physically. I’ve talked a lot about mental and spiritual growth throughout the course of this blog, so I think it’s time to dedicate some attention to the physical side of things.

I could never have anticipated the scope of change my body would go through. Thinking back to the first day of the course held on a very chilly February evening, I thought to myself, “Finally those wretched hamstrings will gain some flexibility—hopefully.” If I had only known then that my hamstrings would only be the tip of the iceberg in this story.

When you nearly triple the amount of classes you do, you’re bound to see a difference. Additionally, by gaining knowledge of the proper alignments, benefits and dangers to each asana, you begin to approach your physical practice with much more intensity and precision. Every twist goes deeper and every flat back gets lengthier.

I must preface this by admitting one thing—I’m a sloucher, I always have been. Chalk it up to weak shoulder and back muscles or just plain laziness, any chance I get to roll my shoulders forward I take. Everyone carries their tension in different areas, and I definitely carry mine in my shoulders. And like all long-lasting bad habits, my slouching caught up with me.

The morning after a particularly challenging class about a month ago I could barely move. My entire upper body felt like it had been run over. A few days after that I started to get shooting pains in my back, shoulders and neck. Even my jaw seized up. After years of sending me whispers that went unacknowledged, my body finally screamed at me in a way I couldn’t ignore.

I went to my instructors and asked them what could be going on, and I got the opinion of a Registered Massage Therapist. According to all sources, I had years, perhaps a lifetime, of stored emotional and physical tension in the upper back area that was only beginning to be released. That explains why Paschimottanasana always makes me want to cry.

As the days went on, things weren’t feeling much better and my practice was really beginning to suffer. I felt like I was falling behind with my training so I went to the Chiropractic and Physiotherapy Centre. The x-rays they took revealed that I have an over-curved thoracic spine and a kyphotic neck (which essentially means the vertebrae curve the wrong way). While the few bone-cracking adjustments they gave me did make me feel better, the 12 month, 4,000 dollar treatment plan they prescribed had me running for the door. I purchased a 30 dollar Acuball on my way out and never returned.

Enough was enough. I decided it was time to stop fighting the pain and just let it pass through me. For a week and half I just relaxed. I stopped going to classes, made sure I took lots of hot showers and focused on deep breathing and refining my meditation practice instead. With a new awareness, I discovered how tense that area of my body really is. I would constantly find myself with my shoulders up around my ears in times of stress which only added to the feeling because of shortened breath and unnecessary tension. Simply reminding myself to bring my shoulders back and down made a huge difference in releasing both physical and emotion stress.

Lo and behold, a little rest was all I needed. The preceding few weeks had just been the beginning of a long road to correcting a serious physical issue. Coming back, my back felt more flexible, stronger and ready to further its transformation. Since then, back bends have become easier, forward bends aren’t nearly as much of strain, and poses like Warrior 1 inspire a new found sense of strength. And not surprisingly, I feel that my anxiety levels have decreased significantly.

Releasing a lifetime of physical and emotion tension can make you face many challenging feelings and thoughts. But sometimes you have to go through a bit of a painful transformation before you can emerge stronger and more graceful.