ASANA AND THE BIKINI

You have to be a very special and confident woman to go into a fluorescent-lit dressing room, strip down to undies, pull on a new swimsuit and not sort of groan at the image in the mirror.  I am all about positive body acceptance (see clipart, which I love!), but really, for me the true test is swimsuit shopping.  Turning this way and that, looking for sags, bags, and bulges where bulges shouldn't be.  It generally takes trying on a rack full of suits to find one that makes me say, "Ahhh..." Finally!

So, when Elizabeth taught class one morning and explained that the yoga poses she was about to lead us through were offered as an "invitation to try on a pose", just like trying on a new outfit.  Some fit better than others.  Some fit perfectly.  Some not at all.  We may each decide which to try on, which to keep.

If you are like me, some outfits look way better on the hanger than they do on me.  I think of this when I'm thumbing through my monthly issue of Yoga Journal magazine.  Headstands look great on those models.  On me, well, I'd be happy with a Leaning Tower of Pisa version of the pose, but I don't come even close.  Does that make me wrong?  Or bad?  Or a lousy yogini?  No.  It offers me an opportunity to know myself, accept myself, decide for myself if I want to inch my way into that pose over time, or to just let it go -- not for me.

I think of my knees too, which I've written about before.  I simply cannot do poses that require "knee strength".  I don't do Hero's Pose without a prop under my bottom.  I am cautious about Low Lunge or Crescent Lunge.  I grab extra cushions for my knees, but some days there is just too much pain to do the pose at all.  The lesson for me is not to force myself to endure pain, but to accept that there are poses I cannot do.

Just like I do not wear clothing that is formfitting in the waistline.  I carry my extra weight right in my midsection -- the dreaded "apple" shape inherited from both my mother and father.  I don't force myself into clothing that binds, looks unattractive, or is so baggy I feel like I'm wearing a tent.  I find outfits that "fit" and look decent.

I find yoga poses, from the menu of offerings, that fit too.  I find those that bring me the maximum strength, flexibility, balance, and well-being that are right for MY body.

What about you?  Are you trying to fit into a bikini yoga pose when really a nice little one-piece would be much more comfy?  Then knock it off and be kind to yourself.  You deserve it.

Namaste,  donnajurene