What does your typical practice schedule look like during the week?
To be honest, my weekly practice schedule looked a lot different when the daylight hours were fewer and the weather was cooler. I started the stay at home time practicing daily and then tampered to every other day (mostly the 6pm classes) live with Samudra as I found my rhythm and routine as a nursing student studying at home. As the semester came to a close and I transitioned to a very different reality – job searching – I started utilizing the video library more and found myself showing up on my mat more for sun salutations and meditation. Now I am spending more time in the woods – exploring trails nearby where I can run and breathe. With the weather being so nice I have felt like outside is all I need to recharge. And then I wake up to injustices in the news each day and I am brought back to the mat in order to fortify and find inner strength to continue onward. I am now spending 1-2 days in live classes and then 1-2 days watching recorded classes every week as a baseline. Some weeks I need less and some I need more.
What is the biggest benefit you get from your yoga or meditation practice?
I love how my body and mind connect when I am practicing regularly. I feel intuned to my inner strength which is so needed during this time and always.
What has been the most valuable thing about being a part of Samudra during these past few months?
I started at Samudra the first class they opened at the new studio in Biddeford on January 1st. I came for the heat. I did the intro/new student monthly deal and I was hooked. I took 2 weeks to decide if I would be a member full-time and during that off time in February I felt unbalanced, unsettled, and kind of alone. While I came for the heat, I stayed for the community which has given me so much hope, strength, and love from the very beginning. This has continued during the stay at home and I am so grateful for the opportunities to practice at home where I created a home yoga practice for the first time. I feel connected from afar and am excited for when we are able to be in the same physical space again, breathing together.
What’s one way you’ve surprised yourself?
I have been more gracious with myself through yoga. While I attempt challenging poses, I have learned to not beat myself up for not “nailing it.” I have been encouraged to try and fail and say that it is ok. That every day is different and to listen to what my body needs and wants in the present.
What brought you to Samudra?
My first yoga class ever was a super super hot vinyasa class with my mom when I was 15. I remember sweating what felt like a swimming pool worth of fluid and loving it – and spending a significant amount of time in child’s pose, while my mom crushed it with crow and headstands. I was super impressed. However, it took me practicing on and off for 14 years and Samudra’s move to Biddeford (just a couple blocks down) for me to commit to a regular practice. My mom – who is a yoga instructor now – is very proud and happy for us to have something to share.
What’s a fun fact your fellow yogis may not know about you?
I have a dog named Excavator who rarely leaves my side and often finds his way into my at-home practice and live classes where he can be found trying to wedge himself under my downdog or pigeon. He now has his own mat next to mine where I encourage him to practice alongside me.