Kathleen Kastner
I began ashtanga yoga while working as an exercise physiologist and a personal trainer. I had been practicing more gentle styles of yoga for two years previously and was making very little progress in my practice. Fifteen years of compulsive cardiovascular and weight training exercise had left my body and my being, in what I now feel was a crippled state of existence. I had created so many imbalances in my body from conventional exercise and was paying the price of tight muscles, injured knees and an unfulfilled sense of Self. Therefore, I took a great leap into the unknown and let go of my controlling mind, which had dictated my exercise behavior for half my life and decided to do a pilot study on myself, by just practicing Ashtanga yoga, without any other form of exercise for one month. After all, if I was going to exercise for two hours a day, I wanted to be doing something I enjoyed and was meaningful to my personal and spiritual growth. In that defining moment I was liberated from my previous gym mentally, which was the best choice I have ever made concerning my health and longevity. I haven’t been to a gym in eleven years! As a health professional, I whole-heartedly believe that Ashtanga yoga is the most effective and thorough form of yoga, exercise, weight management, addiction recovery, physical therapy and psychotherapy. It truly is magical!
On the physical level, Ashtanga yoga has made me feel like a little kid again. I feel stronger and more flexible at age 41 than I ever have in my life. Years of conventional exercise had left my body in a bulky shape, that made me unrecognizable to myself and Ashtanga yoga has reinstated my body to its’ natural shape, with longer, leaner and more flexible muscles. Oh the joy of being free from tight muscles! Ashtanga yoga uses your body weight as resistance, very similar to gymnastics, so your entire body is working synergistically; using muscles you never knew you had, making you equally strong and flexible throughout your body.
Ashtanga yoga continuously flows in a vinyasa style of movement, from one pose to the next, making the system a moving meditation, or prayer in motion. Once your body becomes familiar with the set series of sequential poses, you feel like you are truly channeling thru the Ashtanga system, instead of struggling. This is mainly due to the utilization of deep Ujjayi breath and the energy locks, called bandhas. The breath and bandhas help you connect to Spirit and tap into to your energy body, so you are working your practice, from the inside out. Therefore in time, the appearance of your practice becomes effortless; allowing you to do poses you never dreamed could be possible for your body. In my yoga teaching I am a huge proponent of encouraging students to step out of the box of their comfort zone. My intention and hope is that they will then take the internal power cultivated on their yoga mat and apply it to their personal lives, allowing them to live their life with less fear and more courage and self-esteem.
On an emotional and spiritual level, Ashtanga yoga has helped deepen my connection to myself and to God which has given me the strength and insight over the last thirteen years to make the following positive changes in my life; opening Maya Yoga solo, after my first studio burned down, became vegan, lost 10 lbs, moved to Los Angeles to find my husband, thank goodness it worked (met him IN an asthanga class!), quit drinking alcohol and a 20 year coffee/caffeine addiction and initiated contact with my biological parents, whew! Most importantly, Ashtanga yoga helped give me absolute faith in God’s will for my life and to deal with life’s intense trials, like the unexpected death of my father, who just didn’t wake up seven years ago on Easter morning.
So you can see that Ashtanga yoga has been a major life line in my life. I’m afraid of where I would be today without this transformative practice that continues to feed my soul and my life daily. I believe Ashtanga yoga was designed to be initially unattainable, with the positive intention of bringing you back to the mat daily, helping you to GROW in your practice and in your life. It is definitely not about pacifying your ego. It is a discipline and commitment to getting honest with your Self and the GOD of your knowing.
Credits: This is an article by Kathleen Kastner and is reposted with permission. You can find the original here. Kathleen is the owner of Maya Yoga studio in Kansas City, MO, and operates it with her husband Wade Mortenson. Kathleen has a M.S in Exercise Physiology and a B.S in Journalism from the University of KS. Kathleen has been teaching yoga since 1996 and has been a studio owner for thirteen years. Her celebrity clients have included Deepak Chopra, Molly Sims and Emily Deschanel.
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