The Thinking Yogi
by Kerry Maiorca

October 2006: Corrections as opportunities

While I was taking class recently, the teacher pointed out that I was overarching my low back in downward facing dog. It’s a challenge I’ve been working with for years; my background in dance as well as natural flexibility have led me to overdo it in the low back, occasionally leading to strain.

As the teacher gave the correction, I first felt a little defensive: I’ve been practicing for 10 years! Surely this was an exaggeration. If I don’t know how to do down dog properly, then what business have I teaching?

For the next few weeks I observed the pose more carefully in my home practice and realized that over time I’d begun to sink back into an old pattern that my body felt comfortable with after years of dancing and walking around that way. Without realizing it, my knowledge of this issue had been overtaken by habit and gradually my down dog became an overarched pose again, just as it was when I first began yoga.

Upon realizing this I immediately focused all my attention on my low back as I practiced. Motivated by wounded pride, I made a concerted effort to modify the pose so I wouldn’t have to be corrected again. Next time I attended class, I was relieved when the teacher didn’t mention anything about the pose and felt satisfied that I’d ‘fixed’ it successfully.

After taking a step back, I realized that rather than taking the teacher’s correction as a chance to learn something new and make a change, my actions were driven by a fear of being scolded for not being good enough. Had I not received this information, I probably would’ve continued practicing in my habitual way and may have eventually hurt myself. It was difficult to not take the correction personally, but once I had some distance on the situation I remembered that one of the things I love most about yoga practice is opportunities like these, situations in which I can observe myself and my habits. It ensures that I’m continually able to grow and change.

As you get to know your body in yoga class, you’ll begin to unearth your own habits. Part of the benefit of working consistently with a teacher is that she can point out places you may be able to improve upon as she observes you week after week. Rather than thinking about these corrections as a scolding, consider this information a new perspective of something so intimate to you that you may not even be able to see it. As you continue to receive feedback, develop awareness, and make changes in your body, you’ll prepare yourself for the much grander task of making changes in your life.

The beauty of yoga practice is that it provides a medium to address the challenges in your life in a concrete way. Working through the body becomes a metaphor for the mental and emotional challenges you’re facing in everyday life. By starting with the most accessible level, that of the muscles, tissues, and bones, you’re addressing the issue in a manageable way. And once you’ve found a way in through the body, you’ll have developed the tools to address the more nebulous area of the mind.