Youth Yoga School

Since moving, I have been teaching yoga to a wider variety of people and kids. Many ages, many different levels of fitness and experience with yoga. One of the most satisfying experiences I have had in recent memory happened apparently randomly. I have been teaching at a fitness center, and so have a lot of new people attending each class. One evening, it just occurred that all the attendees were young adults. They ranged in age from 16 – 23 with one 27 year old. Almost all of the class had not done yoga before or had done it only once. They were trying it as a cross-training with weight lifting to maintain their flexibility. They did not know what to expect, but were convinced I think by positive peer pressure to give Yoga a try. I put on a fun mix of music that they would relate to…..some popular songs from the radio and upbeat dance type tunes from earlier times. I told them that I had some fun music to play for yoga since they were all young and I thought they would like it. One high school guy said to me, “Is it music that you think is Fun or will WE think it is fun?!?” I told him I thought he would like it and he could let me know at the end of class.

That was the start of something different about this particular class. It was not the usual, quiet, calm class. Smile. I wondered at one point if the 27 year old (who had come to my class one week earlier too) would think it was just a mess! We had boys talking, groaning, tipping over. It was a bit like herding cats, hard to get everyone going in the same direction. My approach was to keep them busy, smile. I did a flowing vinyasa style class and kept a close eye on them. I encouraged them to focus on themselves, to listen on the inside. Sometimes, smile, I resorted to “Shhhhhhh”. But I did not mind all the ruckus really. It is how they were. It is the energy and exhuberance and camraderie that is wonderful for guys that age. No matter that their teacher was twice their age.

I did not want these young men, lifters mostly and three girls who also happened to attend that night, to come away from their first yoga experience and think yoga was for wimps; that it was boring or not relevant for them.

At one point in the class, we were in a knee down lunge, deep stretching of the quads, and they were all I think amazed at the sensations that can arrive just in holding a stretch. There was a lot of groaning and amazement, lol. I made an announcement to the class. I said, ” Ok, now here is some wisdom from your yoga teacher…. are you ready?” They nodded yes. ” When you are in a tight spot in yoga class, like right now…..yoga says, do not fight it, do not tense up or panic. Just take a deep breath and relax. Maybe move back a bit, but do not give up. And in life, when you are in a tight spot, do not panic, do not give up, just stay with it and BREATHE…..” . I cannot know for sure, but it is my feeling that they heard me. I wish that I had been told that idea so clearly when I was in high school. I did not discover yoga till I was in my 20′s and have been benefiting from it ever since.

By the end of class, final relaxation, the whole group was relaxed, quiet, able to concentrate and follow the poses and the breath. They were all, I think, completely worn out; but also completely at peace, inside and out.

This is, of coarse, the great gift of Yoga. It is not just physical. They had an experience of Peace in Body, Mind, and Spirit.

After class, some of them stayed to talk with me. One young man said, “This is the most relaxed I have felt in the last couple years….. Thank you.”

It is my belief that Yoga has tremendous things to teach young adults.
It can teach us how to listen to ourselves rather than the crowd.
Yoga can teach us how to find the inner balance of not too much and not too little.
Yoga can build strength and confidence in people who will very shortly need to move into the world independently.
Yoga traditionally is aimed at answering the questions of “Who am I?” and “What am I doing with my life?”. How perfect this fits with the needs of teens and young adults.

I guess I am writing this to encourage teachers to embrace and welcome kids, teens, and young adults to yoga. They are a bit more to handle when teaching, but oh so satisfying when it comes together.

Namaste,
Lezlie Ward

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