One morning, I awoke to the music of Stevie Wonder and a voice laughing as he called out various yoga poses to his class. Groggily, I stared at the television, suspicious and superstitious, watching one of the most fascinating yoga practices I had ever watched.
Technically, it was the only yoga practice I had ever watched. However, I was not a stranger to yoga. I had practiced asana for a few months in college, soundtracked by a full pipe organ in the basement of a chapel. Then there was the one notable yoga exception that led to a pretty crazy birth story, and crazier child at the end of that journey.
My first brush with my yogic destiny occurred in elementary school when I had to model some type of exercise for gym class. Oblivious to anything resembling yoga, I placed the soles of my feet together, dropped my knees open and demonstrated baddha konasana (butterfly), like a boss. I was clearly a yogi in a different life. Or, I just didn’t want to show off my natural ability to fall out of a chair while sitting in it.
I digress. Mostly.
Why didn’t I become a yoga teacher decades ago? Well, I was allergic to exercise and sweat was a neurotoxin I diligently avoided. Yes, yoga was amazing and incredible, and I definitely had a knack for it. But yoga was still exercise and that made it a bad career choice, given my intolerance for anything healthy. To this day, I regularly make bad choices I later regret.
Fast forward to the 2000s!
With the help of Stevie Wonder and Steve Ross (I *heart* Steves, I guess), I began doing yoga every damn day. I was out of shape, eating like crap, and chemically surviving each day while battling depression, anxiety, and the life of a single mom-to-be. 15 minutes a day led to 20 minutes, and then 30. Within a month or so, I was regularly practicing at home for an hour… every damn day.
My college class was hatha yoga. Steve Ross taught me how to flow. From there, I practiced power vinyasa and vinyasa flow, then yin and restorative yoga, as well as Ashtanga yoga… just about anything I could find. Seven years later, give or take, I became a yoga teacher and then an RYT (in that order… that’s another story, too).
What to expect in my classes? Authenticity, realistic expectations, messing up my right and left sides (and yours) and humor. I may be the one calling out poses, but I’m still practicing yoga just as much as you are.
Here’s to your wisdom, your kind words, and good wishes for yourself and for the world.
Chelsea D. Snyder has been regularly practicing yoga since 2008 and began teaching yoga in 2016. Chelsea is also a Reiki Master (2012), author, marketing consultant and business owner.