Gratitude For Not Being Good at Everything

I just read the Instagram post from one of my yoga teachers who tried something new tonight and she said it's what she's been craving. It reminded me of something Rodney Yee said at the yoga conference I went to years ago. He said something to the effect that beginners sometimes have it better than really flexible people because they don't have as far to go to get to the sensation or the benefit of the poses.

Today after training, Khris was helping me to figure out some things to help me address my back pain issues for my yoga poses. I had to show off my 1 second crow pose before we walked out. Of course, he was non-chalant about it as he is about everything I do. But I know he knows I'm impressed with myself. He told me to practice that as much as I can.

I told him that not everyone tries that when we get the time to try it during class. I've always loved trying it. I don't even care if I fall forward onto my face. It's fun and it's such a rewarding feeling to balance, even for a second.

It got me thinking about why the challenging things are so much better for people who are really able to surrender and accept things. Who aren't worried about not being good at something. Who don't judge themselves  or compare themsleves to the rest of the room.

It keeps you present.

When you are doing the first 10 pushups or situps or leg presses or any exercise or yoga poses that are easy, your mind can wander. As soon as you get to the push up that is a little tougher on your muscles, you are in your body and your mind is where it should be.

When you are in yoga and you are listening carefully to the cues and making subtle adjustments all the time, you are present. When you are challenged, you have to pay attention. So not being good at everything allows you to focus and be present and have more fun trying. It's something to be grateful for, not be frustrated about.

Even in restorative yoga, there is always something you can do to be more present, but mostly this is about the challenging practices. The most fun training sessions I have are when I do things where I really have to try hard to do something and I'm really all there. Sometimes I wobble and fall, but I'm there and I try again and again and make small improvements.

So tonight I'm grateful that I'm not good at everything. It gives me lots of room to have fun and really challenge myself. I'm also grateful that I have awesome teachers who work with me at every level of my goodness and not goodness.