Q: What do yoga and stretching have in common?

a) they are about the investigation of/and between flexibility & strength

b) can be used for self examination

c) the vehicle used to study is the self

d) they are about opposing forces working together

and the answer is of course…..yes.

Having recently attended a Kit Laughlin Stretch Therapy workshop in NYC

I wanted to share  some thoughts, feelings and perspectives from this whirlwind weekend in the big apple.

First of all, young fantastic crossfit men of all colors packed the room.  At yoga workshops there are mostly women and almost entirely white people, so the gender and color change up provided by this workshop was refreshing to say the very least. Eye candy does not even begin to cover it.  As luck would have it, I have done years of group and individual therapy, and I am  happily married to one of the most wonderful and lovely men in the entire world, but come on people, beauty is where you find it.

October 4 & 5th 2014 I found a mother lode of it at Transform Fitness and Velocity Fitness the training centers that hosted the Stretch Therapy workshop.

The Blanche De Bois aspect of myself is now a mere vestige that I keep around to remember some of the paths my life could have taken had I not addressed my demons. Being a dare devil, I awoke Blanche and  allowed her a few glimpses  of the participants. She has such visceral manner of being in the company of beautiful muscular men that I wanted to feel her reaction to seeing these guys. Plus, it was good for her to know that I still fully understand and appreciate her perspective and her struggles. Blanche is now a well examined previously unconscious habit of living, she knows I am the boss. She graciously thanked me for the view then willing returned to her magic safe place that I hold for her in my mind.

With the  reigns of my mind officially in my hands, this  weekend did not turn into A Street Car Named Disaster. Go Me.

Second of all, it was refreshing to be in a room of athletes. Yes, I love yogis, but I am first and foremost an athlete.  The discourse centered around brain-based learning that can assist an athlete in becoming “bullet-proof”, a fitness industry term that means being far less prone to injury. Shiva was not mentioned once during the entire weekend.

Instead  of Hindu Gods and Goddesses the ideals were actual humans that have put major units of time and devotion into honing their relationship to gravity. Michael Johnson was showcased by Kit.

It was so delightful to be in a room where Michael Johnson was held in reverence, rather than being scorned for doing sports and being competitive. Being a once and future athlete I can speak on this competitive thing. Athletes may be competitive during competition, otherwise we are training, we are  practicing,  we are being team members.

Since yoga does not offer the big game type of forum, yogis don’t get to experience the game day jitters thing. They don’t get to know the euphoria of morphing these jitters into a personal best.  Yogis don’t get to get any of this out of their personal body/mind system because  competition is not part of the system of yoga.  I have found that  many yogis that have never gotten to partake in a sport can be very competitive, but it is covert, muddled, unconscious. Turn the lights up! Let us BE.

 

I suppose I should actually write about what I learned from Stretch Therapy for Gymnastics Strength Training.

I will, but I had to blog this out!

I have always relied on the kindness of athletes.