Read more about the article i am not a “good vibes only” yoga teacher
Kelly Hogaboom of Little Switch Yoga, Grays Harbor Aberdeen, WA

i am not a “good vibes only” yoga teacher

Kelly Hogaboom of Little Switch Yoga, Grays Harbor Aberdeen, WA

I’ve been wading through the Americanized versions of yoga and there’s something that bugs me.

Okay there’s more than one thing.

But here’s a start:

The “good vibes only” yoga messaging is just terrible.

And it really, really is EVERYWHERE.

First of all – the “no negative energy, please” messaging is not based on yoga’s history.

There’s nothing in the 5,000 year old practices of yoga emphasizing “good vibes only” enough to where you’d sloganize it on a t-shirt.

The Eight Limbs of Yoga start us with the Yamas and Niyamas – that is, spiritual practices and personal observances respectively.

These are as follows:

The Yamas
Ahimsa (non-violence)
Satya (truthfulness)
Asteya (non-stealing)
Brahmacharya (moderation of the senses/our energy), and
Aparigraha (non-greed) – 

The yamas teach us how to behave in an ethical framing – how to conduct ourselves in the world.

The Niyamas
Saucha (cleanliness or purity)
Santosa (contentment)
Tapas (discipline)
Svadhyaya (self-study)
Ishvara Pranidhana (surrender to the Higher Self)

The niyamas invite us to find joy and strength in our personal practices – our inner disciplines.

So right away we have our first two limbs of yoga and TEN practices we can study –

and there’s no mention of or tone implying “good vibes only”.

If anything, the yamas and niyamas indicate disciplines and practices to employ – regardless of whether we’re feeling groovy about it or not.

So to be honest I am not sure where all the “good vibes only” came form, but I’ll tell you one thing:

Your bad vibes are welcome in your practice.

Your bad vibes are welcome in my studio space!

I don’t want you to avoid class – or practice at home – because you’re in a “bad vibes’ place, and can’t snap out of it.

I want you to practice regularly and learn to let your “bad vibes” show up too – maybe you can start to (gasp!) make friends with those bad vibes!

The thing is…

If we only practice yoga when we feel good, then we’re going to skip a lot of practice.

And if we only practice yoga to instantly get some kind of result – we’ll give up when we don’t get what we want.

If we only practice yoga to change how our body looks or what impressive bendy shapes we can make – we’ll give up there, too, when progress doesn’t happen the way we want to, or as fast as we want to.

If we only practice yoga to lose weight or get those toned abs – 

we are not only being a fair-weather friend to yoga,

we are being a fair-weather friend to ourselves.

I invite you to be a best friend to yourself.

It’s a really smart investment, relationship-wise!

let’s get real about meditation

Mediation is beneficial; this is know, studied, and obvious through thousands of years of scientific study as well as even more compelling anecdotal and empirical evidence.

We know it’s good for us.

It’s also FREE – it costs nothing.

Then why don’t we do it?

***

The vast majority of people who find this post, will not be meditating daily, or even regularly.

I am not here to shame anyone about that.

I’m not even here to convince anyone that they *should* meditate.

That’s kind of beside the point, for me.

But I want to offer a few thoughts, and share some of my experience.

First: meditation is not (usually) an instant gratification activity.

In other words meditation rarely gives us a high. In contrast, we get an immediate boost from a cup of coffee or an impulsive shoe purchase (two delights I experienced this week) – that kind of thing.

Now – some people DO experience bliss in meditation –

However, that is rather rare.

And I’ve not met a regular practitioner who experiences bliss *EVERY time they meditate*.

(and yet they keep at it!)

So for me, this means we might decide to meditate – and commit to practice – knowing we likely won’t receive immediate benefits.

And despite the fact we engage in all kinds of “good habits” just because we know they’re good for us  –

(for instance very few people absolutely LOVE brushing their teeth but most of us do it regularly as the alternative is much worse) –

for some reason people don’t want to invest five minutes a day in something that could improve their BRAIN.

(I don’t know about you, but my brain needs all the help it can get!)

***

I want to point out that for many years, I was no exception. I crumpled up “meditation” on a list of things I “should” do, good habits I “should” employ – like saving 10% of my paycheck, or staying hydrated –

and I just let those “shoulds” beat me up.

Rather than doing anything about it!

So here is my second point:

Almost all forms of meditation are training the mind.

We KNOW that brains can be trained. We train our brains every day – either on purpose or,  for the most part, fairly unconsciously through the things we choose to put into our brains.

In fact we put in a LOT of brain-training time.

It follows that:

Any wholesome training of the mind, will result in improvements in our life.

In fact, that should be obvious.

In other words: we don’t have to know HOW our minds and our lives will improve –

we just get to TRUST that they will, and look forward to observing the change.

Actually, it’s a pretty cool process.

***

Personally, I don’t think we’re being lazy about any of this.

If you think about how hard life can be, our behavior makes sense.

For most of us our minds work well enough that we don’t give them much focused attention.

Our minds work pretty well or IF THEY DON’T, we’ve found a way to get through our day, to survive.

Well I don’t know about you, but I want more than survival.

I’ve been in survival mode and I didn’t like the kind of person I became.

I want to thrive, and I want to be able to help others to safety, to wholeness, to joy and healing.

So!

I’ve put a lot of effort into improving my health, my behavior, my life and the life of my community.

And in that effort – and in doing that research – I came to see that a committed meditation practice was missing.

So I added a meditation practice.

I am very clever so – I found two weekly groups to commit to (one in person at no cost, and one online for monthly dana), and I downloaded a free app for seven days a week solo practice.

I put meditation in my daily task list – so that I get to check it off at the end of the day.

(This feels quite satisfying!)

And this practice is starting to feel very good – and I’m experiencing benefits.

It’s starting to really take hold.

I’m glad I gave myself the chance to see it through.

***

So!

Once again: I’m not here to tell you to meditate.

But I will share that it’s made a huge difference in my life – in my relationships, in my physical health, but most importantly:

in the quality of my mind.

I hope you consider making a consistent practice of meditation – even five minutes, uninterrupted, per day.

Don’t let anyone talk you out of it!

(Even if it’s YOU trying to talk yourself out of it!)

Why not give yourself a chance?

You’ll never know how much your mind – and your life – can improve, unless you commit to the experience.

I look forward to hearing about your results!

A new series: Yoga for Absolute Beginners

I’m so pleased to offer a Yoga for Absolute Beginners series in March – the 19th through the 23rd of April, from 6:45 PM to 8 PM on Sundays!

In addition to our class time, each student receives a personal one hour session!

I’ll share a bit about what to expect from this series, then answer a few questions I’ve been asked.

What to expect:

Introduction to the history of yoga
Yoga is over 5,000 years old. I can’t possibly cover the history in six sessions even if I was a big expert (and I’m not)! But what I can do is give you the foundational information I wish I’d had, when I first started practicing twenty years ago!

Yoga language, yoga concepts, and Sanskrit
I’d like you to feel comfortable in a class – to know what to expect, whatever class you may end up in. Even though there are many, many types of yoga classes there are a few things I feel I can safely – and smartly – teach you, to prepare you for any setting you walk into.

The Eight Limbs of Yoga
What are the Eight Limbs of Yoga and why do they matter? Our physical health may be important to us, and that’s a good thing. But there is more to yoga than just corporeal exercise. We are more than just the strength and flexibility of our bodies.

While most the time you meet with me at Little Switch – in a group class, or private practice – we will be employing the physical arm of yoga – asana (or poses) – I want to touch on all eight arms of yoga for context. I promise: you’ll be glad I did.

Physical alignment
When it comes to asana, alignment and form are more important than trying to “look” like the instructor, or form an impressive-looking shape or feat of strength. In our six weeks I will get you grounded in alignment so you can enjoy practice, so you can stay safer in practice, and so you can benefit from practice.

Families of poses
I will lead us through varying degrees of depth of all basic families of yoga postures: standing poses, twists, hip openers, inversions, forward bends, backbends, arm balances, yin, and restorative yoga.

Yoga in Western culture
“Yoga” means an awful lot of different things. I want you equipped to find the classes – and instructors – that work best for you. My goal is for these six weeks to empower your own path. You deserve to enjoy every minute of your practice – it shouldn’t be a chore, or a competition.

Connection with the community
Six weeks together – we’ll get to know one another a little bit! I promise, you’ll feel a special fondness for the students you share this time with. Over time, I think you’ll find that’s the highest value experience of the series.

A personal hour with yours truly!
That’s right! Each one of you who enrolls receives a one-on-one hour with me to talk about your practice, about any modifications or variations that may suit you, about any injury history, and your intentions and goals for your practice.

A one-on-one session currently carries $75 fee but, if you enroll in the six week course, you receive this time complimentary. Upon enrollment you’ll receive a link and packet explaining how to claim this hour.

Again – my every intention is to bring you a safe, powerful, joyful experience that can boost you in your continued practice.

And finally…

Yes, you will get a workout!
While we won’t be huffin’ and puffin’ through a vigorous flow during the entirety of our six sessions together – make no mistake we will be moving, challenging, and strengthening our bodies!

My goal is not just to teach you more about yoga – but to help you fall in love with yoga, so you’ll be motivated and enthusiastic after we part ways!

And remember –

You can join a regular group class – anytime!

FAQ:

Am I too “out of shape” for this class?
No. However, you will be signing the same waiver every student does, affirming that you’ve discussed a yoga practice with your qualified, trusted practitioner.

If you can breathe, you can take this series.

Am I too “advanced” for this class?
Possibly! However, I am a fairly advanced practitioner and I’m designing a class I would want to take – if that makes sense! If you are fairly practiced I believe you will enjoy getting to work on the finer details of alignment – as well as connect with a grounded community. 

I don’t want anyone in the series who doesn’t want to be there, and who doesn’t benefit from the experience. If after reading this post you’re still unsure – feel free to email me, or meet with me after a group class.

Will you be teaching modifications in each asana (pose)?
Absolutely – although I call them variations. But: yes!

How many people will be in the series?
In order to provide a quality experience for all, I will accept between five to eight students. Any fewer, and I feel that puts too much pressure on each student. Any more, and I wouldn’t be able to provide quality attention to each student.

What happens if the series doesn’t get five signups?
You will be refunded in full, with my gratitude. But – tell your friends, so we can fill this roster and you can take the series with a buddy!

What happens if the class fills up?
Stay on my waitlist! If these series are popular, I will be sure to run them again.

***

Any other questions I haven’t responded to? Please feel free to email me directly.

I’d love to see you March 19th!

You can sign up here.

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