Are you in yoga?
YOGA - sport or philosophy of life?
Every person knows about the benefits of moving the body and about endless list of healthy outcomes of daily body activity. So, why do we delay the moment of starting a good routine? For those who have not started any workout yet, try yoga. Agi Jensen, wellknown fashion designer and yoga trainer, answers our questions what yoga means for her.
Usually, when you ask a person, why she or he does not practise anything yet, they will list numerous excuses, such as lack of time, no trainer who would understand the needs, all trials turned to be a failure or even disaster. So, you stop and do nothing. Not always it ends up with obesity, but it is the first step to stress-based diseases, heart problems, lung-related issues and diabetes type 2.
When you ask a person who is practising yoga, you will hear many stories about how difficult it was to find the discipline which would be so perfect and the whole life has changed. So, what is it in yoga, that it pleases so many and begins a new stage of life? It is worth hearing.
Żaneta Geltz: What do yoga and self-esteem have in common?
Agi Jensen: During yoga practice, concentration is very important. It is because you need to get into yourself, very deeply. You focus on your body, on your breath, on correctness of your asans. It is very crucial not to compare yourself with anybody else, people around your mat. As a yoga instructor, I am the one to introduce people into the adventure called yoga. I always explain that we come for yoga, because finally, we want to do something very good for our body, our soul and our mind.
So, what you do is that you appreciate yourself with yoga and all the future practices make sense, and we start to perceive yourselves and feel yoga in the right way.
Ż.G.: What can yoga offer - as a type of sport?
A.J.: As a sport discipline it builds up the muscles and raises body efficiency, and thus improves the way we look and the way we feel our body. During my classes, participants gain stronger character, energy to take up actions in life, balanced mind and emotions, improved biovitality. We are all preparing consciously our self control over our body for the future. We are stronger in facing life challenges and in overcoming our weaknesses. We sleep better, if we practise regularly, we experience fewer headaches, or backbone aches. We improve our daily mood, relationships with other people, close relatives, we get rid of stress, doubts, hesitations about decisions. We clean up toxins in our body and excessive fat leyer, we breathe better and we start enjoying life fully!
Ż.G.: In your practice you encourage children to train on the mat, why?
A.J.: Our mat is the space for yoga. We don’t need more to practise it and at the same time, we do not lose our concentration. It teaches children that mat is big enough to develop their passion and go for it with the full trust. The mat is each time taken care of with the full attention, and we use it in such a way, not to disturb anyone. Through such attention to details, we let children learn respect for things and other beings, and joy also sourced from each simplest activity.
Ż.G.: It often happens that people choosing yoga as a lifestyle, drop eating mean and start eating healthy, why?
A.J.: The right food choices and staying away from alcohol and cigarettes is a natural side effect of practising yoga. Not so long it takes, to see that regular yoga is easier when we are not excessively fed, and as a result of this observation, you start looking around for food that makes you light and feeling well. And then, you go deeper and deeper in the philosophy of yoga (like AHIMSA) and by the principle of not hurting others, many people practising yoga step by step gets away from meat consumption.
Ż.G.: What is your main message you want to send to the world by doing what you do?
A.J.: Yoga is a perfect tool to reach the mental and physical balance. Not only is it the flexibility of the body, but by the ujjayi breath you calm down, get rid of tension, restore your self esteem. You gain sincere and straightforward relationships, good energy, focus on your self-development. Everything is possible for you through the regular practice, and not the target but the way you achieve it, matter. So, let’s just practise, practise and all you want is coming.
Agi Jensen
Licensed yoga instructor basing her practice on ashtanga yoga. Graduated from National Ballet School and used to be fitness instructor.
Only yoga gave her fulfilment. Her work and passion is giving her a lot of life joy. Fashion designer creating casual clothes for men and women, to see more, enter: www.agijensen.com.
Photo by Dudek Photography
