Clay Hosterman
I was greatly surprised to be recognized as student of the month for January, 2010! There are so many dedicated and enthusiastic teachers and practitioners here, I'm humbled.
My story may seem very familiar to many of you, with only a few twists. At 6'7" and 295lbs, I was not looking for yoga, but bumped into it rather accidently after a knee injury from a Rugby match. Kevin Sisk (many of you know Kevin and Phoebe…both Marines) insisted he knew how I could heal from the injury. I'll never forget his broad grin as I responded, "Sure, how hard could it be? I'd just be standing there stretching in one place….." And since I could hardly walk at the time, I took him up on it. Besides, any thing a Marine could do, an Army Ranger could do twice as well, right?
Whamo, OK, score one for the Marine Corp, there I was flat on my back for twenty minutes after my first class, remarking that I had just endured the hardest hour and half work out I could remember since my days in the Army! Kevin just continued grinning. With my competitive spirit a bit bruised, I was instantly intrigued and determined to take up this Bikram yoga challenge.
In reflection, it was probably the regimentation and discipline of class that I first responded to. Many of the postures reminded me of warm-up stretches in college and high school athletics. Admittedly, I'd never done any thing like this in the heat for 90 minutes. Maybe a 12 mile forced road march in Malaysia one summer??…;-) But indisputably, in a few short months, I was back on the Rugby field, stronger than ever. The proof was in the pudding.
18 months, two Bikram books, one Bikram lecture, one complete 60 day challenge and a Double XL t-shirt later, I'm determined to keep moving to new levels with my practice. I hope to get my wife Andrea involved soon too. Every week I recognize new tools in my bodies' inventory that are improving my focus, endurance, strength and lung capacity. Bikram's Yoga has revealed a path for me that I had not recognized until now.
Today, and perhaps most importantly, I am also moved by Bikram's comments from his Dallas lecture. Bikram insisted that we must become what God intended for us to become, in order that we might then be able to help others. And Yoga helps us become what God intended. This strikes me as one of his most profound statements. I'd never before associated weaving philosophy and spirituality into the physical workouts of my youth. But by doing so, the small weekly improvements become all the more meaningful and important, recognizing how the body, mind and soul ought to all work together for a greater good.
So for all of you that have endured and persisted through many years of yoga, I hope my story re-affirms the meaningful and important experiences of each of your practices. While for my fellow novices, I hope to encourage you to dig in and work hard pursuing your new body, soul and mind. And if you're considering your first class, jump on in! With hard work, surprising rewards await you. Cheers, Clay
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