Yogalife Family Story: Emerald Lutz
The following is a post from Yogalife Studios member Emerald Lutz. When she came to us with the following words and the hopes we would share it was an obvious choice to do just that! We are truly grateful and honoured to be a part of Emerald's journey. Thank you for sharing! Namaste.
I am a firm believer that life has a way of giving you exactly what you need and when you need it. This belief is only emphasized by my journey into yoga.
When I was fifteen years old, I was in a very difficult place in my life. I had spent the last two years struggling with anorexia. My desperate need to be perfect had literally begun to control my life, my eating and exercise habits and even the way I saw myself. My self-esteem was at an all-time low. When I found out a new yoga studio had opened in town, I decided to give it a try.
Hot yoga seemed like an excellent way to burn some calories. And so I went optimistically into my first class, ready to exercise and maybe even relax a bit. What I found was just so much more.
Four years later, I am practicing yoga every day, if not more. Yoga has become my passion in life, my guiding light, my inspiration. Yoga has taught me that a body’s beauty is not measured by its size, shape or appearance.
A body is beautiful because of the miracles it preforms everyday – breathing, moving, growing, living. My self-esteem issues are deep rooted and may never completely fade, but each day, through yoga, I am able to prove to myself that I AM beautiful.
When I have my moments of doubt now, of crisis where I think I’m not good enough, I just think back to the improvements I’ve made in my practice, and even to poses that I never thought I’d ever be able to do. I remember how strong and capable I am, and it helps me immensely.
Yoga has taught me that there is no such thing as “perfect” – something I tried so hard for so long to achieve.
No matter how much you practice, how good you are at one pose, there is always something new that will come along and knock you back to ground level. It has also shown me to let go of my ego, to simply enjoy the practice without comparing myself to others around me.
Because of the amazing impact yoga has had on me over the last few years, I have signed aboard Yogalife’s teacher training this year. My hope, by intensifying my practice and learning to teach, is to be able to spread my love of yoga to all. I truly believe that yoga gives its practitioners exactly what they’re looking for, and for that reason, it can and should be practiced by all.
Yoga changed my life. I only hope that by sharing my story, my journey and my love that it can change a few more lives around me.
Namaste and much love,
Emerald
Share your yoga journey with us at info@yogalifestudios.ca