College life can be stressful. Between classes, extracurriculars, jobs, and a social life, it’s easy to become anxious or overworked. I sat down with college student and yogi, Lindsay, to discuss how yoga can benefit your life.
CollegeFashionista: Tell me a little about yourself.
Lindsay Ehret: My name is Lindsay Ehret, and I am a new 21-year-old. I am currently a junior at West Chester University in Pennsylvania. I am a speech-pathology major there. My major is pretty academically demanding, so when I have free time, I do a lot of activities to help me de-stress. Yoga is my biggest hobby that helps me unwind, but I also like to kayak, rock climb, and paint in my free time.
CF: How long have you been doing yoga? What got you started?
LE: I have been doing yoga for about five years now. I began practicing right around when I was about to graduate high school. I began to really push myself in my practice when I was about 19. I began yoga by going to a local yoga studio, I had the most amazing teacher for my first class. I was hooked ever since.
CF:Â How has yoga improved your quality of life?
LE: Yoga has brought so much peace and happiness to my life. I tend to become stressed easily and feel anxious sometimes. Yoga really helps deal with this. If I am having a stressful day at school, I can just go on my yoga mat for a little while, and I instantly feel calmed down. I also tend to obsess about planning for the future, and yoga helps me to focus more on the present moment. Yoga is also very spiritual for me. Ever since I was introduced to yoga in my late teens, I found that yoga is its’ own religion, one that I instantly connected with.
CF:Â What advice would you give to anyone who is apprehensive about starting yoga?
LE:Â I would say that yoga is definitely a journey and one that is well worth it. Many people are discouraged because they don’t think they are strong or flexible enough, but when I went to my first yoga class, I could barely stay in downward dog for more than a couple of seconds. It takes the body a lot of practice to be able to do most poses, so persistence is definitely important. Â Don’t get down on yourself if you cannot do the crazy poses that other people can. I would also tell them to go to a beginner yoga class at a studio. Tell the teacher that you have never done yoga before, and the teacher will most likely be more than happy to help you and to assist you. Do not let yoga be intimidating, it is the opposite of that! Beginning to practice yoga will give you so many benefits, including a beautiful mindset on the world and those around you.
What do you do to de-stress? Let me know in the comments below!
