Yoga Inspiration: Resistance
Over the past week I have been thinking about resistance. How we fight against so much in our lives. Even at the very scientific theoretical level we are resisting gravity at every moment. Moreover, are our emotions, beliefs, eating well, being active, working and studying hard, etc. Some days it seems as though we must push past so much to meet our goals, or even achieve just the minimum of our most basic needs.
Personally, I know the small tasks I resist. Organizing emails, getting groceries, and putting away laundry are in the top five. But some days I also resist my yoga practice, getting to the pool, or punching that weight session. Despite knowing I will feel better after – always!
“It’s a lot more than mind over matter. It takes relentless self-discipline to schedule suffering into your day, every day.” – David Goggins
I love this quote because even if we were able to complete our full list each day, is there a day when we would not resist something on that list? Heck! So far today, I resisted the pool but went. I resisted sitting down at the laptop, but here I am. It’s not even 11am! I find the word “suffering” in his quote to be interesting. As we know, we are in control of how much we suffer. This is not to say we control everything that comes into our lives. However, we do have full control over how we react and how much time and energy we give to the painful, or less desirable, aspects of life.
Journaling Ideas: This week, make a daily list of all the things you resist each day. Ask yourself why, without judgement, you were resistant. Look at the patterns and then look to see if resisting these things caused you any suffering. For example, if getting out of bed is something your resisted, did I mean you were late, stuck in traffic longer, etc.
After a 10-15min warm-up below are suggested poses for your week to help facilitate opening in body, mind, and spirit.
Yoga Poses to Add to Your Practice This Week:
Plank Pose (Phalakasana): A posture in which your body has to resist the most amount of gravity, using the strength of the shoulders, arms, and legs. Keep a straight line and be sure not to sink through those shoulder blades.
Warrior III (Virabhadrasana III): Once again taking that horizontal position of the body and now while balancing. Resisting gravity so that we don’t fall. Play with this posture. Use a wall for hand or back foot support. Use blocks under the hands, give yourself the opportunity to play!
Goddess Pose (Ukata Konasana): This wide-legged squat variation engages our lower body mainly as we resist the want to come down fully into Malasana (Yogi Squat).
Boat Pose (Navasana): Engage the 360 core and lift those feet off the mat. Focus breathing in through the nose and out through the nose.
Dolphin Pose (Catur Savasana): This is a great posture for working into that resistance in the shoulders. Be sure to warm up before heading into this one as it can be intense. Moving from Forearm Plank > Dolphin Pose can be excellent body-weight resistance work.
Close out your practice using your warm-up as your cool-down and offer yourself a 10mins Savasana for rest.
Remember to always practice within your own limits and take care of physical and emotional well-being.
Wishing to learn more about the practice of yoga? The AYC’s January 200HR YTT is SOLD OUT! However, Reserve Your Spot for the September 2025 session today! Looking for more details? Email stephaniepower.ayc@gmail.com.
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With gratitude,
-Stephanie