The mental and physical benefits of Yoga are known to most of us and one can certainly find tons of written material on this topic, in magazines, newspapers and online. However, on my personal blog, yoga deserves a special mention. So here it is...
Going back to 2014 (over a year and a half after we had moved from Dubai in 2012), I was still suffering with a lot of the stress-related back-ache that a hectic job, a sedentary life and miles and miles of driving per day had done to my system while living in Dubai. Also trying to settle down in Singapore while continuing at a desk job and a seat on an hour-long journey on the bus each day, had not helped to improve my situation much.
It was then that my company, Mott MacDonald Singapore (which also deserves a special thanks) initiated a health program for all staff. The program which aimed at bringing awareness back to our health, nutrition and mental wellness included a lot of team building sessions with active entertaining games (like dragon boating, lazer tag, bubble football to name a few) which are both fun and get us to move about, a lot! We also had (and still have) weekly sports bookings for all staff for badminton, football, basketball courts and for those less sporty ones, the committee managing these tasks came up with a plan to host weekly yoga session at a nearby fitness center.
The sessions were conducted by different trainers of this center and each had a unique style of teaching us to connect with our body and mind. The sessions helped me tremendously to get my body out of the state of neglect that I had left it in, for a long time. Earlier, on constant urging from my parents, every few months I would do the occasional sets of 'Surya Namaskars'(sun salutations), only to abandon that routine in a few days and go back to being my lazy, exhausted self on the couch. I believed that my earlier years of exercise, running, and cycling had kept me relatively fit, but when I started attending yoga classes I realized how grossly unfit I really was!
At the beginning of 2014, I had numbness in my left shoulder with a tingling sensation and also had an excruciating pain in my tailbone which I felt was a borderline case of Sciatica in the making (at least the pain felt that strong!). Thinking back, how glad I am that I did not resort to doctors, tests and physiotherapy before trying yoga! Because within 3-4 months of starting yoga, I felt a drastic improvement in my body movement, felt an alleviated level of pain and experienced an overall improved level of fitness.
Besides, the peace, serenity and feeling of contentedness one experiences after a session of yoga (any kind) cannot be expressed in words and must be tried. Although one can argue that one can experience the same serenity after a long run or any other work out too. And I wont contest it, as my parents who have been life-long athletes, surely have experienced a kind of bliss that people associate with prayers or the pursuit of religion and in their sport I believe that they have indeed found god!
After each yoga sessions I felt stronger, more energetic, more relaxed and more confident. 2014 was one of my best years at work and I was happier at home too. My hubby and I even completed a 10k Standard Chartered race in Dec 2014, which was something I never imagined was possible for us to even attempt.
In 2015, my company continued yoga classes and as a bonus they added Pilates sessions too, introducing me to yet another amazing training technique that aims at strengthening our core. The core is the powerhouse of our body which houses all our vital organs. I also did some reading on nutritional do's and don't's and made basic diet changes for a wholesome wellness of my family. To add to all these changes, my division also participated in GCC which stands for 'Global corporate challenge' where a team of 7 staff members have to wear pedometers everyday and complete a minimum of 10,000 steps per day as they progress on a virtual tour across different destinations of the world with the steps the take. The competition between different teams and units and personal goals kept us on our toes for 4 months and such were the benefits of using the pedometer that many of us still wear our pedometers long after the challenge is completed.
This year in 2016, Mott MacDonald introduced us to Zumba which brought exercise to us in the form of fun and dance. We focus on body and mind coordination and learn some cool steps to groove on the dance floor! For yoga, I've signed up for lessons with a personal trainer closer to home and I'm loving it!
My resolution for 2016 , in fact, not just for 2016 but my whole life from now on, is to stay fit. And with the variety of methods available out there, I know I'm going to have a lot of fun while keeping to my word! I don't have a shape or number in mind as that would make my pursuit limited to achieving just that. I aim for persistence and regularity which I know will take me where I want to go.
A special thanks my mom, dad and both siblings who always showed me how one's whole life can be dedicated to our physical health and well-being. I will try to live by their example. And finally, thank you YOGA and all the yoga-gurus in my life for giving my mind, body and soul a complete makeover! I'm rocking this new look! ;)
Going back to 2014 (over a year and a half after we had moved from Dubai in 2012), I was still suffering with a lot of the stress-related back-ache that a hectic job, a sedentary life and miles and miles of driving per day had done to my system while living in Dubai. Also trying to settle down in Singapore while continuing at a desk job and a seat on an hour-long journey on the bus each day, had not helped to improve my situation much.
It was then that my company, Mott MacDonald Singapore (which also deserves a special thanks) initiated a health program for all staff. The program which aimed at bringing awareness back to our health, nutrition and mental wellness included a lot of team building sessions with active entertaining games (like dragon boating, lazer tag, bubble football to name a few) which are both fun and get us to move about, a lot! We also had (and still have) weekly sports bookings for all staff for badminton, football, basketball courts and for those less sporty ones, the committee managing these tasks came up with a plan to host weekly yoga session at a nearby fitness center.
The sessions were conducted by different trainers of this center and each had a unique style of teaching us to connect with our body and mind. The sessions helped me tremendously to get my body out of the state of neglect that I had left it in, for a long time. Earlier, on constant urging from my parents, every few months I would do the occasional sets of 'Surya Namaskars'(sun salutations), only to abandon that routine in a few days and go back to being my lazy, exhausted self on the couch. I believed that my earlier years of exercise, running, and cycling had kept me relatively fit, but when I started attending yoga classes I realized how grossly unfit I really was!
At the beginning of 2014, I had numbness in my left shoulder with a tingling sensation and also had an excruciating pain in my tailbone which I felt was a borderline case of Sciatica in the making (at least the pain felt that strong!). Thinking back, how glad I am that I did not resort to doctors, tests and physiotherapy before trying yoga! Because within 3-4 months of starting yoga, I felt a drastic improvement in my body movement, felt an alleviated level of pain and experienced an overall improved level of fitness.
After each yoga sessions I felt stronger, more energetic, more relaxed and more confident. 2014 was one of my best years at work and I was happier at home too. My hubby and I even completed a 10k Standard Chartered race in Dec 2014, which was something I never imagined was possible for us to even attempt.
In 2015, my company continued yoga classes and as a bonus they added Pilates sessions too, introducing me to yet another amazing training technique that aims at strengthening our core. The core is the powerhouse of our body which houses all our vital organs. I also did some reading on nutritional do's and don't's and made basic diet changes for a wholesome wellness of my family. To add to all these changes, my division also participated in GCC which stands for 'Global corporate challenge' where a team of 7 staff members have to wear pedometers everyday and complete a minimum of 10,000 steps per day as they progress on a virtual tour across different destinations of the world with the steps the take. The competition between different teams and units and personal goals kept us on our toes for 4 months and such were the benefits of using the pedometer that many of us still wear our pedometers long after the challenge is completed.
This year in 2016, Mott MacDonald introduced us to Zumba which brought exercise to us in the form of fun and dance. We focus on body and mind coordination and learn some cool steps to groove on the dance floor! For yoga, I've signed up for lessons with a personal trainer closer to home and I'm loving it!My resolution for 2016 , in fact, not just for 2016 but my whole life from now on, is to stay fit. And with the variety of methods available out there, I know I'm going to have a lot of fun while keeping to my word! I don't have a shape or number in mind as that would make my pursuit limited to achieving just that. I aim for persistence and regularity which I know will take me where I want to go.
A special thanks my mom, dad and both siblings who always showed me how one's whole life can be dedicated to our physical health and well-being. I will try to live by their example. And finally, thank you YOGA and all the yoga-gurus in my life for giving my mind, body and soul a complete makeover! I'm rocking this new look! ;)
