Every Body Yoga: Let Go of Fear, Get On the Mat, Love Your Body.

by Jessamyn Stanley

That’s why I wrote this book. Because all yoga bodies deserve to be represented in print, not just those that are slender, female, and white.

You don’t have to be anyone other than yourself. And I think it’s high time that someone shouted it loud enough so everyone can hear.

Harboring sustained hatred for your body? Yeah, it isn’t a good look. And I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that my childhood self-hatred created some very nasty, adult-size emotional wounds.

my yoga practice helps me accept the fact that bad judgment and big missteps are the toll we pay for being present in our lives. Ultimately, yoga has made me realize that happiness doesn’t come when we magically become better people. The practice is a reminder that we deserve to be happy today, in this exact moment, because we are already absolutely perfect.

Yoga means “to yolk”—it’s an ancient life practice that’s all about the union and discipline of a person’s spirit, body, and mind. The physical practice makes our bodies strong and bendy, as well as providing respiratory, circulatory, digestive, and hormonal relief. Simultaneously, the breathing and meditation practices allow us to manifest a deeper emotional and spiritual connection to the world around us.

Swatmarama’s Hatha Yoga Pradipika (written in the fifteenth century) and Sage Patanjali’s The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (from around 400 ce).

Krishnamacharya’s practice was a flow of athletic asana that we now call vinyasa yoga. His classes were predominantly attended by energetic young boys whose parents were looking for a way to quiet their overactive minds and bodies.

even if you don’t read any other books about yoga, get a copy of The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and devour it immediately. Around 400 ce, an ancient yoga sage named Patanjali made a number of profound observations about the nature of humanity and society at large.

The purpose of asana is to generate energy within the inner body to strengthen and purify the self as a whole.

At the end of the day, a “perfect” yoga pose is performed when the practitioner is able to breathe with ease while in a state of action, and the pose itself effectively becomes effortless. There will still be shaking, trembling, and other bodily fluctuations, but the goal for the practitioner is to accept that fluctuations are an unavoidable aspect of their practice—and their life.

when we take even one minute to breathe mindfully and thoughtfully, it’s possible to completely shift our perspectives.

When we make a habit of accepting the parts of life that upset us, we are able to renounce the feelings of unhappiness or displeasure that regularly manifest in our external lives.

Looping a “real” yoga strap (not a tie, sash, or one of the other DIY options I mentioned) across your chest above the bust line can help protect your neck and throat from a cleavage-suffocation situation.

What time of day should I practice yoga?

Stop adjusting yourself to fit the desires of others—you’re perfect as you are, right now. In this exact moment.

as your spirit is strengthened by the practice, it will become easier to tune out the white noise of other people’s judgments.

It’s extremely common for anyone who presents themselves in a way that contradicts societal norms to be stared at by people who strive to present themselves in a socially acceptable way. That doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong.

If someone is staring at you with disgust or anger on their face, remember that they are probably melting under a host of body issues which they’ve decided to project onto you. The best response in this situation is an even mix of compassion toward the other person paired with an attitude of “suck it”—frankly, you don’t need someone else’s self-hate fucking up your chance to get lifted.

In many ways, learning to distract ourselves from the projected emotions of others is an excellent expression of the eight-limbed path, particularly the limb...

Use your yoga practice as a vehicle to disregard the opinions of others—once you solidify this attitude on your yoga mat, you’ll be abl...

try not to bear all of your weight into the props. Simply use the blocks to help balance weight throughout your entire body.

It’s not about proving that you can “do” a pose—it’s about creating an honest, loving dialogue with your body in which you stare at the body parts you’ve been taught to hate and instead coat them with love and adoration because of their undeniable strength and ability.

Yoga students belittle their practices by constantly asking, “How do I look?” Yoga is not about physical appearance. It’s about self-discovery—it’s about realigning with your true self.

By speaking of ourselves in a positive and affirmative fashion and finding ways to eradicate self-hate, by speaking kindly about ourselves and those around us, we can foster a sense of love and compassion powerful enough to restructure our society’s entire perspective of “body love.”

And when we restructure the general perspective of body love, we are able to make space in our society for new definitions of powerful beauty.

Sun salutations make it better. When you find yourself settling into a pit of self-hate and anger, it’s time to get your ass up and do some sun salutations.

I like to start my home asana practice with three rounds of Sun Salutation A. The number three is a sacred number in yoga, and it represents a sense of balance in life.

Accepting our bodies is the most crucial aspect of holistic health and happiness—and a strong yoga practice.

At what point would YOU finally say, “I’ve had enough of hating my body”?

It takes confidence to accept ourselves exactly as we are in the face of people who want us to doubt our abilities.