Gentle Yoga for Aging Well

This week’s class is about aging well. Donna Eden, an energy medicine pioneer, says, “the goal is to die young, as old as you possibly can!” Yoga is a key for achieving just that.

Writer and yoga teacher Rose Keyes describes a meta-analysis published in the April 2019 issue of the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity with persuasive evidence for the powerful benefits of yoga for older yoga practitioners.

Benefits noted include increased flexibility, greater strength, and improved balance and motor coordination. The study shows how older yogis also exhibit a greater sense of physical health, mental health, and emotional wellness, compared to those engaging in other physical exercises, or none at all.

And, there is some evidence of a positive correlation between yoga and decreased aging effects on the skin, due largely to the antioxidant and cleansing effects of certain poses and breath practices.

Come to class and enjoy a particular focus on yoga poses, breathwork, energy movements, and daily life practices especially designed to help us stay strong and vital no matter what our age.

“The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes.” ~ Frank Lloyd Wright

““For the unlearned, old age is winter; for the learned, it is the season of the harvest.” ~Hasidic saying

“Every year should teach you something valuable; whether you get the lesson is up to you. Every year brings you closer to expressing your whole and healed self.” ~Oprah Winfrey

“Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” ~Mark Twain

“Know that you are the perfect age. Each year is special and precious, for you shall only live it once. Be comfortable with growing older.” ~Louise Hay

“Oh, the worst of all tragedies is not to die young, but to live until I am seventy-five and yet not ever truly to have lived.” ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

“It annoys me when people say, ‘Even if you’re old, you can be young at heart!’ Hiding inside this well-meaning phrase is a deep cultural assumption that old is bad and young is good. What’s wrong with being old at heart, I’d like to know? Wouldn’t you like to be loved by people whose hearts have practiced loving for a long time?” ~Susan Moon

“Old age is an excellent time for outrage. My goal is to say or do at least one outrageous thing every week.” ~Maggie Kuhn

“Getting old is like climbing a mountain; you get a little out of breath, but the view is much better!” ~Ingrid Bergman

“My physical body may be less efficient and less beautiful in old age. But...my mind is richer, my Soul is broader and my wisdom is at a peak. I am so happy with the riches of my advanced peak age that, contrary to Faust, I would not wish to return to youth.” ~Robert Muller

Thanks to Kathy Gottberg for this collection of quotes!

Hope you can make it to Willow Street Yoga from 11am until 12:30pm on this and every Wednesday. You can sign up in advance at https://willowstreetyoga.com/ or at the door.

Kathy