Discussion with Amir
How
did you get into Yoga?
I came to yoga to heal chronic injuries from years of
playing sports. I spent several years working with medical
specialists, physical therapists, and chiropractors that
at best would provide only temporary relief or pain killing
medication. I wanted to fix the root of these problems, rather
than just try to deal with the chronic pain. I heard of yoga
and wondered if there was something that could help me. I
started asking my friends if they knew anything about yoga.
Soon I signed up with a friend at the rec center. I was immediately
hooked. It took only a few classes to discover exactly where
my imbalances were, and how to regain that flexibility and
overall balance I had lost over the years. I had finally
found a whole solution to learning how to heal my body and
mind. I was soon back to having a lifestyle that I felt I
could participate in, rather than being limited by the chronic
pain that I was living with.
How has your personal practice evolved since then?
At first, my yoga practice mostly focused on the asanas
and improving my flexibility. I soon discovered yoga is a
system that explores the mind-body connection and how to
restore health to both. I soon started augmenting my practice
with pranyama (breathing exercises). I didn't really understand
the depth of breath practice, but I practiced anyway. It
took me a couple of years before I really felt that I was
doing it right and that I could drop into my breath.
Over the last year, my practice has really moved more towards meditation. Once I figured out how to sit comfortably for a long time (this one took several years also), my meditation practice really took off. When I focus my awareness internally and find a deep relaxation, I literally feel all the muscles connecting to my spine release and relax. From this I find an amazing internal space and relief from stresses suppressed deep inside.
What has been a great inspiration to your yoga practice?
A great inspiration to yoga is my two cats. To me, they
both represent the model for the perfect yogic life. They
mostly lay around in complete inner-peace. I love watching
them do their yoga poses when they stretch in the sun. I
often observe their breath as they rest, it is complete and
natural and they seem to be residing completely in their
breath. And one of the best moments is when one of them sits
next me, relaxes, and starts their meditation as I run my
finger through her fur. What comes to them naturally is what
I strive for through my yoga practice and life.
You play on an amateur ice hockey team, how does your yoga
practice affect your playing?
The most obvious affect is the strength and flexibility
that the asana practice provides. But more important is the
ability to find both a deeply focused concentration as well
as a deep relaxation while playing. Ice hockey is a very
fast sport, where most of the time you react faster than
you can think. The focused concentration allows my mind to
create a feeling that my body reacts to, rather than thinking
mechanically about what I have to do. This makes my game
much more fluid and I feel like I am in the game as opposed
to trying to mechanically respond to the game.
What is your teaching philosophy and inspiration?
Mostly, I like to think of what I do as sharing a bunch
of cool things that I've learned with my students. The inspiration
for me is when I teach something to somebody that helps them
in their daily life whether it be healing an injury, learning
to relax, building strength and flexibility, or just learning
how to sit, stand, or lay down properly. I love to hear when
students tell me how I've helped them and why. In many cases,
I've taken that feedback and developed whole classes around
those themes to help spread the benefits to others.