Musings of a Yoga Instructor: What Quarantine has taught me

 by Janine L. Agoglia

Life was "normal" until about mid-March 2020 when everything shut down. Covid-19 hit hard and Massachusetts called for all people who were non-essential workers to quarantine themselves and stay at home as much as possible to hopefully "flatten the curve." I went from working 6-7 days per week to sitting at home doing nothing. At first my type A personality didn't know what to do. We started teaching some classes online which gave me a bit of structure, but I still had a lot of time each day to do nothing. At first I worked out more, did a lot of yoga and pilates at home, spent much more time with my kids, who were also stuck at home, caught up on all my "shows," and then I crashed. Fatigue and depression set in and I realized just how tired I was, how tired I had been all of this "normal" time with my crazy schedule.

As online classes and work at home increased I found myself struggling with the balance of giving myself time to rest and restore while still getting everything done that needed to get done. As someone with workaholic tendencies it was too easy to power through, but I no longer had the stamina that I used to. Because I wasn't driving from one place to another I had all of this extra time, and after awhile the drive to fill it started to wane.

As time when on (it's now August 2020 at the time of this writing) I settled into a new schedule and a new version of "normal." I was still teaching online classes and was back to seeing patients, but my pace was slower. I was more stingy with how I used my extra time. I gave myself days off (wow, what a concept!) to nourish myself and spend time with my kids. Instead of a 6-7 day work week, I was working 4 days a week out of the house and only a few hours in the house on one of the other 3 days. It was a balance that felt more peaceful and doable. Who knows what the future will hold, but for now, this is working for me.

What I have learned:

Slowing down is important. Even type As (especially type As) need time to rest (although at first they will hate it). Getting everything done is important, for sure, but not more important than taking care of yourself. When I say "rest" isn't just sleep (which is also crucial to being healthy). In this case, rest is any activity that restores you, body and soul. Maybe it's reading a book or sitting outside watching the breeze, maybe it's meditation or having a long talk with a friend, maybe it's walking on the beach or hanging out with your kids. Rest is something that nourishes you and makes you feel more at peace. I have been enjoying reading, catching up on movies and tv, spending time with my youngest child walking down to the pond near our house and sitting by the water, often at sunset. Peaceful and restorative.

Movement is important. This I knew, but during this time it was quite apparent. During quarantine it is too easy to just sit around and eat. Walking should consist of a longer distance than from the couch to the fridge. Even if you just move 20-30 minutes each day, that movement will benefit your mood as well as your body. I love taking online classes with other instructors who I never usually get to see. I have been enjoying my own yoga practice even more than I usually do because I know how much my body and mind crave the movement and breath. I have been swimming in my pond. I have been taking Pilates Reformer classes. Daily movement helps keep me sane (relatively) and feeling good in my body and mind.

Moderation is key. Too much or too little of anything isn't good. Even too much of a good thing is still too much. Find your balance with movement, stillness, work, rest, play, time spent with others and time spent with yourself. Figure out what your body and soul need to be happy and at peace and work to make that happen. We're all different, with different requirements, so there is no "one-size-fits-all answer about how much of anything that you need. Start by figuring out what you require by noticing. Notice how you feel when you eat certain foods, when you do certain exercises, etc, and adjust from there.

No judgement. The kindest thing you can do for yourself is to let go of your critical mind. Our self talk can be downright cruel sometimes and there is no need for that. Criticizing yourself doesn't change your behavior, it only makes you feel bad. So let go of judgement and find some love for yourself. When you can talk to yourself like a loved one, you will behave in a more loving way toward yourself. You will eat better foods, you will exercise in a way that feels good, you will gravitate toward more loving behaviors. And if you have a "bad food day," so be it. Forgive yourself and move on, because punishing or shaming isn't something you do to a loved one.

May your time be spent in a way nourishes you, body, mind and soul.

May you be surrounded by love, from others and from yourself.

May you find peace, rest and movement in this time of Covid-19 and beyond.

Janine L. Agoglia has been teaching Vinyasa yoga since 1998. Her yoga journey started in 1995 with Iyengar Yoga and she stumbled upon Vinyasa yoga in 1997. The combination of breath with proper body alignment is what fuels Janine's practice and the classes that she teaches. She believes that yoga should be safe as well as challenging, creative and fun. She always emphasizes proper alignment within the flow, as well as focus, breath and humor to help students find the balance between strength and ease. Deepening one’s physical awareness helps one strengthen his/her spiritual awareness and mind-body connection. Janine has created classes such as Yoga Explorations and Foam Roll Your Yoga to help students deepen their understanding of the yoga poses and how to take care of their bodies while practicing yoga asana. Janine loves being able to help people deepen their own practices, finding yoga in everyday life, on and off the mat. Janine is currently teaching on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/luminaclosedgroup.

In addition to being Director of Yoga at Lumina Mind Body Studios in Wayland and Natick, Janine is also a Licensed acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist who practices at Integrative Therapeutics in Natick. To contact Janine, please email her at acuyogamama@hotmail.com.