On International Yoga Day

Every morning, 4 a.m. onwards, you can hear ‘Om’ chanting in my house by various people at various intervals. No, we are not a religious lot, we just do a lot of Yoga!

My dad, much to my mom’s fury, wakes up at 3 a.m. and does Yoga. He says he goes back to sleep at 4. His skin sclerosis has had a miraculous effect ever since Baba Ramdev entered our abode.

My mom, she wakes up at 6, has her tea and twists and turns on the floor for more than half an hour. At 62, she is a hero of sorts and the most agile person I know at that age. She devours atleast one mithai a day.

My brother starts his day with a morning run. He then goes to have samosa and chai after which he comes home and does his Yoga routine. His sinusitis has been kept in check for years due to this. His late night partying, atleast twice a week, has also been regular.

Me, well, I’ve had a love and hate relationship with mudras. I was introduced to Yoga at the age of 13 at a private class by this yoga teacher who taught me a lot of exercises. Being a young girl, I absolutely hated going for the session. Teenage was definitely not the time when I took my health seriously.

It did not help me much and so we stopped after a few months. Now when I think about it, if the teacher knew more about the benefits, he could have helped me.

I learnt Sudarshan Kriya when Art of Living was quite new. It came into my life at a tough time and did make me a new person. We learnt quite a few Yoga exercises there as well.

Over the years I have learnt breathing exercises and a number of stretches and poses. For optimal benefit, I combine principles of Yoga and exercises taught by various physiotherapists. When I tell my physiotherapist about a particular Yoga pose, she immediately tells me how it will hurt my back. When I tell my mom that Yoga can be harmful, she shuns science. You can’t win with fanatics, can you?

From experience, however, even I feel there are a number of exercises that can cause harm, especially to the back. Unless you are not careful, Yoga does make you stretch beyond your limits and can lead to injuries. For that, it is important to listen to your body before getting completely immersed into a program.

While no exercise regime can guarantee you a healthy life, combining various forms can keep you interested. Not many people enjoy getting out of their comfort zone and pushing themselves beyond limits. But if you keep your routine flexible, much can be achieved in a fun way.

Pledge to change and keep your exercise interesting. Working out is as necessary as brushing your teeth or taking a shower. On this International Yoga Day, make sure people are twisting and turning in your home too. Not at 4 a.m. though; that is torture!