Three words that probably come into your head when you think yoga: flexibility, balance, and strength. These words are incorporated into yoga in many ways through asanas, focus and concentration, and the following of the breath.

I try so hard when I lead a yoga class to allow students to find these things for themselves. If they find them, great. If not, that’s also great. My goal is to allow them to decide this for themselves. Allowing themselves to find flexibility, balance, and strength.

Yoga has unfortunately fallen under these words and fallen into a stereotype.

I talk to students and hear them say, “I can’t do yoga, I’m not flexible enough”. Sometimes they say, “I can’t do yoga, I have no balance,” or my favorite one, “yoga is too hard”.

I cringe when I hear students say these things.

Part of the reason people have these misconceptions about yoga is because of social media.

So many yoga websites, blogs, Instagram accounts, and yoga stores have recently hit the market. As the yoga world grows, these social media accounts grow as well in size, popularity, and page views.

Unfortunately, this means that we see more of the difficult poses and inversions than we see the normal yoga that most people are physically and anatomically capable of doing. Every time I log onto Instagram I see an account that is posting amazing photos of men and women practicing extremely difficult arm balances and inversions. It is less common that you will see someone posting a downward dog, child’s pose, or seated mediation picture.

Therefore, everyone gets an idea in their mind that yoga is too challenging for their body’s flexibility, their body’s balance, and their body’s strength. The only account that I highly recommend that breaks the yoga stereotype is Erin Motz’s, Bad Yogi club. Her Instagram account, @badyogiofficial is all about being a “bad” yogi, and doing yoga the way she wants to, or the way you want to.

Yoga means so much more than standing on your head or perfecting an arm balance or being able to bend in half. It is practicing something that makes your body, mind, and spirit feel good and become one. It is taking time out of your day to do something for yourself.

When my students come to class I tell them I don’t care what they came for. I don’t care if they showed up to workout, meditate, let go of some crappy feelings, or waste an hour. It isn’t for me. It’s for them. All that matters to me is that they showed up.

I teach my students that yoga is not about being flexible or having good balance. It never was.

It is so important for me to break that typical yoga stereotype. As I talk to more and more students, I think some of them are understanding that they can make yoga whatever they want it to be. They can utilize yoga in any way that works for them.

To whoever is reading this, please know:

Yoga is for everyone, no matter your gender, shape, size, or color.

Yoga is NOT about being flexible.

Yoga is NOT simply doing poses.

Yoga is NOT about having great balance.

Yoga is NOT about being strong and standing on your head.

Yoga is about connecting your mind, body, and spirit.

Yoga is letting the past be the past, the future be the future, and focusing on the present.

Yoga is about letting go.

Yoga is about breaking those “yoga” stereotypes and finding what you need in every part of your practice.

Ultimately, yoga is about you.