I’m thinking a lot about rest and recovery this month. Partly because I’ve felt run down for the last couple of weeks. However, it’s actually not that unusual for me. I sometimes feel I am constantly verbalising how I want to rest and simply do nothing. Yet it feels even more pertinent this month as I teach the last of my marathon masterclass series focussed on this topic.
The other day I had a light bulb moment. I’m quite driven – not in terms of status. I’ve never wanted to climb to the top in an organisation. I’ve simply always wanted to do a good job and invariably that has led me to overdo it a bit and not enforce boundaries. The realisation was this takes on a whole new level when it comes to being a yoga teacher.
One of the attractions of teaching yoga is that it’s not the traditional 9-5. It’s viewed as a liberating, free spirit kind of lifestyle wafting about in a haze of Nag Champa incense. The reality is something they don’t touch on during your Yoga Teacher Training. It links to an earlier blog of mine about the planning that goes into teaching a yoga class which you can read here. It’s hard graft particularly when you’re first starting out. It’s a business at the end of the day and you are doing something related to your business 7 days a week at all hours. If you’re not doing it you’re thinking about it because it's your passion. This is invariably on top of another job amongst other commitments. A quick Google search will show you yoga teacher burnout is real. When ironically one of the main things we help others do is relax. I’m not saying I’m on the verge of burnout, but I need to remember that adage “You can’t pour from an empty cup”.
Late last year, we implemented a new ‘rule’ in our house to turn the TV and devices off at 9pm to allow for a reading hour before bed. The main driver for this was to stop me working late and in turn help improve my sleep which was already disrupted by peri-menopausal night sweats. This routine started well but the number of books I have read you could count on less than one hand. James is into double figures for 2024 alone and is sleeping soundly!
When it comes to running, you may think that simply taking regular rest days is sufficient for good recovery. Yet there are a range of other factors, sleep being one of them, that play an important part.
So this month my mission is to prioritise rest. Something that doesn't come naturally to me. I have already re-committed to reading hour and am engrossed in The Testaments by Margaret Atwood. I spent a blissful 2 hours back with my Essex yoga teacher Elaine yesterday at her Sanctuary yin yoga class. Something I haven’t done for 18 months. These sessions used to be my saviour and I definitely will be going back more regularly.
Do you find it hard to rest? What do you do to support your recovery from running and the rigours of day-to-day life? If you’re interested in learning more about how yoga can help, do join me on 23 March.
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