How inversions teach you about yourself
I often say that Yoga teaches us about life and I think it’s even more true about inversions. How you approach them says a lot about you: your risk appetite, your self-worth, your grit and naturally your definition of success.
Your risk appetite
When you are offered to go into an inversion of your choice which one do you usually go for? Why? Are you always looking for the most challenging ones, trying and trying to come into pincha no matter how you feel energy wise? Or, on the contrary do you usually pick the more restorative ones. What matters is not what you pick but why do you choose one over the other and how do you feel about that.
For the head/hand stand inversion, they tap into our primal fear of falling. Fascinating to observe how your body react when face with the fear of falling. Do you tense your muscles? Which ones? Your face muscles, your shoulders or neck maybe? When you have experienced falling once (it happens to us all!), does it change the way you approach inversion or does you still face the same fear?
Having spent 10 years in Banking my brain has somehow been brainwashed to be very risk adverse but being very determined and ambitious I used to always go for the most difficult inversions. I was trying to prove myself and the world that I could do it. Now that I am a teacher, I just go for what my body needs. Sometimes I use this window to rest in child pose or supta baddha konasana (hip opener!). Don’t get me wrong, I still feel the need to prove myself in some areas of my life but I am now fully aware of it and this makes it very different to manage.
Your self-worth or inner critic
Where is your mind going when approaching an inversion? Are you confident about making it or going with no belief whatsoever that you are going to succeed? Observe your inner dialogue, how you speak to yourself. Are you nice or very critic? This all says about your inner critic which is a massive suffering trigger (that we don’t need!).
Jay Shetty, who I get a lot of inspiration from, said the following about self-worth which may resonate: “We love placing ourselves in boxes with neat, shiny labels. We think these labels make it easier to explain who we are to the world. “Hi, my name is X, and I’m a doctor / mother / creative / student / teacher.” Yes, there’s value in all these roles we gracefully take on. The problem occurs when we allow them to determine our self-worth. What you need to realize is that you are not your job. At your core, who you really are–– your energy, values, thoughts, love, power, influence, talents–– is worth so much more than a few words could ever convey.”
Your grit
We usually don’t come into a pincha or tripod in one try. It takes practice. We need a combination of listening skills, patience and humility to go on the journey and enjoy the ups and downs. And it’s not a one-off once you’ve done it it’s for life. You can do a headstand one day and the other not being able to lift one toe from your mat. If it has ever happened to you, were you frustrated? If yes, it’s your Ego talking because this is absolutely normal not to have the same energy level from one day to another. We are human after all, don’t you think?
We often believe that to succeed we need to be smart or talented. This is the perspective of what we call a fixed mindset. In opposition with a growth mindset, the ability to learn is not fixed, it can change with effort.
Researches done in the US by an Angela Duckworth showed that the real key to success is grit. She observed her pupils scores and realized that it was not only IQ which was driving success but grit was a key element too. She defines grit as: passion and perseverance for very long-term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future, day in, day out, not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years, and working really hard to make that future a reality.
What success means to you
Now coming to your definition of success, where do you set the bar for yourself? Are you constantly lifting it up forgetting to reflect on what you achieved and never celebrating the little wins because you always want more? Everyone has it own definition of success and like you values it’s important to know what you put begin this concept. It does not have to be set in stone but it makes choices easier when you are facing some as you know the direction. Defining success with your own words is also a good reminder that everyone will have a different definition and vision which could lead to friction in your relationships as you do not define success the same way. This is valid for failure, work, commitment, all those terms will mean different things to each of you and this is more powerful to be curious about that rather than fighting about it.
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As a perfectionist willing to succeed, my advice is to be patient and make the most of the learning journey to get to know yourself better. Inversion is such a powerful tool to test your risk appetite, understand when and where you are at ease with getting out of your comfort zone and what is driving it. Is it the ego or is it because you know the physiological benefits of inversions and need a serotonin boost? That’s not the same thing.
This also is a great way to tune into your body, checking in before going for the crazy option. Because it could end that it do you no good. What matters is to chose you and what you need rather than what the world will say about you if you pick option A or B. Turn off your 'Mind chatter" called the Chitta vritti” in Sanskrit term. Because the goal of your yoga practice is to calm it down.
Inversions give you meaningful information about how you approach a challenging situation. Whether it is at work, at home, in your relationships. You are the same person stepping onto your mat so do some digging and you will learn enormously about yourself. And knowing is the very first step of empowerment. Then what you do with this information, only regards you.
Would love to hear what you discover about yourself in the next inversion you test? Send me a message via the contact box.
