October Yogi of the Month

Liam O'Hagan

Liam is a strong and fun energy to have around the studio and we are so happy to spotlight his practice both on and off the mat!

Nikki: How long have you practiced yoga and what other forms of exercise do you like to do?

Liam: I seriously took up yoga in March. I had dabbled in it before, but I’ve reached the age where I feel I need to look after myself better. I’d been doing a lot of running and the first signs of plantar fasciitis were creeping up on me. I decided I needed to do some more stretching and yoga seemed like it would achieve that and give me some other benefits. Six months later, the plantar fasciitis is under control, and I ran/hiked a half marathon up Pikes Peak in Colorado in August. Training for that was like training for a marathon so I feel yoga has kept me in some sort of exercise equilibrium.

Nikki: What brought you to YogaSpark?

Liam: My friend recommended it. I liked the idea of getting a good sweat up. It’s the reason my father preferred tennis to golf and I get the benefits of yoga while feeling like I’ve had a real workout. Thanks to the Mind-Body Online app, I’ve taken yoga classes in New Zealand and Colorado, but I like coming home to the heated room and the scented cold towel

Nikki: What inspired you to write a blog post about your yoga experience and what have you learned from bringing this kind of awareness to your practice?

Liam: Umm. My blog post is quite self-deprecating. The theme is essentially if you can’t win at yoga why do I feel like a loser? It probably does not project the positive energy that one would normally associate with yoga, but hopefully people find it amusing and maybe some other tight middle-aged will be inspired to give it a go. As for awareness, all I’m really aware of when I practice is that I’m stiff, sweaty and my breath is out of control. The spiritual dimension is not apparent yet.

Nikki: Can you give a word or phrase that describes yoga to you?

Liam: Each class is like unwinding a 10-mile hike or run