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Why I Stopped Teaching “Christian” Yoga

April 19, 2017 by Tamara 5 Comments

I have tried to write numerous times over the last two years. Our family Bible verse is:

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love. 1 Corinthians 16:13-14

To those of you reading this, I hope that you know that my words are coming from a place of love. Not from condemnation or malice. I enjoy sharing how God continues to mold and shape me, thanks for reading!

A few years ago I wrote a blog post titled “Does Downward Dog dishonor God?” I tried to address the question “Should Christians practice yoga?” Over the last few years my desire to know God has grown so much that last year I finally disciplined myself to read the Bible in its entirety.

Even before I began reading my Bible something had just continued to feel off over the last several years when I would practice and teach yoga. I would have loved to have stumbled across a blog post like this back when I was looking into teaching Christian yoga. The only reason I ever felt comfortable signing up for my 200 hour yoga certification was because the word “Christian” was in the title.

Before I go further let me give you a brief history on how I became involved in the yoga community and started teaching.

How I Started Teaching Yoga

The summer before I entered college I purchased a yoga DVD from Barnes and Nobles. This was back when I still went to the bookstore and didn’t simply Amazon prime everything to my front door. I used this DVD numerous times and began to also take a few yoga classes at the gym.

I continued to take yoga classes occasionally over the next four years and during my senior year of college the Kinesiology department offered a Movement Analysis Lab focusing on yoga. I was so excited! The instructor was very relatable, and told the class up front that she was a Christian, and used yoga as a way to “connect” with God. I felt like I had hit the jackpot, especially because I had never in all my years at Arizona State University had any of my teachers state they were Christians.

Up until this time I had never viewed yoga as a way to “connect” with God and had only used it as a way to exercise. I had only taken yoga classes at the gym and in 2005 the yoga classes being offered at my gym were strictly posture based.

Fast forward to March of 2007 and I became very, very sick. You can read more about the neurological disorder that paralyzed me from the neck down and my road to recovery was HERE.

On the road to recovery in 2009 I signed up for a Chrisitan Yoga Teacher Training. Since yoga had been one of the tools I had used during my recovery, I really wanted to share its benefits with others and the added bonus of sharing the gospel message at the same time really appealed to me.

That summer I learned all about “Christian” yoga. I was fired up and ready to encourage others to experience God more deeply through the practice of yoga at my church and any other church that would allow me to teach. Each class included scripture reading, a playlist that contained praise/worship songs, low impact movements, and ended with prayer. The only problem was that the churches that I approached with this amazing opportunity, my own church included, did not want to offer Christian Yoga classes.

I was perplexed and if I am being totally honest, slightly offended, about the reaction I received from local churches in my area. I felt equipped to teach yoga in a manner that honored the Lord yet wasn’t able to get my foot in the door to teach at any church.

Since I was having trouble finding my own yoga classes to teach, the Christian yoga studio that I took my training from offered me a few classes on their schedule. From there I continued to branch out and seek out more studios to teach. Over the next 4 years I taught at 8 different studios/gyms, became a certified personal trainer, and began to teach group fitness classes as well.

From 2010 – 2012 I was teaching upwards of twenty classes weekly. At this point I was no longer teaching at the Christian yoga studio. My classes didn’t contain scripture or prayer because they were being offered in a secular setting but my playlist did contain a mix of pop and praise music.

Once my second baby arrived in 2014, I was no longer teaching classes or practicing yoga, and the further removed I became from teaching and practicing the more I began to wonder if I should really be teaching yoga anymore at all.

Why I Stopped Teaching Yoga

My initial intentions of wanting to share Jesus with others were soon replaced with only wanting to stoke my own ego. During my time teaching yoga I took many yoga workshops and classes to help me fine-tune my own teaching ability. I began setting goals for myself that had nothing to do with my initial desire to help others. The more I embedded myself into our local yoga community the more yoga began to shape and form my identity.

Instead of being excited to share my faith I began to become prideful over how full my classes were and that I was actually able to contort my body into some pretty advanced yoga postures. I spent hours of my time in front of my camera taking pictures of myself in these advanced postures to post on social media in order to promote my classes.

I allowed my successes to become an idol and overshadow my Savior. While there isn’t anything wrong with being successful or taking pride in our gifts, our ability to use discernment often gets pushed aside when we elevate things or people to a position that only rightfully belongs to the one true God.

But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:3

Being a “Christian” yoga teacher made me “feel” close to God. But I can’t say that I knew God. Feeling God and knowing God are two completely different things. Even when I was strictly teaching only Christian yoga I based my classes more off what I was feeling as opposed to what I had been studying in God’s word. Because truthfully, back then, the only time I really opened my Bible was to find a scripture that resonated with me for a class.

As a Christian my actions should point others to seek and find an ever deepening relationship with the Lord which is why I am no longer teaching or practicing yoga. Yoga is rooted in Hinduism and as a Christ follower I can no longer in good conscious be associated with teaching something that may cause others to stumble or open up a path to them that leads them away from the saving grace of Christ’s death on the cross.

God gives us all free will. But a Christian must not merely consider what is lawful, but what is expedient, and to edify others.

“I have the right to do anything,” you say–but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”–but not everything is constructive. 1 Corinthians 10:23

What About Christians Teaching/Practicing Only Christian Yoga?

There is no governing authority or church body presiding over Christian yoga or Christian Yoga Teacher Trainings. Even with all the best intentions, without this governing authority, there is no elder board or pastoral staff ensuring that the doctrine is sound and inline with what the Bible teaches.

The ability for new and even mature believers in Christ to be able to discern what is or isn’t biblically based can become much more blurry especially when churches are offering Christian yoga classes. If a person really starts enjoying a Christian yoga class there is a high probability that they will start to seek out other classes. Yoga can, in some regards, become a gateway into many new age practices that the Bible specially warns believers to stay away from. (Leviticus 20:6, Deuteronomy 18: 10-12)

Please know, I am not saying that everyone who practices yoga will participate in these activities but they do become much more accessible.

For someone who is seeking more peace in their life or looking for a greater purpose I can see how these things could become very attractive. For several years I had put so much weight in the fact that because I was a yoga teacher I should have zero stress and not deal with anxiety. When I was suffering with postpartum depression and anxiety I didn’t realize I had elevated my yoga practice to a place where I had actually made it an idol. Instead of seeking out God for comfort and wisdom I was looking at myself to calm my anxiety and overwhelming feelings of sadness and fear.

Recommended Reading: 10 Bible Verses for Anxiety and 10 Ways to Deal with Anxiety

As believers we have to stay alert and be mindful of how our actions can be perceived by others.

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith. 1 Pet. 5:8-9

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5

Even things that are good can distract us away from God. Taking care of our bodies is a good and even a biblically based practice to follow, but we have to be so careful not to let the pursuit of healthy living become an idol.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2

Filed Under: Faith, Fitness, Health, Personal Tagged With: Anxiety, Christian Yoga, Postpartum Depression, Yoga

Backyard Circuit Workout

April 10, 2017 by Tamara Leave a Comment

Two weeks ago my favorite clients came over to our house for a backyard training session. The workout they did was so good that I wanted to share it on the blog. I realize not everyone has access to this equipment or space at their house but this could make a great park, track, or gym workout too with a few modifications if need be.

Equipment Needed: Pull-up Bar (Josh built one in our backyard but I am linking to an at home option), Battle Rope, Heavy & Light Kettlebells/Dumbells

Complete three rounds of circuit one resting only after a round is completed. Once three rounds are complete move to circuit two. For the squats and lunges I held in 18 pound kettlebell but you could also just use your bodyweight for these exercises. We have an alley behind our home that I used for sprinting, thus the name alley sprints, and I am estimating that the distance sprinted would be 100m.

Right before Jesse was born was the first time in my life that I had ever been able to perform a pull-up unassisted. I love Black Mountain Fitness Bands to assist with pull-ups and highly recommend these to help build strength. If you are using the bands be sure to concentrate on lowering yourself slowly and resist the temptation to fling yourself up and down.

In case you are unfamiliar with what I am calling the Lazy Man Rope Climb (see photo below), I recently found this exercise idea in the book The Modern Art of High Intensity Exercise that we recently ordered. I am always hesitant to purchase exercise/fitness books but this one was worth the money! It has great ideas and workouts!

Since starting to climb ropes can be difficult this is a good exercise to do working with a rope on the floor. This exercise is anything but lazy, I just like to name my exercises something fun that is also easy for me to remember!

Lazy Man Rope Climb: Lay the rope on grass or another surface that isn’t sticky or slippery. Attach one end of the rope to a kettle bell or dumbbell (I used a 44 pound kettlebell) and lie on your back at the other end of the rope. Then grab the rope and pull the weight towards you. Be sure to stop in time before you get close to your head. When the weight reaches you stand up and grab the weighted end of the rope and drag it back to where it started and get ready to pull the weight towards you again. Repeat a total of 3 times. Be sure to engage your transverse abdominis!

And that is the workout! It is a doozy for sure but also fun! I hope you have a wonderful week leading up to Easter. I am so thankful for God’s grace and get choked up thinking about the significance of Jesus on the cross, the Temple veil tearing, and the stone being rolled away. If you have children or even if you don’t you might be interested in the book The Garden, The Curtain, and The Cross. It is perfect for Easter or really anytime of the year that beautifully illustrates and explains God’s plan for salvation and explains the Gospel message without watering it down.

I love the following verse…

A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up,and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together,for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” Isaiah 40:3-5

God’s glory has been revealed and each one of us has to choose what we will do with that knowledge. Jesus Christ offers hope. A hope that is steadfast and true. Following Christ doesn’t mean that life is going to be easy. In fact the Bible tells us to rejoice in our suffering, which is very counter to what our culture teaches (Romans 5:3-5, James 1:2-4, 1 Peter 4:13, 2 Corinthians 12:10).

This past weekend at church one of the points made in the sermon was that “the ultimate irony would be to go to Hell after hearing the good news many times, and refusing to receive it.”

Seek the Lord while he may be found, call of Him while he is near. Isaiah 55:6

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12

God forgives and has offered a way for us to be with Him in Heaven through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross. And that is what Easter is about.

Faith, hope, forgiveness, and redemption isn’t personified by chocolate bunnies. Instead it is represented by two outstretched arms on the cross.

xo, Tamara

Filed Under: Faith, Fitness, Workouts Tagged With: Circuit Workout, Easter, The Modern Art of High Intensity Training, Workout

#MakeYourMove at Home with Kohl’s

January 17, 2017 by Tamara Leave a Comment

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Kohl’s. I was paid for this post and received the included fitness equipment as compensation.

A little over 8 months ago our family joined a gym after having not had a membership for 2 years. Josh and I loved being able exercise together again and it was great to have childcare for the kids when Josh was on shift so I could workout.

Fast forward to today and I am cleared to start exercising again after delivering our third baby in November. Adding a new member to our family has been amazing and exhausting.

Exercise is a great way to boost your energy, improve your outlook, and reduce stress, all things that are great for everyone and especially parents of a newborn.

The childcare at our gym starts for babies when they are 3 months old. The idea of taking three kids to the gym when Josh is on shift is a little overwhelming. There were some mornings when it was hard for me to manage Caden and Maisie on my own and getting them in and out of the car and into childcare was more of a workout than my actual workout.

I knew that going to the gym wasn’t going to be a reality for at least a few months. I also knew that for my sanity and health I would need to figure out a way to exercise, at a minimum, 3 days a week.

Thanks to Kohl’s, Josh and I have absolutely no excuse to not exercise. In addition to the awesome selection of products Kohl’s offers in store they also have a wide range of fitness products online. If you are looking to build your home gym Kohl’s has cardio equipment, strength training gear, fitness trackers, and much more.

Home gyms offer you the flexibility of being able to fit your workout in whenever it is convenient for you. If you enjoy group fitness classes there are so many options available now on DVD. Exercising at home allows you to roll out of bed and exercise in your pajamas if you so choose. Plus you no longer have to wait in line for certain machines or equipment and there is no 30 minute time limit.

Take a look at just a few of the great items Kohl’s has to build a home gym…

PROFORM DESK BIKE

I wasn’t super excited about this bike when I saw the photo and read the description online. It arrived in a large box and took Josh an hour to put together.

Once it was built Josh and I both took a spin and we were pleasantly surprised. Having taking numerous spin classes and after being certified to teach indoor cycle classes I am super picky when it comes to indoor bikes. This bike could best be described as a hybrid between a recumbent bike and spin bike. It exceeded the expectations I had based on the photos and description.

Like the name states the bike has a desk that can be attached to the handle bars to allow you to stay active while you work (or in our house blog, read, or catch up on your favorite tv show).

There is a built in heart rate monitor that can be used by placing your hands on the handles.

The bike can be folded up to save space when not in use. The only thing we would add to improve the design is wheels on the front of the bike to be able to move more easily.

PROFORM EASY STRIDER

Just like the bike this elliptical arrived on our doorstep in an even larger box. It took Josh two hours to build and to our surprise runs on 4 D batteries.

The ProFrom Easy Strider is a smaller version of an elliptical you would find in the gym but still comes with many features found in more expensive ellipticals. There are wheels on the front of the machine making it easier to move, has a built in workout fan, IPOD compatible, and features an on-board 8 week weight loss program designed by Jillian Michaels.

When I used the 8 week program that is built in to the machine for the first time I had no idea that Jillian Michaels was actually going to be talking out of the elliptical. It was so fun and had me laughing out loud several times when she told me she wanted to kick my butt. The 30 minute programs go by super fast and I really love this added feature.

We put all our workout equipment in our bedroom because we wanted to be able to keep the kids from playing on the machines. Also, in case you were wondering, that is a super huge canvas print of me. This was the photo canvas that was displayed when I an ambassador for a fitness clothing brand. After the store was done using the photo it was gifted to me. Josh and I tried to give it to my parents as a gift but they politely declined. And now, the photo sits in the alcove in our bedroom.

STAMINA MAGNETIC ROWING MACHINE

The rower took just under two hours to unbox and put together. The main portion of the machine arrived together and the remaining parts like the seat, footplates, and console needed to be installed.

The rowing machine is made of aluminum making it durable and lightweight to move around and features 8 levels of resistance. The workout monitor tracks total strokes, strokes per minute, workout time, distance and calories burned.

For the price of this machine it really has great features. It is quiet, stores upright and can be easily moved to a corner in the room or into a closet when not in use, and tracks all your stats during your workout.

BACKTRAC BACK MASSAGER

I think most of us deal with some sort of pain, knots, or tenderness in our back. It can be hard to reach those areas in your back on your own. The BackTrac Back Massager features 30 acupressure spheres that target the upper, mid, and lower back as well as two larger spheres for your neck.

I have been following the recommended guidelines and lay without moving on the massager for 5 minutes. The spheres can be adjusted for less intensity by moving them towards the center. After the 5 minutes are up I slowly roll a few inches up and down for several minutes.

I was surprised to find the next day I was sore in certain places in my back and shoulders that I generally have knots. Nursing and holding an infant can really take a toll on your spine and I find myself contorting my body into unnatural positions while I am carrying the baby at times.

The past few days I have been less sore and have played around with adjusting the spheres to hit certain spots, especially in my upper back. If you enjoy deep tissue massage, acupressure, or trigger point release this would be a great item for in home use.

MY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A HOME GYM

It is so important to invest in yourself and have a few pieces of exercise equipment at home. I love having options with my workouts and I am super excited about having an elliptical, rowing machine, and bike.

When you are deciding what equipment to purchase for your home gym there are several things to keep in mind.

The first thing you need to consider is your space. Where will you be exercising? The equipment you purchase needs to fit your space.

Also keep in mind that building a home gym doesn’t have to be done at once. Start with a few essentials likes weights and resistance bands.

Next, set a budget, and stick to it. You don’t need to spend a ton of money to live a healthier lifestyle.

And lastly, you need to think about your goal. What is your fitness goal? Are you wanting to improve your cardiovascular health? Perfect, an elliptical would be a great choice for you. Have you just come off an injury and are looking for low impact options? An indoor stationary bike would work well for that. Or maybe you are looking to be able to have variety and would like to be able to perform CrossFit type workouts at home. Weights and a rowing machine for you.

In addition to the cardio equipment featured in this post Kohl’s also offers many other products that would be a great addition to a home gym.

one | two | three | four | five

Resistance bands, a stability ball, and ankle weights are great additions to a home gym.

Footwear is just as important at home as it in the gym. These Asics are my favorite and they come in really fun colors.

If you have little ones at home I highly suggest a video monitor to keep tabs on them during your early morning or evening workouts.

#MAKEYOURMOVE CARDIO TRIFECTA WORKOUT

With all this fun new equipment I was ready to get sweaty! Here is a workout I put together to use with the Elliptical, Bike, and Rowing Machine.

This was my first workout that I did after having my third baby and I was loving it and silently hating it at the same time. It felt great to sweat but also horrible. I was so out of breath when I finished and I was ready to be done after I got off the bike.

The workout will take a little over 30 minutes. Let me know if you try it out!

Kohl’s is your one spot shop for at home fitness needs. From workout clothes, shoes, fitness equipment, and a wide range of healthy living products you will find what you are looking for at Kohl’s.

You can follow Kohl’s on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. For added inspiration be sure to check out Kohl’s Make Your Move Pinterest Board.

These affiliate links are not associated with Kohl’s.

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Filed Under: Fitness, Products, Sponsored Post Tagged With: #MakeYourMove, BackTrac Back Massager, Kohl's, Proform Desk Bike, Proform Easy Strider, Stamina Magnetic Rowing Machine