Yoga is considered a way of acknowledging your inner peace and understanding your mental health. Experimenting with this practise opens up new knowledge about the different breath works (Pranayama) and forms of meditation.

Here is an insight on its impact, through the eyes of a participant in a yoga course called ‘Yoga Teacher Training’. Ms Ramachandran took part in her local studio in Birmingham called ‘Barefoot Birmingham’. They are registered with Yoga Alliance US, allowing them to give a Certification for yoga teacher training to those who complete the 200-hour section. Ms Ramachandran took part on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 4 hours and 8 hours on weekends, resulting in her completing 350 hours in 6 months. The format of this course is fairly hybrid, ensuring the participant can have a mix of lessons online as well as in-person giving them enough guidance to progress fast.

Being an Assistant Professor teaching Leadership and other aspects of Wellbeing, it must’ve been difficult to balance both work and passion. But due to the course and her workplace being flexible enough to alter her hours it led to a a less stressful environment.

The way Yoga revolved around Ms Ramachandran wasn’t just something practised on the mat (as most people viewed it), but a way of being. After decades of practise and reflection, she made the decision to pursue a qualification, to mainly unpack the essence and philosophy of what Yoga really is, changing the way she interpreted it to begin with.

If you are passionate about Yoga, Ms Ramachandran recommends you pursue this hobby, if not continuing to receive a qualification. Some tips she has kinda shared is to immerse yourself in the process and put your other goals on hold. This has taught her to let go of high expectations and live simple, setting goals that are achievable and practical.