Early Bird Yogi

April 25th 2017

At my yoga studio they call me Early Bird.

It is a nickname I picked up from a woman named Ellen in my class because I am always the first person at the studio in the morning around 7:00 AM. I have always been quite fond of friendly nicknames because it means that someone has taken enough time to notice something about you that makes you unique and chooses to name you because of it. My nickname even has nicknames now, because Ellen and her friend Patricia and my yoga instructor, Jessica, all switch between calling me Jess, Early Bird, and Tweety.

I find the nicknames really cute and I also feel like they say a lot about my yoga journey and myself as a person. When I first started yoga, it was about twice a week at my school’s gym and although I enjoyed it, I wasn’t fully committed to my practice. When I began at my yoga studio it was really on a whim. I knew I enjoyed yoga, but I didn’t know how often I would want to go or if I would even stick to it. But ever since last year, I have gone five or six days a week every single week, showing up early to appreciate my own pre-class flows (or laying on the floor with a yoga blanket, depending on how my morning is going). Being early to class means a lot to me because it is how I remind myself that I am dedicated, so the nickname Early Bird really resonates with me.

Bird is also one of my favorite poses in yoga because when I can do it it is incredibly freeing. I am terrible with my balance and bird is an entirely balance driven pose so when I get into it and I am standing tall and proud with my leg in the air, I feel like all the work I have done has been worth it.

Being at my yoga studio has really inspired me to work hard on and off my mat and I have plans to train to be certified as an instructor myself in the hopes of inspiring people to work hard and becoming little Early Birds with me~

Jess