Yoga is for everyone




Anusara Yoga student & teacher NIkki Serrano-Honasan (center) & her Davao workshop yogis & yoginis.
CONSIDER this a confession of some sort- I was a gym rat in my previous life.

After shedding off the unwanted pounds by brisk walking (which eventually lead to running) around the dusty oval of the defunct PTA and counting calorie intake, I finally freed myself from the tight and loving embrace of a rapidly growing family tree of fat cells that can be registered as a municipality as Obesity. A love so incomparable I can do without.

Lifting weights became my thing. It turned into an obsession. But frequent traveling made the regimen an on-and-off thing. Worst part- back to square one. Yes, sore muscles again and again.

Pilates entered into the picture. I loved it, but it was same story. Until I finally gave yoga a shot. I will be honest in saying that this is not on my list for reason of inflexibility- I can only reach my toes if I bend my knees.


Maybe it was the universe calling and I finally opened my heart. It gave me a teacher who will lead me to the right path. Her name is Nikki Serrano. Yoga became very encouraging.

Yoga never forces anyone into getting into the practice. It only introduces itself as an avenue towards achieving a personal intention with a very positive end result which embraces a wealth of health bonuses. You decide.

"Yoga meets us where we are and eventually brings us to a place of more."

When you open your heart and mind to the practice, it will teach you to listen to your body, move at your comfortable pace, and with each breath, you flow with grace.

Utkatasana. The chair pose.


"Yoga is an inside job. It softens us from within, working from inside out."
Yoga is perfect for me. I can do it anytime, anywhere, with minimal gear, no apparatus, just a mat and the ground I stand on. I have no more excuses not to exercise constantly.

The Dolphin, Ardha Pincha Mayurasana.
 Strengthening the shoulders.
Having my intention's fulfillment underway, I am slowly being presented with the "bonuses" of the practice Nikki has been telling me. Rewards that comes with the discipline that I am already experiencing but still oblivious to.

The wholesome manner yoga acts on the various body parts is truly magnificent. The gentle stretching on our muscles of the yoga poses work to increase blood circulation and lubrication in our joints, the different tendons, ligaments and those parts of our bodies that are seldom exercised. Maybe it is the only form of activity which massages and stimulates all the internal glands and organs of the body in a thorough manner.

With each stretch, we are made more flexible, our bodies are detoxified. With each stance, our muscles come alive, strengthened. With each breath, we become temples of good health.
"It (asana/pose) is not about looking good. It is about feeling good. If you feel good on the inside, it will radiate on the outside."
So we honored our bodies once more when Nikki came to town for her second two-day Anusara inspired workshop at the Holiday Gym & Spa. This entire experience was just extraordinary. From the moment we stepped in class to the time the workshop ended, everyone was bathed in the light of positive vibe. We were children welcoming everything new with eagerness and with each breath, our bodies committed to the asanas.


Today, I am proud to say that I can reach my toes. But deeper in me, I am pretty sure there is a whole universe transforming. The pluses are happening and in time, everything will fall into place.

Great things can also happen to you. Just open your mind, open your heart.....

I did.

Then the headstand happened.

Salamba Sirsasana

Namaste.