It takes a village

I know everyone's heard the phrase "It takes a village...", and I know it's true, but at the same time part of me always thinks "I don't need anyone! I can do this all on my own." And fundamentally yes, step one is for me to believe that I can do it. But it certainly doesn't hurt to know you have a group of people who recognize you, know you, and notice when you're gone.

That's what I've found at my yoga studio - Pure Yoga Pilates (aka PYP) in State College. I won't lie - when I first started going I was super intimidated. Typical gym insecurities. I don't have the right clothes, I'm not in shape enough, I don't know anyone...you know where I'm going with this. But within 5 minutes of class starting I forgot all of those fears and just started having fun. And sweating. A lot. And you know what? Within a week I started to recognize people, and they started recognizing me too, which was a really nice feeling. And each of the teachers knew my name and made a point to say hi to me when I walked in, and asked me how life was that day. It may sound like a small thing, but to someone who has always felt kind of average and just part of a crowd, it meant a lot. Means a lot.

Soon after I started to learn names and even introducing myself! And now after being gone for months, the first couple of days back people asked me where I had been and how I was doing. It made me realize that I do matter, I am important, and people notice when I'm not there - something I never expected. And perhaps even more importantly, it's made me feel like I'm part of something bigger than myself. It's not only the accountability of "oh man, people will notice I'm not there tonight!", which can be a motivating factor for sure to get to the gym, but it's more of being a part of a whole.

And now with the 40-Day Program to commit, grow, and cleanse that the owner of the studio, Kerry, has started takes that to the next level. We have partners we check in with, special sessions for growth, mediation, and reflection, and it helps me feel part of something again. Something that I didn't even realize I was missing until I came back to PYP - community.

We tend to define ourselves to our jobs or by our relationships - I'm a video producer, I work for Penn State, I'm Andy's wife - but very few times do we get to say "I'm {insert name here}" and I have goals, passions, likes and dislikes, that matter. I've learned to embrace that at PYP. And everyone who takes classes at PYP are part of the community. Who we are, and perhaps more importantly who we want to be, become facets of PYP each and every class, and makes each class that much more meaningful. It goes beyond sore muscles and sweating. It's a family. And if there's one thing I have learned from trying to get healthy it's that maybe I could do it on my own, but for me, being a part of the community is making not only my body healthier, it's making the entire Me healthier. And isn't that the goal after all?

~ Catie