What Possessed Me To Say Yes to This
I’d like to introduce you to Susan G. Susan started strength workouts with It’s All Yoga in late 2023.
She joined IAY mainly for yoga with Wencke (which she loves), but was inspired by another member she met at the Holiday Sweater Party who had been attending the strength classes.
A longtime yogi, she never saw herself as athletic and didn’t think the workouts would work for her body.
Over and over, Susan has surprised herself, as you’ll see below.
Just yesterday, Susan sent this to me in response to the Mindful Muscle Club announcement:
“I want to send this email to every friend over 40. I would love to see every woman I love get the privilege of working with you and improving their strength and enjoying the freedom in their bodies that I have been able to achieve.
And, if someone like me can do this (so not athletic), it is clearly doable!”
No oversized necks, pinching or yelling here
She goes on to share:
“When I look back, what possessed me to say yes to this - something so foreign to what I ever thought I’d do?
Perhaps because I knew you would provide a safe container for me to step into something that has been so awful in the past, e.g. gyms where young men with oversized necks were ‘directing’ me (and I was injuring myself), jazzercise classes where instructors yelled at us and pinched my butt - ostensibly to get me going? Funny now 😂 but not then 🫣 ”
Students often share before class ways their strength practice has made a difference in their “real lives.”
Here’s one example Susan recently shared:
“I had to move 130 bricks across the yard this weekend and I did it using my levers, my S breath and my cheek creases! I picked them up – four at a time – and walked them across the yard to where they needed to be. And I’ve dug out two stumps all by myself. I’m almost 70 years old and I’m so pleased.
The fact that I could do it – and that I did it by myself. I wanted to see if I could do it. And I could! It took strength and endurance, which I’ve always struggled with. I thought of class the whole time: “Cheek crease, cheek crease!”
I’m tired today, but I accomplished something that in past years I would not have been able to do.”
Join us!
You're not just impacting bones and muscles and percentages and risk factors when you do strength training.
You're making a difference in your day-to-day life -- in the activities you love, the things you didn't think you could do, and your daily tasks that are suddenly easier.
The Mindful Muscle Club is a 3-month live online cohort for women who are ready to stop apologizing for having bodies that need care and attention.
If you have questions or aren't sure if this is for you, let's hop on a call!
If you've read this far, something is speaking to you. Check out the Club details... and reach out with any questions.
Michelle Marlahan is the founder of It's All Yoga, now a thriving online studio offering 10 live classes weekly and hundreds of recorded sessions ranging from 10-60 minutes. Her approach balances nervous system regulation with strength building specifically for women in their 40s-70s who value the privacy, autonomy and flexibility of virtual yoga practice. She also works privately with women who have pelvic pain, incontinence or prolapse to find balance and healing in the hips, low back and pelvic floor.