Yoga proponents say it works for them
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A well-traveled instructor who has taught in five different countries, Poulos was inspired by the mountains and moved to Grundy County about two years ago, where he opened the Stone Door Yoga Center. He complements yoga workshops there with teachings in McMinnville, and has been teaching at the Civic Center for about a year.
It’s there you can find locals dedicated to taking time out of the hustle and bustle of their lives on an average Wednesday night to relax, breathe and stretch their way to mental, physical and spiritual health.
The potential of the yoga discipline is enough to make anyone want to join, and Poulos, a 20-year veteran Sivananda Yoga instructor, has enjoyed teaching about 100 local students so far.
“Yoga is a system of self-mastery,” he said. “My teacher always said yoga is not something you can do to someone else. In yoga, you try not to rule other people, you try to rule yourself.”
How you get there is up to you, but Poulos recommends five principles: proper exercise, proper breathing, proper relaxation, proper diet and last, positive thinking and meditation.
As far as what yoga is all about, Poulos finds himself sometimes explaining a variety of half-truths.
“One misconception is that it’s going to interfere with people’s religious beliefs. Quite the opposite, if yoga is taught and practiced properly, it should reinforce people’s religious beliefs. Whatever religion they are, it should reinforce and help them become a lot closer and better and go deeper into those teachings,” he said.
Another misconception is yoga is merely exercise or that it is a so-called “new age” activity that has recently become popular.
“Yoga, quite contrary to being new age, is the oldest science on earth and it really goes back 10,000 years, or possibly more,” Poulos said.
Progress is largely up to the student and is self-regulated in many respects, Poulos said, but generally people will begin to feel better. Yoga is a system of health for all aspects of the body, mind and spirit.
“Someone who is making progress will become more cheerful, they’ll be more focused and have a greater sense of unity with people and mankind. Most religions teach love thy neighbor as thyself and they’ll see a greater capacity for that. They’ll have more energy, be more focused and be more efficient.”
So does it work?
According to student Michael Robinson, 43, Poulos’ approach is sincere, knowledgeable and costs half of other yoga classes he has attended. Robinson said he has been doing yoga for about 1-1/2 years and has found a way for it to work for him.
“I have a greater awareness of things in all aspects,” he said, noting he has learned to recognize and manage stress and tension by simply letting things that bother him go. “It’s working for me.”
With regard to the hundreds of learned postures in yoga, instructors play a vital role, but take a step back under Poulos’ philosophy.
“Little by little, you help people make adjustments … but what they [students] do with it will have to do with their own goals and their beliefs,” Poulos added.