#16 | Part 1 Annabel Zambakides - How Yoga Can Totally Change Your Life: Mind & Body Transformation

:: 00:00

Big on the energy and reading the room from the class you're with. How did you find the transition to Zoom then?

:: 00:05

And also it takes on board the majority of concepts of Iov Aida.

:: 00:09

I guess you kind of doubt the worry of like. People are judging you in a way like so the listeners and viewers are a bit about you, a bit about your story and what it is you do.

:: 00:21

Okay, so I've been teaching yoga for nearly 20 years and I've been practicing for nearly 30 and I've always been involved in sort of physical activities, sport. It was always my go-to as a kid. So when I fell pregnant with my first daughter, mia, I started doing anti-natal yoga and as a result of that, I thought I quite liked this, having tried it previously and not liked it, and had a previous background in you know, always swimming, always been a swimmer since I was about five, kicked in the pool, do your training before school. So activity was always my go-to and it was something I loved. And anti-natal yoga was the sort of the thing if you wanted to have a natural birth, which I did. So that was really my reason for kind of going there with all of it, and I fell in love with it. I found the right teacher and that was the key found the right teacher.

:: 01:21

There are lots of different types of yoga on there. How many? Or they all rubbish.

:: 01:28

There's new ones every week. So yeah, there's new ones every week. So my style of yoga is very traditional. I follow a very strict lineage of a tantra yoga. So I've played with all different styles of yoga over the years, but I prefer to work with a tradition because then there is a system, there's a methodology and it's more involved. But I love the aspects of the meditation, nidra, breath work, all of that. So my classes are probably, if you're a beginner, I would say you might be a bit overwhelmed coming into my class because, I'll be asking quite a lot of you.

:: 02:10

For those of you who don't know listening or watching. What is tantra yoga? What is that?

:: 02:14

So it encompasses everything, and that means it encompasses the way you eat, the way you breathe, the way you live. I mean, it's so vast. I mean just everything the way you're language, the way you're interacting with people, and also it takes on board the majority of concepts of Ayurveda, which is working with the systems called the doshas, which are going to be a bit new, like what's that? Another system called the gunas, and that's not an arsenal support.

:: 02:46

So the gunas.

:: 02:47

So it's all basically principles of herbs, medicinal diet, climate, you know, are you somebody who runs hot, are you somebody who runs cold? You know. So, working out how your energy is placed within you. So, therefore, finding the right practice. So if I was to look, you know, go into a class, like I've done today, I've been teaching today, I'd have a focus, I'd have an intention. And what's my intention in the practice today? Where do I want to place the energy? Do I want to place the energy to soothe your mind? Do I want to place the energy to be more heart centered? Do I want to get you more grounded? Where do I want to place the prana or the chi or whatever language?

You know, it's all the same thing really prana, chi, life force. So therefore I'm directing it, working with the body as a vehicle to move the prana. So that's why I'm saying it's in depth, it's not like lying on the floor and just stretch your hamstring. There's a lot going on. I use mantras, which is chanting, something called mudras. I mean, you know careers, this is where people start going.

:: 03:56

oh, you know but I say that because it's not straightforward, but that's the beauty of it.

:: 04:02

You have to engage your mind because it's a mind body practice. And this is what's not happening, you know, the music goes on, the temperature gets blasted up against the wall. Let's do 50,000 handstands and you come out of there completely all up in your head and you're making yourself what we would say in the yoga sort of speakers hyperpranic. You're becoming destabilized mentally, not stabilized, and that's what I work on stability.

I don't even use the word stretch flexibility. It's a bit like when I was listening to Annaly and she went shoulda, woulda, coulda. I mean, yes, get rid of them. I get rid of the word stretch and flexibility. They're not useful.

:: 04:45

Yeah.

:: 04:46

Stable, mobile, lengthening, strengthening, calm, purify, do you?

:: 04:53

see what I mean. You said it, but the practices are hard. Yeah.

:: 04:57

Or not, or we could be lying on our backs doing a lovely yoga nidra, because the mind needs to calm down in the majority of people.

:: 05:04

How do you feel like is every individual kind of different? When they're doing it, or when you're coaching a group, you're like that person needs it. So for those of you who don't know, my mum, there's your sessions and she loves them.

:: 05:15

She's done them for years now.

:: 05:17

She's been talking about you.

:: 05:20

Like your professional wellness. It's nice. I won't mention her name.

:: 05:24

But, she loves your sessions and she always comes out feeling better, like she looks healthier, she looks happier and it's so nice to see and that's her like consistent thing is going into those sessions being like non-negotiable. I'm here at this time every single week and she loves it and she won't ever change it. When you deal with people like my mum and you deal with someone else, do you try and tailor it towards them, or does everyone kind of do the same thing and then learn to interlink?

:: 05:52

Okay. Well, since the advent of Zoom it's been different and the majority of my classes have stayed on Zoom. I haven't taken anyone on Zoom, really that I haven't taught in person, because I like to get the feel that you pick up on an energy as much of me towards them as them towards me. It's a two-way thing. So the group and the way it works, it almost has its own momentum and its own energy. But people get injured, people go into hospital, things happen.

So we modify and because people know me and they are able to follow it's verbalization, the skill that you. Really that takes time and as a young teacher I felt really sorry when they were going on Zoom because it was really putting them a real kind of right on the back foot. Because that skill of verbalization, I know when your hamstring is being, I can just see it, because I can see the body and watch the way the energy's moving. It's like back off, less is more okay and don't push, because the breath will shape the posture from the inside out and that's a skill set that takes time and practice. So if you go into, so with someone like your mom and we know what your mom's gone through, you know in many over the years. She knows because and I'm gonna say this very delicately she has her ego well under control, okay, and there'll be some who don't. So I'll have some in the class who'll push and they don't know their limits and they'll keep pushing beyond them. So I have to verbally keep holding them back, while with the ones who are, let's just say, quite comfortable on their mat and might need a little bit of a push.

That's where the language comes in, and I absolutely pick up on what Annaly was saying with regards to language. It's so important as to how you can move people to get them to maybe do something that they think they couldn't do safely always safely but then I'm not talking headstands, handstands. I'm not talking that. I'm just kind of saying go that little bit further, hold the posture a little bit longer, but really be aware of your breath, because if your breath is destabilized, you're destabilized. That's the key. And getting them to take that self-inquiry which again I'm picking up on what she said as well which is absolutely the key.

What's the self-inquiry? That mat is your therapist, what's it mirroring back at you? You know you being a little bit heavy today, you're feeling a bit out of sorts. You're checking in with yourself. You're using this as an opportunity to learn more about yourself. I'm just there, I'm the facilitator. This is your practice and that's what I wanted to sort of get to people. I'm not telling you what to do. Your body is telling you what to do, but are you listening?

:: 08:58

Yeah, I just want to come back to what you said about Zoom earlier on was that as a result of COVID and the lockdown. How did you find if you're big on the energy and reading the room from the class you're with? How did you find the transition to Zoom then? Was it that? Was it really hard? Horrible, horrendous cried every time.

:: 09:13

I turned the Zoom screen off. It's like I can't do this.

:: 09:15

Too much.

:: 09:16

It's just awful. I can't hear anyone breathing. And I'm so used to that and I'm so used to that back and forth in the class and that wasn't happening. And so for the first couple of months I was like, oh god, how long is this gonna stop? And then I thought you know what? Hang on a second. Like anything, you adapt or die in every situation.

I thought okay, there's some benefits here. Let's always play to your strengths, Don't play to the weaknesses. Let's try yoga, nidra or meditation on Zoom and see how that goes down and see what the Work. On feedback what are people telling you? You know, At first some really just gelled straight away, others who thought they wouldn't found that. Actually, I like this. I'm in the comfort of my own home, I haven't got to worry about so-and-so.

on the mat next to me snoring yoga nidra or fidgeting or there's that I can set the temperature of the room exactly how I want it, burn my candles, set up my own little kind of altar, my own space. So I thought, oh okay, this is quite interesting because none of us knew. I didn't know what Zoom was. I was like what Zoom, you know? My adults were like, well, you kind of do this, mum. I was like, oh, then how do I know what you know when I'm talking and the cameras and all of that. But then you get used to it.

Then I started saying to people right, should we go back into the space? And now we like this. I was like what?

:: 10:45

Wow, Didn't want to go. So people felt yeah.

:: 10:48

And I've had more people join who were resistant at first. I would say, out of, I probably had about five people in all the time that have just gone. Now I'm going back to the gyms, I'm going back to a live space, I'm doing this, I'm doing that, but even the ones who did go back to the gym have still maintained the Zoom classes. That's interesting.

:: 11:09

Why do you think there is sort of the simplicity of it You're in your own space.

:: 11:13

Yes.

:: 11:13

You're on your own. I guess you kind of don't have to worry if people are judging you in a way. I don't know.

:: 11:18

a lot of people get in their own head and I feel people take more responsibility for themselves because they're not relying on me to come around and tweak.

:: 11:24

I see, and that was interesting it's on them to make it right.

:: 11:28

And so you talk in an age of responsibility, accountability. That came out loud and clear Because the first workshop I was running I was like, oh, I'm going to be spending the whole time going, no, this foot, look, look. And I was just like, wow, everyone's really kind of taking it on board.

:: 11:47

How did you find having to sort of take back some of the control of not being able to go around and focus on everyone and you might be missing something, with their foot not being in the right place, or how did you find that?

:: 11:55

I've got so many big screens around I can almost see people better sometimes.

:: 12:00

Okay, interesting.

:: 12:01

Because actually in a room you kind of I've got everything 2D and in a room people stand in front of one another. I've got the ability to go around the back for sure, but I tend to get people moving around the mat quite a bit anyway. So I'm getting lots of different and sometimes that two-dimensional, I see the alignment almost clearer. It's weird you pick up different things. I've got people zooming in from Kenya, mexico oh I'm going on holiday.

:: 12:33

I'll take you on holiday with me.

:: 12:34

I'm like really, how did your husband feel about that?

:: 12:37

I'm like he's fine. I'm like okay, good.

:: 12:41

So you know, it's just like what time is it in Mexico? Five in the morning? Okay, good. So there's continuity and people have moved away, as what happened in COVID and I'll tell you what has been. I think, and I know that my group, I'm really sure my group, will echo this is community In a weird, weird way. We've held together, we've gone through the first death Community.

Deaths, marriages you know all of it. It's all happened as this group albeit online, I do run workshops, and then the workshops which your mom comes to as well give people a chance to get together again, and the community aspect has been, I think, sustaining for people over really difficult times and sometimes, because it is on screen, it's almost easier. You don't have to face people, but you know people are there for you and the message is and I do a thing which is a bit weird, called a karma yoga system so everyone books their classes and they pick their classes, whichever they do, out of their five every week and then, if they can't make their class, they offer it back to the group. So there's no money changing hands.

It's not like I can't make my refund, forget that it's admin nightmare. So I offer it back to the group. Someone will go. I take that class and I'm trying to sort of help people realise that if they give, it comes back, and it always does. It's a really good idea actually.

:: 14:12

And it works, it works.

:: 14:14

And that gives people a sense of oh, enjoy, oh, thank you, and then that creates this dynamic.

:: 14:22

Active kindness, because it makes you feel better, and then it makes them feel better because they receive you Exactly, and that was very much at the time.

:: 14:29

I was like, oh, how can I do it Again? It was all evolving as we were going. We weren't kind of going, there was no set up. I didn't have any set up. I was like, how am I going to wait this work? Because if you're paying me individually for each class, this is just too much admin. So that also means and then I'm not teaching, I'm spending too much time doing that.

:: 14:49

I should be doing the things that you enjoy doing not worrying about the All that stuff, yeah.

:: 14:56

And I think that also there was a person always behind. There wasn't an automated system. If people book a class, I'm on the end of that group. I'm physically writing down their spaces. It kept it human.

:: 15:08

Have you found that as your community has grown, that's been harder to handle?

:: 15:13

I've consciously maintained quite a tight group Okay, fine, I'm very strong on holding the group and they'll never be in that, any one from my group. We're going oh, yes, the boundaries, but I go on and on and on about boundaries because a safe space is absolutely essential so that people feel that they're taking care of that, we're all taking care of one another, that there is community, even though it's behind the screen. That's awesome, yeah.

:: 15:42

One thing I wanted to touch on as well is you spoke about my mum earlier For those who don't know, my mum had cancer a few years ago. She had breast cancer and she had all the muscles on the left side of her back taken out and put it into the front so she couldn't even lift her arm for about two years, like her arm would get to here, and now she runs and now she can do whatever she wants, and a lot of that has come from doing the yoga sessions with you and the breath work and everything, but the biggest difference I've seen is the mental benefits of it.

What do you think are sort of like the deciding factors of why yoga is so good for your mental health, because I see it every day at home.

:: 16:21

Okay, well, that's wonderful and I'm so pleased. More than anything, that makes me feel really good because, yes, you can do a brilliant down dog and you can do this and all that physicality. But how is your life improving, you know? And that's the real kind of cornerstone of a good practice Do you sleep better? Do you eat better? Because that's all part of it. So I think the thing with your mum is that for her it was like the confidence of just going I can do this and being in the live space together in the beginning was essential for your mum. It would have been impossible almost for her to come in on a Zoom space in that under those circumstances.

So I think for your mum she gained that confidence. At first she was like I don't even know how to turn my phone on to do that and like how do?

:: 17:15

I, how do I?

:: 17:16

do that, and so therefore, actually it's been really good for her, because it's brought her into the modern. Sorry, sorry, mum. But it's given her the confidence to go well, I can do zoom and I can do this, and I know when my phone's not working, so it's given her that as well.

So there's many skills that have been learned for all of us in that rule of a certain age where we were like, oh, phones, tech, so we've all had a learning experience. So there's a mental, the mental health aspect, confidence, ownership, a sense of not being scared to, kind of you know, just try something new and and you can lose that as you get older and you're young and you haven't even got there yet. But, trust me, particularly once you start coming into your 50s, women I don't know about men, I can't speak for men, but I see it. But it's a different, it's a different bravado, but women really lose their confidence and so, from a mental health point of view, there's just that agency back of self. Does that make sense?

:: 18:21

Yeah, for sure, you know, is there also something in that yoga can be for everyone? Yes of all ages, shape sizes would it matter who you are where you've come from.

:: 18:29

yoga is so accessible to all, so I think that's that as well, Even you. My mum keeps trying to get me into a session. I will do one.

:: 18:38

I reckon the thing is is that I go down as well. I actually quite like it.

:: 18:44

The thing is is that you're going to come in and a lot of guys come in and they see women of my sort of Asian, younger, older, whatever being able to move in a way that's going to kind of maybe a bit intimidating. I don't know if I can do that. Forget all of that. It's not about that. It's how much. How much presence have you got in yourself in that moment? Are you connecting? Are you aware of your breath? So, in a posture I might put you into quite what might look quite an innocent posture to the average person and you might be like, oh, my hips and more than likely, you know.

But then you know there won't be like that if you kept going, it's like the biggest thing If I had money, for every time the person said to me I can't go to yoga, I'm not flexible, I'm like, would you say, I can't go to the gym, I'm not fit Right.

:: 19:37

Nope.

:: 19:38

Would you say I can't get in that pool because I don't like cold water?

:: 19:42

Nope.

:: 19:43

It's true.

:: 19:44

It's that. It's you, you know, going, knowing what your limitations are, acknowledging them and saying well, I'm going to try and that's why it's called a practice. It's not a performance. You're not here trying to show off or prove anything to anybody Nobody. Everyone's too busy worrying about themselves to worry what you're doing.

:: 20:04

That's a good point. Do you feel like, for that reason, that men find it harder than women do?

:: 20:08

Yeah, I'm going to just say the word. There's a little bit more ego going on.

:: 20:13

Oh for sure, yeah, yeah.

:: 20:14

And I feel like I snapped my ham, eating something like that.

:: 20:18

No, but that's the beauty. We've got so many modifications, you know. And when I came to yoga I was a big swimmer and a big runner. So my hamstrings they went, take forward, bend, and I got my fingertips to my knees and I went well, that is that. And I went, can you start to floor? And I went, no, and I'd see them sort of doing splits and God knows what else and kind of go wow, that's really cool, I'll never my body for no way. And then 20, 30 years on, because I've stopped with it, it's like anything you're not going to be good at rugby if you don't show up for practice.

:: 20:51

So now the discipline to when you are rubbish, stick it out, and then you become good at something.

:: 20:58

And then work through injuries. If injuries come up, okay, I'm going to work through it.

You know there's so many that it's yeah, it's so disheartening, yeah, and then you plateau and then you have that fall back and then you've got to go oh, I've got to get myself back again and work through it. And but there's no race in a yoga practice. There's no race, you know. You're just showing up, doing what you do and hopefully walking away feeling a little bit more stable. The mental self regulation would be the one thing. Going back to what you were saying about mind and breath, if you can think of the breath as being the bridge between mind and body, so if your breath so, for instance, I start the class off every time is your moment, quite happily vouch for with breath work. Now some people might sort of say, oh, you could introduce you. Yes, I know, but some people have rushed to get there from work. I don't know what's going on in their home, I don't know what's going on in their lives. Sit down, spend five, 10 minutes checking in with your breathing.

:: 22:02

We hope you enjoyed part one of three of this episode. If you're watching on YouTube, please like and subscribe, and if you're listening on Spotify, apple podcasts, wherever you are, please leave us a kind rating. It helps us more than you ever know. Here's a bit of what you can expect in part two.

:: 22:17

And you've got to watch that person and go. Are we taking them? Is it too long, you know? And then, holding the breath, we call it, come back up Pathetic overload like terror, fear, panic. The last thing you want to do is take.