Ninja Mistelle Crushing Stereotypes: The "Yoga Body"

Yogi Flight School is continuing its mission this week to CRUSH STEREOTYPES!

Today we are featuring Mistelle, a Yogi Flight School student who had every reason to believe that her body was NOT a "yoga body," according to commonly accepted standards. Instead of resigning herself to a fate dictated by others, she shattered those beliefs and is now FLYING!

"Let’s just admit I’m the poster child of “not a yoga body.”

I’m 40, a breast cancer survivor (I hate that word) who had a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. I’ve had 5 knee surgeries which now is literally held together with a few screws and some prayers. I can’t “sit on my heels” to do any “resting” pose and child’s pose is anything but comfortable. Add to that, I have carpal tunnel and had a failed surgery to repair it.

I’m literally every excuse one can think of to NOT be successful [at arm balancing].

I started practicing yoga regularly after my wrist surgery (which happened to be right before the world shut down for Covid). I was working from home with my 2 year old trying to keep from losing what little mind I had left.

As I grew in my practice, the app I was using challenged me to switch to a tougher level. ::Insert crow pose here:: I couldn’t do it. No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t do it.

I made every excuse to myself.
I was too old.
I was too weak.
I didn’t have a strong core.
It was my wrist, my knee, my reconstructed chest.
Every excuse.

Eventually, we moved to a new place and I continued my practice, failing miserably at crow and ready to give up.

Then I saw YFS on Facebook. And then I saw it again and again and again.

Eventually, the universe smacked me upside the head enough times for me to seriously consider the investment.

I talked it over with my husband.
I was hesitant to spend the money asking him, “what if I fail?”
God bless my husband for saying, “but what if you don’t?”

During my cancer battle, I had a mantra of “why not me?” when most people asked “why me?” I took a look back to that and asked “Why not me?” for YFS. Why can’t I do crow? Why can’t I fly? And I signed up.

The first time I did a “NinjasInTheWild,” and held crow pose on the top of a mountain, I felt like I won at life.

Since then, I’ve done flying lizard in the Canary Islands, and I’ve broken a toe trying flying pigeon at home.

My non-yoga yoga body is achieving things no one thought possible.

The reality is, if we make excuses why we “can’t” then we never will. If I decided I can (and put the work in to it), there’s no way I will fail. Truth be told, I fall more than I fly some days. And others, I feel like I could take on the world.

Yogi Flight School taught me that it isn’t your body holding you back, but the belief in your “I can’t”.

Now, my very imperfect body flies."

Yogi Flight School is incredibly proud to count Mistelle amongst our family of Yoga Ninjas. 

Mistelle is living, breathing proof that the stereotypical version of a "yoga body" is flat out, wrong. 

Have a body > Do yoga.

Are you convinced yet? Find out what's possible for YOU when you have the right instruction and support.