Paying for Yoga
On Monday, I participated in a yoga movement blend led by Justin Simpkins. He's a new friend whose dedication to craft shines and inspires through his videography, Conversation Company, handstands, and soothing measured vocal cords.
Justin is a certified instructor with CorePower Yoga. I've tried their classes in a few cities. But for the first time, in our unofficial gathering, I learned some new techniques: to push my tailbone down in happy baby pose and to protect the kneecap by flexing my ankle during certain stretches.
I have resistance to paying for yoga. I fall into the trap of "why can't I just watch Adrienne on Youtube?" It's free, it's easy—I bought a mat! In fact, I have two at home... CorePower seems so expensive.
Turns out, it's not about the yoga. We're not primarily trying to get certified or even stretch.
What we are actually doing in a yoga class—especially the 2nd-3rd-5th and 17th class (if we make it that far)—is committing to ourselves.
We're paying for accountability. We're paying for a space to turn the heavy cognitive load of health & wellness self-actualization into a straightforward checkbox that slots into our busy day.
One of my best investments ever was a personal trainer in Vilcabamba, Ecuador. I paid for 1:1 workouts in his little private gym, and got much more than I bargained for in terms of muscle mass gains, dietary guidance, and friendship. The sessions were very inexpensive by U.S. standards, something like $12 or $20/hr.
It was surprising how many exercises he showed me with just a single weight rack, and how quickly I improved after only a few weeks of raw egg slurping. Dogs provided good distraction training. We worked together for months.
But the cost didn't really matter. By far, the most important thing was setting a regular time together. To spend that hour executing on his instructions, with his eyes on me. My job was simply to show up, and I like to keep my appointments.
When we peek beneath the hood, we find that money is a tool, a side effect, a scheduling mechanism. With yoga, we pay to give substance to our new year's resolutions and push ourselves toward our personal North Star, whatever that is. CorePower prices accordingly.
Those helping others become better versions of themselves will never go out of business.
And like Justin, freely and generously leading us in his own special flows, these people may not have ever been "in business" to begin with.
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Thanks to Justin for inspiring this post and reviewing and initial draft. Thanks to Nick for training me in Vilca and beyond.
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