Two mats, one living room. Practice in Real Life: Erja & Marko
Updated: Sep 30
Erja and Marko live in the countryside, where there always seems to be something to do around the house and garden.
Erja is an osteopath, physiotherapist and entrepreneur. In her free time, she walks in the surrounding countryside, enjoys strength training and spends time with her pets. Marko is an osteopath, massage therapist and entrepreneur, and enjoys running and lifting weights.
They also practise Ashtanga together.
Two mats fit comfortably side by side in their living room.
Finding a practice that stays
Erja first came across Ashtanga about fifteen years ago, simply out of curiosity. Over the years, she started and stopped many times.
When I was teaching in Lappeenranta in 2022, she joined my classes at her workplace. After I moved to Helsinki, she continued practising in the online group. For her, online practice offered a way to keep the practice that had started so well as a regular part of life — rather than once again finding herself drifting away from it.
Marko started practising Ashtanga in the same classes in 2022. For him, the initial motivation was quite practical: he wanted to bring more mobility to his stiff body.
These days, they join the same online morning class once a week. They arrange their work so that on practice mornings they have enough time to practise without rushing. Erja sometimes does another practice on her own, but the weekly online class is the mainstay for both of them.
The power of a shared commitment
For Erja and Marko, the fact that the practice happens at a set time — together with a teacher and a group — is an important part of what keeps them coming back.
They have agreed on their morning practice, and then they simply stick to it.
Living far from the city and from in-person classes, online practice also makes the practical side much easier. There is no commute, and the practice can fit naturally into their working lives.
For Erja, it has also made it possible to join a class while away from home, whether travelling for work or on holiday.
Two people, two practices
Although Erja and Marko practise side by side, their experiences aren't identical.
Erja finds that she can concentrate particularly well when there isn't much movement around her — apart from Marko, of course.
At the same time, she still senses the presence of the wider group. Looking at the screen from time to time and seeing everyone practising in their own spaces gives her a sense of connection and encourages her to keep going.
Marko has noticed that he has become better at using the deeper muscles throughout his body, not just his core. They aren't sure whether this is specifically connected to online practice, the concentration it requires, or simply his practice developing over time. But it has been a welcome discovery.
And perhaps most surprisingly, they have found that being online doesn't mean being unseen.
“Heidi sees what we are doing surprisingly accurately through the camera.”
They feel that their progress has been much the same as it was in person: slowly but surely.
You don't have to “go all in”
There is another part of Erja's story that feels particularly important to her.
She has noticed that people sometimes have a very particular image of Ashtanga: that you have to fall completely in love with it, practise every day, do a lot, and somehow make it a demanding and difficult part of your life.
And yes, you can do all of those things.
But you don't have to.
Erja used to experience Ashtanga as somewhat too strict, and this was partly why she stopped several times over the years. Yet she kept returning because she noticed that the practice was good for her body.
With time, she realised that her roughly once-a-week practice is just as valuable to her as someone else's daily practice.
She can make the practice appropriate for her own body and her own life. Some days she may need it to loosen her back; on other days, her attention may turn more towards what is happening inside.
Marko, meanwhile, experiences the practice primarily as body maintenance — and sometimes simply as a workout.
Different reasons. Different practices. The same practice space.
Being ordinary people in Ashtanga
Erja describes it beautifully: they can be “tavallisia ihmisiä astangassa” — ordinary people in Ashtanga.
They don't have to do everything Ashtanga has to offer. They don't have to follow some imagined textbook version of the practice. They can practise as much as serves them.
And the same seems to be true of the wider group.
Some people have practised for many years and very regularly. Others practise less often. Yet everyone can have their own practice, at their own level and in their own way, without needing to justify it.
There is room to simply practise — and to feel good about the practice you are actually doing.
Their three words
Oikeasti yksilöllistä · sopivaa
Truly individual · just right
A small reflection
Erja and Marko's story reminds me that there isn't one correct way for a practice to belong in a life.
For one person, Ashtanga may be a daily commitment. For another, it may be once a week.
One person may come to the mat looking for depth and introspection. Another may simply want to take care of a stiff body.
The practice doesn't become less meaningful because the reasons are different.
Perhaps the question isn't how much of Ashtanga you can fit into your life.
Perhaps it's what kind of practice actually serves the life you're living.
Curious about practising with us?
Explore my small-group online and in-person Mysore classes.
Or, if you're looking for a longer-term container:
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