Student Finds Balance Through Yoga

For Kathryn Ray, yoga has transformed from a light hobby into a dedicated lifestyle. She had no idea four years ago that she would be mastering backbends and headstands on a daily basis. Now she is a practiced yogi who wants to encourage others to give it a try.

Kathryn first found yoga the summer before her freshman year at NC State. She went with her sister to a hot yoga class, not expecting anything out of the ordinary. However, when the class was much more challenging than anticipated, she was immediately intrigued. She has been practicing ever since.

A senior studying math and statistics, Kathryn finds that yoga helps her balance all aspects of her life. Though she does not follow a particular routine, she practices every day for about an hour, usually as a break from schoolwork. “It’s really easy for me to lose myself in yoga” Kathryn admits. “It helps me relax and focus on something that is completely different from all the things that are going on with school.”

When deciding on a practice space, Kathryn discusses how the independence of yoga is one of its greatest attributes. It is something she can practice wherever, whenever and requires only herself. On a typical day, she likes the quiet atmosphere and open space of the Carmichael Group Fitness Studios. To change things up however, she admits the beach is her favorite spot to get in a good flow.

In September of 2015, she decided to expand her outreach by creating an Instagram account to share her progress. Here she found an entire virtual community on which she relies to discover new flows and connect with other practicing yogis. She says video tutorials are among the best tools to use when learning new positions because “they show you how to access some of the poses and how to stretch your body in a way you might not have thought you would need that for your pose.”

Kathryn encourages students to “grab a friend, go to a class and see what it’s all about, and don’t let any reservations stop you.” She suggests trying a class at NC State or even checking out social media if someone is uncomfortable going to a studio. Platforms like Instagram are helpful because the owners of the accounts often post photos with descriptions on how to access various poses. “Everybody starts at a different level, and there are plenty of different variations of poses that are accessible to everybody.”

Check out her Instagram page @yogannalovemyyoga for some ideas and inspiration.

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