Bikram yoga exponent and former elite swimming coach Benn Lees tells Aryeman Raj of his life-changing experience when he took up Bikram yoga.
Success leaves clues. Read biographies of famous people and you'll figure out what works in life. Most successes have a common thread. A story of someone who had a dream, faced a struggle, and finally tasted victory.
What made those people different from others is that they went all out to realise their dreams. If the dream was a call to action, an inner longing to strike out on an adventure, they chose to heed the call and take the journey.
Like Benn Lees, a 35-year-old Bikram Yoga trainer who was with Club Stretch fitness centre in Satwa till some time ago. (He is now in Hong Kong and is a trainer and teacher with a Bikram Yoga studio there.)
Lees loved swimming and even as young boy in Australia, where he was born and grew up, he was keen to represent his country in the Olympics in water polo. That was the dream.
"I surrounded myself with my dream," says Lees. "The walls in my house were completely covered with Olympic memorabilia. I read about the Olympics all the time, watched the events with great enthusiasm.''
However, he missed the bus by "being involved in the University party life. There were things more important to me than water polo during university which meant that I did not spend the appropriate amount of time on training to maximise my potential as an athlete," says Lees.
But he did not give up. If he could not be on the team, he was keen to be in some way associated with the team which was preparing for the Olympics.
Lees's talents in the water had already been recognised.
"When I was 20 years old, Queensland State's body offered me to coach the under-16s water polo boys team. The coaching scholarship which came in 1994 gave me an opportunity to work under the tutelage of the seniors men's coaches at the time,'' he says.
This held him in good stead and he was soon an assistant coach to the Australian water polo team.
Personally, too, he was growing as he 'learned something new from the amateur and seasoned athletes' he had to train.
Though momentarily disillusioned that his team was unable to win a medal for Australia in the last Athens Olympics, he bounced back and took charge of his life.
Someone who gave elite athletes hope and strength, he is now a certified Bikram Yoga trainer coaching people to commitment and action for their fitness needs.
His tenacity, commitment to his goals and his enthusiasm is enough to inspire even the most disillusioned person to begin a plan of action. Lees is sure that ordinary people can achieve extraordinary things if they follow a few simple steps.
The turning point
"You always win by taking the journey. The journey transforms you," says Lees. "Something life-changing happens when you decide to take the journey. If you refuse to quit, you will inevitably find you have hidden resources and abilities within you.''
For Lees, that crossroads moment came when his team returned from the Olympic Games in 2004. "We hadn't achieved what we wanted to. I realised that my priorities in life changed."
It was sometime in early January 2005 that Lees was introduced to Bikram Yoga (in Brisbane) courtesy his girlfriend. At the time he was in the doldrums, his life was going through a trough.
"I wasn't happy in my job, my partner was living in Dubai while I was in Brisbane. I had no idea where I was going in my life," he remarks.
The unhappiness led to stress and his mind lacked peace and tranquillity. "(But) driving home from my first class of Bikram Yoga I knew that I had stumbled on to something special.
"My body and mind felt more relaxed than they had in years. I was filled with a positive energy. I love it because every time you practise a class of Bikram Yoga you learn something new about your body and mind.
"It is an immensely challenging and enriching experience which has led to positive changes in thousands of people's lives around the world. Seeing the changes that it made to my life, I decided to quit my job as an elite water polo coach," says Lees.
What followed was six months of practising the art in Montreal, New York, Amsterdam, London and Hong Kong. He finally mastered the technique with nine weeks of intensive training with the Bikram Yoga Centre centre in Los Angeles. He got back to his first love - coaching - but this time with a different dimension to it.
"I get a high seeing the improvement in body and mind that a student gets with consistent practice ... Knowing that I am playing a part in helping someone make a positive change in their life is the ultimate reward.''
An intense workout
Bikram Yoga is a sequence of 26 classic yoga postures and two breathing exercises designed to scientifically warm and stretch your muscles, ligaments and tendons in the order in which they should be stretched.
It is a challenging, exciting and vigorous 90-minute series created for everyone, regardless of their fitness level, body type or experience. The series systematically moves fresh, oxygenated blood through your body, restoring and maintaining a healthy system.
Coaches are normally sportsmen who are fulfilling their dreams through others. How did you take up this career?
As a young Aussie kid, I had a passion for swimming. An association with water polo became an instant attraction.
Although I always dreamt of going to the Olympics, I missed the boat as an athlete during my university life. At the age of 20, I made a decision that I would pursue a career in coaching.
I was in a good position to do so as I was nearing the end of a Human Movement Studies degree, and was coaching a number of junior teams while still playing.
I decided to leave University and was offered a full-time Coaching Scholarship at the Australian Institute of Sport in 1994 (at the age of 22).
I was fortunate to spend a year in Canberra, with the Australian Senior Men's water polo team coaches as my mentors. It was a real fast track in my coaching career. I returned to Brisbane in 1995 and was immediately employed as an elite coach.
In 1996, I was appointed assistant coach to the Australian junior men's water polo team, including a fourth placing at the Junior World Championships in Havana, Cuba in 1997. Things just kept moving forward from there.
Wasn't it an intimidating experience being a young coach to senior or more experienced athletes?
When I was 20 years old, Queensland State's body offered me to coach the under-16s water polo boys team. The coaching scholarship which came in 1994 gave me an opportunity to work under the tutelage of the seniors men's coaches at the time.
As a 22-year-old, it was quite intimidating since I had not achieved what they had achieved. Second, I was quite younger than them. I managed to develop a strong working relationship with the athletes.
We developed a mutual respect and passion for the sport and the goal we had in common. Work hard, listen and always be willing to learn were my paradigms. I realised that you never know everything, there is always something new to learn from everyone you meet.
Any physical techniques...?
Making the athletes physically prepared for competition, I would try anything to get them fitter, faster, stronger and tougher.
If I were to get back into elite coaching I would make it compulsory for the athletes to do Bikram Yoga at least twice per week. It is physically and mentally one of the most challenging forms of exercise that I have seen, with far-reaching benefits for total athletic improvement.
For me, it is very important for an athlete to be a well-rounded and balanced individual. Stay focused on your sport, achieving your goals but also try your hand at other
dimensions which life has to offer.
Do not get so carried away with your goals, that you completely disown and sacrifice your family. They will always be around for you, even after the event of your life.
Bikram Yoga: Some postures
Although all of the postures are equally important, here's a brief outline on three:
Balancing Stick Posture (Tulandandasana)
A balancing posture performed on one leg. With the arms locked against the ears, one leg is raised to create a straight line with the upper torso. In this posture, torso, leg and hands are parallel to the floor.
Benefits:
It increases cardiovascular circulation, especially to heart blood vessels. It may help clear blocked arteries and may prevent future cardiac problems. Since it creates a total spine stretch, it relieves stress from spine. This pose exercises the pancreas, spleen, liver, nervous, circulatory system and builds strength in the legs.
Floor Bow Pose (Dhanurasana)
Lying on the stomach, bend the legs up and grab both feet from behind. Kick the feet up and back towards the ceiling and squeeze the shoulder blades back together.
Benefits:
It increases circulation to the heart and lungs and subsequently improves oxygen intake by opening the diaphragm and expands the chest region. It also opens the shoulder joint and helps frozen shoulder conditions. It increases spinal strength and flexibility and tone of spinal muscles.
This revitalises spinal nerves by increasing circulation to spine. It reduces abdominal fat and strengthens abdominal muscles.
It helps cure or relieve lumbago, rheumatism, arthritis and menstrual problems. It also strengthens concentration and mental determination, helping develop internal balance and harmony.
Half Tortoise Pose (Ardha Kurmasana)
Sit on your heels, with knees together. Arms come up over the head and palms glued together. With a straight spine the body is bent forward from the waist until the forehead and little fingers are touching the floor. The arms are stretched forward and hips back to the heels.
Benefits:
Basically a rejuvenation pose providing maximum relaxation, it also assists in relieving digestion problems and constipation. While it stretches the lower part of the lungs, it increases lung capacity and is excellent for respiratory conditions.
It firms the abdomen and thighs, increases flexibility of hip joints. Also, it relieves stress and migraines, helps with insomnia.
Note: These exercises should be undertaken only after consulting your doctor.
