It was May 2019, I was currently enrolled in my 300 hour yoga teacher training.
We were learning how to teach pranayama - breathwork.
After completing a pranayama exercise, consisting of 3 rounds totaling 30 minutes - I asked my teacher "How long should we being practicing these exercises?"
He said whether it's pranayama or meditation, always practice until you get to the natural point of wanting to quit - and then keep going. In fact, keep going until you double the total time from there.
He said, "the magic happens when you push past the point of resistance."
Wow.
This message stuck with me.
4 years have passed, and while I still follow this recommendation with meditation and pranayama - I'm seeing this guideline pop up in other areas of my life as well.
I was 3 weeks into a 5 week stay in a remote town in southern Costa Rica.
Punta Banco sits on the coast, but backs up to a rural jungle as well.
Poisonous snakes, howler monkeys, anteaters & more - the environment isn't for the weak of heart.
After 3 weeks of itchy bug bites, never feeling clean due to the humidity and open air facilities, lack of cell service & more - I was about at the point of wanting to quit, the point of resistance.
But I remembered my yoga teacher, almost exactly 4 years prior, reminding me to not quit too soon. "Don't quit before the miracle happens," although, I'm not sure what miracle I was exactly looking for.
Sure, I was at a pivotal point in my life - I had quit my 9-5, ended a relationship with the man I thought I was going to marry, & had buried my grandma months prior.
But what kind of miracle can really happen in 2 additional weeks in Costa Rica?
The universe always has you on the right path.
The universe always has you on the right timeline.
And I believe that.
I was called to Costa Rica, and wanting to leave this trip 2 weeks early was my anxiety speaking - not my intuition.
So I challenged myself to stay.
And I'm glad I did.
Staying the full 5 weeks not only gave me the satisfaction of making it when things got tough, sticking things through, etc - but it also gave me lessons and growth I wouldn't have been able to predict.
Fast forward to where I currently am as I write this article - Alaska.
My 86 year old grandfather and I drove ~3200 miles from Colorado to get here.
I knew it would be tough - I tried to set the expectations with myself early.
I mean come on, ~3200 miles is already a tough feat, then you add unkept roads, no gas stations for hundreds of miles, wild animals on the roads - it's bound to be mentally (and physically) challenging.
On about day 6 of the drive, I found myself questioning quitting, once again.
Now, maybe this is just a character flaw of mine - wanting to quit.
Maybe this is a fight or flight response.
Either way, I found myself here again. And I found myself pushing through the resistance and keepin' on keepin' on.
Life is full of tough challenges, but oftentimes, the biggest reward is on the other side of the difficulty.
If we always quit when the going got tough, we wouldn't find 90% of the lessons that were meant to grow us into the humans we were always meant to be.
So, I challenge you to push through the resistance - whatever that may look like in your life.
Push through the resistance of meditation, push through the resistance of learning a new skill, push through the resistance of a long trip away from home.
Remember that the universe never gives you more than you can handle.
You got this.
I love you.
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