Michelle Marchildon: Can You Be Cute And Enlightened?

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What to Wear to Practice Yoga: Can you be Cute and Enlightened?

Written by KiraGrace Warrior Ambassador Michelle Marchildon

This is a very serious and important blog about what to wear to practice yoga.

What you choose might be as critical as say, your teacher, your type of yoga and possibly whether or not you believe in karma. Everyone knows that your practice is only as good as your pants.

Waaaaaait a minute! What? Relax, I’m joking. Before the whole world writes in to say something about the Yamas and Niyamas, and how I’m a bad person for even suggesting you can have fun with what you wear, please know I’m a very serious yogi.I just take myself lightly.

You see, I come from a long line of cute. My grandmother taught me matchy-matchy and for the life of me I can’t shake it. That and big hair. I like big hair, I cannot lie. It drives my stylist crazy.

This has not been to my advantage in yoga.

In Colorado there is an understanding, and I believe it started 2000 years ago in Mysore or Boulder, that the truly enlightened are too busy being spiritual to be stylish. In fact, they are too busy meditating to shower. When I arrive looking adorable people think I am stupid. Here is an actual excerpt of a review of my book:

“This book is brilliant, which you wouldn’t think it would be just by looking at Michelle.”

Right? Apparently, you cannot be fabulous and be taken seriously at the same time.

In Arizona, it is the same. I often visit YogaOasis in Tucson, and one time I walked in and this dude said, “Every time I see you, you look like some kind of model.”

Um, I am not oblivious. I know that “model” is code for “moron.” But as Einstein said, you could choose to live life as though everything was a miracle, or as if nothing was a miracle, and I choose to be fabulous, which is a freaking miracle at my age. BTW, I’m quoting Einstein. I am not a moron!

In my first yoga teacher training the instructor made it absolutely clear that it was not okay to be cute. He said that if you are becoming a teacher to get a discount on the clothes, then you are basically a terrible person.

He added that yoga was not about the pants. So I’m guessing he has never seen himself from behind?

Here’s the thing: if my outfit is so awful that I look like I am homeless, or possibly a hipster, then I can’t concentrate on being yogic. My mind can’t disengage because it’s screaming at me, “OMG LOOK AT YOUR BUTT.”

When I visit Los Angeles everyone knows it’s okay to be cute and practice yoga. I went to a local studio and I was the only one who did not have her hair and makeup done. To keep up with those beautiful yogis, I spent an hour primping for a video at YogaGlo, and then promptly got sweaty and went upside down. Oy.

In Long Island, unambiguously the Hamptons, I noticed that the yogis there wear a lot of bling. I know this because instead of doing whatever the instructor asked us to do with our eyes closed, I was checking everyone out. Yeah, I know you are not supposed to do that.

Then the yogis got into an argument:

Yogi with Bling: “I am a yoga teacher, and I can tell you were over-efforting.

Yogi with Better Bling:“I am a teacher too, and you were over-efforting more than me.”

I don’t know everything about enlightenment, but I do know that this conversation has nothing to do with whether the ladies are matchy-matchy, because it is very judgy-judgy.

We are who we are and there are many roads to enlightenment. I choose the one lined with fabulous pants. I do not know for sure that I will get “there,” or where “there” is. But I want to look good for the ride. As long as I can breathe, and perhaps sport a few polka dots on my pants, I’ll be spiritual and stylish when I arrive.

Michelle Marchildon is the Yogi Muse. She is the author of “Finding More on the Mat: How I Grew Better, Wiser and Stronger through Yoga,” and “Theme Weaver: Connecting the Power of Inspiration to Teaching Yoga.” Even though she is a yogi, she is uber-fabulous. She wears KiraGrace because the clothes are cute and the company is yogic too. 

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