Coby Kozlowski - One Degree Revolution: How the Wisdom of Yoga Inspires Small Shifts That Lead to Big Changes

Imagine for a moment that were all on a boat. Even though weve set a course for a particular destination, what would happen if we changed that course just one degree? How far from our original trajectory would we be in one year? Five years? Ten years? Twenty years? Thirty years? Fifty years? Well, you would end up in a totally different place.

What if I told you that you can shift the course of your life entirely by this same proverbial one degreemaking a small course shift in one area of your life, or many? Over time, these small shifts will lead to big changes. The question is, where do you start? What do you need to investigate to find where you can make these small shifts?

This level of inquiry is the basis for what I call a one degree revolution; the starting point at which you can make small shifts to the way you are living that can lead to profound changes. Im not asking you to do a complete transformation of every aspect of your life. Instead youll see that by looking at your actions and intentions, you may discover something new about yourself and how you function in this world.

So where do we begin? For me, the teachings of yoga, and its applications to the modern world, offer the most meaningful, powerful, and impactful lessons. And Im not talking about the yoga you might be doing on the mat. Thats why this is not a yoga book, yet it is.

When people learn that I lead yoga workshops and train yoga teachers at some of the most established wellness centers, conferences, and festivals across the globe, most assume that means Im leading downward-facing dog or some other asana, or posture, most of the day. I do believe the physical practice is a great doorway into this beautiful world of yoga, and the asanas can be beneficial to supporting and enhancing the way you feel about your entire being. Yet thats not the version of yoga Im offering you in this book. It is not what I mean to convey when I tell people Im a contemporary yoga and meditation educator, or how my life has been profoundly influenced by yoga.

I didnt realize the complexity and depth that yoga had to offer until I was badly injured in college. I had already been doing yoga for a few years. In fact, I took my first yoga class when I was seventeen. I have always been an athlete: in high school and college I was a marathon runner, triathlete, and a competitive swimmer. I defined myself by how my body performed. Yet I was also a thinkeroften contemplating the meaning of life. To my seventeen-year-old brain, yoga sounded like the perfect mix.

I was intrigued by the mind-body connection, and fascinated by the physical practice. So I got on the mat, and much to my surprise I was truly disappointed: the first class just bored me. I didnt feel relaxed, peaceful, or in tune with my body. I dont know why I kept going, but I did. Eventually, my seventeen-year-old self learned to appreciate the strength, stability, fluidity, and introspection within the postures. I liked challenging myself both physically and mentally, whether it was the intensity of doing handstands and arm balances, learning to understand why postures that seemed easy were actually advanced, or fully letting go during relaxation and letting myself simply be.

One day, a few years after that first yoga class, my life changed in an instant. I was seriously injured in college playing Ultimate Frisbee. At the time I thought this was no big deal; I had taken a hard fall, and was supposed to have a routine ACL reconstruction on my knee. Yet for the next six years I was on and off crutches, and I ended up having nine surgeries. After the first surgery there were complications. I also had an allergic reaction to the anesthesia, which impacted both my healing and my vision. I ended up bedridden for three months: my life as I knew it was put on hold. I couldnt move, I couldnt see clearly, and I couldnt do what most other twenty-year-olds were doing. Instead, I was back at my parents house, literally stuck in a bed in the middle of their living room.

Until then I had defined myself as both an athlete and a thinker. I was competitive, assertive, contemplative, and curious. I moved fast, I talked fast; I did just about everything fast. Now that I no longer could use my body in the same way, and with so much time on my hands, I began to go inward and think even more. I wondered a lot about who I was going to be if I couldnt use my physical body in the same way. Who am I really? Why am I here? How do I want to live? What happens when I die?