Gaiam Influencer Cat Golden - This is my Yoga

by: Cat Golden

Hi! My name is Cat, and I used to be the biggest yoga naysayer. However, at the age of twenty-eight I needed an outlet physically and mentally while trying to heal and recover from my divorce. I had a friend who was a yoga instructor and was always encouraging me to try it, yet to her dismay I never would. I was afraid of looking stupid, not having the right outfit, not knowing the names of any of the poses and honestly just falling flat on my face. I’m beyond grateful she never gave up on me and kept encouraging me to give yoga a chance. Yoga has been one of the greatest outlets, stress relievers and healing times for my body and mind.

My yoga practice has transitioned over the years as I have grown and evolved. I originally loved pushing it my edge and did a lot of yoga sculpt, yet in the past year I’ve transitioned into a more restorative and meditative form of yoga.

I left Denver in 2016 after a nine year stint in the Mile High City to return to my hometown of Detroit. I was sad and nervous to start over again, leave my friends in Denver and have to find a new fitness community when I so loved the one I had built in the Mile High City. However, I’m grateful that many of my worries never come to fruition as I connected with the most amazing group of health conscious men and women in Detroit. My one friend, Bre, is a yoga instructor who coined the phrase, “This is my Yoga,” which means she finds a form of yoga everywhere. 

I love the concept of “This is My Yoga.” It’s a way of living I had come to adopt in my everyday life, yet never knew how to describe it. As my yoga practice continues to develop, I’ve found that it’s helped me more off of my mat than on it. Little things that used to ruin my day or stress me out don’t seem to matter. I’m able to find happiness in a great almond milk latte, laughing with a friend, or the sound of the Detroit River.

Since moving back to Detroit, I founded Nine Lives Health & Mind. My business was birthed out of a desire to encourage others to be the best version of themselves by feeling their best mentally and physically. While I still love time spent on my mat, I love finding my yoga anywhere I am. My yoga wasn’t only in Denver or even in Detroit for that matter. My yoga is inside of me, which is the best feeling. And it’s inside of you too. What is your yoga?

Cat Golden is the founder of Nine Lives Health & Mind, Detroit native and Crystal Director at Isagenix and believes in living life by your own design. Follow along at @nineliveshealth.